The Saga of Team Supernova (rated PG 13)

[1# manga fan!]

cliff hanger.

I hate cliff hangers.

anyways bringing Whishcash in was nice, but, correct me if I'm wrong, shouldn't Whishcash still think that their outcasts? probobly the quick to forgive type? but he never mentioned it. and dose the team want to rescue their rivals or one-up them you didn't really make that very clear in this chapter.

Other than all that crap, it was a nice additon to the fanfic.

I would have posted sooner if I didn't have to leave for NY so early!

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Slipomatic: Yeah. I tried to make the place a bleak kind of landscape. Since it is always battered by storms and all. As for the battle, I'm coming with all sorts of excellent ideas for it. I essentially scrapped the nsider version to make way for what i have planned. So exciting! ^^

1# manga fan!: I love cliffhangers! At least when I write them. ^^

Nope. Whiscash was never against Team Supernova. If you remember, Team Charge-Net spent a lot of time with him, and they always told him good things about them. That and he was never in the village during the incident. So he never really developed a dislike for them, and when he heard the bad stories about them, he knew there must have been a reason.

And Team Supernova wants to rescue Team Supreme for several reasons. One reason is because they genuinly don't want to see them killed. I don't think you would want that either. They know that Kyogre is not the cause of the warming climate. Also, the last time the had a confrontation with each other, they kind of worked together after a disaster interfered (avalanche on Mount Freeze). So they didn't really part on bad terms.

Hope that explains everything. ^^ I know it would be easy to forget as those chapters were posted a long time ago.

[kinger810]

Aww, Focus you shouldn't have! But um... thanks any way. Lol you posted the last chapter one day before my Birthday. Just don't make us all wait to Christmas to give us all the gift of another chapter! Just kidding

Anyway great fic here so far! The characters are really good and the story always keeps me wanting to read the next chapter.

Heh, I think this is one chapter after I left off on Nsider, so now I can pretty much pick up from where I left off.

By the way could you add me to the PM list? Thank you!

Well I better go now. I need to go find some pokemon of my own to annoy and interrupt me while I'm trying to review

Edit: Opps.. almost forgot to ask. how many chapters did you have back on Nsider?

[Blademaster_Jale]

*materializes from the shadows*
Miss me?

Well, I am back! ...Kind of.
I just poked my head in to see what was new and figured I'd read your late(st) chapter!

Overall, I think this was a pretty good chapter. Good length, good descriptions, good dialog, etc. You had tons of punctuation errors, though. The main problem was misplacing commas, along with some stray question marks and exclamation points. I would point everything out but I have some prior engagements, sorry

Really, I'm finding it harder and harder to remember to check back here; most of my internet time is now being spent on NSider2.

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

kinger810: lol. Don't worry. I won't celebrate Christmas with the next chapter. I was planning it to be new years! ^^

I had about 35 chapters when Nsider shut down. However, because of the number of changes I've made I might reach that point in the plot earlier.

Blademaster_Jale: Really? How numerous are these errors? Thanks for the heads up BTW. Do you think once you have time you could edit in or post the mistakes you've noticed? It would be much appreciated.

[Blademaster_Jale]

You asked for it

    Spoiler:- Critique:

Show Spoiler

 

“That’s the last time we go surfing on your back, Croconaw!” she shouted angrily, pointing a damp wing towards him.

Add a comma after "back."

Looking more closely, he could see that the clouds were gradually moving to the east, back to from where they had come, towards the village.

Bold part seems awkward. Try "back to where they had come from."

“It’s not my fault we ran into rough water by the end of it. This is called 'Stormy Sea', for a reason.”

Croconaw's sentence is in the first set of quotation marks, so something he quotes (In this example, the name "Stormy Sea") should be in apostrophes.

There weren't very many errors besides those until you get closer to the end, so I'll skip ahead a little.

Tristan turned to peak around the rock for a second time....

...The other Pokemon, who was farthest away from them, was a deep blue coloured fish with long yellow whiskers and yellow shaped “w” on his forehead.

These were in the same paragraph, so I put them together. "Peak" is synonymous to "summit", while "peek" means to look. You meant "peek" here but put an "a" in by mistake, something a spell-check wouldn't pick up.

Also, the description of Whiscash could use some work. "Yellow shaped 'w'" is my main point here; yellow's not a shape!
Try "A yellow 'W' shape on his forehead"

Tristan rolled his eyes. Why did everyone have to make such a big deal out of this simple expression. He didn’t use it that often.

Three periods in a row, and all three could be replaced with something else to give these sentences a bit more life. Give this a shot:

Tristan rolled his eyes; why did everyone have to make such a big deal out of this simple expression? He didn’t use it that often...

The ellipses at the end isn't necessary, but the other two punctuation marks would definitely help.

“Ah! So you are Team Supernova! The team that I’ve been hearing so much about!” the old fish exclaimed. “Finally, I get the chance to meet you! I’ve heard so many good things about you from Plusle, Caterpie, and especially Minun!”

A bit of overuse of exclamation points here. Again, trade a few of them out for question marks and whatnot.

"Ah... So you are Team Supernova, the team that I've been hearing so much about!"

That should be enough

Imagine my horror when the entire village fell into the sea! Never did I imagine that something like that would ever happen!

You left out the quotation mark at the end, and the exclamation point there doesn't seem to fit. Try an ellipsis instead.

“Okay...?” Tochic replied slowly. “What’re we gonna do about it then?”

“Well-” Croconaw said before being cut off.

Tristan stepped forward so that he was directly in front of the rock in question. “Whoever’s back there!” he stated. “You have to the count of five before we beat the crap out of you!”

Nothing wrong here, I just like this part

Both of his team mates jaws dropped in disbelief, but the threat had done his trick.

Add an apostrophe at the end of "mates" to make it possessive, and change "his" to "its."

How many more villagers were still wandering amongst the rocks.

Needs a question mark.

“You don’t have more of those do you?” Torchic asked curiously.

“Only a few,” Whiscash answered. “I think now would be an appropriate time to use it don’t you?”

Add commas after the bold words.

I’m not gonna turn around after all this?

I don't think Torchic is asking a question. She seems pretty sure of herself. :P

Well, that should do it. I think I missed a few, but now that you know what to look for I'm sure you can find them yourself.
 

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

You asked for it

That I did. I am very grateful for it too. This is very helpful. Thank you very much. =)

I've gone over and addressed your points of concern. I will, perhaps later on go over it again to see if there is anything more to fix.

Nothing wrong here, I just like this part

I'm guessing it caught you by surprise then? Not to worry. It caught Tide and Ashley by surprise too! XD

[BreakingBenjamin]

Hello ~

I was just wondering about the status of this epic Fanfiction of yours. I can see that nothing has been posted in this thread for a while so I just figured I'd pop in and ask.

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Hello ~

I was just wondering about the status of this epic Fanfiction of yours. I can see that nothing has been posted in this thread for a while so I just figured I'd pop in and ask.

Well hello there new reader. It is good to see that you enjoyed my fanfic.

I suppose it is long overdue for me to give a status report on my fanfic. Sadly, as you pointed out, it has been inactive for quite sometime... ='(

But it definitely isn't dead. The reason for my absence is because I've needed to put my fanfic aside for a while for the sake of school. I am glad to announce however, that 4 out of my 5 exams are over. My last one is on the 21st of December. I will definitely make it a goal of mine to see that a chapter is finished (or maybe even two depending on several factors) this holiday.

Thank you all for being so patient! And sorry for keeping you all waiting so long!

[kinger810]

Well you did say New Years, so your not late yet!

[BreakingBenjamin]

Well hello there new reader. It is good to see that you enjoyed my fanfic.

I suppose it is long overdue for me to give a status report on my fanfic. Sadly, as you pointed out, it has been inactive for quite sometime... ='(

But it definitely isn't dead. The reason for my absence is because I've needed to put my fanfic aside for a while for the sake of school. I am glad to announce however, that 4 out of my 5 exams are over. My last one is on the 21st of December. I will definitely make it a goal of mine to see that a chapter is finished (or maybe even two depending on several factors) this holiday.

Thank you all for being so patient! And sorry for keeping you all waiting so long

!

Ah, well that's good to hear! Oh, and my no means am I rushing you! I understand that genius isn't instantaneous. It takes time, ha ha! I look forward to reading more (Especially about Ashley. She's my favorite. ). And I know I'm a tad bit late, but I hope you did well on your exams. I know how taxing and arduous they can be. >_<

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Hello all! No this fic is not dead yet! I am pleased to announce that IT LIVES! And to prove it to you I will be posting a brand new chapter in just a few moments! Thank you for your patience and I am very sorry to keep you all waiting.

I would also like to say this is a chapter that I've been very eager to post ever since I finished the last one. It was just a case of my mind not being able to connect with my fingers that was the problem here. That aside, it was quite thrilling to write once I became motivated again. I hope it will be a thrilling read for you all too.

Please standby... the chapter will arrive shortly...

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Chapter 26


Stormy Times. The Doomed Battle.

After what seemed like ages, the team had finally reached their destination. Team Supreme now stood before the entrance of the supposed resting place of the legendary creator of the oceans, Kyogre.

Their mission was simple. To go in, confirm whether it was the cause of the disasters, and get out. Put simply, they were to see if it was awake or asleep. To be asleep meant it was dormant, as it should be. Awake, and they had their cause for the disasters.

A single arch, slightly narrower than the tunnel, marked the exit. The red line that they'd followed since the entrance, forked into three, with one continuing through the exit and out into open air beyond and the others parting to either side of the exit then climbing up the arch and join at a small circle at the top. It was a strange sight to see open air so far beneath the surface. Stranger still was that the light of day could also be seen. All they could see as to what was beyond was a blue floor, covered with a thin layer of water.

As if they hadn’t gotten enough of that already, Machop thought.

Quietly, he set down the toolbox, crept along the wall to the edge of the tunnel and peered outside. He was quietly joined by Misdreavus and Aipom. The sight before them stole their breath.

A vast, circular expanse lay before them, easily large enough to accommodate the entire village. At first glance, it looked as if the deep blue floor was covered with a thin layer of water, but looking closer they could see places where there wasn’t even a floor at all. Just water that plunged to even greater depths. How deep did these waters go? It looked as if it went on forever. The deep water encircled one large hole in the center in rings. More red lines circled around this hole too, indicating where the floor was. The red line that they had been following went straight forward, laying a path through the deep water up until the hole where it joined the innermost red ring. Red lines in other places cut through the deep water as well, forming a sort of fanning pattern.

A tall blue metallic wall surrounded the space, creating an almost claustrophobic feeling even though the place was so open. The wall stopped a ways up, with another rising a little ways behind it. This continued in a stepped bowl shape until far in the distance they could see the rim of the final and outermost wall, the one they had seen when entering. Never could they have guessed that this was what waited behind it. The thought that all the water of the oceans was being held back by this wall was awe inspiring and at the same time, frightening. If anything were to happen to them, they could kiss the world goodbye.

The clouds were pitch black, and hung low in the sky. They swirled quickly, directly above the hole in the center of the floor. There was barely any light coming from the sky now, but still enough to see. Thunder rumbled overhead, with the clouds lighting up every so often in bright flashes.

Above all else, though, the thing that awed them the most was the object suspended above the hole. It was held up by a giant blue structure that arched from the wall on one side of the space to the other. The structure was flat, and had the same pattern of lines as the floor below it did. More red lines ran along it until they all met at the center where the structure formed a horizontal ring. Resting on the ring was the object, a mammoth blue metallic sphere. Machop had difficulty imaging how massive it was. Perhaps as large as Kangaskan storage building used to be? It also gave off a dim blue glow, though what was causing it was a mystery.

For a moment, Machop nearly forgot his mission, only managing to stare. He shook his head in an attempt to regain composure. Kyogre was what they were here for. Kyogre. He scanned over the area for their target of interest. He was told that if he was resting, then he should have been floating in the hole in the center. But there was nothing.

“See anything?” Machop whispered.

“No nothing...” Misdreavus replied.

“Ooh ooh, ah ah! He’s not here?” Aipom asked.

“But... he should be here right?” Machop asked again. “Does anyone know what Kyogre actually looks like?”

“Ooh ooh, no...”

“I never saw him personally, but I have heard about him in myths and legends,” Misdreavus said. “He’s huge. We shouldn’t miss him, even if we didn’t know what he looked like. I heard he has gigantic fins that he used to create tsunamis when he fought Groudon. And that most of his body is covered by a thick blue armour. I’m not sure how much of it is true, but I think it gives a good idea of what he looks like.”

“Blue eh?” Machop remarked, gazing at his surrounding temple. “I never would’ve guessed.”

“Ooh ooh, so what do we do?” Aipom asked.

“I’m thinking,” Machop answered. He looked out into the open air for a minute. No matter how hard he looked he could not see the legendary Pokemon.

“Perhaps he rests underwater?” Misdreavus offered. “After all, he is a water type. I’ll just go out there and have a look around.”

But just as she started moving, Machop stuck out a hand to block her way. “No,” he said. “We don’t know what’s out there. Think of the Pokemon we’re talking about.”

“Oh it’s okay,” Misdreavus said reassuringly. Machop felt far from reassured. “Look, I’m the least detectable of all of us. I don’t even need to touch the water. I’ll just float around out there to see if there’s anything down there. I’ll be back in a minute.”

Machop looked reluctantly back out into the open space. Then back at Misdreavus. He knew he couldn’t go back to the camp with nothing. He had fought for their team to be the one to go. They would lose all respect if they came back without an answer now. But was it worth the risk? Then again, Misdreavus was really good a hiding her appearance. Perhaps there really was nothing to worry about.

“Alright,” Machop said reluctantly. “You can go. But make it quick, and stay high above the water. And if you see the slightest movement, or anything strange starts happening, I want you out of there. Got it?”

She giggled “Yes, Dad, of course. I don’t see why you’re so scared. I’ll be fine.” With that she vanished into thin air. Only a faint ripple in the air gave away where she was.

“She’s not taking this seriously enough,” Machop grumbled angrily. “This is no ordinary mission I got us into. Doesn’t she understand that? Why does she take it so lightly?”

“Ooh ooh... She’ll be fine,” Aipom said. Though he, too, was clutching at the edge of the tunnel nervously. “She’s never let us down before...”

“But like I said, we’ve never been on a mission like this before.”

The two watched as their ghostly companion swept over the water. Soon, she was invisible to them entirely. Machop could only guess at where she was.

“I hate waiting like this...” Machop said. “Isn’t she done yet? What’s taking her so long?”

Just then, a raindrop fell from the sky, landing in the water in front of Machop and Aipom. Then another, and several more. Soon enough, a light rain had started. The two exchanged worried looks. They knew this couldn’t be good. As Machop strained his eyes to try to see her, he noticed a bubble surface from the central hole, then a couple more. Where was she? Did she not see any of this?

“S**t!” Machop exclaimed, springing into action. He sprinted out into the rain, followed closely by Aipom. “Spectra! Get the hell out of there!” he hollered. “We’re leaving right now!”

Misdreavus appeared above the hole. She was so surprised that it caused her to become completely visible again. It was extremely rare for him to call her and Bobo by their nicknames. And when he did they knew it was gravely serious.

She looked down with just enough time to see the water beneath her churning furiously. What had only been a few bubbles moments ago became myriads, causing the water to surge upwards. Acting on instinct, she darted to the side just as a mammoth column of water shot into the air, crashing with the structure above her. If she had been caught in it, she would have undoubtedly been crushed.

But there was no time for relief. Water now came down in a deluge. She could barely see anything. Moments later, the water eased, returning to normal rainfall, though, it was stronger than before. Disoriented, she turned around to see a giant blue fin only a few feet away.

“No! Spectra!” Machop hollered. It had appeared faster than he could have anticipated. A giant whale of a Pokemon had suddenly leapt out of the water, its fin already heaving towards Misdreavus. He saw her turn just in time to catch a glimpse of the fin. It slammed into her, catapulting her to the other end of the enclosure, where she hit the wall with sickening force. Silently, she slid to the floor, where she lay motionless. The splatter of blood remaining on the wall where she had hit.

There was a large splash, and the giant Pokemon was back underwater.

“Spectra... Spectra!” He called out. But there was no response. “Can you hear me? Damnit! Answer me!” Still no response. This wasn’t happening. This was his fault. He let this happen to her. He should have known better. With all his might he sprinted for his wounded team-mate, always aware of where the deep water was.

Just then, more bubbles surfaced nearby. Machop froze as before him the giant Pokemon emerged from the water. He glared at him with piercing yellow eyes from under his thick blue armour. This was the first time he was actually able to get a good look at him. Misdreavus was right. He was huge. It was larger than any Pokemon he had ever seen. Even larger than a number of the buildings at the village.

Red lines ran along his body, particularly over his fins, which themselves were about half the size of his body. The pattern they formed was similar to the pattern that the red lines formed on the floor and structure in this space.

“You... dare... disturb... my... slumber...?” his deep voice boomed. As he spoke the water around them became alive with ripples and the ground shook.

“S-slumber?” Machop repeated. So this must’ve meant that he was sleeping after all. If only they had been able to figure this out without waking him up.

“Yes!” Kyogre answered. “You... have... trespassed... into... my... domain! Now... you... shall... die!” The giant Pokemon reared up, water gushing at his mouth as he prepared for another attack.

“Split!” he cried to Aipom. They both leapt in opposite directions just as Kyogre released his attack. A torrent of water left his mouth, blasting across the the floor. Machop could feel the mist behind him as he dove and rolled to safety. That was too close.

Machop’s mind was racing now. This was the worst thing that could happen. Not only did they somehow awaken the legendary, but they also managed to anger him too. And there was still Misdreavus to tend to. He did something he rarely ever did. He prayed to Arceus that she was still alive.

He glanced back to see where Kyogre had gone. No sign of him. He must have submerged again. If only he could reach Misdreavus and escape somehow, then they would have accomplished their goal. Kyogre was not the one who changed the weather. But what would happen now that he was awake?

“Bobo!” he called over to the purple monkey. “We’re leaving! I’m going to get Spectra! Try to buy us some time!”

“Ooh ooh!” Aipom responded, raising his hand to his forehead in a salute.

Machop turned his attention to Misdreavus. He wasn’t that far away now. All he had to do was grab her, and get out.

There was a loud splash of water. Machop turned to see that Kyogre was in the air again, this time higher than before. With his underside facing up, he arched his way from one section of deep water to another. A second later, and he was directly above Aipom. Before either of them realized it, a column of water shot out of his blowhole. It was the same attack he used the first time on Misdreavus! But this time it hit its mark, catching Aipom off guard.

“No!” Machop cried in anguish. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Was this really happening? He wished so desperately that it was just a horrible nightmare. A large splash signaled that Kyogre was back in the water, but all Machop was focussed on was the crippled body of Aipom, lying motionless on his back.

The rain was falling harder than ever, with the flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder becoming ever more frequent. Standing there, he looked between Misdreavus and Aipom, unsure of who to help first. Neither of them were moving. Oh why was this happening?

As Machop hesitated, more bubbles surfaced nearby. He looked over to see Kyogre surfacing once more, this time his furious glare fixed on him. It was his turn...

***

Stairs, stairs more stairs. How far did they have to go before they reached the bottom? It felt as is they’d be running forever. More importantly, though, how long would it take before they reached Team Supreme? They’d hoped to catch up with them before they reached Kyogre, but with every step they took the more they lost hope that they would make it in time.

Tristan lead the way as they continued down the dark passage, their only visual aid being the red line on the floor that glowed and faded in waves. But there was something strange up ahead. He squinted to better see it. Still a fair ways down, the red line split into three.

“Hey! I think I see something!” Tristan called back.

“Yeah,” Croconaw answered, “I see it too!”

“What is it?” Torchic asked.

“Beats me,” said Tristan. But whatever it was, it was certainly something different than what they’d been following for hours now.

A low rumble began to resonate around them. A roaring sound so deep, Tristan could feel the floor begin to vibrate, as if trembling in fear. It grew steadily louder, causing all three of them to have to stop to avoid losing their footing.

“What’s going on?” Tristan yelled above the noise.

“I dunno!” Croconaw yelled back. “But I don’t like it!”

The sound suddenly diminished, but still left Tristan’s ears ringing with pain. Croconaw wasn’t the only one who had a bad feeling about this. It must have meant they were too late, he was sure of it. Team Supreme had already reached Kyogre. As much as he wanted to prevent it, he’d always had a feeling deep down that this would happen.

“What now?” Torchic asked. “Do we keep going?”

“Of course!” Tristan replied. “We’ve come this far already. We can’t turn back now!”

“What if it’s too late?” Croconaw asked.

“We won’t know till we get there,” Tristan answered hurriedly. “Now let’s go!”

The three discussed no further, and moved on, drawing ever closer to the fork in the red line. Beyond it, Tristan could also see something else. An archway. And beyond that, open space. A flash of light illuminated the space beyond. Lightning? It was followed shortly after by a low rumble. Thunder! It sounded like there was a storm ahead, but... how could there be when they were so far below the sea?

The stairs finally leveled off, leaving them only several strides left before the passage ended. A draft of cool wet air rushed passed them, causing Tristan to hesitate. He hated rain. He’d only experienced it once as a Pokemon, but it was enough for him to know he never wanted to feel it again. At least it didn’t seem to be raining as hard as that one night.

Just before the exit a toolbox lay on the floor, undoubtedly Team Supreme’s.

“Are you guys sure you wanna go through with this?” Croconaw asked. “I’d have no problem out there, but you two...”

Both Tristan and Torchic exchanged looks. He was hoping that she’d be thinking the same way he was. Lives were at stake after all. Surely that was worth a bit of pain. She looked back out, closed her eyes and nodded.

“I’m not sure much help I will be, especially if it comes to a fight... But... I’m sure I can handle a little rain.”

“Alright,” Croconaw said hurriedly, dropping their own toolbox. “Just reach in there and grab something.”

Tristan did as he said, reaching into the toolbox like the other three. He pulled out a seed and a berry.

“I’ve got a quick seed and an oran berry” Tristan said. In his haste he had only grabbed two things. He looked again to see if there was anything to wear, but there was nothing.

“I’ve got my detect band, a cross eye seed and an few iron thorns,” Croconaw said.

“I’ve got...” Torchic said. “Same as Tristan. And I’ve got my old defense scarf” In fact it was the same scarf that Torchic had worn to Mount Blaze. The scarf that had been burnt by Moltres. He was surprised to see that both of them still had these items.

“I still need a scarf or a band...” Tristan said.

“Well...” Croconaw replied, hesitating. They all looked at Team Supreme’s box, laying open on the floor. “Just check in there.”

Tristan followed the advice and opened the box. And from it he pulled out a light grey band with a slight sheen to it. The moment he put it on a sort of a strange barrier appeared around him. “This would be a...” he started.

“A zinc band,” Torchic answered.

“A wha?” Tristan asked.

“It’s like the scarf Torchic has,” Croconaw said. “It reduces damage in in ways the defense scarf can’t, but leaves you exposed in ways the defense scarf would protect you.” He looked back at Tristan. “They both should also reduce the effect that the rain has on you. So it kinda worked out in a way.”

Tristan nodded. He was pretty sure he understood. He’d heard of two kinds of defenses before, so for once he didn’t feel completely lost.

Tristan was the first to leave the tunnel. A chill suddenly overcame them, and immediately he could feel the cold wet, drops of water hitting his skin. As Croconaw said, it didn’t feel as bad as he thought it would. Now to find Team Supreme.

“There!” Croconaw shouted, pointing ahead of them. There, they could see Machop lying face first in the water. Something didn’t look right though. His leg was bent in a strange way.

“Is he...” Torchic asked.

But just as she was about to say the dreaded word, they heard a small groan. Machop’s arms struggle to push his limp body up. Without another second they rushed to his side.

“Machop!” Croconaw cried. “What happened?”

“Wh... wha...?” he moaned. Through squinting eyes he looked up to see the members of his rival team. “... you...”

“Here, take this,” Tristan said, literally shoving the oran berry into his mouth.

“Sure, go ahead. No need to be gentle or anything,” Torchic whispered.

Tristan ignored her. “We should take him out of the rain.” He said.

Tristan was suddenly grabbed in the scarf by the injured fighting type. He looked down in surprise to see that Machop was crying. “Please...” he moaned. “Aipom... Misdreavus... they’re... they’re all I’ve got! They’re... they’re gonna die!”

“Don’t worry,” Tristan answered. “We’ll save them, and then we’ll get you out of here.”

“Kyogre...” he struggled to say, but he was losing consciousness. “Unbelievable... we didn’t... stand a chance...” Moments later he was out like a light.

“I’ll take him back,” Croconaw said, slinging him over his shoulders with relative ease. “You two should look for Aipom and Misdreavus.” Both Tristan and Torchic nodded.

“Where... do... you... think... you... are... going...?” A deep voice boomed after Croconaw had taken a couple steps.

Ahead of them, the water surged up in a myriad of bubbles, and from it emerged the largest Pokemon Tristan had ever seen. They stared wide eyed at the Pokemon of legends.

“Speak!” the mammoth Pokemon bellowed after a moment of silence.

“W-we’ve come to take these Pokemon away!” Torchic answered. “They’re... they really caused problems back in our village! We’ve been chasing them for a while so we could capture them!”

Tristan whipped around in surprise. That wasn’t what they were doing at all! “Torchic!” Tristan exclaimed.

“Not now!” She hissed under her breath. “We’ll get nowhere if we say we’re here to save them!”

“Oh...” Tristan said, feeling slightly embarrassed He turned back to Kyogre. “Yes!” he said. “That’s why we’re here! They’ve been causing us all sorts of trouble. That’s why we need to take them back.”

“These... three... belong... to... me!” the legendary roared! “You... will... do... no... such... thing!”

“Now what?” Tristan whispered.

“Thinking,” Torchic replied.

“Well...” Croconaw spoke out. “We just thought that you would have more important things to do than dealing with these lowlifes. So we also came to take them off your fins while you... went on to... your lord of the sea... stuff.”

“Very convincing Croconaw,” Torchic whispered. “Especially that little bit at the end there. Pure genius.”

“You... will... do... as... I... say!” Kyogre demanded. “Or... you... shall... die... too!”

“This isn’t working,” Tristan said. “We need a new plan. Croconaw, what does that cross eye thing do?”

“It causes whoever eats it go all woozy and makes them see things.”

“Will it work on a Pokemon this size?”

“I have no idea.”

“It’s worth a try. When he opens his mouth, throw it in.”

Croconaw responded with a nod.

“What about me?” Torchic asked.

“Be ready to bite down on that quick seed. When Kyogre is confused we’ll take that chance to run for Misdreavus and Aipom.”

“And I’ll distract him if he recovers before that,” Croconaw said.

“Alright,” Tristan said.

“Enough!” Kyogre roared in a rage., causing the floor to shake again. Water splashed everywhere in addition to the rain that was already falling.

“Now!” Tristan cried.

Croconaw knew his cue. He clutched onto the seed with a firm grip, then hurled it into the legendary’s open mouth. Kyogres mouth snapped shut the moment it made contact with his tongue. The team could only watch and hope that it had worked.

Kyogre’s eyes began to drift, then dart from place to place. “You...” he growled as his eyes fixated on an empty space of air. “Why... are... you... here?” The mammoth Pokemon turned around eyes still fixed on some invisible being. Under normal circumstances Tristan would have wondered what it was he was imagining. But right now there were more important things to think about.

“Let’s go!” Tristan shouted. Quickly, both Tristan and Torchic flicked the quick seeds into their mouths. “I’ll go for Aipom.”

“Then I’ll go for Misdreavus!”

Both of them darted off, leaving Croconaw to bring Machop to safety.

Things were working out so far, Tristan thought. The only thing that proved to be a drag was the rain. But still, he never thought they would be able to pull something like this off against such a powerful Pokemon.

While he ran, he looked up towards the giant structure that hanged over the water. He didn’t get the chance to take a good look at it till now. Another spark of lightning shot from the sky. Tristan braced himself, thinking it would be attracted to him. Instead, the lightning hit the ball on top of the structure. Did it too have properties that attracted lightning like he did? He had no time to think about it. Currently, he had almost reached Aipom.

From behind, he could hear the roar of Kyogre. The rain suddenly came down stronger, and as he looked back, he could see Kyogre’s gaze directed dead on him. Had the effect of the seed worn off already? But it was hardly any time at all! The legendary disappeared beneath the surface, scaring him even more.

Finally Tristan reached Aipom. As he tried to pick him up it was clear that he was in terrible shape. His body was battered and bruised, and parts of his body bent where they clearly shouldn’t have.

Now all he had to do was make it back he thought as he lifted the purple monkey into a piggyback. He checked over to the side of the space to see how Torchic was doing. She, too, had reached Misdreavus. So far so good. Tristan returned to his own task.

He bolted back for the entrance, but he could already feel the effects of the quick seed wearing off.

“Tristan, look out!” He heard Croconaw yell.

He looked next to him to see Kyogre emerging from the water again, raising his enormous fin to strike.

One of Croconaw’s iron thorns hit Kyogre on the underside, causing him to grunt in irritation, but he still kept his focus on Tristan. Another one hit, this time very close to the eye. Kyogre gave a furious roar as he turned to glare at Croconaw.

“Now’s your chance!” Croconaw shouted. “Get going! I’ll be fine!”

Tristan nodded and continued on his path towards the entrance as Croconaw dived into the water. Kyogre was quick to follow.

A minute later and he reached the archway. Machop had been laid gently next to the toolbox. As carefully as he could, Tristan did the same.

He then looked out into the room to see how Torchic was doing. She was about halfway back from where Misdreavus was, taking a shortcut out in the open rather than running along the wall. But she was having trouble balancing Misdreavus on her back. Croconaw jumped out of a gap in the floor not too far away, slid across the floor and dived into the next one. He almost seemed like he was having fun, as if it were a game of tag. Moments later Kyogre leapt high out of the water in pursuit, hitting the surface with a large splash.

A miniature tidal wave created the this enormous splash swept Torchic off her feet, causing her to drop the unconscious ghost type and fall on her backside.

Tristan rushed to help.

“I’ve got it!” Torchic said, almost defensively, trying to pick Misdreavus once more. “I sure wish I had I had longer arms...”

Tristan hadn’t thought about it till now. But now that he did, he realized how frustrating short little wings must have been. “Here,” Tristan said, “let me.”

“I can do this!” she snapped. “I can help too!”

Tristan wasn’t sure how to respond. She still must’ve been thinking about what they had said earlier. He knew it was going to come back to haunt them.

“There isn’t time for this!” he replied, his voice firmer.

“I know I can help too!” Torchic cried. “Let me do this! I’m not useless!”

“There’s nothing to prove!” Tristan yelled back “We know you're not useless! But there are some things some of us just can’t do!”

“But... but I...” Torchic trailed off as she averted her eyes. “This is just something I’ve gotta do... to prove to myself...”

Why oh why did she have to be so stubborn? They were getting nowhere fast at this rate. He couldn’t see any faster way. “Fine,” he said. “But let me put her on you. And I’ll be right behind you in case she falls off. Sound good?”

“I suppose...” Torchic.

“Good,” Tristan said as he fixed Misdreavus in position. “You start. I’ll signal to Croconaw that we’re almost done.”

With that Torchic took off, the last of the effects of her quick seed wearing off. Tristan turned to scan the clearing. There was no sign of them. Had he caught Croconaw?

His questions were answered moments later as he saw bubbles surface not far off, between them and the nearest part of the wall. Croconaw leapt out, and Kyogre appeared moments later. He roared furiously with anger, deafening all of them yet again.

Tristan was about to signal to him until he saw what Kyogre was doing. He had reared up with water gushing at the mouth for what most certainly would be a powerful attack.

It wasn’t Croconaw Tristan was worried about. But he was standing directly between Kyogre and where Torchic would be. He could just see Croconaw dodging it only to have the attack hit Torchic. And she wouldn’t have stood a chance if it hit her!

“Torchic!”Tristan hollered, seeing the impending disaster. He dashed towards her, mind racing at what to do.

Kyogre released his deluge, dodged with ease by Croconaw. He turned around just in time to see where the attack was headed.

Torchic looked back at Tristan in confusion, completely unaware of the wall of water that was about to hit her.

No time to think! What would he do? Tristan was only a few steps away. Finally an idea flashed to mind. There was no time to think of something else! He was going for it! He leapt into the air, his legs springing him forward with as much force as he could muster.

“Tri-!” was all Torchic could say before he collided with her, skull first. She gave a startled cry as she was pushed back.

Then the next thing he knew, he was hit by what felt like a ton of bricks. The water swept him completely off his feet, beating and battering him in the process. Up was down. Light was dark. His sense of direction was completely lost. He didn’t even know if his plan worked. Was Torchic alright?

What seemed like minutes later he felt himself slowing, and he managed get a sense of direction. His entire body screamed with pain, but he was alive. He opened his eyes to see that he had been pushed to the middle of the area. The metal structure was directly above him.

But he had less than a second to see anything else before he became completely submerged in water. He was sinking! He looked down to see he had landed in one of the deep zones! Below him was a bottomless abyss of darkness. And he was sinking into it fast!

Terror caught hold of him as he tried to gasp for air. What he got instead was a breath full of seawater. The light above him was fading as he sunk deeper and deeper. Time seemed to slow, causing Tristan to be aware of every single agonizing second. No! It couldn’t end this way! Not like this! He couldn’t believe it. He was actually going to die.

He suddenly felt himself being jostled. But he couldn’t tell what it was. The next thing he knew, amidst his panic, he was moving up. he felt two large arms wrapped around behind him, pressing him against a larger mass of flesh. Croconaw!

Seeing the light glinting from the surface above, growing in brightness. The only thing he could compare it with was being brought back from the dead. One more second, and they broke the surface.

Tristan’s first instinct was to cough out all the water he’d breathed, which was more than he thought possible for a Pokemon his size. It was a agonizing process, but oh so rewarding. Above the ringing in his ears as he managed to cough out the last of the water he heard a voice.

“You are so lucky!”

“Croconaw...” Tristan muttered as he let himself collapse weakly on his friend. “I was... so scared...”

“Well don’t relax just yet, we’re still in trouble.”

Tristan knew he was right, and straightened back up. Croconaw held on to him as they began to swim back to solid floor.

“Torchic...” Tristan said, as he looked out through the rain. Did his plan work? Was she safe?

“She took a hit from that attack,” Croconaw answered. “But because of that stunt you pulled, you took the brunt of the attack, while she was clipped by the edge of it.”

“Good...” Tristan said relieved.

“Both she and Misdreavus were pushed into the water. I had to save them first since they were both unconscious. That’s why I took so long to get to you.”

“That’s fine...” Tristan answered. It seemed to have worked out in the end.

So much for the plan. It ended up turning into one giant mess. But perhaps there was still a chance.

Bubbles started to froth up around them, and Croconaw tried to swim harder. But it was useless. He would’ve easily been able to avoid Kyogre if only it wasn’t for Tristan who was weighing him down.

Tristan looked down to see a flash of red beneath the surface. An instant later, they were in the air, launched upward by Kyogre’s tail.

He felt the tell tail sign of weightlessness a few seconds later, telling him that gravity had begun to take over. His flight, however, was cut short as he landed on something solid.

“What now...” he groaned as he opened his eyes.

His arm was dangling over the edge of something, and as he looked down he quickly realized where he was. They had ended up on top of the giant structure! He looked beside him to see the enormous sphere only few meters away. From here it looked many times more massive than it had from bellow. He could barely even see the top. As he looked, another bolt of lightning struck the orb, causing a loud crashing noise to follow the same instant.

He heard a yelp from Croconaw beside him. “We-we’re! How-” he stuttered.

“We landed on top of this... thing...” Tristan said. Now he was trying to decide if this was good or bad news. He looked down, to see where their attacker had gone. From this new vantage point, he could see into the water much more easily. Directly below them, not even the waves and raindrops were enough to block the view of a faint red glow that was circling beneath them.It appeared to be that it hadn’t been Kyogre’s intention to trap them up here.

“It’s so high!” Croconaw whimpered. He was clutching onto the structure for dear life. “How do we get down?”

“You’re afraid of... never mind.” Tristan said, he’d worry about that later. He looked ahead of them seeing the dim figures of Torchic and Midreavus through the thick rain. As Croconaw had said, both of them were out cold. They’d need to pick them up on their way out. Next he looked down along the length of the structure, to where it connected to the walls. Over there the drop would only be a few meters. They could slide down there, land on the floor, then pick up the other two on their way out.

Tristan was about to point this out to Croconaw before he was cut off.

“He’s gone...” Croconaw uttered, voice shaking in terror. “He’s going for Torchic!”

No! It couldn’t be! He looked back down below them. Sure enough, there was no sign of Kyogre. He looked back to his unconscious teammate. Kyogre emerged from a myriad of bubbles nearby, raising a fin to slam down upon them.

“What do we do? What do we do!” Croconaw cried.

Another split second strategy. Could he keep coming up with these? He didn’t know how much more of this he could take. He only had so much adrenaline! It felt as if the universe was taunting him, teasing him, giving him a glimmering chance, then taking away all his hopes again.

Taunting him... wait that was it!

Tristan took a solid stance, bracing himself for what he was about to do. He didn’t know if it would work, but he had nothing to lose now.

“Hey, you revolting oversized tadpole!” he shouted at the top of his lungs.

“Tristan!” Croconaw blurted from beside him, his jaw hanging open in astonishment.

But the taunt had done its trick. Kyogre had turned his attention back to them. Even from this distance Tristan could feel the legendary’s glare boring into him. But he wouldn’t stop there. “Yeah, you! You’ve been asleep so long your brain’s started to rust! We’re up here, you stupid old senile!”

“Tristan, are you crazy?”

“No, I’m fine,” Tristan answered. “And my plan worked!”

“But now-”

“Like he wasn’t going to kill us in the first place.”

Croconaw paused to think about this comment.

Tristan looked back at the sphere. He knew it would only be a matter a seconds before Kyogre would strike. The darn legendary was so fast in the water.

“Come over here!” Tristan said, pointing towards the sphere. “Maybe we can get Kyogre to hit the sphere somehow. And if we’re lucky maybe we can get it to land on him!”

Croconaw nodded, obediently following the order. Both of them positioned themselves right next to the sphere, right in front them was the ten meter fall into the churning water. Already the red glow of Kyogre was beneath them. Perhaps glowing even brighter due to his rage.

Yet again, myriads of bubbles churned beneath them.

“Here goes nothing,” Tristan said as the two exchanged glances.

What came next surprised Tristan. A giant column of water blasted upwards with insane speed and volume. It hit the sphere with immense force, but did something Tristan hadn’t considered. As the water pushed up on the sphere, it pushed outwards also, pushing Tristan and Croconaw clean off the structure.

He was airborne again, but this time falling all the way. The rescue mission was turning out to be a never ending roller coaster. As he accelerated downwards, the floor came up to meet him with a rather unfriendly greeting.

He somehow managed to land on his feet, but the moment he touched the ground his legs buckled and he fell flat on the floor. Pain shot up his legs, and he rolled onto his back, clutching them tightly. At least he hadn’t landed in the water again, but this was not much better!

The sky darkened above him, and Tristan looked to see that Kyogre was over him, fin braced to slam down upon him. He could hear the giant Pokemon breathing savagely with rage. He must have spent a lot of energy on that last attack. But none of that mattered now. No matter how weakened this Pokemon was, it wouldn’t stop this fin from crushing him flat. He tried to think of something he could do, but he was all out of ideas!

Kyogre gave a deafening roar as he began to thrust the fin downwards. Tristan closed his eyes tightly, bracing for the worst.

A resounding boom filled the air. But Tristan felt nothing. Was this how dying felt? He doubted it. He dared to open his eyes. In front of him, Kyogre had become frozen stiff. The enormous sphere, over half the size of Kyogre, rolled off to one side, creating a giant splash before sinking quickly into the depths of the water.

Kyogre was soon to follow, eyes glazed over as he became limp, then slumped beneath the waters surface, leaving a baffled Tristan to stare at the water for a few more moments.

He couldn’t believe his luck! His plan had actually worked! Again! Once again it felt like he had defied fate! But was that the last of Kyogre? Only now did he notice that the rain was starting to ease. He wanted to say yes. Regardless, he wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.

He turned to see Croconaw limping towards him, an expression of astonishment on his face. When Tristan saw that his detect band was missing, the felt around his own neck to see that he too had lost his zinc band. It must have had something to do with the fall.

“That... That was amazing!” Croconaw breathed as he drew near. “Tristan! You are... You are...”

“It was nothing,” Tristan said quickly, testing his leg before standing. He winced as he put a little weight on it. Something had definitely been broken. “Now let’s get out of here while we still-”

But Croconaw had grabbed him in a tight embrace before he could finish. “I though you were dead! I thought Torchic was dead! I though we were... I thought we were done for!”

“Ouch ouch! Croconaw... You’re gonna be the one to kill me if you keep grabbing so tight!”

“Oh!” Croconaw said, letting go immediately. “Sorry...”

“Don’t worry,” Tristan said, feeling slightly amused. “Let’s worry about getting out of here first.”

“Your shoulder...”

“What about it?” Tristan asked looking down. Then he realized. One was sagging much lower than the other. Obviously something there was broken, too. “An even better reason for us to get out of here.”

“Yes,” Croconaw said, turning back to the entrance. “I guess I’ll grab Torchic and you grab Misdreavus?”

“Torchic...” Tristan repeated, thinking for a moment. “Oh no Torchic! She’ll be devastated...” She had wanted to badly to prove herself useful. This wouldn’t go over well at all.

“I know...” Croconaw answered. “But the best we can do for now is get her out of here. I’m sure she’ll be fine in the end.”

“I hope so...” Tristan said, as the two began to close the gap between them. The rain was to the point where it was only spitting.

“You really surprised me up there.” Croconaw said. “When you taunted Kyogre like that. I thought you’d lost it.”

“Well it worked, didn’t it?”

“Yeah! It was brilliant!”

“... It was noth-”

“Yeah, I know.”

The going was slow, but soon enough they had reached the girls. Tristan picked up Misdreavus and Croconaw picked up Torchic. It felt almost unreal to see the exit ahead of them like that, with nothing to block their way. How had they managed to pull this one off?

Just as they started walking, the rain began to come down harder. This time he could feel each drop as they splashed against his already tender body. The familiar feeling he’d hoped not to experience again. And then, the rumbling voice.

“You... shall... go... nowhere!”

“But I thought we-” Croconaw began.

“Obviously not!” Tristan answered. “C’mon!”

But before he knew it, the giant figure of Kyogre was emerging the water in front of them, blocking their path. His eyes were ablaze with fury.

“There... will... be... no... escape!” He reared up, preparing another one of his hydro pumps. They both realized that he was aiming straight for Croconaw. Perhaps to try to get him out of the way first.

“Here! Catch!” Croconaw shouted, tossing Torchic over to Tristan. Like he was supposed to be able to catch her when he was already holding Misdreavus! He managed to clumsily act as a cushion, causing all three of them to fall awkwardly on the water covered ground. Meanwhile, Croconaw had leapt back, but Kyogre kept his eyes on target.

“Croconaw!” Tristan shouted, standing up again. Without the help of the detect band and with his injuries, he couldn’t dodge it.

Kyogre unleashed the unleashed the torrent of water, hitting Croconaw square on, pushing him clean over one gap on the floor and on the other side, where he lay motionless. Not him too! At least he hadn’t fallen in the water. He wouldn’t have been able to save Croconaw then, but now what would he do?

Kyogre was nowhere to be seen again - perhaps about to finish Croconaw off. He wouldn’t let that happen!

But the rain was coming down so hard, and he could feel every drop of it pummeling him down. It was sapping his energy away with every second. Combined with the pain he already had, it was at the point of unbearable. Somehow, he managed to find the energy to run. Where was this adrenaline coming from? He didn’t know. All he knew was he was the only one who could do something!

He turned a corner, seeing his unconscious friend laying straight in front of him. He ran for him. A tingling sensation overcame him. A sensation that he had felt before. Where had he felt it?

On Mount Blaze! He’d felt it back when Zapdos was about to attack. But this time it was the lightning from the thunderstorm. This one would be stronger than he’d ever felt. But why now of all times?

Suddenly something clicked. Kyogre was weak against electricity. And the sphere that used to be on top of the structure was meant to attract electricity. It served as a lightning rod so that he wouldn’t get fried in his own domain. With it gone, there was nothing to protect him from the lightning. And because of the characteristic of a Cubone, all forms of electricity were now attracted to him.

He looked at his hands to see a spark leap from one finger to the other. This bolt of lightning was going to be big.

Just then, with an enormous splash Kyogre leapt out of the water, arching upside down above Croconaw. Tristan could see it coming. He was going to flatten Croconaw with his waterspout!

The tingling sensation grew stronger still. He knew what he must do! With the last of his energy, Tristan leapt as high as he could over Croconaw, just as Kyogre was passing directly overhead. Now it was down to luck. He hoped over all hopes that the lightning would strike.

Then... he saw a giant pillar of light shoot down from the sky. It passed through Kyogre like he tissue paper, and the next instant, all Tristan saw was blinding light.

He felt his body land on the ground with a painful thud. He quickly looked up to see where Kyogre had gone. His body was falling limply through the air, as though he were a giant doll. Steam coming out of the gaps in his armour, and his red glow had faded completely.

Was this it finally? Tristan didn’t have time to think before the legendary came crashing down into the water. He had landed too close. Tristan could see the wave coming, but couldn’t do anything to avoid it. His energy was spent, he felt sick to his stomach and his body wouldn’t budge.

The wave pushed him to the edge of the floor, just far enough that he could still hang on to the edge, the abyss directly below him.

He had to get up, he thought desperately. He had to get away from the edge! Beneath him he would sink for an eternity, he knew it! He didn’t want that to become his fate. And this time there really was nobody to save him. Not Croconaw, not Torchic, he was truly on his own.

As he tried to pull himself up, the rain eased again, and this time, stopped completely. But it was useless. He had nothing to get a grip on, and all his legs could do was slip along the side of the wall. His shoulder sang in pain as he put pressure on it. And worst of all, he was slipping. His vision faded with exhaustion as he slowly slipped further and further, until the water was up to his eyes.

“No...” he moaned. “No... I don’t... I don’t want to...” He became overflowed with sadness. After all that had happened, his life would end like this? What was the point? What had he been doing up until now if he was going to die anyway?

He supposed he’d done quite a bit. They saved Team Supreme. And Torchic and Croconaw were alright. It was only him that was in danger now. Perhaps... it wasn’t such a waste after all.

So this was it... This is was how it was going to end. Somehow... it didn’t seem as bad as he first thought. His head sunk beneath the surface. he only hoped that Croconaw and Torchic would be able to manage without him.

His last glimpse of light was the shimmering surface above him. Then... darkness...

To be continued…

[sweet_piplup123]

Oh f**k, cliffhangers! *gasps*

Fighting dear Kyogre reallllly took a long time. I see...

There is something I'm quite curious about, I thought items such as seeds and berries should have some form of capital letter on them, unless you meant it to be that way because you considered them to be normal items...

Poor Torchic though... hard to manage to carry a body without arms. Don't think she should be blaming herself because we all can't help to be physically disabled.

Can't wait for the next... actually, I think I've gotten used to be patient lately.

sweet_piplup123

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Oh f**k, cliffhangers! *gasps*

Fighting dear Kyogre reallllly took a long time. I see...

There is something I'm quite curious about, I thought items such as seeds and berries should have some form of capital letter on them, unless you meant it to be that way because you considered them to be normal items...

Poor Torchic though... hard to manage to carry a body without arms. Don't think she should be blaming herself because we all can't help to be physically disabled.

Can't wait for the next... actually, I think I've gotten used to be patient lately.

sweet_piplup123

Could it be? Someone finally responded? 8D

Yeah, cliffhangers are my specialty. ;D

I know that I always try to say people should write for their love of writing and not for attention. But it was getting a little lonely in my little corner of the internet. That and I really had no clue whether people liked my chapter or not. =/

Anyway, thanks for responding! ^^

Yes indeed it took a long time. Of course, we're dealing with the father of all the seas aren't we? So of course we need a long epic battle when fighting him! ^^

Yeah, I'm beginning to treat them like ordinary items.

I'm sure Jenny can sympathize for Ashley can't she? And what's worse is that she was knocked out... X_X That can't go over well when she finds out about that. Perhaps she was acting that way because of something more than just about what's been happening lately... O.o. More about that next chapter though. The title gives a little hint. That is all I'll say...

Well hopefully you won't have to wait about six months for the next chapter... -_-. School ends for me in April, so I will have more time to do this stuff over the summer.

[mattman324]

Wait, this was updated? Really? Wow.

Who am I? I'm a closet reader, I started reading this right after the hiatus. It was a good read, but it was never updated. Still, a good chapter.

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Wait, this was updated? Really? Wow.

Who am I? I'm a closet reader, I started reading this right after the hiatus. It was a good read, but it was never updated. Still, a good chapter.

Surprised are ya? ^^ Again, sorry for taking so long...

Ah, I see. Nice to know who's secretly been following my story. I can't guarantee any update in March or April. But I'll definitely try to have something up by May (Now watch that I completely miss my mark again... -_- Like I always do...)

[Koridojo_Blaziken]

BELATED REVIEW D:

But just as she started moving, Machop stuck out a hand to block her way. “No,” he said. “We don’t know what’s out there. Think of the Pokemon we’re talking about.”

...IDK if it's just Misdreavus' being a Ghost-type, or what. But fsr I keep imagining that his hand would fase right through her... O_o

She giggled. “Yes, Dad, of course. I don’t see why you’re so scared. I’ll be fine.” With that she vanished into thin air. Only a faint ripple in the air gave away where she was.

Missed some slight punctuation there.

Kyogre’s eyes began to drift, then dart from place to place. “You...” he growled as his eyes fixated on an empty space of air. “Why... are... you... here?” The mammoth Pokemon turned around eyes still fixed on some invisible being. Under normal circumstances Tristan would have wondered what it was he was imagining. But right now there were more important things to think about.

*chimes in perfect unison with Absol and Raichu* LEGENDARY ON A CRACK SEED!! 8D

...er, yeah. Anyways... ^^;

He then looked out into the room to see how Torchic was doing. She was about halfway back from where Misdreavus was, taking a shortcut out in the open rather than running along the wall. But she was having trouble balancing Misdreavus on her back. Croconaw jumped out of a gap in the floor not too far away, slid across the floor and dived into the next one. He almost seemed like he was having fun, as if it were a game of tag. Moments later Kyogre leapt high out of the water in pursuit, hitting the surface with a large splash.

...this made me want to watch Finding Nemo. D= ♪Just keep swimming, just keep swimming... ♪

“You’re afraid of... never mind.” Tristan said, he’d worry about that later.

...heights? :3

Absol: Wait, wait...I think I've heard this somewhere before...

Shaddup, Raid.

...not many mistakes I can point out, so, yeah. Good job, fella.

*pitches tent to lawn-stalk Focus for the next chapter* Though I should probably be busting my butt to get something written for my own fic... T_T I know, Ima hypocrite...

[Brumrha]

Well now that I've finally regained a solid footing over this place, I can finally finish some long overdue business.

This chapter was hell in a hand-basket, almost like the final three episodes of the TG storyline in the Pokemon anime. Supreme's encounter with Kyogre was nothing short of disastrous, & it was all because their Misdreavus got cocky. I'm really sure that she got her just desserts, & then some.

Also, the fight with Supernova definitely doesn't disappoint, especially the ending, in which Tristian uses its own storm-making powers against Kyogre.

You've done a wonderful job on both of these.

But... & it is a J Lo "BUTT," there "are" a few things that irked me...

“No! Spectra!” Machop hollered. It had appeared faster than he could have anticipated. A giant whale of a Pokemon had suddenly leapt out of the water, its fin already heaving towards Misdreavus. He saw her turn just in time to catch a glimpse of the fin. It slammed into her, catapulting her to the other end of the enclosure, where she hit the wall with sickening force. Silently, she slid to the floor, where she lay motionless. The splatter of blood remaining on the wall where she had hit.

Since when do ghosts have blood?? They're not made out of flesh & bone like with all of the other Pokemon. If it were to be something like a thick & dark fluid, then it would be "somewhat" plausible. But a ghost spilling blood? No.

“I suppose...” Torchic grumbled.

You were missing something... *wags his index finger*

“Torchic!”<>Tristan hollered, seeing the impending disaster. He dashed towards her, mind racing at what to do.

One part of this needed a bit of spacing out, marked here.

So this was it... This is was how it was going to end. Somehow... it didn’t seem as bad as he first thought. His head sunk beneath the surface. he only hoped that Croconaw and Torchic would be able to manage without him.

That needs capitalizing.

You should watch out for these things, so that it doesn't end up inside the finished product...

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

To Kori:

...IDK if it's just Misdreavus' being a Ghost-type, or what. But fsr I keep imagining that his hand would fase right through her... O_o

lol. I suppose she just stopped out of respect for him.

Missed some slight punctuation there.

Hmmm... I wonder how that happened hmm? =/

I kid, I'm just messin with ya. ^^

...this made me want to watch Finding Nemo. D= ♪Just keep swimming, just keep swimming... ♪

You managed to relate this to finding Nemo huh? O_o

...heights? :3

Absol: Wait, wait...I think I've heard this somewhere before...

Shaddup, Raid.

Yes! I thought I'd let people fill in the blanks for this one. But yeah, yhat's what it is meant to be. And Raid. Quiet you. >=(

To Brumrha:

This chapter was hell in a hand-basket, almost like the final three episodes of the TG storyline in the Pokemon anime. Supreme's encounter with Kyogre was nothing short of disastrous, & it was all because their Misdreavus got cocky. I'm really sure that she got her just desserts, & then some.

Yeah, she was a bit careless wasn't she. She definitely underestimated Kyogre. ^^

Ooooh! D=, you caught so much! And I even had three people edit over it for me... >_<

Well, no matter, thanks for catching them!

Thanks for the responses you two! =)

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Quick update!

I've edited over the first post.

That means that the introduction has been expanded upon, as well, I have also re-rewritten the prologue. I feel that it is worth a second read for those who have read it already. It has changed enough for you to enjoy it. =)

[Turpise]

Good Fan Fic FPE

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Good Fan Fic FPE

Thank you very much! ^_^ I'm glad you enjoyed it! And Sorry for replying to you so late as well.

@ anyone who happens to read this: Yeah yeah, I know, I know. I am super super super late again for posting a new chapter. I am aware of that. I've been through quite a bit over the last number of months. I am not one to make excuses, so I'm not going to try. All I can say is that I am sorry for being so late. =(

Having said that, the next chapter is ready, so I'll be posting that momentarily! ENJOY!!!!! ;D

[FocusPresenceEndurance]

Chapter 27

The Delayed Reunion. A Nightmare Relived.

The sound of a distant breeze drifted lazily into his ears. Somewhere far off, waves were rolling up onto the shore. As he became aware of his surroundings, he could also hear the low murmur of voices, which were also very distant. Something didn’t seem right. What was this? He could hear things? But that would mean... he was still alive? Thinking back, he tried to recall what had happened.

He was grabbing onto the the edge... the edge of the floor, where the water was so deep that he couldn’t see the bottom. Then he lost his grip, and slid beneath the surface. He remembered looking up to see the surface, the light darkening as his eyes began to close. And just as the last of the light diminished... Something changed. The flicker of a shadow? He couldn’t tell... it was on the very edge of his memory. After that... nothing.

So he wasn’t dead after all.

Tristan opened his eyes only to be blinded by painful bright white light. His vision was so blurry, he couldn’t see anything and it felt as if he was using his eyes for the first time. It took several minutes before they had adjusted.

There was a white canopy above him, which billowed slightly in the breeze. He recognized this. He was in a tent. He’d been in a tent like this when they’d returned from Mount Blaze. That explained all the distant sounds. They were coming from outside.

He tired to sit up, but the moment he did his entire body sang out in pain. With a grunt, he collapsed back onto the bed. “Well, that was smooth...” he told himself. Looks like he wouldn’t be leaving here anytime soon.

Instead he looked to the left. There he saw a short wooden table with several medical utensils resting on it, as well as several piles of seeds, berries, and other types of medicinal herbs he’d never seen before, all organized according to size shape and colour. As he looked he heard the sound of snore on his other side.

He turned around, and found himself face to face with an orange furred head with two yellow cheeks and two curly brown ears. Dave! He was slumped on a small chair, with his head and arms resting on the edge of his bed. What was Dave doing here sitting right next to him?

He looked back up at the tent ceiling. Could it be that it was Dave who saved him? How could he have known where they were or that they were in danger? Another question then struck him like lightning. How were the others doing? Croconaw and Torchic looked like they had both been beaten up pretty bad, but the members of Team Supreme had all taken it much worse. Were they alright? Had their journey off into Stormy Sea actually been worth something?

“Ah, you’re awake!”

“Woah!” Tristan exclaimed, jumping slightly. His body retaliated with another jolt of pain. After a moment of getting back to his senses he looked back to Dave. He was now looking right back at him, his eyes wide and bright with happiness.

“I’m so glad you’re alright, Tristan!” he said happily. “The nurses said you weren’t going to make it when we brought you in. But I just knew you’d make it, I just knew it!”

“You... what?” Tristan asked.

“What, you’re surprised to see me?”

All Tristan could do was nod dumbly.

“C’mon now. We’re friends right? It’s only natural that we’d do things like this for each other. Oh, hey, you know what? This kinda reminds me of the time when I got so sick that I needed to go to the hospital, and you were the one who would come visit me the most and sit by my side to keep me company. Remember?”

Tristan nodded again, fondly recalling the memory. “And I would sneak in those video games cause you had nothing else to do and those stupid nurses - Wait.” That was one of his human memories! He stared at Dave in disbelief. “You... but I thought-”

“Thank Gardevoir for that one,” Dave finished with a wink. “Yes, I remember everything now, especially you Tristan.”

“I... I...” Tristan tried to say, but he found himself stumbling over his words. He still couldn’t believe it. He really was talking to Dave again. After so many years since that fateful day. That day that preceded a life of loneliness. How difficult those years had been to him. And now he was back. It was all too overwhelming. He stretched out his hand, and Dave reached out to grab it. It felt warm and comforting, and strangely familiar despite their new bodies. He could feel his eyes becoming moist he gazed upon Dave. “I... I thought I’d never see you again... not a day passed that I didn’t think of you, wondering what had happened to you... where you went... why you left and if it was somehow my fault.”

“Oh Tristan... I’m so sorry,” Dave said, squeezing his hand tighter. “I was-”

“I know,” Tristan cut him off. “You were here all all this time.”

“My memory was wiped when I arrived. I remembered nothing from the human world.” He shook his head in shame, biting down on his lip. “I just feel so awful about what you had to go through. And I knew nothing about it...”

Tristan shook his head. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. I know now the reason you forgot about me. My memory was also wiped when I came here. You can’t blame yourself.”

“I know... I know... Still...” Dave said, ears drooping. He sniffed. “I’ll never forget that look you gave me. The one when you asked if we’d always be friends. You looked so serious, but I didn’t take you seriously at all. And then I ended telling right to your face that I didn’t know who you were. I don’t think I will ever be able to live that down. It will always be a painful memory for me.”

“Dave...” Tristan said again. He didn’t like to see him like this. It was so unnatural to see an optimistic person like him depressed.

“Yeah?” Dave asked looking up.

“I’m not upset anymore. I don’t feel bad about it. And... I’m just so glad that you remember me, and that we can keep being friends just like we used to be.”

Dave’s eyes began to water, he closed them tightly and covered them with his arm. Mixed in with his tears came small chuckles. “Imagine that... you’re the one who went through the most, and here I am crying...”

“Well you always were very sensitive to these things. You would cry at movies when they weren’t even that sad.” Tristan answered jokingly.

Dave brought his arm back down, revealing his eyes. They were still glistening with tears, and his cheeks were red, too, but he was also smiling.

“Maybe its just because you are the one with heart of ice,” he shot back. This was the exact type of conversation they had a number of times back as humans.

Both of them started to laugh, but Tristan had to stop abruptly as his sides began to hurt. Despite this, he was still happy and content on the inside.

“Well... I told the others I would go and see them as soon as you woke up,” Dave said. “So... I have to go now. I know that we weren’t able to talk long, but I know I’ll be seeing you a lot more later. I just needed you to know that I do remember.”

“Hold on a sec!” Tristan blurted out, just as Dave sprung up from his chair. “The others... how are they?”

“Everyone made it back alive,” Dave answered happily. “Most of them are almost fully recovered now. You are the one who was worst off out of all of them. If there was one person who would have died, it would have been you. But fortunately that didn’t happen.”

“And you,” he continued. “Was it you who saved me?”

“Didn’t you see us when we arrived?”

Tristan shook his head.

“It was a sight to behold!” he exclaimed, spreading his arms out wide. “We saw you running towards your partner... um... Todotile?”

“Totodile...” Tristan answered rolling his eyes. Despite this he couldn’t help but smile. “But his name is Croconaw now.”

“Okay, so you were running towards Croconaw just as the big blue whale guy... erm... Kryo-”

“Kyogre...” Tristan finished.

“That’s it! We saw you running towards them and, oh I couldn’t believe it. Turning his own storm against him! It was so amazing! And well, you were completely wiped out after that, and I saw what was about to happen. I could just imagine Kyorga making a huge splash and sweeping you away. So I got over there as fast as I could. You were already underwater when I got there, so I jumped in after you. Thank goodness I was just in time...”

“Really? You were there for that long?” Tristan asked surprised.

“Yes, you must have been so in the moment that you didn’t see us,” Dave answered. “Sceptile, Typhlosion... even all of Team ACT were impressed.”

“Wait... what? Team ACT was there too?”

“Yeah, well we were expecting some sort of fight when we got there right? So all of us went together. But imagine our surprise when the legendary beast was already taken out by you guys.”

“Well, only by the skin of our teeth...” Tristan said. Dave had made it sound as if he were some sort of hero or something.

“Oh don’t worry, I’ve been in similar situations before...” Dave answered. “But anyhow, I’ll be off now. I’ll see you later alright?”

“Yeah...” Tristan answered with a smile. “And Dave!” he added just before Dave could reach the flap of the tent. “... I’m happy we can be friends again...”

Dave smiled, “Tristan... I’m happy too.” He took one more moment to look back at Tristan before taking his leave.

Tristan was about to reflect on the things that had just happened when the flaps to the tent burst open again, revealing another sight for sore eyes. Croconaw leapt into the tent.

“You’re awake?” he cried! He met eyes with Tristan, answering his own question. “You are awake!” he cheered and ran to his bedside. He practically jumped on Tristan's bed to give him a hug.

“Ow! Ow! Croc... Croconaw! I’m still... recovering!”

“Oh!” he said, as he realized his friends pain and eased off. He dragged the chair next to the bed and took a seat. “I was told you weren’t going to wake up when you were brought in! But I wasn’t worried!”

“Yeah I heard.” Tristan answered. “Dave told me.”

“Oh and Dave! I’m so happy he finally remembered you! It must feel so great!”

Tristan nodded. “It was good. I was so surprised to see him sitting right next to me.”

“That’s quite a friend you’ve got there. He sat there during the entire time you were out.”

“Oh really? And how long was that?”

“Oh, easily a week.”

“A week?” Tristan repeated, dumbfounded. He couldn’t believe he’d been out for an entire week! “He sat by my bed for a whole week?”

“You got it. He ate there, he slept there. He refused to leave your side till you woke up.”

“He did?”

“Yeah. He said he felt so bad for what he’d done to you. He wanted to be there the moment you woke up so you would know. Not even the nurses could get him out, he was so stubborn about it.”

Tristan took that moment to think. Dave had been there that whole time for him... He really was lucky to have a friend like him. From deep inside he felt a warm feeling of affection. He’d have to thank Dave again.

“So tell me,” Croconaw said, popping his thought bubble. “What happened to Kyogre after I passed out? How on Earth did you beat him?”

Tristan had to think a moment, then relayed everything that had happened to his big blue friend, adding in the things that Dave had told him.

“Wow... I can’t believe you did that!” Croconaw said, wide eyed.

“Yeah, it was kind of a split second decision. And it was mostly luck too. I didn’t know if it would work or not.”

“It’s still genius, though!”

“Maybe...” Tristan said, hoping that would be a satisfying enough answer. “So... what happened after the battle? D’you know?”

“Yeah,” Croconaw answered. “I actually woke up soon after. By then Team Blue and Team ACT were already there. I think I was the only one who woke up back in that dungeon. After that we were all brought back here.”

“Alright...” Tristan answered, satisfied. There was a moment of silence where he gazed off into space. Everything was back to normal then? Then... why did he feel strange? Like... something was missing? He took another look around. Then it hit him. “Where’s Torchic?”

At this Croconaw averted his eyes. His mouth curved down in a frown.

“Yeah... about her... See, she’s-”

“Don’t tell me she was hurt that badly?” Tristan interrupted. Dave had told him that everyone made it out alright.

“It’s not that...” Croconaw said, waving it down nervously. “Physically... she’s fine...”

“But...”

“I tried to go in and see her at her tent. But she refuses to see anyone. The nurses won’t even let me in. They told me she’s been devastated emotionally.”

“Emotionally? You don’t mean... Oh no...” Tristan moaned. “Don’t tell me...”

“I think so,” Croconaw said, reading his thoughts. “It was because of our battle.”

“But we told her that her worries were groundless. We told her that she was extremely useful to the team.”

“I know, but I guess she forgot or something. I saw you two arguing a bit during the battle. What was that about?”

“I had just saved Aipom and she was having a bit of trouble carrying Misdreavus. But when I tried to help her she refused saying that she could do it herself.” Tristan explained. “I couldn’t argue with her over it during a battle, so I compromised with her saying I’d watch her back. That was when Kyogre saw her and sent the blast of water. You know what happened after that.”

“Yeah, you pushed her out of the way, taking the brunt of the attack yourself.”

An awkward silence followed when neither could think of something to say. What to do. Tristan could definitely feel where Torchic was coming from. But he also knew that she was making herself depressed over nothing. Both he and Croconaw valued her.

“So what do we do?” Croconaw asked.

“Well I can’t exactly do anything like this,” Tristan said, indicating to his body. “You’ll either have to do something on your own or wait till I get better.”

“I heard from one of the nurses that most of your wounds have recovered. All that rest you got worked wonders on your body. Apparently all that pain is just your body working at recovering, and a little from the underuse of your muscles. I think they said that you shouldn’t be in here much longer and that you could even start trying to walk in a couple days. Well with assistance that is. And of course we can’t do missions for a while... but I’m sure they won’t mind if-”

“I think we should take the nurses advice just this once,” Tristan whispered.

“Oh... well sure, I guess we could do that too. But I did hear some big things from Team Blue and ACT. Apparently something huge will be going down, but I haven’t heard much.”

“Alright,” Tristan said. He found himself opening his mouth wide for a great yawn. He was suddenly feeling sleepy again.

“Well, you look tired,” Croconaw stated. “I’ll let you rest some more. I’ll be back to check up on you tomorrow?”

Tristan nodded as his eyelids became too heavy to keep open anymore. Sleep was quick to follow.

The day that followed was slow, but productive. For the first time in a week he managed to get out of bed. His legs were very wobbly at first, and he couldn’t walk very far before he had to retire because of pain, but it was a start. Throughout the day he kept trying and was able to walk farther with his steps being less laboured. The nurses were very impressed with his recovery.

“So when d’you think I’ll get out?” Tristan asked later that day.

“Hm? Oh...” one of the Chansey said, looking up from the table she was working at. Se was mixing and grinding several berries into some sort of mush that was meant to dramatically increase the rate of recovery. Many more times than an oran berry, or even a sitrus berry. “You know, I believe you will still need a week to fully recover. But that doesn’t mean you can’t walk around before then. I’d say you’ll be fine to leave the tent by tomorrow. That’s what you wanted to hear wasn’t it?”

Tristan nodded from his bed.”Yes, thanks.”

As well Croconaw paid a visit that day too, and together, they decided that the next morning would be the time when they would try to confront Torchic, whether she wanted to see them or not.

***

A cool breeze greeted him as he stepped out into the fresh air the next morning. It felt great to be outside again after being cooped up in his tent. Clouds were scattered across the sky like giant puffs of cotton, pushed by the warm breeze that came from the sea. Every so often, a cloud's shadow would pass over him, cooling the air.

It turned out his tent was on the edge of the camp, and faced the beach directly. He turned to look at the other tents nearby. Just like before, he couldn’t tell any of them apart among the sea of white tents. He began to regret telling Croconaw that he would meet him there, navigating this mess would not be an easy task.

He shrugged it off, and began to follow the directions Croconaw had given him. After all, it was pointless to dwell on it now. As he walked, he received strange looks from Pokemon that he passed by. He’d gotten looks before when he returned from Mount Blaze. But this was different. Whenever he returned a look from someone, they would suddenly avert their eyes and look the other way as if distracted by something else. It was weird.

“Tristan!” a voice rang out.

Tristan turned to see an orange, black striped dog bounding towards him. It was a relief to see that the pup was alright.

“I heard what happened,” he said when he arrived. “Did you really beat Kyogre?”

Tristan gave a groan of despair. “What are people saying about me? It wasn’t like that...”

“Well, I’d say that these kind of rumours are much better than the rumours you’ve been getting before you fought him. Wouldn’t you?”

“Perhaps...” Tristan shrugged. “Is that why I’m getting all these strange looks now?” He glanced quickly around once more.

“Well yeah,” Growlithe answered. “It’s not only your display out at sea. Team Blue and Team ACT both cleared your names too.”

“They did?” Tristan said gratefully. “Then what’s with all this?”

“Well... I guess people just feel bad for jumping to conclusions and treating you the way they did. I’m sure it’ll pass soon enough when things go back to normal.”

“I hope so...” Tristan answered, looking up again. “Hold on... The last time I saw you, you escaped Stormy Sea... You’re sister! Is she alright?”

The smile on the Growlithe's face suddenly vanished. Lowering his head, he kicked at the ground as he took a moment to choose his words. “Oh... Ruby? Well... she’s fine... I guess...”

“What do you men you guess?” Tristan asked.

“Well... when I got back, I found her around here in the medical area... It was the first place I came to look.”

“But there was something wrong?”

Growlithe took a quick sniff, the continued. “She... she didn’t recognize me! I don’t know what happened... she must have hit her head or something... I tried to remind her remind her of everything. Her parents, the games we used to play, I even mentioned when you guys rescued her. She doesn’t remember a thing! She’s forgotten all about me... All that we’ve been through, means nothing to her now.”

Tristan bit his lip. It was similar to what he had been going through.

“I... I don’t know what to do now...” he sniffed again. “I mean, she’s my sister and all.”

“I know how you feel...” Tristan answered comfortingly. “I’ve been through things like that before.”

“What did you do to deal with it?” Growlithe asked hopefully.

At that moment he realized that this problem wouldn’t be fixed as easily as his own. He couldn’t exactly ask Gardevoir to revive other peoples memories or something. “Well... I know it may seem bad now. But... in the long run, I think it won’t be such a bad thing” he said.

“What do you mean?” The pup asked.

“She’s alive right? Before you were worried whether or not she would be alive. Now you know that she is, and you have the rest of your lives to spend with each other. She may not have any memories of the past now. But you can make new memories that are just as special. Who knows, she might remember a few things eventually.”

“Maybe... maybe you’re right...” Growlithe said, squinting away a few teardrops. “You’re right, I should be happy to have her with me. We still have each other. I’m not alone after all!” He looked up to Tristan, eyes glistening. “Thank you Tristan.”

Tristan looked away in embarrassment. “It... it was nothing!”

“Still... I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t spoken with you. I think I’m going to go try and speak with my sister again. I’ll start slowly like you said. I’m sure she’ll be able to accept me as her brother.”

“Yeah, that’s how you do it,” Tristan replied quickly, eager to keep the conversation moving away from being about him.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you some other time then...” Growlithe said. “Um...” He began to kick gently at the ground again, this time out of shyness.

“Yeah?” Tristan asked.

“You don’t suppose... perhaps one day... when I’m older...” he said. He looked down at the ground a little longer before gaining the nerve to finish. “If I could... join your team... could I?”

This surprised Tristan. This was the first time he had been asked something like this. “Well sure,” Tristan answered simply. “I mean... I wouldn’t have a problem with it.”

“Really?” Growlithe asked, ears perking and tail wagging excitedly. “You mean it?”

Tristan nodded.

“Thank you so much! You’re awesome!” With that he ran off, leaping and bounding as he went. He was in such a state of bliss that he almost crashed into a Lickylicky as he turned a corner.

Smiling slightly, Tristan returned to his search for Torchic’s tent. That was an unexpected delay, but one that was definitely worth it. Not even the looks that he was getting from bystanders seemed to bother him now.

As he turned yet another corner, he finally saw Croconaw up ahead. He was pacing back and forth in front of one particular tent impatiently, arms crossed and eyes scouting out all over the place. The moment he laid eyes on Tristan he ran over.

“Where were you?” he asked frantically.

“I’m sorry,” Tristan answered, startled by his friends urgency. “I ran into Growlithe. You know, we saved his sister?”

“Okay that’s great and all, but we’ve got a serious problem now!” he cried.

“What now?” Tristan asked in exasperation.

“Torchic’s gone!”

“What?” Tristan asked in horror. This definitely was something to worry about. “Gone? As in you can’t find her?”

“Exactly! I came to the tent a little early to find that the tent was open! A Chansey was inside fixing an empty bed telling me that Torchic had already left! I don’t know where she is! Did she visit you, cause she certainly didn’t visit me.”

“No... she didn’t,” Tristan replied. “What could this mean?”

“I don’t know, but I’m worried,” Croconaw replied. “We need to go look for her!”

Tristan spread his arms out wide. “In this maze? We’ll never find her!”

“Maybe not on our own, but we can ask if people have seen her. I’m sure someone has.”

“Good idea,” Tristan said. “Let’s split up and meet up back at say... the entrance of the camp. We’ll tell each other what we know there.”

With that, the two team members split up, wading through the crowds of Pokemon, asking and questioning all the while.

No more than an hour later, Tristan arrived at the main entrance with little success. the few Pokemon who had seen her couldn’t tell where she was headed. A short distance away, he saw the reception tent, where he had seen Kecleon. From there he could see that the chameleon was still there.

“Ah! Tristan!” Kecleon announced as he entered. He was sitting from behind the table as he had been last time. But something was different. This time it was the purple Kecleon, and his eye patch was on the opposite eye compared to his brother. But Tristan had no time to think about anything else. Geoff, the Shinx, was also nearby, although this time he was napping near the foot of the table, his yellow coat shining in the dim light.

“I’ve heard everything-” Kecleon began.

“There’s no time!” Tristan interrupted hurriedly. “I’m sorry, but this is really urgent! Torchic, have you seen her?”

The Kecleon was frozen stiff for a moment until he nodded slowly. “I was just starting my shift when she walked by. Why what’s going on?”

“I don’t know,” Tristan replied. “But do you know where she went? What she was doing?”

The purple chameleon pointed towards the woods to the west. “She was headed that way down the path on her own. She was carrying a few supplies with her too, but I couldn’t tell what they were.”

“How long ago was this?” Tristan pressed on.

“One hour? Two hours ago?” Kecleon blurted. The stress was getting to him to the point where his speech faltered “I don’t know exactly, it was something like that.”

Tristan had no time to talk further, he had all the information he needed. “Thank you Kecleon,” Tristan replied. “Sorry for being so urgent, I’ll tell you what’s going on as soon as I can.” With that, he dashed out of the tent, to see Croconaw waiting for him outside.

“I couldn’t find out-”

“Follow me!” Tristan cut him off the moment he arrived. “She headed out to the woods.”

Croconaw broke into a run to keep up with Tristan. “You mean she left the camp? Why would she do that?”

“Your guess is as good as mine. But for now I want to focus more on the question of where she went rather then why she left.”

“She couldn’t be heading back to the remains of the village could she? Maybe there was something there valuable to her that we didn’t know about.”

“I doubt it,” Tristan said. “It doesn’t seem to fit in with the way she’s been acting.”

“Well... we can’t just run any old place. You got any ideas?”

“Actually...” Tristan said as a thought entered his mind. “I do. This way!”

***

It wasn’t long before Croconaw took the hint as to where they were going. They ran uphill with the woods on either side of the path. It was the route they had often taken when they departed for and returned from missions.

Tristan gasped and panted with exertion. He still wasn’t ready for this kind of action. He found that he was tiring easily, with his muscles aching with each motion. Still, he was determined to keep a fast pace.

The team base appeared around the corner, untouched since the time he had run away from the village, which now seemed like ages. And in front of it, standing by the mailbox, was a small, orange feathered Pokemon. Torchic!

As Tristan and Croconaw ran into view, she turned to look at them. She watched in dismay as her two teammates ran towards her, stepping back slightly when they arrived.

“So this is where you went!” Croconaw cried as soon as they reached her. “We practically turned the refugee camp upside down looking for you!”

“Torchic, what’s going on?” Tristan panted. “Why did you come all the way out here?”

“I... I...” she hesitated, shifting her eyes, looking at every other possible thing besides her two friends. “I just came to look at the team base.”

“That’s not why you came.” Tristan replied. “Tell the truth. Why wouldn’t you see anyone after we returned from Stormy Sea? Or why did you leave all of a sudden without even seeing either of us at a time when few Pokemon would see you?. Torchic, is there something going on that we should know about?”

Torchic took a deep breath, trying to gain the confidence, closed her eyes and began to speak. “Please... I just want to be alone right now...”

“Talk to us Torchic,” Croconaw pleaded. “Please. Maybe we can help.”

“No...” she replied. “I don’t think you can... You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try us,” Tristan said.

At this she opened her eyes to look at Tristan. She then turned around so she wouldn’t have to face them. “I... I can’t do it anymore. Be a part of this team I mean.”

It was just as they had dreaded. Both Tristan and Croconaw stared at her in shock. It was still too difficult to believe.

“I’ve been thinking about it for some time now,” she continued. “I’m just not as useful as I used to be, if I ever was. So I’ve decided to resign.”

“No!” Croconaw wailed. “You can’t!”

Tristan sighed. “Come on Torchic. We’ve been through this before... you know you’ve helped us a lot and you know why you haven’t been able to do your best lately.”

“Let me guess,” Torchic said. “You’re going to tell me I was out of my element aren’t you? That it was out of my control? I remember. You already used that one on me in Stormy Sea.”

“And what’s wrong with that?” Croconaw answered. “It’s not your fault your powers were limited. So why are you blaming yourself?”

“You want to know why?” she asked, her voice becoming firmer. She turned to stare him in the face. “Because I’m not the only one weak against water here, Croconaw! You can’t use that as an excuse! Tristan is a ground type, he’s weak against water too! But that didn’t manage to stop him from saving the day! As usual!”

This offended Tristan. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he growled. “But all I was doing was hanging by the skin of my teeth to try to survive! It was luck that kept me alive, not skill or anything else like that! There were plenty of times where I could easily have died!”

“Because of me!” Torchic shrieked. “Because I wasn’t strong enough to carry out a simple task! And what happened when you tried to help me rescue Misdreavus? A good team member would have accepted help from another. But no, I had to let my pride get the better of me. I had to show myself that I could actually do something useful! And where did that lead? It led to you needing to save my sorry ***! How does that make me a good team member, Tristan? None of that disaster would have happened if it weren’t for my stupidity! So tell me, why the hell would you want me on this team?”

“Because you’re my friend!” Tristan hollered.

Torchic stood in silence a moment, as Tristan’s words echoed throughout the clearing for several more seconds. She put on a brave face, but it didn’t stop the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes.

“I wouldn’t care if you were the weakest Pokemon in the world!” Tristan yelled. “You’re still my friend! I would risk my life for you and I know you would do the same for both of us! Didn’t what you told me on Mount Blaze mean anything to you? Or have you forgotten? Why are you suddenly trying to leave now after we’ve been through so much together?”

“You don’t understand...” she sniffed. Tears were beginning to stream down her face. “You just don’t understand! I won’t go through with it again! It’s too much for me! I don’t want to see anyone else die because I was too weak! I don’t know what I would do! I couldn’t handle it you hear me!”

“Get a hold of yourself, Torchic!” Tristan shouted. “What are you talking about? What do you mean ‘again’?”

“That moment... when you saved me...” she said between sobs. “Was so similar to something that happened to me when I was younger.”

“You mean... your past?” Croconaw asked.

“Yeah,” she said with a shrug. “Might as well tell you, now that it’s come to this. That week when you were recovering. It was so stressful for me. I spent nights wide awake in bed, reliving what had happened that long time ago, and worrying that the same was going to happen to you. It was so painful to live through. I tried to forget my past for a reason. But at that moment I found myself staring it in the face.”

“Torchic... you don’t have to-” Tristan was about to say.

“The village I grew up in was very unlike the one you knew. The Pokemon who lived there were very superstitious. They took their traditions seriously, and always stayed true to their rituals. My parents were well respected among the villagers, and were among the more influential of the Pokemon. I guess I just didn’t think the way they did, cause I never really got into any of it. I liked to take part in the traditions, but it was because I liked to feel like I was a part of the community.

“Because of that I didn’t look up to my parents as much as others might have,” at this she gave Croconaw a slight nod. “But there was another villager who I respected. Someone who I felt was more like me. He was an explorer called Terran, a Donphan who had traveled from another land. My village was where he had settled. He went along with the traditions of the village, and became pretty well liked. But the thing that drew me to him was his stories. Places he’d been, things he’d seen on his travels, he always loved to share his experiences with others. He’d tell me all about what lied beyond the borders of my town, which was all I knew of the world.

It wasn’t long before we became friends, and we grew closer to each other. I think he saw something in me too. Something that made me different from the other villagers. I was curious, and not afraid to question things. It came to a point where there would rarely be a day when I wouldn’t see him.”

“And something happened to him didn’t it?” Tristan asked.

Torchic gave him a blank look before continuing. By now her tears had dried. But he could tell that she could break down at any moment. “Foundation Day was one of the most important days to the villagers back where I lived. It was said that an early Pokemon saw a star fall from the sky. It was on that spot where the star landed that the Pokemon founded the village. From then on, the star became an icon of the village, and was more precious to the villagers than anything else in the world. It would be brought out into the center of the village for three days to symbolize the three day journey it took to get there. And during that time, it was under constant guard in case anyone ever thought of stealing it.

“Many Pokemon volunteered to protect the artifact, including my parents as well as Terran. I too wanted to guard the star, but everyone told me I was too young to do it, and I wasn’t strong enough. The only one to vouch for me, was Terran. He managed to convince them that I could help guard it with him. At the time it was like a dream come true. A chance to prove myself as well as spend time with my friend.

“Our turn to stand watch was in the early hours of the morning, just before the sun would rise. The only reason they chose that time, I think, was to discourage me from actually going to guard. But they underestimated me, because there I stood with Terran, alert and vigilant.

“Nothing happened the first two mornings, but on the third and final one, a newcomer to the village came to pay us a visit. A Golduck, I forgot what his name was. Nobody had really gotten the chance to know him. But he became real interested in the treasure. He tried to volunteer to guard it, but he was rejected because he was still new and couldn’t be trusted. That morning, he came up to us and asked to see it. Of course Terran stood in his way, not letting him get close, and I followed his lead.

At the mention of the Golduck, she began to tremble. Not out of sorrow, but of anger. She pressed on, her voice becoming more and more ragged. “It started out as a polite conversation. He asked to see it, Terran denied. But kind words quickly turned to insults, and tempers rose. It came to a point where the Golduck made us aware of his true intentions. To steal and sell the star. He figured that if we valued it so greatly, it would make him rich. Without warning he struck out at Terran, but didn’t catch him off guard. He wasn’t only an experienced explorer, but over his travels he had learned to fight as well. When he had a moment to talk, he instructed me to go wake the village and get others to help. I went partway, but then decided somehow that if I teamed up with Terran, we could save the star together.

“By the time I had gotten back, they were both were standing on their last legs, running only on fumes. When Terran asked where the others were, I told him I was alone. That was the first time that he ever became angry with me, which confused me. I was so confident that we could win together I didn’t think we could lose. I was so distracted that I didn’t even see Golduck coming in to attack me. Terran yelled at me to look out, but I didn’t realize what was going on fast enough. Only when he knocked me out of the way of a lethal attack did I realize was happening. He took the brunt of the attack, and it would never have happened if I had just done what I was told!

“Only moments later Golduck went to attack me, combining his water and psychic powers. He must have underestimated me, was too weak or wasn’t actually intending to kill me, but whatever happened, I was left alive. The next thing I knew I was being shaken awake amid yells and screams. Terran had died and the star was stolen. All the blame was placed upon me. If I hadn’t gotten in the way, things would have been different. If I had been stronger, nothing like this would have happened. No matter where I turned I was confronted with cold stares from hateful eyes. And even my parents, who had loved and cared for me were among them. Some even went as far as to saying I was cursed and I was a plague upon the village.

“Whether that was the reason, or because of my horrible failure they exiled me from the village. I never felt so alone in my life, and I was still a young chick at the time. My best friend was gone and I had nobody to care for me. It was such an awful time to live in, Tristan. I don’t know how I was able to live with myself. Always being reminded that it was my fault. If I hadn’t been so weak or stupid, I still would have had Terran... It took several years for me to get over it. By then, I had vowed to myself that I would become stronger, strong enough so that I would have the power to not let thing like this happen again. I pushed my childhood behind me, and ended up wandering to the Pokemon village. It was there that I met Totodile, who asked me if he wanted to form a rescue team with me. I saw it as the chance I was looking for, and soon after that, you entered the picture as well.

“Now do you see Tristan? Can you see the parallels of what happened? Terran was a ground Pokemon, you are a ground Pokemon. Golduck was a water type, and Kyogre was a water type too. Terran pushed me away from the attack, taking the brunt of it himself, and the exact same thing happened with you. And why did they both happen? Because I was weak, and because I was stupid! It was too much for me, waiting to hear whether you would live or die! I was certain you were going to go just as Terran had!”

“But I didn’t,” Tristan interrupted.

“That doesn’t matter. There is one fact that remains. And that is since those days, I haven’t changed. Not one bit. Even my attempt to become stronger, to stop it from happening again was just me being afraid to accept what happened. Well I can’t do it anymore. I just can’t. You may try to stop me, but nothing you say will keep me on the team. This is where I draw the line. This is where it ends for me.”

“But-” Croconaw was about to say.

“No, Croconaw.” It was Tristan who had cut him off.

“Tristan!” Croconaw gasped.

“Listen,” he continued. “As much as I hate to say it... we cannot force her to stay on the team. If she wants to leave, there is nothing we can do.”

“Thanks Tristan...” Torchic sniffed.

“Don’t thank me,” he replied coldly. “Just because I’m siding with you doesn’t mean I agree with you. I don't want you to leave either. But after what you said... well I just can’t argue with that. All I can say is that I wish you would stay, and that Team Supernova won’t be the same without you. I don’t know if we’ll be able to keep going without you.”

“Don’t say that...” Torchic said. “You guys have been doing fine without me for a while now.”

“No, that’s not true. You are a key piece in our team. And when you are gone, there will just be an empty space where you used to be.”

“I’m sorry then,” Torchic replied. “But if that’s the case, you’ll just need to find someone else to fill it.”

“Nobody will ever be able to replace you.” With that, Tristan turned to Croconaw. “Let’s go.”

“But what about-” he was about to ask.

“Don’t you see?” Tristan snapped. “It’s a lost cause! She’s not coming back! There’s nothing else we can do!”

“But she’s...” he muttered as he turned back to her. He trailed off and wept softly.

“I know,” Tristan answered. “I know just as much as you do. But it comes to a point where no matter how hard we try, we get nowhere. This is one of those times. Lets just leave now, and make things as painless as posible.”

“I’m sorry...” Torchic sniffed from behind.

Tristan turned to face her one last time. “I know you are.” Tears were welling up in his eyes. “And I’m sorry too.”

With that he departed the scene, followed quickly by Croconaw, leaving Torchic behind to watch them as they disappeared amongst the trees. Leaving behind the team base, where they had shared so many fond memories. His tears streamed freely as well as Croconaw. They knew they had just lost something so valuable to them that could never ever be replaced.

To be continued...

[Brumrha]

The initiative is mine! HUZZAH!!

Ahem... that aside, as I started reading this, the first thing that I've noticed is that there are a bunch of asterisks dotted all over the place. Unless there's a good explanation as to why they're all here, get rid of them, because for me at least, they stick out like a sore thumb.