2012 Fanfiction Awards Results

“Move!” yelled the thin man, shoving me past. The next thing I knew, I'd turned and saw him at the centre of a ring of old folks, their eyes all fixed hungrily on his jigsaw.

“Come on!” I cried back. “Push on!”

One of the old people lashed out at him with a walking stick; he ducked it, put the jigsaw inside his coat and drew out what appeared to be a rapier from his pocket.

“Go on without me!” he replied, parrying a second blow and slashing at an old woman's snatching hand. “I'll keep them busy!”

“But your niece—!”

“She has parents – they can buy her presents.” His blade was a blur, flickering from point to point around the circle as the encircling elderly attacked. “Go!”

“But—”

“Go!”

He turned to look at me, and it was that momentary lapse of concentration that was his undoing. Someone released a Jack-in-the-box from a shelf into his hand; the Jack's pointy hat jabbed his thumb and he dropped his sword with a yelp. A moment later, he was just a face between the clawing hands of the old people, screaming wildly; a few seconds later, he had vanished entirely in a swell of cardigans and wrinkled skin.

“No!”

I lashed out at the nearest old person with my pipe, but I was shoved aside; I was no match for five of them at once. There was nothing more I could do, and if I stood still I would be crushed – so I left the thin man and ran for the Lego.

As I got close, I noticed a man on his hands and knees, searching for something on the bottom shelf; I stepped onto his back and jumped off without breaking stride, crashing into the top of the shelves where the Lego was and snatching up the boxes mid-leap. Toys, pieces of wood and one teenager with an armful of Lego rained down on the unfortunates on the other side of the shelf; thankfully, I landed on a fat man's belly, bounced off and kept running. One woman watched me open-mouthed, and shouted in a high, keening wail:

“He's got Lego!”

“According to Phoenix Corporation President, Henrique Alonzo, Barry West is dangerous, possibly disturbed, and prone to violent, destructive outbursts. He is responsible for millions of dollars of damaged property, and he allegedly made an attempt on the lives of several Phoenix employees off the coast of Snowpoint City.”

“Well, okay. Most of that one is true…”

“I’m gonna terrorize all the ecos!”

Zub made a gesture at his empty belt loop to indicate he had no Pokémon.

The man’s eyes narrowed, dangerously so. “I see. I win through forfeit, ” he whispered. “Now I, as required by the League, have to mug you.”

“Wait wait wait wait!” exclaimed Death, reappearing in front of Zub, donning a pair of what appeared to be Pikachu ears.. “I’m a Pokémon! I’m Pikachu!” Realizing his mistake, he changed his brilliantly balck robe into an outfit resembling a Pikachu. “Pika pika, ” he added helpfully.

The man’s eyes lit up once more. “A POGEYMAN! AND IT IS CUUU~UTE!” groping his belt for his Pokéball, he promptly threw it, releasing a Magikarp.

“Oo, this’ll be fun!” exclaimed Zub’s ‘Pikachu’. “Especially after he called me ‘cute’.”

“EXCELLENT!” said their opponent giddily. “MAGIKARP, USE YOUR ♥FANTABULOUS♥ SPLASH ATTACK!”

The Magikarp’s eyes narrowed. Lightning and thunder struck from a distance. The fish Pokémon rose up into the sky, blue streams of light flowing over it. More lightning.

Death whistled. “Our special effects guy better not blow the budget on this fish.”

Magikarp, faster than a speeding Remoraid, sped to Death, unleashing its ultimate attack….

Magikarp flailed a little bit, then fell over on the ground, gasping for air. Death gave a confused glance over to Zub, then punted Magikarp away, instantly defeating it.

“HYOOOOOOOI!” screamed their opponent, doubling over as if he was hit in the groin with something heavy. “MY POGEYMAN!”

“Do we win?” asked Death in a nonchalant manner.

“NO!” screamed the man. “I HAVE FIVE MORE OF THESE THINGS!”

Death frowned. After a moment of thinking, he came up with a solution. “Would you like a hug from this ADOWABLE Pikachu?”
“Boy howdy!” shouted the man, and ran up to hug Death, where he dropped dead.

“There we go, ” said Death , grabbing the man’s remaining Pokeballs. “Who’s up for grilled fish for dinner?”

“Wait… you don’t remember anything?” Blitz asked, tilting his head slightly.

“No, I don’t… Heh, that’s weird, ” the Mienfoo said, a small confused smile crossing his face.

“So… You don’t remember who you are, how you got here, or what happened to you?”

“Nope! Not at all!” the Mienfoo replied, seeming oddly amused by the strangeness of the situation he found himself in.

“That… doesn’t sound good…” Sera said, looking somewhat concerned.

“Maybe we should ask nurse Giselle over at the rescue team HQ if she can take a look at him?” Blitz asked.

“Sounds like a good idea, ” Sera responded, before turning to the Mienfoo. “What do you say? Want to come with us?”

“Sure!” the Mienfoo replied enthusiastically. “It’s not like I have anything better to do, or at least, not that I know of!”

“Praise God, ” he muttered. He then shook his head in dismay. “I never thought I’d praise God for a helmet…”

“No god exists here. They have all abandoned us to slaughter…”

Pokulok whirled around to search for the voice. “Who’s there?” he snapped. He fumbled with his helmet before he slammed it over his head and attached it to his suit.

“Nothing is here, ” the masculine voice said in a melancholy tone. “You know that. Why can’t you accept it?”

The MSE switched on the night vision and looked in the direction of the voice. A shape that had the vague silhouette of a large man was curled against the wall in a position more suited for a fetus. Otherwise, it was far too dark to see any features.

Pokulok gazed at the pitiful figure for a few seconds before he decided to ask the man a question. “What’s your name, sir?” he said in a hushed tone.

The man didn’t respond to his inquiry, which served to annoy the younger teen. “Sir?” Pokulok asked in a firmer tone.

The man still did not move and showed no indication that he had even heard the question. Anger surged through the MSE’s blood. This was pointless. Why should he risk his life for these people if they were going to be as useful as a sack of flour? He had no time left to waste; he had put his life and the lives of his Pokemon in danger for this man, and he needed an answer now.

“Sir!” he spat furiously. The man flinched and looked up at him in fear. “Your name. What is it?”

The response was so small and weak that he almost couldn’t hear it. “M-Motris. Giror Motris.”

The MSE raised his eyebrows in response to the name. “Giror…Motris?” he repeated slowly. “Do you happen to be from Orre?”

Motris lowered his head. “I don’t know.” He looked up again. “Who are you? Are you a crewmember?”

The teenager sighed. “My name is Claude Pokulok. I’m an MSE, and I’m going to get you and the rest of the crew out of he-”

“No!” The MSE took a step back from the ferocity of the tone. “They’ll kill us if we try!”

Pokulok held his hands up defensively. “Okay, just calm down for a second. Let’s start from the beginning and tell me who you’re talking about. Is it the Revenant?”

Motris wrung his hands in agitation, although he had thankfully stopped shouting. “I don’t know who they are, man, ” he mumbled. “I just know that they’ll kill us.”

The MSE stared in response. “That thing is going to find you in this room either way, ” he said, trying to make his voice sound calm. “We can walk out, and if you’re behind me every step of the way, I can promise that nothing will hurt y-”

“No, you don’t know anything, man!” Motris interrupted, rising to his feet. He jabbed a finger at Pokulok’s chest. “You don’t know what they want. They want us, man! They want all of us!”

“Yeah, I know it does. It’s a game to that monster, but I’m not going to do what it wants. If we stick together and-”

“No, you’re wrong, man. They want us. They need us. You don’t know anything, man. Not a ****ing thing.”

“So you’re just going to wait for the monster to come and kill you?” the teenager growled incredulously, trying to stop himself from screaming at the man’s idiocy. “That’s a pathetic way of thinking.” He took a deep breath to cool his temper down. “I intend to get out of here with my Pokemon, and you’re more than welcome to come along. I could definitely use your help to get out of this mess.”

“No, man, we’ll never get out, ” Motris said with an air of finality. He sat down and folded his arms over his chest. “You can’t beat them, ma-”

“Goddammit, have you been paying any attention to anything I’ve said?!” Pokulok howled, finally losing his patience. “I don’t give a flying **** about what you think! I put my Pokemon’s lives at risk for you, you pessimistic son of a *****! I left them alone in the hangar of this ****ing ship to save you!”

The man shuddered. “I-I can’t, man, ” he said. “The spawn will kill us if we go out…”

“Well, that’s too bad for you, ” the MSE snarled, firmly grabbing Motris by the arm. He involuntarily shivered at the icy-cold touch. “We are going out of this room, and there’s not a damned thing you can do about it. I’m in charge of this situation, and we’re getting out of this hellhole alive. You have one of two choices: you can get on your ****ing feet and walk out of here on your own power or I will drag you out myself, even if you’re kicking and screaming. But you will go out of this room, and I will not allow you to impede my progress. Do – I – make – myself – clear?”

After a few seconds, the man quietly nodded. Pokulok then realized that something that Motris had said seemed hauntingly familiar, especially after recalling Harris’ last moments.

“Giror, you said something about the ‘spawn’ killing us, ” he said, making sure that his tone wouldn’t provoke the older man further. “What are the spawn?”

Motris glanced from side to side, almost as if he was afraid of a person overhearing the conversation. “Part of them, ” he said simply.

The teenager bit his lip in frustration. The information wasn’t nearly good enough to go on, but he knew that if he pushed the man any more than he had, he risked losing him for good.

“Alright, ” Pokulok murmured, turning toward Motris. “Now that we have that settled, do you know a way out of this room?”

The older man pointed at a metal door that the MSE had not noticed earlier. An emotion that was eerily similar to paranoia had started to dig its way into his brain, and it took the last bit of his courage to force it down.

“Okay, let’s get out of here, ” Pokulok said in resignation. He walked toward the door, opened it, and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw what was behind it.

He was back in the hangar, and his Pokemon were ten yards away, staring at him in horror.

“Deifir! Faitios!” He rushed over to them and embraced them tightly. “God, you had me worried. Let’s get out of here; I’ve seen enough to last…”

The teenager trailed off when he felt them trembling. He looked into their faces and saw the terror in both of their eyes – terror that was not aimed at him. He didn’t even need to turn around to know that he had been duped by the Revenant again. The pieces – an ungodly mudslide of clues he had missed and hints he had failed to see – had suddenly fallen into place with cruel precision.

I was a fool! It put the name right in front of me, and I still couldn’t see it! Giror Motris…Rigor mortis…

“****, ” he muttered despairingly, whirling around and drawing his pistol after hearing an unearthly screech. The entity known as Giror Motris was roaring in agony as its human form slowly dissolved. Its melting eyes met Pokulok’s with a glare of utter loathing as the rest of its body continued its hideous transformation into shadow and tar.

“****!” The MSE raised his pistol and fired at the monster until the magazine had been emptied. However, it didn’t seem to faze the creature. After realizing that he was out of bullets, he fumbled with ejecting the empty clip, wasting too many precious seconds. He made the mistake of looking up and saw that the monster was shambling toward him with surprising speed. He took out a new clip and tried to load it into the pistol. In his terror, it slipped out of his grasp and clattered to the floor.

The teenager let out several obscenities and dove toward his ammo. He managed to snag the magazine with one hand, but the monster had reached him slightly afterward. It grabbed him by the throat with both of its clawed hands and raised him into the air. He thought that it looked up at him, but without its eyes, mouth, or nose, it was almost impossible to truly tell – until its face split into four and bellowed at him, revealing a jumbled mess of distorted facial features behind the mask.

The teenager kicked at it and thrashed around, but nothing seemed to break its grip. He was about to give up hope when he remembered that he still had his gun. He felt a strange sense of calm guide him as he loaded the gun, pulled back the hammer, aimed at the monster’s head, and fired six point-blank shots. It let out a bloodcurdling screech and immediately dropped him while it staggered and fell on its back. It melted through the ground as it hit the floor, leaving nothing behind.

Pokulok lay where he fell and breathed rapidly. He was exhausted beyond measure, but as he remembered his Pokemon, he realized that they needed him to be strong. He rolled onto his stomach and slowly got up, gasping at the effort. He stumbled to their side and immediately fell down again. He looked at them and forced a smile on his face, but it quickly faded when they didn’t return the favor. Instead, Faitios sobbed unashamedly into Deifir’s shoulder, while the normally-confident Absol had a defeated look on his face and didn’t even try to comfort the Skarmory. He felt a pang of sorrow hit him as he realized the enormity of what had just happened.

The Revenant lied. There were no hostages. It turned the crew into monsters like itself…

The MSE was interrupted by the cacophony of familiar laughter. He looked around and noticed the spawn phase through the walls with cruel laughs of their own. His Pokemon let out cries of panic and fled through the door he had come through.

“No, wait!” the teenager shouted, quickly leaping to his feet and giving chase. “Come back!” He ran at the door, but it slammed shut and locked itself on him as if it were possessed. He kicked the door open, walked through, and immediately shut it on the advancing horde.

The scenery had undergone a complete metamorphosis from when he last saw it; it had changed from a tiny room devoid of light to a balcony with a large brightly-lit room below him. Pokulok scanned the room and caught sight of Deifir and Faitios on the lower level, trying to get another door open. He immediately rushed to the edge of the balcony, opening his mouth to yell their names. He never got the chance.

He barely felt the subtle shift of his feet leaving the ground. He couldn’t force a scream out of his throat as he twisted his body to lessen the impact. He didn’t even try to fight off the darkness when he hit the ground. The last thought that came to his mind before he slipped into unconsciousness was that he had failed his mission and his friends.

Your blonde hair is so pretty, baby. It’s so bright, much too bright for a place like this. I rip it out. You hold on to your head, though your hair is the least of your worries. Your eyes goes next. You’re crashing into walls and bleeding everywhere, so lost when trying to escape. Oh, how wonderful it must be to run into the solid walls, a sure sign of the reality around you. I wish that I could figure out if I’m real or not. Does being real bother you, baby? I will find out. I make you beg and scream. For your mother. For your father. For your doctor. I make you beg and scream for the person that you had hoped to be at this point in your life. Does it bother you, baby, to know that you have been waiting for the best day of your life, all the while never considering that it may have already happened?

Scream your pokemon’s name, now, baby. They were waiting for that day with you, I’m sure. How disappointed they will be. Your pokemon’s move are powerless against me; they move right through my body. They are screaming, too. So loud. I want to hear you, not them. Does that bother you, baby? But I don’t mind, really. Teach them young, I say… I’ll teach them how to fear and cry while they’re still young. I wish that I could have joined your team, even if just for a short while. I could have observed them and learned so much. Likewise, I could have taught them many things.

I could have taught them how there are many ways to end a life, making such a sacred concept even more fragile than expected and desired.

There could be a simple snap of the neck. A disease whose only desire is to determine the day that you die. A pokémon attack gone awry and fired in all the wrong directions at all the wrong people. There could be the pull of a trigger and bullets that move faster than air itself, the same air that goes through so much trouble to place people in the gun's path, only to abandon them and watch them rot.

Let it not be forgotten that your current pokémon are causing the same kind of mayhem as I am, the same kind of carnage—and perhaps even more, though you will never know or dare to ask—as you yearn for their touch, their voices, any sign of propinquity.

Let it not be forgotten that blood—though you despise me for wanting it so much—is exactly what keeps both of you alive and breathing and together.

Let it not be forgotten that you are trying to live in a world that can offer you nothing but misery not meant for someone so young, a constant fight against insanity, and a skeptical view on what it means to be happy.

Let it not be forgotten that you made me this way.

Does that bother you, baby?

Baby?

Why aren’t you screaming anymore?

Your pokémon have run. Aren’t they supposed to be loyal? I would have been loyal to you.

Baby?

“Ala!” his Pokemon yelled.

“Look!” Ethan growled, showing Alakazam his uninjured hand. “I’d appreciate it if you’d give me a little space. I’m fine! I was fine last time and the time before that! Get off my back about it!”

“Ala!” Alakazam exclaimed, taking a step closer.

“Of course not! Besides that, it’s something that I want to do. Its only ever helped us anyway.”

“Kazam, zam ala.”

“Oh screw you! You’ve been with me every step of the way. You can’t just spring these complaints on me out of nowhere. If you have a problem with something I’m doing, then say something right then. Don’t just spring it on me out of nowhere when the situation has passed. You do this all the time!”

“Kazamam!” his Pokemon challenged.

“I don’t have to ask for your permission! I involve you in my decisions because I love you! I’ve never led any of you into anything we couldn’t handle and I’m not about to start! Let it go!”

“Kazam!” Alakazam accused, baring his small teeth.

“Shut up, ” Ethan hissed, roughly shoving his Pokemon backwards.

“Ala!” his Pokemon yelled. As the sound left his lips, the psychic Pokemon flexed his right hand, calling an orb of psychic energy to hover above his palm. The ball gyrated quickly, eager to be released. The colors thrummed from purple to black, with grey streaks swirling around its center.

“Do it, ” Ethan whispered, grabbing his Pokemon’s hand.

“Kazam, ” his Pokemon replied.

“Come on, do it, ” Ethan said, egging the Pokemon on.

“Alakazam.”

“You lack the courage of your convictions, ” Ethan accused, shoving his face into the swirling ball of energy.

“KAZAM!”

As Ethan’s faced grazed the exterior of the ball, his flesh began to fester and burn, quickly bypassing first degree and going straight to third. His Alakazam quickly ended the flow of power feeding the orb’s energy, effectively saving his master from further injury. The attack had broiled the lower half of his face, making him quickly reel backwards in pain. He stumbled backwards, his hands reaching up in reflex to put pressure on the wound.

He watched Alakazam approach, his eyes beginning to tear with worry. The pain he felt vanished instantly as he took a breath and centered himself; the flakes were already doing their work. As he continued to breathe, the burned and ruined flesh on his face evaporated in a stream of black smoke, being replaced by the tan, flawless skin that had been there before. Reaching up again, he felt his unblemished skin stretch itself tight across his chin.

Looking at his Alakazam, he stated, “That’s why we do this. This is why we’re out here.”

“Kazam, ” his Pokemon lamented.

“I do value your opinion, but we agreed on this a long time ago.”

Alakazam just stared at him.

“And you will not mention that incident again. Do you understand?”

“Kazam, ” his Pokemon nodded.

Ethan walked away, the gravel crunching delightfully under his boots.

“You know, lately I’ve been wanting to battle you again…”

It’s really hard to ignore the quiver in my voice as I croak these words into the receiver. I just pray you don’t notice it at the other end of the line. I just pray you’re listening. I just pray that I didn’t just go right to voicemail – you’re always so quiet I can never quite tell.

I just pray you’ll actually stop by.

I leaned over to get some eye contact with Mew. "Do you remember me?" I asked curiously. Mew nodded. When Mew's water had broke, I could tell that Gardevoir really wanted to faint. Sparkles was the first to notice the baby bump breaking it's shape. The hybrid had hatched inside Mew. Mewtwo also hatched inside of Mew when he was born.

"I'm Mummy, " Mew crackled. Normally, pokémon lay eggs. If the egg hatches before its been laid then labour or a caesarian would be the best choice.

"I'm going to support Mew's back, " I said to Sparkles. "You and Gardevoir can check what's coming out of Mew."

It was throwing them both into the deep end, but the hard lessons will stick with them. They deserve to be working here and I refuse to let anything make them feel otherwise.

"The egg shells are coming out Matron, " Gardevoir confirmed.

"Remove them at once Sparkles, " I warned, "The hybrid might get stabbed."

"Is it out yet?" Mew asked. She was still just as childish as she was before. It was as if history were repeating itself.

"It's just the egg shells at the moment, " Gardevoir replied. "Keep pushing… Okay I think the head is coming out. It's covered in blood."

"Keep pushing, " I requested to Mew. "You're doing very well."

Mew gave out a massive roar so loud it would make an exploud sound like a feather. After what felt like an earthquake to my ear drums, Mew had expelled the newborn hybrid from it's body.

"Can I hold it?" Mew asked me. "They never let me hold my babies before."

Seeker decided to leave the cave too and fly into the icy winds. As she'd come up slower than when she'd tried before, her body wasn't working as hard to keep up with the thin cold air. Maybe that was the secret, to get used to the thin air little by little. But then how long would it take to fully break through the sky?

Finding a rock jutting out of a wall, she landed there and listened around her. Not that far below her, Cyrus had already found a fight for Sneasel in a snover. Gyarados was complaining about the cold and ice, while Murkrow was suddenly hyper and energetic, fluttering around the group. However, Cyrus didn't feel anything for them, not even annoyance. They were like parts of his machines: not as important as the whole, just things to use. Did he feel the same for her?

No, definitely not. He had been pleased with her at least once, and he allowed concern to lead him to throw a battle rather than knock her out. Maybe she had just been a part of his designs once, but Seeker was pretty sure that she was more important to him than that now. He just didn't let those feelings and thoughts rise above his internal defenses.

The sky was full of moisture, in the form of snow and clouds. There were more clouds overhead, so it wasn't a time she'd usually try to fly into the sky. Then again, what if the presence of all that moisture helped her? She would have a full radar view of the air around her and could notice something unusual. Maybe she could succeed now.

Even as she thought of it, she had to wonder why. Why did she want to go through to the other side of the sky? It was just curiosity at first, to know what was there. And then it was because she had always failed and hoped that she might just make it this time. But then, what was the point of it? Whatever was on the other side of the sky… it didn't matter. And it didn't matter because Cyrus was on this side of the sky.

It was her dream, but it didn't really matter. Only what Cyrus wanted mattered. Even if he wanted to replace her, it didn't matter. It was okay.

There was a tinge of sadness when she thought of that, but that passed away into numbness quickly. It was a relief to think that she didn't need to worry about what her goals should be, because they'd end up passed over in favor of his goals anyhow. As long as she was near him, she was… happy wasn't quite the right term for it. Content. It wouldn't matter if there was silence or noise around her. When she heard him and knew his thoughts, she would know what to do. Even if her own heart was silent.

And that turned out to be the breakthrough she needed.

A few minutes later, Cyrus had the other two members of his team evolved. They had sounded pleased, but hopeful that he might let them go soon if he didn't feel anything for them. Seeker wasn't bothered by this. He still had some use for them, so she would tolerate their foolishness. Once they had been recalled, she flew over to meet with him.

“A little late for the effect I wanted in having a crobat, ” he said, reaching over to rub her ear while she hovered by him. “But good. It proves the falseness of what was believed.” And he smiled.

This was a dream; this was not the order of events that were supposed to take place. He brought the marker, he would receive the reward, and they would go home; that’s it, done! This did not fit into his life, this was not his path. He knew Ronnie was inside, and he knew that he probably would have no idea what had taken place right outside his office.

Through a flickering hallway he followed Kecleon, who had adopted a speed Dorian had never witnessed. The four of them burst through the door to his uncle’s office a moment later, almost tripping over each other in an effort to get through.

Dorian’s heart stopped.

Smoke billowed across the ceiling while lines of blood crisscrossed the floor in small rivers. The streams of crimson emanated from the body of his uncle, who was lying in the floor, head cocked to the side unnaturally. As Dorian fell to his knees, he saw that the word ‘thief’ had been carved into his uncle’s chest, the letters jagged and deep.

Kecleon started shrieking.

As Charizard deals the final blow to that Alakazam, you snuggle into my hair, the way that you always used to do, and I just know that your happiness must be real. What else could it be?

"Hm. How about you tell me what's been going inside your head since you woke up? Maybe that will tell me more about you."

Do I tell her? Tell her that I…like her? No, not yet. It wouldn't be right. She's clearly still upset about the possibility of us not making it out…Maybe later would be better. I looked back at her. "There isn't much to tell. Obviously, waking up as Pokemon is terrifying."

April gave me an odd look. "What's so bad about being a Pokemon?"

"Er, that's not what I meant. All I'm saying is that I know I'm supposed to be a human. Randomly waking up as a different species would be scary, wouldn't it? Not to mention not being able to remember anything. Imagine if you woke up as a human and couldn't remember anything. You'd be freaked out, wouldn't you?"

April nodded. "I guess I see your point. Go on."

"So while I attempted to even just stand up in my strange new form, you showed up. At first, you actually kinda scared me, haha." I let out a small chuckle.

"What do you mean?" April was giving me that odd look again.

"Well, I suppose I'm used to being taller. And when I saw you, I thought you were some sort of giant squirrel monster or something. But then-but then I-" I was stumbling at that point. I couldn't decide whether to tell her my feelings or not.

"But you what?"

"Um, then I realized I wasn't so tall and that you were only as tall as me. I hadn't remembered all the Pokemon names at once, but I knew you were one of them."

"Uh-huh. I know there's more than that…" She looked at me with a serious gaze.

What!? Am I really that transparent? Oh no, now what? I fumbled for words. "Er, um, well you see, when I saw you…a-and that sparkle that you had on your coat…it-it"

"Oh boy…why does this always happen? I had suspected as much. You like me, don't you? Like, you know, like me, like me?"

"Wha!? Er, um, uh, no, not at all! Well, uh, yeah. Yeah, I do…" I was looking at the ground again. This isn't when I wanted to bring this up!

April sighed. "I knew it…I've caught you just randomly staring at me. It looked like you were daydreaming. But you weren't. You were staring at me. Well, I suppose its to be expected. I am incredibly good-looking after all, teehee!" She seemed happier. I thought that was odd.

She looked as if finding out made her upset. But…she's all giggly again. Could that mean? No, don't get your hopes. Arg! I can't believe it! What am I thinking!? How could I have let that feeling go crazy again? People…humans…aren't supposed to like Pokemon! But denying this feeling is getting harder and harder. I've got to turn back soon!

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. "Look, April, it doesn't matter how I feel. That's the Pachirisu talking. I'm really a human. It would…it would never work out…"

"What do you mean? You are the Pachirisu! At least, you are now!"

"I just don't want to get all attached to you. In fact, it'd be worse for you if you became that way towards me. I'm still trying to turn back, remember? If I were to go back, this Pachirisu would be gone. I wouldn't be here. I'd be back with my friends, my family. As a human. And if you grew to like me…in that way…then imagine how hurt you'd be? I couldn't stand to do that to anyone. I just couldn't."

April was silent for a while. Then she put her paw on mine. "Then don't. Stay with me instead. Imagine the adventures we could have together! Doesn't…doesn't that sound like fun?" She was giving me a shy, sideways glance.

I took my paw away. All of this was getting way too touchy-feely for my taste. "No, please, don't do that to me. Just, stop. Stop it…Don't make me choose!" What am I saying, of course I'd go home. I can't like a Pokemon!

"Shane! You're gonna have to decide eventually!"

I looked at her suddenly, confused. "You…you called me Shane."

(Tears appear on Max's face and he starts crying. Then he becomes serious and shouts with all the confidence he has.)

Max: "Kirlia! Gardevoir! Do you hear me? I came back for Ralts like I promised!" (He waits a bit.) "I am here to take Ralts with me! Do you remember?" (Then he starts getting sad.) "No, this can't be…Ralts, are you here, my dear friend? I came back for you!"

(After that a wind starts blowing at Max and he sees a familiar blue light.)

I looked around the corner again to see another striped firedog, similar to Spencer’s, but this one had a horrifyingly vicious expression right now, causing Typhlosion and Arcanine to recoil slightly, seemingly losing some of the tension in their muscles.

It took me a second, but then I recognized what it had done. Her Arcanine must have had the Intimidate ability, which cut the strength of any attacker it encountered.

“Crap, gonna Intimidate us, is that it?” Spencer mumbled through gritted teeth. “Time for ranged moves, then…Typhlosion, Arcanine! Flamethrower!”

Simultaneous blasts of fire flew down the hill, striking the other Arcanine right in its front. It snarled as it took the assaults, noticeably affected by them despite its natural resistance to fire. But then suddenly flames were scattered everywhere as a tan horse jumped in the way of the blaze, glowing with a fiery sheen—it didn’t seem to even notice that it was being hit. In fact, the flames of its mane and tail only intensified.

“Did that just make it stronger?! Oh crap, it must have Flash Fire. Typhlosion, stop the Flamethrower and use Dig! Arcanine—” And then Spencer’s face lit up like he had just made the best realization of his life. “Dude, I’ve got it! Typhlosion, quick—use Flamethrower on Arcanine!!”

"He's…" the Gallade said while trying to stand up, "… He's down!"
"YES! HAHAHA!" Pikablu gave off a prideful and loud laughter, "We did it! We won! Victory is ours!"
"Way to go, Zerobi!" Lucario yelled, the happy feelings of having won turning his joy into actually feelings of being a professional coach. He ignored his pain and smiled brightly at his partner, who still had her back turned to him. Her black and unusually red back…

"… Blood…!?" Lucario exclaimed, angry at himself for not having noticed it sooner. Zerobi stood where she landed after the final attack, her body covered with tiny speckles of blood from the Garchomp. She wasn't saying a word, but was instead shaking profusely.

Lucario got worried and tried to run to her, noticing just how badly damaged his right leg had become from fighting the Garchomp. Whether it had been the constant fiery attacks or the fact that his roundhouse kicks might as well have been directed at a brick wall he did not know. All he knew was that if someone was to happen to Zerobi now, he would…

"… Zerobi…?" Lucario slowly asked, patting the shoulder of his partner.

In an instant she spun around with a claw outstretched, cutting through his throat with a quick slash. Blood splayed across the field as time seemed to stop all around them. Pain filled Lucario's head while a gargling sound escaped his throat as he tried to draw breath, but the passageway to his lungs had been completely severed and he began choking instead. He felt his warm blood running the fur on his neck, holding up a hand in a futile attempt of stopping the flow. Falling to his knees from the lack of air, all he could do was stare deeply into the eyes of the smiling Weavile in front of him.

Inside of them, he noticed that there was something unusual.

Nothing.

Evan winced as Jenny recalled Herdier. He had chosen Zweilous in the first place because it was his most recent capture, having been acquired as a young Deino shortly before his participation in the Pokemon League. Knowing this, Zweilous was easily the least experienced of Evan’s Pokemon, but he had apparently underestimated its sheer power.

“You may have beaten me, ” Officer Jenny growled, “but you won’t get away! I’ll lock down the station, and—”

A sharp bang cut her off.

Officer Jenny coughed, splattering a red stain on her uniform.

The life vanished from her eyes.

And she fell to the floor.

“Whuh—What the hell?!” Evan cried, rushing to Officer Jenny’s side. He found a hole in her back. “What the hell just—”

“That would be my handiwork, ” Lunaris said, returning with a smoking gun in his hand, “though I'll admit that it’s not my best.”

“Did…did you…?” Evan stammered.

“I did, ” Lunaris said with a disturbingly casual tone in his voice. “Leaving her alive would have made her quite a nuisance. Now, I have my things, including the Pokemon I want to present to Team Rocket. Shall we take our leave?”

Evan hesitated. He put a finger to his ear.

“We’re ready for pickup, ” Evan said, the cockiness in his voice completely gone.

“Roger, ” the pilot said back.

Evan’s finger fell out of his ear as the rest of his arm dangled limply at his side. Lunaris left, leaving Officer Jenny’s corpse behind to rot. Only one thought ran through Evan’s mind.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to be.

“I suppose there's nothing we can do, ” Bond said at last, leaning back into his seat. “Never mind. There can't be much further until we arrive.”

Well, technically you're right, Jeeves, but I like to know where I'm going. The last time I found myself on a train at random, I ended up in City 17. And I ain't no Free Man, so you can guess how that went. Pigzie Doodle sighed. I do realise you can't hear me, but I also find it hard to stop talking. Centuries of travelling alone does that to a person. Anyway, did I ever tell you about Mombasa? There was me, this Gastly and a Misdreavus called Sandy, and we thought it'd be a good idea to possess a couple of elephants…

As the train rattled on, his story continued, growing steadily more unbelievable and sadly no less unhearable.

“The mushroom agrees with the Shinx, that mission is too much for you two!” a strange monotone voice called out to them.

Blitz and Sera turned to see that an orange bug Pokémon with a large mushroom growing on its back was the one who had just spoken to them, the Parasect staring at the two with its blank white eyes.

“Hey, I think I’ve seen you around here before, ” Blitz said. “You’re Mirage’s teammate, aren’t you? Or do I have you confused with another Parasect?”

“You are correct, I am indeed Mirage’s teammate, ” the Parasect clarified, speaking in an almost robotic way. “My name is Cordyceps, by the way.”

“But didn’t Mirage already have a mission she intended to do today?” Sera asked.

“Indeed, but the mushroom thought it might be a good idea to check what other missions are available, in case we find something Mirage might be interested in, ” Cordyceps explained.

“Well, I think there are some missions with a high reward on here, ” Blitz said, gesturing to some missions on the board with his paw. “They look kind of difficult, but I guess that is why they pay off so well…”

“The mushroom thanks you for making this observation, this pleases the mushroom, ” Cordyceps replied, picking off a mission from the board with his orange claw. “Mirage will be pleased as well.”

“You’re welcome?” Blitz felt a bit creeped out by the orange bug that was apparently being controlled by the mushroom on his back.

“I will be taking this as well, ” Cordyceps picked off the mission Sera had been looking at. “The mushroom thinks it would be better for an experienced rescue team to handle this, and that you kids should handle something easier.”

“Hey! Who are you calling a kid!?” Sera seemed a bit offended by the Parasect’s remark.

“The mushroom is merely making the observation that you two are too inexperienced for a mission like this, ” he responded.

“Cordy? You coming?” a somewhat deep, but still feminine voice called out. The Pokémon turned to see what appeared to be a large duck like creature with flame like patterns on her body. “Mirage is waiting.”

“The mushroom apologizes for being late, ” Cordyceps responded as he crawled over to the Magmar. “However, I found some missions that I think Mirage will be interested in.”

Floaroma Town was barely an outskirt of a suburb, a small stopover village nestled in the woods at the bottom of Mount Coronet. In comparison, Celestic Town may well have been a bustling center of trade. But where Celestic was surrounded by perpetual mountain haze, looming pine trees, and a jagged, knife-like terrain that combined to cause Sam to fear for his life at the movement of his own shadow, Floaroma Town was much more sleepy and calm. The village was literally alive with colors; flowers bloomed from the east end to the western highway out towards Eterna City, and roads and walkways were shaped windingly around their beds so as to molest them as little as possible.

“What do you want?”

“I have a mission for you Koga.”

Blaine went on to describe how he had invented a weapon in his hidden laboratory on Cinnabar Island. He described the nature of the weapon and it’s purpose, much to Koga’ shock and delight. Blaine then described the mission and how the weapon would be put to use. Koga was visibly excited with this news and this very much annoyed Blaine. He found Koga a disgusting specimen of a human being. A man who takes pleasure out of killing is a warped and twisted man thought Blaine, as Koga excitedly began preparing for the mission.

“How can you sleep at night?” Blaine asked.

“Ha, you’re disgusted by me, aren’t you?” Koga said, smiling.

“Yes. You’re a ninja. A man who kills people under the disguise of shadows and darkness. How is that honourable?”

“And yet, you’re a scientist. A man who kills people under the disguise of knowledge and discovery. You are no different to me.”

“What on earth do you mean?” Blaine suddenly yelled.

“The weapon I’m going to use in this mission. I may be the one using it but you are the one who created it. If you made the gun, you are no better than the man who pulls the trigger.”