Chapter 38: Disciples of the Dark

“Now now, be a good Scolipede.” said Marie with a shaky voice. “You saw what losing your cool got you, so you could just… you know… not?” She gestured in the direction she thought fallen rubble was in, not even knowing if anyone could see her.

Scolipede’s eyes only stared at her. They moved slightly as if to study every little detail of Marie’s face illuminated in the pokédexes light. “So… you’re good?” Scolipede tried to get up, making Marie jump. But it winced in pain and a couple of rocks audibly fell around it.

Marie gave a sigh of relief. “Phew, it's stuck.” She looked around. Darkness filled the cave. She couldn’t see past the light her pokédex shone. “Fennekin, Snom, could you two come next to me?” After a few moments, Marie felt something cold fall on her head and something else tap her leg. “Oh thank Arceus.” She quickly sat down, bringing Fennekin under the pokédexes blue light.

“Okay, now how are we gonna get out of here. It’s too hard to see anything and there are probably creepy crawlies all over these caves. Hmmm….” Fennekin’s eyes lit up. It spewed a steady stream of embers from its mouth like it was whistling, lighting up the area a couple of feet around them. “Nice thinking, Fennekin.” said Marie, now showered in orange light, “But can you really do that the entire time?” Fennekin nodded, however by doing so, it got embers caught in its throat. It coughed like it had choked on water and the area went dim again.

“Yeah, I didn’t think so.” Fennekin pouted, releasing small amounts of embers from its ear tufts. Marie threw her hands forward defensively. “N-Not that I’m doubting you! It's just that I already pushed Snom in a similar way and I don’t want that kind of thing happening again. That gave me enough anxiety as it was.” Fennekin sighed and pondered what to do next.

“Wait, if trainers are all issued one of these, wouldn’t they come with more useful stuff?” Marie waved around her pokédex. Fennekin tilted its head curiously. She went into the app store and searched up flashlight. “Yes, this should work!” She started the download, but noticed that her service was only at one bar. “Come on, work please.” For several minutes she sat there, until the flashlight app illuminated. “Yes, here we go!” She selected the app, after a moment, the pokédex screen went full white. Marie groaned. “I got scammed!” She picked up a pebble next to her and threw it down the cave. Its clacks reverberated around the cave.

“What else? What else?” Marie scrolled through the app store. “Oh! How about this?” She typed in night vision and downloaded the first app she saw. After it was downloaded, she opened the app. “Now, let’s see.” She looked through her pokédex and now everything was a green tint. But just barely, she could see the outlines of the cave walls and Fennekin next to her. She smiled. “Whoa, this actually works, sorta, at least.” She stood up and looked down the cave. The night vision could still only see so far, only a few feet further than her illuminated pokedex screen. “Well, we gotta work with what we have. You two react to go?” Snom and Fennekin both agreed. They all took a collective step forward when Scolipede called out to them, still stuck under the rubble.

Marie turned around on her heel. “Oh… uh, you.” She saw that it was buried deep, only its face being exposed near the ground. “You’re really stuck huh?” Scolipede looked at Marie once more, only for it to close its eyes, seemingly giving up on something. “W-Wait.” She took a step back towards Scolipede. Fennekin protested, worried that it might just attack them if it got free. “Fennekin I… I can't leave it here like this.” Fennekin ran a few steps further into the cave, urging Marie to keep going. “I can’t Fennekin!” Marie yelled, seemingly making the cave even more silent than before.

“I’m not gonna leave it here. I’m… I’m not a killer.” Fennekin froze at the mention of killer. What was it thinking? Was it really okay to leave Scolipede here? Would it ever really get free or just die here? It thought back to Tuviere. It would’ve done anything to save its friends, even hurt those men as much as it needed to. But was Scolipede really the same thing? Could this situation really be more than just it vs them?

Fennekin shook its head and trotted up to the rubble. It picked a pebble up with its mouth and tossed it to the side, willing to put its faith in Marie’s decision.

Marie knelt down next to Fennekin and started to remove the rubble as well. “Thank you Fennekin. I mean it.” Fennekin nodded and continued on. They all toiled away as much as they could, lit only by the dim light of Marie’s pokédex. Snom even did its best to toss a couple of pebbles. Scolipede cracked its eye open a bit, feeling that the rubble around its face was being removed.

After a while, Marie looked at the remaining rubble with the night vision app. “That’s not good.” she said dishearteningly. She pointed to a specific spot. “Look there guys, there seems to be a huge broken slab right over the back. There’s no way we can remove that with everything else on top of it.” Scolipede closed its eyes again and slumped its head on the ground with an audible thump. “No no! I didn’t say it was hopeless! We just gotta think of something else.”

Fennekin got another idea. It charged up an ember, ready to blast the rock to bits. “Wait Fennekin, stop!” She covered Fennekin's mouth with her hand, slightly searing it. “Gah! If you use an explosive move like that, you might bring down the rest of the cave.” Fennekin dissipated the attack and suggested what they should do. Marie blew on her hand. “Give me a second.” She reached her hand over to stroke Scolipede's head, “It’s gonna be alright, we’re gonna get you out of here-” Scolipede's eyes flashed open and it angrily bit the tip of Marie’s finger. “Ow! What was that for?!” Scolipede told her off, citing that she was the whole reason it was in that mess in the first place. Both Fennekin and Snom were quick to shout back in defense of Marie, but she shushed the both of them.

“It’s okay, it’s my fault. I should’ve known that Scolipede was still on edge. I approached too fast.” The bite felt like a tiny pin prick. She then felt a tiny bit of blood start to drip from it. She sucked on the finger to clean it up. “I have another idea, just let me…” she reached around to her back pocket, only to realize she didn’t have any. “Wait a minute! I’m still in my pajamas! Man, now they gotta be dirtier than ever. But more importantly, I don’t think I have any pokéballs with me!” Scolipede groaned and slumped its head again. Marie instinctively felt the front of her pajama pants, which did have pockets. She felt something. Fishing it out of her left pocket, she gazed her eyes on a singular pokeball.

“Oh yeah, that’s right! I was up a little late watching pokeball throwing tips with my pokédex and I was fiddling with this one pokeball the whole time. I guess I must’ve put both in my pockets because I didn’t feel like putting it back in my bag.” She scooted as closely as she felt comfortable to Scolipede. “Look Scolipede, this is a pokeball.” she held it out with her hand, “This thing I know is going to get you out of there. But I only have the one. I’m not saying you have to come with me, but if you do plan on escaping, please do it as late as possible. I’ll try and get you as far as I can from the rubble because I don’t know if more is going to fall. Do you trust me?”

Scolipede stared at Marie for a moment, pondering. It then rested its head on the ground, ready to go on with the plan. “Okay, Fennekin and Snom, you two head further back into the cave. I’ll join you after I get Scolipede.” The two nodded and retreated into the darkness. “Alright, here we go.” Marie softly placed the pokeball against Scolipede’s face. Instantly, Scolipede was sucked up into it and it began to shake in Marie’s hand. Marie looked all around the area, expecting the cave to collapse, but nothing happened. She gave a sigh of relief when seemingly right on queue, the rocks began to tumble towards her.

“Me and my big mouth!” She swiftly ran down the cave, the walls collapsing all around her. All the while, she tried to keep the violently shaking pokeball in her hands. “Fennekin! Snom! Where did you two go?” After a moment, a puff of bright embers flashed out a little ways down the cave. “There!” Marie ran over to the embers and slid to a stop. Fennekin and Snom called out to her to confirm their positions. “Was that far enough?”

The cave continued to shake and rocks tumbled towards their location. All of them backed up just in case, but then they felt a wall to their backs. “Uh oh!” yelled Marie. She turned her head away and raised her hands as if to pray with the pokeball. “Please please please please please please please please please PLEASE!” The rumbling stopped and the cave went silent.

Marie slowly cracked open her eyes, only to realize that she was in complete darkness. “Oh right. *Cough* Fennekin, could I get a little ember?” Fennekin obliged and lit up the area. Then another shake from the pokeball reminded Marie that she practically had a grenade in her hands. “By Arceus!” She threw it away from her. As soon as it hit the ground, Scolipede burst out in all its size and roared as loud as it could. Marie fell down on her butt, scared by Scolipede's sudden aggression. “Fennekin, stop blowing out the embers!” Marie said with a whisper. Fennekin did so and the cave went fully dark.

Scolipede looked around and stretched its limbs. It was free, it was actually free. To think someone, anyone, would ever give it help. There was nothing but darkness, but it was still able to hear Marie closely, despite her attempts to remain quiet. “If we just stay here guys, maybe it will go away.” she said to her Pokémon. Scolipede was disheartened. Of course, they’re all the same, whether they are people or Pokémon. It sighed, wishing for its anger to subside and it trotted off down the cave.

After the footsteps became inaudible, Marie used her pokédex to look around. “You guys okay?” Fennekin and Snom nodded. Snom blasted itself on top of Fennekin’s head using icy wind. “Okay, let’s-” Marie coughed hard as if she was hacking something up. Fennekin was concerned and asked if she was okay. “*Cough cough* Ack! Choked on my own spit!” She spit on the ground and cleared her throat. “Okay! I’m good. Looks like the only way to go is where Scolipede went, so let’s pace ourselves so we don’t run into it again.” Fennekin sighed as Marie took the lead. It followed close behind, but it still felt concerned for some reason. There was something it was forgetting, but it just couldn’t think of it at the moment. For now, they trudged through the darkness.

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() Scorbunny hopped over the crest of a hill and urged everyone behind it to follow. It ran ahead, followed shortly after by Solosis then Ceailean. “Damn, where could another entrance be?” he asked himself. “There’s gotta be one around here somewhere. Noibat? Did you find anything yet?”

Noibat flew high above the group, scanning the mountains side with ultrasonic waves. It called down to Ceailean, shaking its head. “Come on, give me something.” Solosis commented under its breath, saying how useless Noibat was even with its supposed enhanced hearing. Noibat shouted back to Solosis, saying that it heard that. Solosis then repeated itself more loudly and told it to just hurry up and find an entrance. Noibat then shot an air cutter right under Solosis, covering it in a big puff of dust. It angrily shook it off and glowed with a blue psychic energy.

“No!” commanded Ceailean, both stiffening at his word. “Not right now! I can’t deal with that.” He paced for a bit, then he got an idea. “Look, here’s what we’re gonna do. Scorbunny, I need you to go back to camp and get Crisis. The more hands we got on this, the better. I need Noibat here just in case.” Scorbunny and Noibat saluted and went their separate ways. “And Solosis, you stay near me. I’ll uh… think of something for you.” Solosis pouted, but begrudgingly followed Ceailean’s lead. Noibat smirked as it soared through the sky.

“Now, how much mountain is there left to check?” He walked on top of a rock and slid down to the bottom. But then he got this really strange feeling. It was like an unyielding anger bubbling up in his head. Almost as if someone had said the most infuriating thing right behind him. He turned around swiftly. “Who’s there?” There was no one. Solosis looked at him confused, asking if he was talking about it. “No, not you. Something… else.” He cautiously scanned his surroundings. “What is that?” he asked with a strained voice. He then began to message his head as a piercing pain set in. “Ahh, what the heck?” He held his head with both hands and groaned in pain.

A thunderclap sounded out in the distance, startling the two. They looked in the direction of where it came from. A singular beam of white light shot up as high as the two could see, splitting the horizon in two. Solosis' mouth opened as it watched in awe, thinking it was some kind of rare spectacle, but Ceailean’s mind was then overflowing with visions and images.

Camphrier? Solga? A… Greninja? A weird looking Houndoom? Why was Christianson there too? These images flashed through Ceailean’s mind so fast that he could get a word out. Then, a voice reverberated in his head.

“-But for certain, I'll be killing Poyzyne…!”

“Oh…” mumbled Ceailean. He fell to his knees and fell unconscious. Solosis was startled to see him fall to the ground at its side. It floated around him concerned, asking if he was okay. He gave no response. Solosis started to panic, poking him excessively in hopes of waking him. But suddenly, the ground underneath him pulsed with red energy. Solosis felt an overwhelming amount of bad vibes and instinctively backed away as fast as it could.

Ceailean was then quickly covered by red vines, forming a dome over his entire body. Within the gaps, red transparent crystal glass formed. Solosis looked around in a panic, frantically trying to figure out what to do. Then it started to hear voices.

“I hate you mommy! I’ll never love you ever again!”

“That jerk Karen! Always butting her head in places it shouldn’t!”

“You have Marco! Just go into the app store and download it for free!”

Solosis focused on the dome surrounding Ceailean. Within the crystal glass, it could see scenes of people playing out. All of which were angry with something or another. Solosis shook its head and paced up and down the clearing. Should it stay and keep an eye on Ceailean? Or should it leave to find help from Scorbunny or Crisis… maybe even Noibat if things got really bad.

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() Marie walked cautiously down the dark cave tunnel. Fennekin walked alongside her with Snom on its head.

Marie coughed up something fierce. “Ugh! It must be super dusty here. Can’t take a single breath without something getting caught in my throat.” Fennekin nuzzled its head against her leg, asking if she was okay. Marie bent down and pet behind its ears. “I’m fine Fennekin. But we’ve been here for what feels like forever. Hmm, here’s an idea! Fennekin, Snom, let’s use your guy’s signature combo move.” Fennekin’s ears perked up with excitement. Snom shared the same enthusiasm by raising its head.

“I also think we should give it a name! I was thinkin’ Flittering Vortex!” Fennekin and Snom looked at each other skeptically. “No? Uh… maybe Arctic Fire?” The two hesitantly considered it. “T-Then *cough cough* Polar Meteor?” The two shut their eyes tightly, only able to mumble rather than tell Marie their opinions. “Oh! We’ll work on it later! Hopefully the embers create enough light for us to see where we’re going.”

Fennekin and Snom got into positions. “Use ember and icy wind!”

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() “-If you hadn’t felt comfortable staying in that position for such a long period of time, then you shouldn't have volunteered yourself for that position!” shouted someone over a communicator.

“I was the only one that had conversed with the two enough for them to not suspect something!” said Crisis, clearly irritated. “And I am not suggesting that I can’t hold my position! I merely offered that I contribute to operation communion! I am still currently near one of the targets, if you’d allow me to-”

“That operation is none of your concern, you are to remain in observation of the Lil’ Scouts.”

“But-”

“But nothing, Crisis!” A few moments of silence passed. “You know what Armageddon said. Even you yourself. You’re the only one that can do this.”

“But I can still contribute. All I ask is a day, No! A night-!”

“Stop, dammit! By Arceus, it's always business with you!”

“My ‘business’ ensures the family's best interest!”

“Do you even know your family?” Crisis remained silent. “Do you ever talk to Debt, Slaughter, your brothers and sisters? Do you know anything about them other than business?”

Crisis pondered for a moment. “Rival… I-” He then heard Noibat calling urgently from up above. “I have to go.”

“No! Don’t you run away from this-” Crisis hung up the communicator and waited for Noibat to come down.

“So what seems to be the issue?” Crisis asked, crossing his arms. Noibat frantically pointed in the direction of the lake, making impressions of Scolipede and sound effects for the scene that ensued. “So a territorial Scolipede attacked Ceailean and Marie and has one of them trapped in a cave?”

Noibat stood in shock for a moment, surprised that Crisis got it to a tee. It asked him how he understood. “I happened to be correct?” He chuckled to himself. “The only thing I could know for sure was the Scolipede, you have made quite the impression.” Noibat proudly bowed, taking the compliment in stride. But then it snapped out of it and urged Crisis to help.

“Yes, it does seem I can’t take my eyes off them for even a minute. Let us move.” Noibat flew up and led the way. For a while, Crisis followed. Eventually they came up to the sheer cliff of the mountain. In it, Crisis found something interesting. Red and white veins sprawled through the mountain's cliff side, multiple layers under the sediment. “Magnesium veins.” he said to himself, “Let’s hope fire stays out of the picture during this excursion.”

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() Scolipede sulked its way through the dark cave. It could sense the local Pokémon skittering around it, trying to not get its attention. They felt so small. Its horns twitched as it tried to sense the way out of the cave. It turned to the right and moved along. That was until it found a Swoobat flying about. It looked worried as it sent sound waves out in every direction. It was looking for something.

Scolipede approached hesitantly, getting right up behind it before asking what was wrong. The Swoobat was scared outright and it flew up straight into the ceiling in a panic. It fell down unconscious at Scolipede’s feet. Scolipede was surprised in its own right. It bent down and nudged the Swoobat, asking if it was okay. Swoobat’s head swung up to Scolipede’s face, giving the both of them a bonk.

Scolipede stumbled back, audibly irritated. Swoobat got down on its wings and apologized profusely before crawling away as quickly as it could, screaming in fear along the way. Scolipede tried to reason with it, but it was long gone. It sighed, lowering its head and continued down the cave in defeat.

The cave rumbled at its steps. Scolipede stopped for a moment to look at its own body. It looked under its feet, its back, even moving around its massive horns and tail. It was all too much. It thought back to when the times were so simple, to when it was a simple Venipede. So small, so delicate, so… unnoticeable.

Scolipede was snapped out of its thoughts when a surge of wind blew through the cave. Was it near an exit? No, something was coming. Down the way it came, light was starting to engulf the darkness. Scolipede quickly shielded its eyes as a rush of embers and ice crystals rushed through. Each one pricked its body like pins and needles.

Eventually, the wind died down. Scolipede whipped around, thinking that it was under attack. But all that stood in its way was the floating embers and ice crystals. Scolipede quickly calmed down, choosing to observe the flittering particles in the air. An ember floated by Scolipede’s eye, perfectly reflecting along its iris. It could’ve sworn it heard the slightest sound of burning as it passed by.

Then the ice crystals flew in with more embers. They were blue and slightly transparent. Looking closer, they each had an intricate pattern that shined beautifully with the light of the embers. Scolipede looked up towards the ceiling, where the embers and ice were more numerous. They looked so much like stars. In this cave of endless dust and darkness, this spectacle almost brought enough light to clearly see the walls.

*Cough cough*. Scolipede looked down to see Marie sidestepping between it and the wall. “Uh, hi? If you’d just-” Marie nonchalantly scooted herself step by step by Scolipede's chest. Fennekin and Snom followed slowly behind her, keeping their eyes fixed on Scolipede. Marie popped out of the other side and dusted herself off. “Alright, thank you.” she said quickly. She beckoned Fennekin and Snom to follow her. The two did so, but Scolipede could still feel like they had eyes on the back of their head. Eventually, they quietly disappeared past the embers and crystals.

Scolipede sighed, somewhat confused by this odd encounter. Eager to move on, it continued to look at the flittering particles in the air. There seemed to be a new sound, like that of clinging glass on a chandelier. Looking up again, Scolipede swore it saw the stars again.

“You really like looking at pretty stuff don’t ya?” asked Marie. Scolipede jumped, making Marie jump as well. She threw her hands in front of her and turned her head away. “Ahhh! I’m sorry, I was just curious!” Scolipede sighed and quickly trudged past Marie, shoving her to the side in the process. “Whoa! Wait! I-I just thought that was pretty cool, you know?” She tried to match Scolipede’s pace. “I thought you were just *cough cough* a big mean pokemon.” Scolipede shot her an irritated glance.

Marie tucked her arms close to her chest. “Ah- I mean, I know better now right? I saw what happened at the lake. We heard that the lake was able to reflect the stars like a mirror and wanted to check it out for ourselves. But uh… it looks like my friend C made a mess of it right? You know how boys are, right?” Scolipede shot her another glance, less intense than the last. Marie threw up her hands defensively, “Okay, b-but not like you! *Cough*”

Scolipede got annoyed and stopped to face her, asking what she was doing. “What am I doing? Um… I’m just… you know, trying to have a conversation. Is that hard to believe?” Scolipede looked away, remaining silent. “I just wonder what compels you to look at our combo move like the way you do?” Scolipede looked up towards the ceiling, the particles seemed to spin around its head.

Marie looked up with it. “It looks like the stars, doesn’t it? But different somehow.” She looked at Scolipede. “H-How long have you been around here, if you don’t mind me asking?” Scolipede gave her a glance. It looked around for a bit, finding a suitable rock. Then its horns exploded into the silvery energy of megahorn, making Marie jump back a bit. Scolipede lowered its head gently, using its horns to carve out a rough shape from the rock. Marie watched curiously for what felt like several minutes, until the silver energy dissipated and Scolipede gestured to it.

Marie got down on all fours and inspected the rock closely. “I think I’ve seen this before, gimme a sec.” Marie sat down with her legs crossed and took out her pokedex. She typed Venipede and held the pokedex image next to the rock. Though rough, it vaguely looked like how a Venipede does. “So you’ve been here for that long huh?” Scolipede nodded.

“Do you have any friends?” Scolipede looked away somewhat sadly. “Oh… s-sorry I asked. *Cough cough*” Scolipede looked back up towards the particles. Marie joined it for a while. It was at that moment that the cave felt completely silent.

“You’ve been looking at those stars at the lake for a long long time, right? This must be the first time you’ve uh… seen something new.” Scolipede didn’t answer. “There’s so much out there you know.” Marie waved her hand through a group of particles, making them dance in the air. “So much more than we could ever produce. Have you ever seen them before?”

Scolipede shook its head. “You’ve never been far from the lake? You’ve never seen stuff like the ocean or the snow?” Scolipede looked at Marie and tilted its head curiously. “Y-You’ve never even heard of them?” Scolipede shook its head. “Oh…” Marie looked at each of her sides and scooted closer to Scolipede. She cupped her hand around her mouth as if telling a secret. “Believe it or not, the ocean is this endless expanse of water. And I don’t mean like a really big lake where you can still see the trees on the other side, I really just mean all water. For miles and miles, that’s all there is.”

Scolipede gave her a skeptical look. “It’s true! And and *cough* it does this thing where it comes in and out of the shore and if you leave your feet there and you start to sink. Oh and I haven’t even told you about the sand!” Scolipede stamped its foot out of confusion. “No! Not like quicksand ya goof!” Marie started to laugh, before another cough made her quickly stop.

“A-And the snow. You know how it's been cold around here these last couple months? Well, imagine that, but even colder. Like so cold you wouldn’t believe. And the dust from the desert that forms those sand dunes, imagine those, but even whiter than an Absol’s fur!”

Scolipede swung its head around, thinking for sure Marie was lying. “It's true! Wait! I can prove it! Hold on.” Marie typed in ocean and snow in her pokedex. She then held it up to Scolipede’s face. Images of oceans and snow areas started to scroll through. Scolipede was mesmerized by what it was seeing.

“Look! Endless water and white desert’s! I even live in a place that's absolutely covered in snow the whole year round. You should really see it someday. Oh, and the ocean too.” Scolipede, for what felt like a long time, was excited. It nodded eagerly, wanting to visit these places oh so badly. But something bothered it. It didn’t know where any of these places were, nor even how far they were. Then there was what Marie specifically said, “You…” She implied that she wouldn’t be the one to show Scolipede those places. It would have to find them on its own.

Scolipede’s excitement melted away. Though encouraging, she felt the same as everyone else.

“Glad to see you’re excited.” Marie said with a smile. “I’d like us all to navigate out of this cave together, but ‘someone’ keeps hiding!” Marie looked at a specific stalagmite, to which Fennekin quickly ducked behind it. “Scolipede isn’t scary, Fennekin! At least not anymore… *cough* Come out or I’ll carry you out myself!” Fennekin audibly sighed and begrudgingly walked out from behind the stalagmite. Snom showing the same lack of enthusiasm. “We’re losing embers, so let’s hurry! And be nice to each other, if you guys could?”

Fennekin and Scolipede looked at each other and simultaneously nodded to each other. “Good, now-” A large spark exploded out from the side of the cave, scaring the group. “Ahh! Why!?” squealed Marie. She took a deep breath and looked at Fennekin. “Maybe some of your embers were stronger than we thought. Maybe it's the sign of a new move!” Fennekin gave a shallow gasp, excited by the potential revelation.

“Onward everyone!” said Marie, pointing in a direction. “We’ll only get what we want as soon as we leave this cave!” The group walked ahead through the particles. However, as they left, the spark had left the wall smoldering. The rock it came off from was red hot and soon combusted into a small sizzling flame. Lighting up the wall around it, it slowly began to run up the red and white vein on the wall.

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() Solosis shot as powerful psywave it could at the dome surrounding Ceailean. Only for it to ricochet like a bullet. Solosis quickly ducked in cover as it flew through the sky in an arc and exploded nearby in the forest. Fletchlings flew off in a panic from the explosion. Solosis looked back at the dome, not even a scratch. It was out of breath, putting everything it had into that attack still did nothing.

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Then the rustling of bushes from behind startled it. It quickly hid behind a tree and observed.

“What in the hell is that?” asked Crisis. He stepped out from the forest slowly and observed what Ceailean was encased in. Solosis quickly shot out from the tree and tugged on Crisis’s pants leg, begging him to help. Crisis however, seemed to entirely ignore it. “Do you know what this is?” He reached his hand out to touch it, only to be zapped by a red energy. “Ah! *sigh* This is the same stuff that Lumiose was subjected to in the Battle for Kalos. Just what is it doing here?”

Noibat then called from above. Seeing Ceailean caged up like that, it immediately sprung into action. It exploded into dragon rush and came down like a meteor.

“No! You mustn't!” shouted Crisis. But Noibat was already committed to a crash course. Crisis and Solosis jumped back right as Noibat made impact. A blinding white light emanated from where Noibat hit. And in just a flash, the light was gone. Noibat was knocked to the side and fell unconscious.

“Impossible!” said Crisis. Solosis ran over to its side and tried to wake it up. It called Noibat an idiot, a dummy, a persona always trying to play hero. But saying this only made its body begin to shiver from fear. Just what was going on? And if Noibat couldn’t save him, could anything?

Crisis calmed himself down. He took out a pokeball and released Decidueye. “Solosis, two are already prepped, and the other is far enough away for them to be a non-issue.” Decidueye and eyed Solosis, still trembling over Noibat. Crisis then took out another pokeball and looked at it. “And… we’re gonna need a favor from you.” he said somewhat hesitantly. He then gestured to Decidueye, “Go.” Decidueye disappeared faster than the blink of an eye. Before Solosis could ever react, a looming shadow appeared behind it.

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() Marie and the rest of the Pokémon continued on down the cave, until a light caught their attention. “Oh! I don’t think that’s embers. That might be daylight!” She ran ahead. Fennekin told her to wait and tried to keep up. Scolipede stoically let them go ahead. Marie turned the corner and saw rays of light coming in from straight ahead. The embers and ice crystals danced in the gentle wind.

“Look guys!” Marie pointed, “We found a *hah* a way out! *phew*! Am… am I getting out of shape? Why do I feel like I ran 5 miles straight-” Marie started to give deep guttural coughs. Fennekin had caught up just in time to see Marie’s legs give out. She fell and leaned her back against the wall. “Augh, I haven’t felt this spent since I left Snowbelle. I… might actually throw up, Fennekin. You might wanna back up.” Fennekin gave an audible ‘ugh’ and backed away slightly.

But its concern soon took hold and it approached wondering what was wrong. It took a closer look and couldn’t believe its eyes. Marie was as pale as a bone, her head was sweating profusely, her eyes were sunken, and the bridge of her nose had a purple hue.

“Is it weird to feel hot and cold at the same time?” asked Marie. “Like I wanna snuggle under a blanket and eat hot soup at the same time.” Fennekin quickly ran to her side, pawing her legs with an extremely worried look. “What? Is it Scolipede? I told you-” Marie hacked up spit into her mouth. “Ew, gross.” She looked at it and purple particulates. That’s when her eyes widened. “Wait, me? I thought I was just feeling awful because of all the intense stuff earlier. How could this have… wait a minute.” She took out her pokédex and looked up Scolipede’s pokédex entry. “By Arceus, poison point. That’s *cough cough* not good.”

Scolipede then approached. It saw Marie on the ground struggling to breath. It walked over concernedly, asking if she was okay. Fennekin's anger took over. Without hesitation, it shot a psybeam straight into Scolipede’s chest, smashing it against the wall. Scolipede was startled and angry. It asked just why Fennekin was doing this.

Fennekin explained that it was Scolipede that poisoned her and it wasn’t going to let it get near her anymore. Scolipede was shocked. Thinking back, it bit Marie’s finger back when it was stuck under the rocks. That must’ve been when it happened. It felt deeply regretful and it tried to convince Fennekin to let it get closer to help. But it fired off an ember as soon as it took a step. Scolipede dodged this time, letting the ember explode on the wall behind.

“Fennekin, stop please…” Marie said weakly. “Fighting isn’t gonna fix this. We gotta think of something. But uh… before we do that… I think I’m gonna take a quick nap.” Marie slid down the wall on her side. Her breathing shallowed and she closed her eyes. Fennekin rushed to her side again with tears in its eyes. Scolipede tried to approach again, but Snom jumped off Fennekin’s head and stood off against it, glowing with green energy. Scolipede insisted that it could help, but Snom remained adamant.

Fennekin did all it could to keep Marie awake by pawing her face, licking it, nuzzling it. Finally, Marie hacked up another cough and she looked down the cave. “Hey guys, what’s that?” Everyone looked. Behind Scolipede was a sizzling flare on the wall. Scolipede recognized it immediately. It had a flashback to when a thunderstorm rolled through the area. A lightning strike had struck the mountain and it began to explode mysteriously. The local Pokémon were so scared to come out of their homes for weeks after that incident.

Scolipede insisted that they leave right now, something terrible was going to happen. Snom vehemently rejected and told Fennekin to try and drag Marie out of the cave. Fennekin nodded. It bit Marie’s shirt collar and tugged with all its might. But all it managed to do was make her shirt ride up her torso.

Snom rolled its eyes at this. The flare started to sputter, spewing molten bits of rock into Scolipede’s skin. It winced in pain, once again asking to let it help. Snom hesitated, but it had one more idea. It told Scolipede to move over. As soon as it did, Snom blasted the flare with as much icy wind as it could. The wind started to make the wall freeze over.

The flare sputtered and eventually went out. Snom was breathing heavily, but it still huffed in accomplishment. But suddenly, the ice wall cracked. Scolipede immediately sprung into action and jumped in front of Snom. The wall exploded out and shrouded everyone in dust and ice. Everyone coughed from the explosion, struggling to see now.

“Ah! Why are the walls angry!?” asked Marie in her delirium.

Scolipede asked if everyone was alright. As the dust and ice cleared away, Fennekin and Snom saw Scolipede with its body covered with a black soot. The two looked at each before looking back at Scolipede and asking the same thing. Scolipede shook off the soot, but the immense damage was still evident. It urged them once more to let it help. It gestured back to the hole the explosion made. Now it was a smoldering crater, red hot with flares sizzling out all around.

Snom didn’t answer. But it made one last ditch effort. It blasted itself into Marie’s side and tried to move her. She was just too heavy, even with Fennekin helping by tugging her shirt. The cave rumbled with the sound of a distant explosion. Ice crystals and embers flooded out from the direction they came from in a frenzy. Shortly after, many cave Pokémon flew out in a horde, all desperate to escape. The volume and noise was so high that the group all had to duck as best they could until the horde passed.

Once they were sure they were clear, Snom quickly perked and told Scolipede it could help now. Fennekin was shocked at Snom’s sudden change of mind. It voiced its disapproval. Snom said that it didn't like it either, but it was better than waiting around to be blown to bits. Another distant explosion made Fennekin almost lose its balance. It gave one last glance at the smoldering hole left behind by the explosion, and nodded.

Scolipede nodded as well and quickly took action. Another explosion went off right as it got to Marie’s side. “Hey bud, I bet… I could fit you in an ice cream cone.” said Marie, pointing deliriously at Scolipede. It rolled its eyes and bent down, shoveling up Marie with its horns. “And, you’re carrying me! *cough cough* Was it something I said? I promise to be a good gorl in the future.” Snom audibly groaned in embarrassment. Fennekin asked what was happening, to which Snom only said to not ask.

Scolipede raised its head and had Marie roll down its back until she was snug. Another closer explosion rocked the ground beneath them. Marie gasped. “Is that Dad?!” She looked at Snom, barely able to keep her eyes open. “W-We gotta get outta here Snom! I’d know those footsteps anywhere!” Snom groaned again and shot Marie with a short burst of icy wind to the face. This made her flinch a bit before she sneezed loudly. “Thanks, Snom.” she said with a sniffle.

Rocks started to fall from the ceiling. Fennekin urged Scolipede to move, and emphasized the importance of keeping Marie safe with an “intentful” look. Scolipede gulped and set its sights for the light. It got prepped to run, Snom shot out ahead and Fennekin followed suit. Just as Scolipede was about to go, another explosion from behind threw it off balance. Fennekin came to a stop and called for them.

Scolipede did its best to shake it off and began to run. Fissures appeared in the walls, cracking and breaking ahead of Scolipede. Fennekin ran by its side and urged it along. The explosions grew rapid. The path they came from was now nothing but a sea of fire and molten rock. Snom spiraled out of the cave, leaving a trail of misty ice. Shooting way up into the sky, it called to Scolipede and Fennekin as loud as it could, telling them to hurry.

Boulders fell from the top of the cave. Fennekin then noticed a red glowing crack catching up with them. Before it could do anything, it split apart and spewed out dust and hot filament, blinding Fennekin. Scolipede noticed this and asked if it was okay. Fennekin told it to keep running. It kept pace with its eyes squeezed tight. Scolipede did so, but saw a big rock fall on Fennekin's path. Scolipede told Fennekin to watch out, but it was too late. Fennekin ran face first into the rock.

Seeing this, Marie somewhat snapped out of her delirium. “Fennekin no!” She quickly reached into her pocket, “Don’t worry, I got you!” She pointed her pokeball, but right as she fired it, a massive landslide of rock fell within the path, making the beam bounce off the debris. “No! Fennekin!”

Fennekin shook its head. Dazed and blind it faced the direction of the intense heat as a wave of despair made it freeze in place. Then suddenly, the rocks blocking its path burst to pieces. Fennekin felt a mouth grab it by the neck. Scolipede had come back to save it. Only two seconds later, the debris was washed by a river of fire.

Scolipede tossed Fennekin on its back and ran as fast as it could. The fire was now riding its tail as it ran. Snom watched from the outside. Embers and ice crystals spewed out from the cave like a hose. Even outside, the ground shook as if an earthquake was rolling through. But then, a giant boulder dislodged from the side of the mountain and started to tumble down towards the entrance of the cave. Snom saw this and quickly moved to intercept using icy wind. It shot out like a rocket towards the boulder. Once within range, it exploded into struggle bug. It poured everything it had into expanding the destructive green energy as much as it could. It could match the sheer size and soon ran out of stamina, causing the boulder to fall. Snom watched in distraught, seeing that it only caused cracks to appear on it.

Scolipede saw the exit ahead, only a couple feet now. But then, the boulder crashed into their path. It split into two halves, both leaning slightly to the side. Scolipede had no choice now. It shook its head to hype itself up and charged ahead with megahorn. The silver light shone brightly leading against the fire. Fennekin pawed at its eyes, finally getting the stuff out of its eyes. It saw Scolipede charging ahead and the distraught look Marie was giving as she watched the fire enclose behind them.

Her mouth quivered. “F-Fennekin, we’re going to-” Fennekin immediately screamed the thought out from Marie’s mouth. It smiled and nodded, assuring Marie that they were going to get out of here. It looked down at the boulder and shot out a psybeam as strong as it could. The attack hit, leaving a deep crater that spread the cracks further through the boulder.

Snom shot down from the outside and plastered itself to the boulder, blasting it with as much struggle bug as it could. It was willing to stay there for as long as it could. Everyone inside the cave saw the boulder glow with green energy. The spot that glowed the brightest gave Scolipede a perfect target and it honed in. Fennekin thought of one more thing. It howled loudly, sending a rush of red energy through Scolipede. Its megahorn grew twice as intense. Fennekin howled again, allowing the megahorn to now form a silvery mach cone.

It was do or die now. Fennekin and Marie braced for impact. Scolipede thrust with all its might. Boulder shattered to pieces easily, splintering every which way like it was blown up with dynamite. However, bashing through, Scolipede saw that it got a direct hit on Snom. Snom shouted in pain as it was tossed into the air like a ragdoll.

“Snom!” shouted Marie. She outstretched her arms and caught Snom. “I got you.” She said comfortingly. Snom had swirls in its eyes, it had been knocked out instantly. She looked at Scolipede. “Man, you’re strong.” Scolipede kept running. The mountain behind them exploded as snakes of fire devastated the local forestry. Smoldering rock rained down from the sky. Fennekin did its best to shoot as many as it could that fell towards them. They all moved over a hill with the rocks raining all around them.

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() Scolipede gently rolled Marie off its back at the base of a tree. Fennekin did everything it could to ensure that she laid down softly. Marie was struggling to breath and keep her eyes open. Though cradling an injured Snom in her arm, she tried her best to remain awake. “Okay guys, l-let’s talk about the other issue.” she said weakly. She pulled out a pokédex, typed in something, and tossed it on the ground next to Fennekin. Fennekin looked at it and saw a heart shaped berry. “That is a Pecha berry, find one and bring it to me. That should cure the poison.” Marie took a deep breath. “And if you can’t find one, try and find Crisis or Ceailean. Or both… or take me… back to camp… and then…” Marie closed her eyes and started to drift off. Fennekin quickly pawed her aggressively. Her eyes flashed open. “I’m awake! S-Sorry, it's really hard. You two tried so hard, I’m so proud. E-Even you Scolipede.”

Scolipede had been facing away from her, but turned its head slightly and nodded. Marie smiled. “Now, hurry Fennekin. Find a pecha berry.” Fennekin nodded, but it looked to Scolipede and walked up to it. Marie sat up slightly. “Fennekin? Do you still not trust Scolipede?” Fennekin ignored her and called Scolipede. It turned to face Fennekin. The two stared at each other for a moment. Fennekin told Scolipede to swear to keep Marie safe. After another moment, Scolipede bowed, assuring that it will do so. Fennekin smiled, saying goodbye before running off.

Scolipede watched it until it disappeared into the forest. It then approached Marie, bending its head near hers. “Aww, are you worried too?” She reached her hand over to place it under Scolipede’s face, but it quickly moved away. “Don’t worry Scolipede, I trust you.” Scolipede hesitated, but allowed Marie to place her hand on it. “You’re so smooth.” She smiled, “You’re not so scary either.” Scolipede looked away, somewhat bashful.

“You’re able to see the pretty things in the world. I think that’s cool. Most of us tend to let it pass by us.” Scolipede raised its head away from Marie’s hand and walked off a bit, looking at the horizon. The sky was just starting to turn the slightest tinge of orange. Sunset was approaching. “It's been that long huh?” She coughed. “You know, now that I think about it. The world has two faces. The day and the night. If we wait for the opportunity, then we can see the different kinds of pretty things each day and each night. We’d be able to see it twice.” Scolipede nodded.

“You should really see the snow at night. Sometimes when the sky is clear, the moon’s light reflects off it so beautifully. It's almost like you’re in a dream.” There it was again, “you”. Scolipede wondered if it should bring up the question. But something was stopping it. Would it really be the type to ask that? No, would Marie think less of it? What if she says no? Abandoned, again.

Marie coughed. “I’ve… always wanted to see the ocean at night. You’d think of a beach and associate it with summer. Swimming, bathing suits, hot sun, fruits and drinks. But it largely gets ignored during winter. I’ve wanted to see what it was like during winter. Maybe it was hiding something from us. Especially at night. If the moon looks so pretty in our snow, what about the ocean?” Scolipede hung its head, imagining what Marie was describing to it.

“But we’ve always lived pretty far away from the ocean. D-Dad never really let me leave town on my own. But now that I’m on this journey on my own, no, with my friends, I can finally see it for myself.” Scolipede felt the breeze pick up. A leaf spiral past its view, riding the wind, free. “Scolipede,” Marie managed to say, “I… was wondering…”

Scolipede awaited an answer, anticipating eagerly for what the question was going to be. It waited, and waited, nothing. Another few moments, nothing. Scolipede looked back, only to see Marie slumped over on the ground, breathing heavily. Scolipede called out to her and rushed over. It gently poked her with its horns, trying to wake her up.

“Just what do you think you’re doing!?” shouted a voice. Scolipede looked over in the direction of the voice, only to have its face immediately smashed in but what seemed like a purple meteor. Scolipede slid back from the force. It faced its attacker. Noibat stood between it and Marie. Ceailean then ran up to her side. He saw that she was weak, pale, and poisoned. She even had Snom knocked out in her arms.

Ceailean his teeth and stood up, pointing his finger accusingly at Scolipede. “Did you do this!? Huh!? You sick bastard!” Scolipede’s eyes widened. It shook its head, assuring Ceailean that wasn’t the case. But it fell on deaf ears. “Who else could?! Noibat! Dragon rush!” Noibat was just as angry as Ceailean. It exploded into a huge dragon rush and charged in.

Scolipede had no choice but to defend itself. Its horns glowed a sickly poison purple right as Noibat impacted them. The two clashed with their attacks. Scolipede however, was getting pushed back. Its legs plowed through the ground as it tried to stand its ground. It was surprised, Noibat wasn’t this strong before.

“Get back and use air cutter!” shouted Ceailean. Noibat bounced back and swung its wings, throwing a blade of air each time. Five of them made contact, exploding each upon Scolipede’s body. Right as Noibat landed on the ground, Scolipede charged in through the smoke with megahorn. “Dodge it!” Noibat dove to the side right as Scolipede passed through. Scolipede ran back around only to Decidueye teleport in front of it in a flash of purple. Before it could even react, Decidueye bashed it side to side before slamming it away.

“Sit still now!” shouted Crisis from atop the trees, “Use spirit shackle!” Decidueye knocked 5 arrows and shot them in the sky. Before Scolipede could recover, it found itself stuck. The arrows had shot into its shadow, as if sewing Scolipede to it. It tried to move, but it was firmly stuck. “Go for it! Gurdurr, use slam! Farfetch’d, use brick break!”

The two Pokémon popped out from the bushes and swung their attacks on Scolipede, bashing it in as hard as they could. “Now from above, use leaf blade!” Decidueye flew in from above. Its leg turned a bright green and it slammed against Scolipede’s head, smashing it into the ground. “Are you ready to explain yourself?” said Crisis. He jumped down and looked down upon Scolipede, his expression stern. Ceailean walked up on the other side.

“Hurting Marie is too far! You’re gonna get what’s coming to ya!” he said, punching his fist into his hand. Noibat landed next to him and exploded into dragon rush. Gurdurr and Farfetch’d took opposite positions to surround Scolipede.

Scolipede felt a wave of anger wash over it. It hadn’t done anything! Or at least it didn’t mean to. But it did mean to in the moment. It wasn’t angry at them, it was angry at itself for being so impulsive. If only it wasn’t such a monster! Scolipede drawn upon all its strength and its horns exploded with silvery energy. Decidueye noticed this and quickly backed off. Scolipede rose, forcefully dislodging the arrows out of its shadow. It then shot a purple orb into the sky. It dispersed into many tiny projectiles that landed all over the area.

“Noibat! Do the thing!” shouted Ceailean. Noibat flew up and rained down air cutters all over the ground. All the toxic spikes in the area exploded into harmless dust clouds. Scolipede thought it could use this as an opportunity to get away, but as soon as it turned its head, it came face to face with Solosis. It blew a raspberry in its face and shot it with a psywave. The explosion cleared the area of dust and Scolipede stumbled back into a tree. Its back was now against a hard place.

“Let’s finish this!” said Ceailean. “Noibat, use dragon rush! Solosis, use psywave!”

“Agreed,” said Crisis. “Gurdurr, get in and use brutal swing! Farfetch’d, you too and use revenge! Decidueye, leaf blade!”

All the Pokémon readied their attacks and charged. Scolipede could barely stand. The damage it took from the exploding cave and the surprise attack was too much. It watched in horror as they all closed in to deal the final blow. That was when Marie jumped in the way and spread her arms out.

“Stop! Please, I can explain everything!” she shouted desperately. They all tried to stop, but the Pokémon were too close to stop now. Suddenly an ember shot through the air and hit Farfetch’d away. Scorbunny then came down and kicked away Decidueye with a blaze kick. Snom used all its remaining strength to shoot an icy wind into Gurdurr from the side. But there was no one left to intercept Noibat nor Solosis’s psywave. That was when Noibat thought quickly. It exploded into 100% dragon rush, dispersing energy everywhere around the area. It dissipated the psywave and made Noibat fall straight into the ground. It tumbled all the way towards Scolipede’s legs and slammed against them.

Scolipede was relieved to see Marie awake. But Marie could barely stand. “Stop… please… I can… explain…” She fell back down and lost consciousness. Scolipede eyes teared up, seeing her try to save it like that.

“Marie!” shouted Ceailean. “Noibat! Don’t let it get away!” Noibat tried to get up, but Scorbunny quickly rushed in with quick attack, knocking it away. Noibat asked why it was getting in the way. Scorbunny waved its paws around, telling Noibat to not attack it. It was friendly. Fennekin and Snom did the same, getting in the way of the other pokemon and telling them not to attack.

Scolipede was touched to see that it was being stood up for. But it felt that its time here was over. It found its strength again and ran off into the forest.

“Damn it!” Ceailean ran and then slid to Marie’s side. “Marie! Are you okay? Speak to me! Marie!” Marie laid limp, her breathing shallow. The sounds she heard started to muffled. Everything became a blur, then black.

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() Marie woke up in a cold sweat. She was breathing hard and she quickly checked her surroundings. “Was it all just a dream?” she asked herself. She was still in her pajamas and found that she was inside her tent. She felt around her body and pulled out some dirt from her pajamas. “Something tells me no.” She flicked the dirt to the side and she looked around her pokédex. Once she found it, she used the camera to look at herself. Perfectly fine. Her color was back and she looked as lively as ever. But her beanie was missing. She looked around some more in a slight panic and found it by her side.

She sighed and took hold of it. She looked at it for a moment and put it back on her head. Then, she dove into her bag and fished out a pokeball before unzipping the tent. It was night now. The stars were clear to see and the moon was full and bright. To the side, she saw a campfire. Ceailean and Crisis were sitting around it, not speaking a word.

“C?” she asked, approaching behind him.

Ceailean looked and immediately stood up. “Marie?” he said. He outstretched his arms and took a hesitant step forward. “Y-You’re okay.”

Marie stepped up and hugged Ceailean. He was surprised a little bit, but he eventually accepted her embrace. “Yeah, thank you C.” She backed up. “Where’s Snom and Fennekin?”

“They’re taking a walk along with Scorbunny and Noibat. I guess they felt on edge worrying about you.”

“And… Scolipede?”

“Wha- Why do you wanna know?”

“Just tell me C.” Ceailean backed, extremely hesitant to tell.

“I have been getting consistent reports from Decidueye that the Scolipede you had encountered is currently encircling the area.” answered Crisis. Ceailean faced him, looking like he wanted to tell him off for telling. Crisis continued regardless. “Though it seems it's hesitant to move in close, staying a considerable distance from the clearing.”

“You’re spying on it?” asked Marie.

“We are. After all, the Pokémon kept seeing it just outside the camp. You passed out before you could tell us what its true intentions were. So it was a wise decision in order to assure our safety.”

“Oh…” Marie paced a bit. “Can you call back Decidueye?”

“I could, but why, I must ask?”

“I… have an idea.” Crisis leaned forward and pondered. “Please Crisis?”

Crisis sighed. “I really hope you know what you’re doing.” He whistled loudly. Soon after, Decidueye popped out from the distant tree tops and landed next to him. “Thank you for your contribution, Marie believes that she can handle it from here.” Decidueye nodded as Crisis put it back in its pokeball. “Now, what is it you’re planning?”

“Hmm, I’ll just show you.” Marie then jogged over to the darker part of the clearing. She cupped her hands over her mouth and shouted, “Hey Scolipede! If you can hear me, there’s something I have to tell you!”

“What are you doing?! Are you crazy?!” asked Ceailean.

Marie ignored him. “Meet me at Monde lake, the one you like. I’ll tell you over there!” She then ran off towards the lake.

“Marie, stop!” Ceailean grabbed her arm. “That’s a dangerous thing you just said! We don’t even have our Pokémon right now!”

“Trust me, C. It won’t do anything. I believe in it.”

Ceailean groaned. “Ahh, fine! But I’m getting a rock just in case!”

“Oh please. Just leave it to me.” She broke out of Ceailean’s grip and ran off towards the lake.

“Augh! I really need to get her to stop dragging me into things. Crisis, are you coming?”

“I suppose. Someone has to be there to watch over you two.”

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() Marie ran up to the small cliff side overlooking the lake. “Whoa…” she said in a whisper full of awe. The lake was an inky black and the stars reflected the night sky perfectly. “It really is a mirror.” She walked down around the edge of the cliff side, eventually stopping at a boulder. She sat on it and simply observed the lake. Everything was so quiet. The outside air felt so different to that of Lumiose or even Snowbelle. The breeze seemed to just lift anyone’s spirit.

Then, the ground ever so subtly started to shake. A tiny pebble danced around in the boulder with each rumble. Marie smiled, “I don’t think subtlety is your strong suit.” She looked behind herself and saw Scolipede's big yellow eyes. They were quite distant and were consonantly darting between her and the ground. “There’s no need to be nervous. Come here, let’s see the lake together.”

Scolipede took a moment before slowly approaching Marie’s side. The two remained silent, content with watching the lake for a while. Marie looked up to Scolipede. Its yellow eyes stared into the lake, making subtle movements like it was moving from star to star.

“This lake is really pretty, right?” Scolipede nodded. “The world is really pretty. Remember how I told you about the oceans and the snow?” Scolipede nodded again. “Do you want to see them?” Scolipede then hung its head. It seemed sad. “You’re attached to this place, aren’t you?” Scolipede glanced at Marie. “May I ask why? The rest of the world is waiting to be discovered, yet you seem hesitant.”

Scolipede pondered for a moment. It then went over to a tree and eyed it up and down. Marie figured out what was happening and eyed it intently. Scolipede's horns exploded into a silvery energy. It used them to start carving into the wood. The wood ripped and teared and Scolipede went over as steadily as it could. After a minute, it was finished. Marie stood up and took a close look at it.

“Is this a Pokémon?” she asked. It seemed to be some kind of fuzzy ball with big leaves on its sides. “Maybe a Cottonee?” Scolipede stamped its front legs, implying that Marie was correct. “Oh, okay. But, that seems unusual to me. See, Cottonee tend to be a seasonal Pokémon. So during this time of year, you wouldn’t find any around here.” Scolipede nodded and looked towards the sky.

“You were friends with one?” Scolipede nodded again. “Is it because of Cottonee that you’re staying here?” Scolipede looked at the carving then gestured back to the lake. “I see, you two watched the lake together. Where did Cottonee go?” Scolipede bent its head down and took a sip of water. It then spewed it all up into the sky, the moon light making every single particulate dance in the wind. “They migrated. I’ve heard about it on some videos. They attach to one another and fly off into the wind wherever the wind takes them. Are you… waiting for it?”

Scolipede continued to look up to the sky. “I’m sorry, Scolipede. But Cottonee don’t stay in one place for very long. And they spread out across all the regions, maybe even oceans. I don’t think you’ll see it for a very long time.” Scolipede bent its head down, nodding as if to accept the answers it's been avoiding.

“Hm, it must’ve seen so much of the world by now. You've been waiting a long long time, haven’t you?” Scolipede nodded. “I was wondering, Scolipede. You love looking at the beauty of the world. If Cottonee was your friend, do you think it would want you to stay here? Wouldn’t it want you to be happy?” Scolipede didn’t answer. “What makes you happy, Scolipede?” Scolipede looked down on the lake. Its reflection was perfectly mirrored in the water. It poked the water with its nose, sending a single ripple down the lake.

“I wanted to ask you, Scolipede. Would you… like to come with me?” Scolipede’s eyes widened. It slowly looked at Marie, its eyes full of hope. She had her hand outstretched. In it was a pokeball. “I realized that I told you about all those places without telling you where they were and… it didn’t seem fair for me to leave you hanging like that. So I figured that I could show you myself. We could see so many places, night and day. So whaddya say? Will you-” Scolipede pressed the button of the pokeball before she even finished. It was sucked in, the pokeball shook a few times, then popped with a fanfare of sparkles.

Marie was a little surprised. “You were eager, weren’t you?”

“What?!” shouted a voice across the lake. Ceailean popped out from the bushes. “You caught it?”

“More like, it wanted to come along.”

Ceailean quickly made his way towards Marie. Fennekin and Scorbunny followed him while Snom and Noibat flew across the lake. “Now I’m even more confused. Just what happened in that cave that made it want to be your friend?”

“It’s a long story.” Marie then released Scolipede from its pokeball. “But I think we should give the lake one last look over. It will be a while before we’ll see it again.” Scolipede looked at Marie, curious. “Oh, you don’t think we’ll just leave the lake behind? This place means a lot to you, so I promise that one day we’ll come back, for old times sake.” Scolipede gave a pleasant nod. It then nuzzled Marie’s head. “Whoa, nice to meet you too.” she said with a chuckle.

The Pokémon cheered for it. Noibat then stepped and bowed, saying it hoped for a good battle should they ever spar. Scolipede said it didn’t particularly like battling, but it would try its best. Noibat said that was good enough. The Pokémon cheered again. Fennekin and Snom in their excitement, shot an ember and icy wind over the lake. Scolipede was quick to think and shot a toxic spike orb over the lake as well. The three attacks collided and stirred into each other, creating a burst of orange, icy-blue, and deep purple sparkles.

All the Pokémon awed at this spectacle and all sat down to observe. The sparkles all fell upon the lake, not even sending ripple through it. Marie smiled and sat down next to Scolipede, gently stroking its body with her hand.

Ceailean quickly sat himself next to Marie. “You know it wasn’t easy to find those Pecha berries. I would prefer it if you wouldn’t touch the Pokémon with poison point.”

“I can touch a Pikachu with static and not get paralyzed, so I think I can touch Scolipede. Thank you very much.”

“I’m just saying, aren’t you worried a little-”

“C, if you ruin this moment, I’ll toss you in this lake.”

Ceailean sighed. “Fine.” He sat and watched the sparkles. But then he began to snicker. “Y-You know though, you wouldn’t eat the berries. So we had to blend it up with some Moo Moo milk and spoon feed you. You looked like such a baby-” Scolipede then shoveled up Ceailean from his seat with its horns and tossed him over the lake. “Oh, what the heck!” He fell in with a big splash.

“Thank you, Scolipede. I think we’ll get along just fine.” Scolipede nodded. Everyone laughed and continued to watch the sparkles.

Ceailean surfaced slowly. “I won’t…” he said, his voice bubbling under the water.