FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. However, all original characters and names in this story do belong to me. In other words, Ian Moone and Jace Whitehale belong to me. If you wish to use one of my characters, please ask before you do so. More out of courtesy than anything else, as I am (usually) perfectly happy to let someone borrow a character if they want.

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This is going to be the first clean chapter in this series, since it focuses more on Ian's training and some very important events. If you skip this just because there's no yiff, you will be really confused when the next chapter rolls around. And without further ado, let the Journey continue...

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I waited somewhat impatiently outside of The Dragon's Roost, Gardevoir standing next to me and shaking her head at my impatience, while Latias was in human form and giggling as I fidgeted. We were waiting for our new companion Jace Whitehale, who had gone inside the bar to take care of a few things that needed attending to before he could accompany us on our Journey. Maybe five minutes had passed since we had left Rustboro city's Gym after I had used myself in a Pokémon battle for the first time, and I was still tired from the eye-opening experience. If I was to defeat the Revenant, I needed to become much stronger, and quickly too. If I didn't... I didn't even want to think about what might happen. I shuddered to myself and Latias shuddered as well, having sensed my thoughts through our Soul Bond.

"Alright, that should take care of everything. You guys ready to go?" Jace's voice snapped me back to reality, and I jumped up from where I had been leaning against the wall.

"Of course! I want to at least make it to the beach before nightfall." I said, glancing up and seeing the sun starting to sink on the horizon.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get going!" he said cheerfully, and I gave him an exasperated look.

"We were waiting on you, Slowking. If you hadn't taken so long in the bar, we would've been gone already." I said somewhat exasperatedly, and he waved a hand dismissively as we began to walk out of Rustboro in the fading daylight.

"I don't want to finish this journey and come back only to find my bar having gone bankrupt while I was away." he said, and I had to admit he had a point. I wouldn't want him to survive the ordeal ahead only to find his life's work destroyed when he returned. "Besides, I had to grab Raikou's Pokéball."

As soon as I heard him say that name, I stopped dead in my tracks, as did Latias and Gardevoir. Jace kept walking for another few paces before he realized we weren't beside him any longer, and he turned back to see us looking at him in shock.

Did you really just say Raikou? As in, the Legendary Raikou? Gardevoir's stunned telepathic voice had a dazed quality to it, and I just shook my head in wonder; Jace was full of surprises.

"Um, yeah, I did. I may explain it some other time, but for now just know that he and Entei decided they wanted to travel with me a long time ago. Roughly fifteen years or so." he said dismissively, and I shook my head in wonder. For two of the three Legendary dogs to actually want to travel with him, Jace was a very lucky person, and I couldn't help but wonder what he did that made them let him catch them.

"One day, you're going to have to tell us exactly what you did that made them want to travel with you." I said as I started walking again, Gardevoir and Latias falling into step behind me as we caught up with Jace and started heading towards Petalburg woods. Jace simply gave a small, tight-lipped smile.

"Maybe." was his only reply, and I continued to shake my head as we walked towards the woods. I looked up at the sky, and to my dismay saw the sun had sunk farther than I thought it would have, almost completely below the horizon, the deep crimson light of late evening giving way to the light grays of dusk just as we entered Petalburg woods. I sighed to myself as we kept walking, the light darkening even further as we entered the trees and the canopy overhead served to block out even more of the light.

Ian, we may have to stop in the forest again tonight. Latias said to me telepathically, entwining her human hand in my own. Such a simple gesture, yet one that felt strange; I was so used to feeling the soft fur of her true form that the feel of her human forms' skin was unusual. Still, I enjoyed having her hand in my own, and gave it a gentle squeeze as I looked over and smiled softly at her.

"I know Bree, but I was hoping I could sleep somewhere I could see the stars. I like being able to watch them." I murmured softly, using her human name just for safety as I kept smiling and she nodded in understanding, once again sensing my thoughts through our special bond.

Because they remind you of Lucas. she replied, and I nodded sadly. The whole reason I had come home to the Hoenn region and started this journey, yet now it had somehow become so much more.

"Yeah... I wish he hadn't been so extreme in his reaction... But he always was impulsive." I sighed to myself; the more time that went by, the less sense it made to me just why he had done it. I could understand being upset because your sister-slash-lover had been killed in a violent manner, but to go and kill yourself? What had that accomplished, aside from causing his family and friends more grief and sadness? Latias simply hugged my arm tightly, lending her support and understanding as she smiled up at me.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" I jerked as a powerful howl overflowing with pain echoed through the woods, and I was instantly on alert and looking around for the source. Latias let go of my arm and Gardevoir stood alert and poised; and looking over I saw that Jace had dropped into a crouch and had one of his Pokéballs out and ready, and I waved at him.

"It came from that direction! Let's go!" I said quickly, and he nodded and followed me as I charged into the trees in the direction the scream had come from. I didn't know what type of Pokémon had made such a sound just yet, but I wasn't going to just sit by and let it suffer that much. Rushing through the trees at an inhuman speed, I quickly outdistanced Jace until I had almost lost him by the time I found the source of the scream; a clearing directly in front of me. I managed to check my headlong rush at the very edge of the clearing, and I stared in utter shock for a moment as I saw what was happening in the clearing. Jace, Latias, and Gardevoir caught up to me a moment later and looked on in horror and revulsion at the scene unfolding before us.

Tied to a tree at the edge of the clearing was a Lucario, it's whole body tensed and it's teeth gritted as it howled at the sky in pain. On first inspection it's fur appeared to be red; and then I realized that it's entire body was covered in blood from several cuts on various parts of it's body. Standing in front of the tied up Lucario were two burly men in Team Rocket outfits, black pants and shirts with a large red R emblazoned on the backs, and they were leering evilly at the Lucario as it screamed in pain, each one holding a large knife in his hand.

"That's right bitch, scream for us! No one can hear you, and no one will come to save you!" one of them laughed as he moved in and slashed it again, and I clenched my teeth so hard I thought they would shatter. The other one laughed as his partner stepped back, and moved in to make his own slash on another part of it's body.

"Haha, the sounds she makes when we cut her are so funny! See?" he laughed as the Lucario, which I now realized was a female, let out a whimpering moan as her head slumped, exhausted from the torture the two Team Rocket members were inflicting on her. I saw Jace start to move forward, and I put out my hand to hold him back. He looked at me, and I saw his face contorted in anger before he took in my expression.

"Jace. Gardevoir. Latias. Let me handle this." I said, my face blank and my voice flat and emotionless as my rage pounded through my veins; I was NOT going to sit idly by and let this happen! Jace blanched as he saw my expression, and he, Latias, and Gardevoir quickly got back. I slowly entered the clearing, walking up silently behind the two Team Rocket grunts, who were still laughing at the Lucario as her head drooped and she whimpered in pain, completely exhausted from what they were doing to her.

"Just what do you bastards think you are doing." I said quietly, my voice just loud enough to be heard, yet containing all of the rage I could feel building more and more powerful within me; just a little more, and it would erupt. The two spun around with their knives at the ready, before they saw me and relaxed, laughing.

"It's just a kid! Haha, no one will miss him!" the one on my right jeered, and the one to my left laughed.

"We can use him for target practice! He'll scream so much for us!" he started to laugh again, but it was cut off by my fist cracking his jaw and knocking a few teeth out. He stood up and spit out blood along with pieces of shattered tooth, swearing at me as he raised his knife. "You'll pay for that, you little fuck!" he screamed at me, and I glared at him as they both came after me, swinging their blades in an attempt to kill me. I almost laughed at them as I let my fury go; with my reaction speed, especially with adrenaline and rage pounding through my veins, their blades seemed to stay almost completely stationary, and it was childishly easy to dodge each of their slashes.

I dodged the one that I had hit before first, and as his blade went by my face I reached out, grabbed his wrist in one hand, and slammed my other palm against the back of his elbow joint, breaking his arm and causing him to drop the knife and fall to his knees howling in pain, a shard of pale white bone protruding from his arm and blood pouring out of the wound. His screaming was cut off by a quick kick to the face that sent him flying all the way across the clearing and crashing into a tree, where he stayed, dazed. The other one hesitated just long enough for me to drop into a crouch and spin, one leg extended, and knock his feet out from under him. Gracefully straightening as my spin ended and before he had even begun to fall towards the ground, I used the momentum from my spin to deliver a punch straight to his stomach that sent him flying across the clearing as well.

As he hit a tree and slumped to the ground in a daze just like his companion, I dismissed them as no longer being a threat and hurried over to untie the Lucario. As I was fumbling with the tight knots in the ropes, Jace, Latias, and Gardevoir crept cautiously into the clearing.

"Well, they got what they deserved." Jace said, and I looked back over my shoulder to smile at him, though it came out a little darker than I would have liked, and he flinched again.

"They got off easy, let me assure--!" my voice stopped as my hand brushed against the blood-soaked fur on the Lucario's arm, feeling the blood there. That wasn't what cut me off though; as soon as my hand brushed her arm and her blood touched my skin, my mind felt as if it had been removed from a very small, cotton-stuffed box. Suddenly, I could sense each life force in the clearing, their emotions and even their thoughts! It was almost like a much extended version of my Soul Bond with Latias. I could feel Jace, Gardevoir, Latias, the Lucario, the two Team Rocket members, and even the Pokémon in their Pokéballs! Then, out of nowhere I got a flash of memories and thoughts from the Lucario, from which I learned her name was Nera.

I also learned exactly what she had been put through by the two Team Rocket members. The two had killed her original Trainer and stolen her, and almost every day since then they had cut her several times a day just to hear her scream. They had done this for several months, only stopping long enough for her wounds to heal so they wouldn't kill her, and then they would start in on her again. I stood up slowly, my head bowed and my fists clenched as my rage grew beyond the point where I could control it, Nera falling unconscious as I straightened.

I could feel my rage fueling my powers, making them grow exponentially, so much that I thought I would explode from the force contained inside me. My power started to manifest itself as a dense, crackling web of dark sapphire lightning that flickered around my form as I kept my head bowed and my fists clenched. In the back of my mind I could hear Latias and Gardevoir trying to call me, to get me to snap out of it, but I didn't care. Psychic energy started to emanate from me in waves, causing the grass, shrubs, and other small plants in the clearing to be pressed flat into the ground from the ambient effects, and the trees to start to creak and bend towards the ground as the air began to vibrate, causing a low-pitched thrumming to reverberate through the clearing.

I could feel the focus of my rage through the strange new sense I had gained; their presences were dark, full of evil to the deepest parts of their souls. I also caught snatches of their memories and thoughts, showing me exactly how much these two Team Rocket members enjoyed what they had done, and I saw just how many other Pokémon they had tortured and finally ended up killing this way. I clenched my jaw even tighter as I looked up, opening my eyes and seeing the two men trying as hard as they possibly could to stand up against the energy pouring out of me and forcing them down against the ground. As they saw my expression, they flinched in terrified horror, and suddenly I was looking through their eyes and seeing myself.

I was completely surrounded by flickering, crackling bolts of dark sapphire lightning, and so much psychic energy was radiating off of me that you could actually see the distortions in the fabric of reality, the air around me shimmering constantly as if seen through a heat haze. My black long-sleeved shirt was rippling due to the force of the power emanating from me, and my black hair was waving about as well. My eyes were what terrified the two Team Rocket members the most though; they were glowing a dark blue, and as a matter of fact both of my eyes were entirely that color, no whites, pupils, or irises at all.

"Holy shit, this guy isn't human!" I heard one of them think to himself, and I grinned darkly as my mental probe retreated from their minds and I was once again looking through my own eyes.

"You sick, sadistic bastards think this is fun? Do you think it's funny? I will show you just how messed up this is!" I said powerfully as I glared at them, and the extreme amounts of power radiating from my form began taking almost physical shape; the distortions gathered together, forming thousands of small, crescent-moon shaped blades of pure psychic energy, each one only visible due to the intense amount of power contained within it causing the fabric of reality to shimmer. "Prepare to feel the same pain and torment you have subjected so many Pokémon to!" I yelled as I thrust my palms forward, unleashing the thousands of blades, every single one of them finding their mark, yet only cutting deep enough to cause bleeding and not deep enough to cause any serious, life-threatening damage. I wanted them to feel every last bit of pain they had inflicted on others just for the sake of it.

The two Team Rocket members shrieked in pain as thousands of cuts appeared in places all over their bodies, blood pouring from each wound like a sluggish crimson river until their clothes were soaked in it; at least, what was left of their clothes after my psychic assault on them, the small blades having shredded most of what they were wearing. I began to walk towards them slowly, rage still contorting my expression and psychic energy still pouring from me in immense quantity. If it had been at any other time, I would have wondered exactly how I had that much energy and where it was coming from, but at the moment I was solely focused on the two pathetic forms in front of me that were still screaming in pain as my assault of blades finally ended. I lifted my right hand, palm up as if I was lifting something, and the two Team Rocket members were lifted into the air as if it was nothing, floating suspended there as they broke down and began to cry, still whimpering in pain as I held them there.

"IAN!! STOP, THEY'RE NOT WORTH KILLING!" The combined voices of Jace, Gardevoir, and Latias finally broke through to me and I looked over to see them looking at me in horror. I looked at Gardevoir and Jace in particular; they wouldn't have been able to see or sense what I had, but Latias had, and I could tell it bothered her immensely.

"I just had a look inside the minds of these two, and I can tell you that they definitely deserve to die." I growled darkly as I gestured with my left hand at the two still floating in midair. The three of them just looked on in horror as I began to exert more force on the two, their bones starting to creak and making them scream in pain as I slowly clenched my fist, and with it my psychic grip on their bodies. Latias looked at me pleadingly for a moment, and through our bond I felt her dilemma; she knew they deserved to die, but she didn't want me to kill them either.

Ian... Please leave them? I don't care if they die, but I don't want you to kill them... Please? she beseeched me, and I shuddered as I realized what I had almost done; I had lost control of my anger and almost killed two people, even if they deserved it. I bowed my head for a moment; then without looking I snapped my right arm to the side, flinging the two Team Rocket members into the trees to our right, where they went quite a ways before finally hitting a tree trunk and falling unconscious. I sighed to myself as I let my arm fall back to my side, and I felt the immense quantity of energy that had been emanating from me slowly stop, the grass, shrubs, and trees straightening and the air slowly stopped vibrating as my rage died, leaving me feeling cold and unhappy.

"You're right... They aren't worth killing. They can lie where they are and die for all I care, but I won't kill them myself." I said as I looked back up, and through my strange new sense I could feel the relief of the three as they approached me. As they did, the last vestiges of my power faded and I was hit with crushing fatigue, letting out a groan and almost collapsing unconscious as I fell to my knees in front of them. I heard their muffled exclamations as I fell, but the world had become gray and blurry, every sound was muffled, everything was indistinct. I experienced rather than felt as my knees hit the ground, and I started to collapse forward onto my face. Before I could however, I felt hands grasp me and catch me, and I looked up to see Latias with an extremely panicked look on her face as she started to channel healing power into my body, slowly rejuvenating my exhausted form.

Ian! Come on, don't fall asleep, please! Latias' panicked voice echoed in my mind as I groaned again as the world began to come back into focus; every bit of me hurt, from my head all the way to my fingers and toes.

"Ow... That hurt..." I muttered as Latias continued to pour healing energy into my exhausted body, slowly but surely relieving the pain until I could stand on my own once again, albeit a little unsteadily.

"How could anyone be so sick and twisted? How could anyone be able to laugh at this?" I heard Jace mutter to himself, and I looked over at him as Latias and I stood up, and Latias pulled my right arm over her shoulder and supported some of my weight as she helped me walk over to where he and Gardevoir were standing.

"Because their minds were sick and twisted. They had no sense of empathy for other people, and no sympathy for the feelings of what they considered to be little more than animals, simply tools to be used for their sadistic pleasure and then discarded if they died or when they got tired of them." I replied, and through the strange new mind-reading ability I seemed to have gained, I sensed him preparing to go after them and finish them. I sighed as I put a hand on his shoulder and held him back. "Don't bother Jace. They're going to die anyway, and like you said they're not worth killing ourselves, even if they do deserve it." I said tiredly as I removed my arm from around Latias' shoulders and stood next to him. He looked back at me with an expression that was so surprised, it was almost funny, and if I hadn't hurt so much at that moment I probably would have laughed.

"How the... How'd you know I was getting ready to go after them?!" he asked incredulously, and both Gardevoir and Latias looked interested as well. I sighed once again as I looked at him with a tired expression.

"How about we get Nera over there and find a place to camp where I can heal her in peace, and then I'll attempt to explain it as best I can." I replied in a very tired tone, and the others simply nodded as I walked over and picked up Nera, who was still unconscious.

We ended up camping on the edge of the same lake that we had the night before, well hidden from the main path, and while Jace was busy getting the two separate tents put up and starting a fire, I took the still unconscious Nera into the lake and slowly cleaned the blood off of her form. The more blood that was washed out of her fur, the more I had to fight to keep my anger under control. For a Lucario, her fur was the normal color, tan chest fur with blue and black over the rest of her body. But the more blood that washed into the lake, the more silver lines in her fur were revealed, each one representing a scar from where the two Team Rocket members had cut her. The only places that were free of scars were her neck and tail, though her face had two large silver scars forming an X that crossed right between her eyes. There were literally thousands of scars, not to mention the several cuts that they had made before I rescued her, the ones that were still bleeding slightly.

"Dear Arceus... How did she manage to live through all of that?" Jace asked as he wandered over, and I looked up at him to see his expression was one of shock.

"Because she had no choice, and because she kept the hope that she would be able to escape, even through all of that. Now hush for a moment please, I need to concentrate if I am to heal her." I said, and he nodded as he returned to setting up the campsite. I bowed my head in concentration, needing all the focus I could gather if I was going to heal her; after the amount of power that I had called forth when rescuing her, I was exhausted almost to the point of total collapse. As I concentrated, I cleared my mind, until there was nothing but calm left, not a thought crossing my mind.

Suddenly I felt a rush of energy from all directions, whirling through the world! And with a gasp I realized that what I was feeling was the energy of everything, not just living beings, but the energy of the world itself! The power that surged through the Earth, through the sky, through everything and everyone. And I realized I could draw upon this power, shape it to my will, and use it. And so I drew upon the energy of the Earth and sky, not entirely sure what would happen if I drew it from a living being. I didn't want to end up killing something simply because I was carelessly experimenting with a strange new power I didn't fully understand or know how to use. I drew the power necessary to heal Nera's broken, battered form from the earth, and let it flow into her body, healing the open cuts without a trace. Sadly, I could do nothing to heal the scars, however much I might want to.

I opened my eyes slowly, no longer feeling as if I was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, and I realized I could still feel the energy of everything around me as well as the emotions of every living thing around for quite a ways. I smiled slightly, but only for a moment as I picked up Nera and slowly levitated up and out of the water, floating over to the shore and setting her down gently next to the fire, where her fur would dry and she would be comfortable when she woke up. Latias came over and hugged my arm as we both regarded the unconscious Pokémon with a mixture of both sadness and anger for what she had been through. I sighed as I sat down across the fire from her so that I could dry off as well, and Latias sat next to me as Jace and Gardevoir came over to sit beside us.

"How is she, Ian?" Jace asked quietly, his usually cheerful mood subdued from what he had witnessed earlier.

"She'll live... I'm not sure what she will do once she wakes up though. She may not realize that she's safe from those two psychopaths, so be prepared to take cover if she attacks." I sighed, and he nodded as he opened his mouth to ask another question. Through the new mind reading ability I had gained I heard his thoughts, and before he could even ask his question I was answering it for him. "And no Jace, I don't know what kind of power I have now." I said, and he paused with his mouth open and blinked a few times, making me chuckle as he closed his mouth and looked at me rather crossly.

"You know, it's going to get bloody annoying with you being able to read my thoughts." he said exasperatedly, but I could sense he was more curious than angry, for which I was grateful.

"Sorry Jace. I can't help it; I don't even know what to call it. I can sense every living thing around us and their emotions, their energy, and even their thoughts. I don't know how though, and it's not like I can control it just yet." I said apologetically, and he nodded as he gave a small smile that I returned gratefully.

It's... called aura... an unfamiliar, yet unmistakably female telepathic voice intruded on my thoughts, and the four of us jumped as I looked around for the speaker. Over here, Legendary... it said, and I looked across the fire to see Nera struggling into a sitting position, supporting herself on her paws as she settled into a cross-legged position on the ground. I was surprised, and a little annoyed; I could understand another Legendary such as Entei being able to tell I was a Legendary Pokémon and not just a human, but how had a Lucario been able to tell?! The feel of her... aura, as she called it, was calm and slightly amused as she regarded me with an expression of gratitude. The way the X-shaped scar on her face caught the firelight gave her a fierce, aggressive appearance, especially combined with her red eyes, and if I hadn't been able to sense her emotions I might very well have been preparing for her to attack us.

"What do you mean, Legendary? I'm just a human named Ian Moone." I said cautiously, expecting a trick as I watched her warily. She simply smiled at me, amusement evident in the way her aura felt, and in return I just continued to watch her in silence.

You might be able to fool humans and even most Pokémon with that form, but I am an aura user, and I can feel the power inside you. Your aura shines far brighter than that of a regular human, as does the aura of the girl sitting next to you, and the aura of the Legendary Pokémon whom are inside two of the Pokéballs your human friend is carrying. she replied, still grinning, and I stared at her in shock. You are a Legendary, the girl is a Legendary, and the Pokémon in those two Pokéballs I mentioned are Legendaries, and don't even try to deny it this time. she winked at me and smiled, slightly on the annoyed side though, as if I was being rather dense. I gave up on trying to hide myself and shook my head in exasperation as I let my form shift, becoming my true form as Latias did the same, preferring to be in the same form as me as she hugged my arm and floated next to me.

Okay, I give up. I am a Legendary, but I was once a human. Anyway, what's aura exactly? I get that it lets me sense the living things around us and their emotions, but is that it? And is that how you are communicating with us, since I know you're not a Psychic-type? I asked, and she looked surprised for a moment when she heard me say I was once human. She quickly got over it though, and sat a little straighter as she began her explanation of what aura was and what it could do, starting with how it was indeed how she was speaking to us. The final part of her explanation was about how aura could be used for combat, and she had a wicked gleam in her eye that was rather interesting.

Care for a demonstration? she asked once she was finished explaining it, and I nodded interestedly; this could make my fights much easier. She raised one of her paws and concentrated for a moment, and I felt her drawing on her own life energy and forming it into a bright blue, glowing sphere in her palm. I watched in fascination as she looked up and smiled. This is an aura sphere. It locks on to the aura of the target and will follow it until it hits. Very destructive, as you will shortly see. she aimed the aura sphere at a tree on the other side of the lake, and it swiftly shot away from her palm to strike the tree with a discharge of power that gouged a large hole almost completely through the tree. The rest of us watched in shock as the various bits and pieces of wood rained down from the sky into the lake, and Nera sagged a little in exhaustion before she straightened back up.

"That... was cool. Scary that Ian can do that now too, but cool all the same." Jace said in a very awed tone, and I smiled to myself.

And that was only a weak aura sphere, compared to what I can normally do. Nera said, and Jace looked over and gave her a kind of scared and surprised look.

"Wait... you mean if Ian was to do that, like right now... How much more powerful would it be?" he asked in a rather scared tone of voice, and Nera grinned as she replied.

Well, it does depend on the amount of power put into it. More power equals more damage, so if he puts more into it it will do more. Usually, the more power that's put into an aura sphere the larger it gets. she replied with a small smile, and I sighed to myself. I still needed to train, and it was getting late, not to mention the fact that now I had several more abilities that I didn't completely understand.

"Something wrong, Ian?" Jace asked curiously, though still slightly wary from Nera's demonstration of the destructive power of aura. I snorted slightly in an amusement as I shook my head.

Not really, I just need to train. I need to become so much stronger than I am right now, and now I have several new things I have to figure out how to control and use. I said, and Nera immediately perked up, sitting even straighter than before as her ears swiveled forward interestedly.

_ _

_ Training, you say? Would you mind if I trained with you? As a matter of fact, would you mind if I accompanied you? You'll need all the help you can get if you're going to become stronger, and I can help you, at least with aura training. Not to mention that I owe you a great debt for saving me from those two..._she said, her tone filled with both pain and anger as a tear slid down her face, and I floated around the fire to wipe the tear away, and she looked up to see me smiling down at her.

Of course you can travel with us. I think Jace has an extra Pokéball or two, and a few open slots on his team. I would put you in my team, but I already have six Pokémon excluding myself. I said, and she looked at me incredulously.

Wait, you're a Trainer?! she asked, and I laughed a little at her surprised expression.

What, did you think the Pokéballs on my belt while I was in human form were illusions or something? Of course I'm a Trainer. I smiled at her, and she started laughing as well, surprising me. Anyway, before that let's train, I want to actually get some sleep tonight. I said, and we moved off to begin training for what I was sure would be the first time of many. I started off by having Nera tutor me in the uses of aura, particularly how to form an aura sphere since it was the hardest concept to grasp; I was used to using my original powers, but I wanted to become more familiar with what I could do now before I started to practice anything.

After roughly an hour, I had the basics of forming an aura sphere down, and we moved on to the rest of the training; namely, I had Nera, Gardevoir, and Latias all attacking me at once as if we were in an actual Pokémon battle. At first I simply dodged their attacks, honing my reflexes and reaction speed even more. Then I moved on to actually trying to attack them in return, lighting up the trees around us with the flashes from some of our attacks as they collided against each other. After another hour of this, we were all too exhausted to continue, and I shimmered back into my human form as I prepared to fall asleep. Before I could enter the tent however, a spike of pain rammed it's way through my mind from the base of my skull all the way to my eyes, causing me to let out a loud cry of pain. The last thing I remember before my world went dark was hearing Latias let out a cry of pain that echoed my own.

I woke slowly to find myself in my true form in the middle of a wasteland, the landscape completely barren and desolate except for the occasional twisted skeleton of a dead tree. Rain pelted from dark, ominous storm clouds that covered the sky for as far as could be seen, all the way to the horizon, and lightning flashed crazily within them, lighting the desolate landscape in brief, flickering strobes. Directly in front of me a huge tower of stone, blacker than darkest night, loomed up towards the clouds, which seemed to be emanating from the very top of it. I took a closer look around and spotted Latias in her true form, lying in a crumpled heap not far away, much as I had suspected and feared. I quickly flew to her side and shook her shoulder, trying to get her to wake up.

_ _

_ "Oohh... Ian, where are we?" Latias murmured as she came around, putting her head in her paws as she floated up next to me, and I nuzzled her gently. I opened my mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the sudden appearance of a black-robed figure in front of us, one with a hood that hid it's face in shadow, and yet I could still feel it's eyes upon us._

_ _

_ "This _is the Chosen One? The one prophesied to defeat me? How could anything so utterly pathetic possibly pose a threat to me?" A voice like the whispered screams of a thousand souls damned to eternal torment echoed in my head, and I glared at the figure in front of us, knowing exactly what it was.

_ _

_ "Yes, I am the one that will destroy you. You're the Revenant." I growled, moving in front of Latias to shield her from whatever the Revenant might do. The Revenant saw me move in front of her and threw it's head back, letting out what I assumed was a laugh, one that sounded like a drawn-out scream of pain._

_ _

_ "Do not worry,_ Chosen One_," it said mockingly, "this is simply a dream, one that I created to ensnare you so that I could see what pathetic life form had been chosen by prophecy. I cannot hurt you here, not in the way that would benefit me most. Rest assured however, you are not safe outside of this dream in any case. I have many followers, many worshipers, and many plans. There is no way you could possibly counteract the efforts of Teams Rocket, Aqua, Magma, Galactic, and Plasma; all the plans they lay and execute on my behalf."_ It laughed once more, putting my teeth on edge as I glared at the thing in front of me. Strangely enough, my abilities were still working, even though it was a dream. I could not sense the Revenants' thoughts; all that was there was an empty void. However, I could feel it's aura; and that was more than enough to terrify me as it was unquestionably the darkest being I had ever met.

_ _

_ "I wouldn't be so arrogant and cocky if I were you. You've just told me a lot about your followers. What makes you think I won't just go after them instead of focusing on_ you_?" I bluffed; I knew I had to defeat the Revenant either way, but I wasn't going to let on to just how much I was worried at this point. The Revenant seemed to grin, and I shivered slightly as the air became noticeably colder, and Latias grabbed my arm tightly from her spot behind me._

_ _

_ "Because I have already put a plan in motion that will end this quickly, and once and for all. You will be destroyed by the end of the day you wake up, and I will reign supreme in this world!" The Revenant laughed one final time, and with that the world exploded around us, flinging Latias and myself back into unconsciousness._

I woke abruptly, shooting straight up into a sitting position as everything the Revenant had said echoed through my head.

"Ian, thank Arceus you're awake! You've been asleep for two days, what the hell happened!?" Jace's anxious voice was the first thing that my newly aware consciousness registered. I looked over in the direction of his voice to see him jumping up from a chair in the corner, and I shook my head.

"First, where am I? Second, where's Latias?" I said quickly, and with a tone that was a little sharp from the panic running through my mind.

I'm here, love. Right next to you. Latias said, and I looked to my left to see Latias lying on the bed in human form, and I smiled in relief as I let myself relax a little, hugging her gently before looking back at Jace. He smiled a little before his expression turned serious and slightly depressed, which was a bad sign coming from him.

"Alright, now that your second question was answered, here's the answer to your first one: we are in a room on the second floor of the Dewford Town Poké Center, where we've been since you collapsed two days ago. What happened?" He asked in a worried tone, and I growled.

"It was the Revenant. It created a dream to ensnare me so that it could find out who was the one chosen to destroy it, and it told me that Teams Rocket, Aqua, Magma, Galactic, and Plasma all worked for it, and that it had set in motion a plan that would destroy me by the end of the day I woke up." I said, and Jace's expression took on an extremely worried appearance.

That would definitely explain why Professor Birch came and visited while you were unconscious... Apparently your parents told him about everything, including the prophecy, and he came here to find you and give you this. Gardevoir said as Jace held out his hand and showed me an object that I instantly recognized; it was a Pokénav, a sort of all-in-one combo of technology capable of things such as being a video-phone and designed such that it fit easily on a Trainer's wrist.

"The Professor said for you to call him as soon as you woke up, he has some important information for you. He had to go back to Littleroot to coordinate the defense of Slateport with the Rangers and police, otherwise he would still be here." Jace said as he proffered it, and I groaned as I grabbed the watch-like phone.

"Great, just what I needed. A war to start because of me." I growled as I powered up the phone function of the Pokénav and quickly typed in the Professor's number. It rang a few times before the Professor finally picked up, and I had to wait a moment afterwards because he was busy saying something to a man in a crisp military uniform. With a start, I realized that the man in the military uniform was actually my father, Daniel Moone! The situation had to be bad if he had decided to come out of retirement...

"Hello son. Glad to see you're finally awake." my father greeted me with a crisp salute as soon as he saw who had called, and I instantly returned his salute. "The situation, as I'm sure you can guess, is very bad. I'll let the Professor handle the actual explanation though; I have to go coordinate with the Rangers and police stationed in Slateport. Be safe for me, please." he said briskly and rather distractedly, and I nodded as he walked off-screen, leaving Professor Birch behind.

"Well. Sorry about all this Ian, but we need you and your... abilities. Your father would not have told me anything unless he knew it was of vital importance, I hope you know that..." Professor Birch started to say, and I nodded a little impatiently.

"Yes, I know Professor. But right now, I'm a bit more concerned with how much I'm hearing about Slateport. What's going on there, and why am I needed so badly?" I asked in a brisk tone, much like my father, and I could sense Latias' amusement through our bond as I continued to talk with the Professor.

"Yes, well.. Apparently, Team Rocket and Team Galactic have gathered a huge force together, and are attacking Slateport. They are led by.. Well, we're not even sure what it is. I'm sending you a partial video clip, because we suspect that it might be that thing you are supposed to destroy.." The Professors image disappeared, and was replaced by a scene of devastation. Streets swarming with grunts from both Team Rocket and Galactic, having their Pokémon attack anything and everything that moved. And then, out of nowhere a tall, black-cloaked figure materialized, and a huge wave of darkness exploded from it, killing the video feed and making the screen go fuzzy. I felt the blood drain from my face, and I looked over at Jace, Gardevoir, and Latias to see that they all had the same pale expressions of shock as I did.

"Yes, Professor Birch... That is definitely the Arvel Revenant." I said when the Professors face came back onto the screen, and he sighed.

"Ian... I hate to have to ask this of you, but.." He started to say, but I didn't need to be able to read minds to know what he was going to ask. I sighed and nodded as I crushed the feeling of doom welling up inside me.

"Don't worry Professor. I'll take care of it." I said determinedly, and he nodded gratefully.

"Do you need any help getting there or will you be able to make it on your own?" he asked, and I gave a grim half-smile.

"I have a way to get there, Professor. I can fly remember?" I replied with grim amusement evident in my tone, and he nodded once again.

"Then I wish you the best of luck. Birch out." the screen on the watch went blank, and I looked up to see Jace, Latias, and Gardevoir all looking just as worried and nervous as I felt inside.

"Wait, where's Nera?" I asked, noticing for the first time that she was nowhere to be found. Jace smiled slightly and pulled a Pokéball off of his belt and showed it to me.

"After you and Latias collapsed we filled her in on everything, and she became even more determined to help you, if that's even possible. She's in here." he said, and I nodded as I got up out of the bed, stretching before looking at him again.

"Keep her safe with you. Latias and I will be flying you and Gardevoir to Slateport; I have a feeling we will need your help before the day is over. I'll be carrying you, Latias will carry Gardevoir. Is that acceptable to everyone?" I asked, eager to get going; I knew that even if I was flying straight into something that could potentially kill me, I couldn't waste time because the longer we delayed, the more innocent people that would get hurt. Jace, Gardevoir, and Latias all nodded, and I led the way out of the Poké Center and into the trees on the edge of the island, were Latias and I would be able to transform without being seen, and become invisible. The only drawback to the plan was that neither Jace nor Gardevoir could become invisible, so they would look like they were flying on their own, but with no other options at hand, it was the best we had.

In short order, Latias and I became our true forms and Gardevoir climbed onto Latias' back while Jace clambered onto mine, and then Latias and I became invisible as we shot away towards Slateport and our first major battle. As we began crossing the ocean, I found myself regretting that I hadn't had a chance to challenge Brawly, and I made a promise to myself that I would survive the coming battle and return to challenge him.

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_ _

_ _ As always, many thanks to everyone who is reading and reviewing. ^w^ Please tell me what you liked and what you didn't like, as long as it is constructive. As per usual:

Trolls will be shot on sight.

Flames will be used to make s'mores, and then will be deleted.

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Thank you

** ~**** Zeraxen Sar'athin**