“Alright, and that will cover the lesson for today,” a portly man said before he pressed something on the keyboard. As the projector turned off, he looked around the room before asking, “Are there any questions?” When no one said anything, he coughed before he said, “In that case, that will be all for today. Just make sure to review logarithmic equations and scaling equations in Chapter 12 for the quiz next Thursday!”

With the declaration, the students began to pack their things up. Derek clicked his pen shut, and he stuffed everything in his backpack. “Well, that was a waste of time,” he muttered, and tossed his backpack over his shoulder. It was bad enough they only had a month until finals, but did they have to cover new things and review the older classes for a test merely a week away?

Derek let out a quiet huff when he passed by Mr. Emilson, mind still stewing somewhat at the predicament. As he stepped out into the hall, he looked out the window and let out a hum. With how sunny it was outside, it wouldn’t be too much to grab lunch, then sneak off to a secluded spot to let Eve and Indy out…

“Hey, Derek, you alright?”

Derek blinked at the question, before he glanced right to find Jim walking over. “Yeah, just a bit dazed from last night,” he responded, hand twitching towards his phone when Jim leaned over.

“Yeah, can’t blame ya there. Think everyone ended up sleeping in today, even Ms. Titania,” Jim commented, and took a swig of Mountain Dew before he added, “Thank god she canceled class for today, at least.”

Derek nodded along at the comment, before he let out a yawn of his own when the sunlight made his body heat up. “Agreed to that, man,” he said, and patted his wallet before he said, “Want to go down to the cafeteria for a quick bite?”

“I’m down for that,” Jim said, and he tossed his can in the trash before he commented, “Honestly, I’ve been craving the cafe chili recently.” Derek snorted at that, knowing how much chili Jim ate weekly, but didn’t raise a fuss as the two walked down to the cafe. The two trekked through the campus before they soon arrived in the cafeteria, a small crowd already mulling in the lunchroom.

As Derek approached the counter, he frowned when he noticed the overhead lights flicker for several seconds. When it eventually stabilized, he hummed in thought before he asked Jim, “Is it just me, or does the lighting seem on the fritz today?”

“Oh, it’s been more than today,” Jim told him, and glanced up at the daily specials, “There’s been issues with the campus wiring for the last week. No one’s been able to figure it out, but there’s mainly been issues around the engineering wing.”

Derek winced at the answer, before he walked up to the counter when a portly student walked away with his three cheeseburgers. “Yeesh, I’m surprised they even have the school open right now.” As he glanced across the counter, he commented, “One chicken sandwich with waffle fries and an apple juice, please.”

“Well, it’s not like they’re holding active classes in the area,” Jim said as Derek paid for his meal. When Derek gave him a glance, he added, “With how much of a pain it’s been, Mr. Buckagan actually canceled engineering class for today to work on it with the janitors.” Derek let out a noise at the comment, before he stepped aside for Jim to place his order.

As the two moved to the side while their order cooked, Derek hummed in thought and tapped his hand against his bag. While what had happened last night was definitely a shocker, he was torn on whether or not to talk to Jim about it. Jim was just as avid a fan of Pokemon as Derek was. Arguably even more, with Jim’s full collection of game cartridges. But once a secret’s out, it was impossible to keep it…

A call of “Number 449!” came from the counter, which drew Derek out of his thoughts. He gave a small thanks as he took the food tray from the cashier. As Jim got his own order though, the light shot up in brightness before the electricity cut out in the entire cafeteria.

Derek looked up as people began to complain about lost work or their order not being finished, before he gave Jim a look. “They wouldn’t schedule a full shut-down of the school over some chronic wiring issues, would they?” he asked, only to get a disbelieving glare at the question.

“Dude, Mr. Buchanan has been in the business for over 30 years. He’d at least ensure there’d be a notice sent out if it was planned,” Jim commented, before he looked around as the red glow of emergency lights began to fill the campus, “I guess they hit a power main by accident.”

As people began to worry about what happened, a sharp whistle caused people to look at the stout security guard in the hallway. “Attention, everyone!” the security guard barked, not waiting for people to finish talking, “Due to an electrical issue causing a loss in power, the Iron Spring east campus is closing early for the day. Please head to the closest immediate exit.”

As the guard repeated his statement for everyone to hear, Derek glanced around before he nudged Jim with an elbow. When the red-haired man gave him a look, Derek jerked his head in the direction of the exit door across the cafeteria before he began to sidle over there. Jim quickly followed, and even passed Derek by when Derek stumbled over a stray backpack.

After a short moment, Jim let out a sigh as the two finally stepped outside. “Well, looks like things became a lot more open for us today. Shame about the tournament,” he said, and haphazardly stepped to the side when more students came out of the exit behind them. He looked up at the sky momentarily, before he asked Derek, “So, you want to head down to the Open Hand after we eat? I think that by the time we get over there, it should be open.”

Derek perked up at the offer, but as he glanced at the woods nearby, he paused before shaking his head. “Nah, I think I’ll get some sketching done for class instead,” he told Jim, trying to keep his voice level, “With the weather being this good, might as well get the wildlife pieces finished early.”

Jim tsked at this, but didn’t complain before he sat down at the closest table. Derek sat across from the red-haired man, and soon, the two were eating heartily. As the two were halfway finished though, the rapid scream of a siren caused them to look up in time to see an ambulance turning into the back parking lot.

Derek frowned in concern as the ambulance pulled up to the curb, before setting his fries down when three men hopped out of the back with a stretcher. As they ran inside, Derek and Jim walked over as the men ran inside, joining the small crowd forming around the ambulance. As the people surrounding the ambulance began to murmur about why the medics might be there, Derek looked around in concern before the doors flew open.

“Clear the way!” the medic shouted as he pulled the stretcher behind him, the other medics pulling it on either side. As the medics passed Derek and Jim, Derek’s face scrunched up when an acrid, burning smell filled his nostrils. When the stretcher turned to go around the ambulance’s side though, he became nauseous when he saw a stocky man unconscious on top, the left arm of his shirt arm visibly smoking and blackened while his beard was a mess of smoke-tinted points.

Derek looked away to keep from throwing up, only to be greeted with Jim looking distraught. “Oh god, what happened to Mr. Buchanan?” Jim audibly asked, and glanced at the door. Derek had to follow closely behind as Jim ran to the campus, before the ginger called out, “Jared, what the hell happened to the repair work?!” A heavy-set, well-tanned man was startled at Jim’s exclamation, nearly knocking his glasses off his face, before he turned to face Jim fully.

“I’ll be honest, Jim, it was a complete shock out of the blue,” Jared said, and waved his hand in the air as Derek listened in, “We started about forty minutes ago, after we cut power to the room, and the wiring for the lights was all checked out. When Mr. Buchanan put his hand behind the wall to inspect some skittering noises though, he must’ve hit a live wire, because he visibly shot back from the shock.” Jared audibly gagged, before he mentioned, “Thank god Quinn got his CPR training to help restart his heart, or else…”

Derek’s stomach dropped at the mental image, bolstered by the lingering smell of burning cloth, before he let out a faint cough. “I’m sorry to hear that,” he commented, earning looks from both Jim and Jared before he pointed away and said, “Anyways, Jim, I need to get going, but I hope he pulls through, for your sake.” Jim gave a wordless nod, and Derek walked away as the crowd began to disperse.

Derek walked away from the campus, but rapidly jay-walked across the street to the nearby park. After a short trek up the hill, Derek sat down at an open bench before he pulled out his notebook and began to sketch. As the hours passed, Derek watched with barely concealed interest as the parking lot cleared, before all that remained was a few cars, including the security go-karts.

Derek took a quick look around, then let out a sigh before he put his notebook away. As he put the pencils away, he slipped out the two Pokeballs still in the top before he expanded them to full size. A flash of light momentarily lit up the hillside, before Eve and Indiana both looked around with curiosity. “Sorry for letting you two out so late, but I’m afraid that things are a bit more dire than before,” Derek said, causing both to stare at him, “You see, a teacher was electrocuted here at school, and with how long he’s been in the field, I think there might be a Pokemon causing problems. Do you think you can help me find them?”

Indiana let out a growl at the statement, before he looked down at the campus. When Eve gave a short nod, Derek smiled, before he stood up and stretched. “Alright, let’s get looking, team,” he said, and walked back downhill, his Normal-types following him on both sides. As Derek got close to the campus, he looked around with concern. If the campus was locked up for the day, it would be a pain, unless he could find an open window…

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As Derek looked around for a possible entryway, Eve trotted up to the door, and sniffed at the handle before she hopped up. Derek paused as the door swung open, before he smacked himself in the face. “Of course the college budget is spent so perfectly,” he muttered, before he stepped inside.

Derek looked around as he walked through the hallways, the red glow of the emergency lights making his spine tingle. “Alright, the engineering wing is mainly the east wing of the first floor,” he mused aloud, and looked up at the directory on the wall before he pointed to the right, “This way.” As Derek walked down the hallways, he began to grow nervous from the lack of any noise, save for their footsteps and the faint humming of the lights. Hell, it almost seemed like their steps echoed with how quiet it was.

Derek stopped suddenly, and held a hand up before he listened carefully. Eve and Indiana paused as he listened to the faint echo of footsteps drawing closer. Did some of the guards stay behind? Glancing down at the two Pokemon, Derek waved them back before he placed a hand on their PokeBalls. If the guard saw them, it’d risk them being taken away! As the steps neared them, Derek gulped before he stepped around the corner. At nothing else, he could claim he forgot his charger.

As Derek took a few steps forward, Derek winced when he ran head-first into a metal plate, earning a solid “Clang!” With stars momentarily filling his sight, Derek stumbled back, and he placed a hand on his head in worry. When he felt no blood, Derek let out a breath. Thank god he didn’t have to get stitches. As he rubbed his eyes though, a thought suddenly struck him: Why was a metal plate hanging in mid-air like that?

As he moved his hand, a faint ‘Bronnn?’ made him look up to find a floating, cobalt disc the size of a hubcap floating in the air. As the metal disc’s golden eyes examined him, Derek’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight of a Bronzor. As it began to float around him though, he frowned as he remembered that Bronzor didn’t learn any Electric moves, so how could it have harmed Mr. Buchanan…?

“Bronzor, get back here!” he heard a familiar voice call out. The sound of tipped shoes drew close, before Professor Titania’s slim figure exited a nearby room. “Dammit, Bronzor, you can’t run off like this,” she began to say, her gaze locked on a device in her hands, “You could bump into-” Titania looked up from her device, only to freeze at the sight of Derek on the ground. She visibly looked between Derek and Bronzor, and pulled her skirt close before she cautiously asked, “Derek, what do you think you’re doing here?”

Derek froze at the question, but when Bronzor let out a faint hum, he looked up at it before he said, “The same thing you’re here for, I reckon.” As Eve and Indiana came over, seeming to sense the tension was now gone, he looked at her device before he asked, “So, do you think you know where the troublemaker’s at?”

Titania looked at him in shock as Eve and Indiana began to yip at Bronzor, before she looked at him warily. “I think so, though it’s still a bit vague,” she said, and glanced down at her device before she pointed behind him, “It seems that it’ll be back that way, likely in a classroom near the bathrooms.” Derek winced at the realization he likely passed them by, before he stood up and brushed himself off.

He nodded to her, and Titania walked past before the group began to follow her. Derek and his Pokemon followed in silence as she passed several doors, before she finally stopped in front of a classroom and turned around. Derek stumbled back as she passed him by, before she stopped at Door 1183. “Alright, the anomaly should be inside here,” she said in a hushed tone, and reached into her topcoat’s pocket only to pull out a keycard. As she unlocked the door though, she looked down at Eve before she asked Derek, “How well do you think your Pokemon can find the anomaly?”

Derek hummed in thought, before he looked down at Eve and asked, “Do you think you can give it a shot, Eve?” Eve let out a low growl before she let out a faint yip. Seeing the agreement, Titania opened the door faintly, and the eager Eevee easily entered the classroom.

Derek watched with bated breath as Eve walked into the room, her ears up high as she looked around. Despite her caution though, there didn’t seem to be anything abnormal in the classroom. All there was inside were the tables, the counters, and the chairs stacked up at one side.

As she neared the center of the room though, she suddenly froze before she jumped up. The tiled floor in front of her rose up, and two massive pincers snapped shut around her previous position. Derek stifled a scream when Eve barely stumbled back, and a faint hiss came from the hole before the pincers rose up, revealing the stout, pillow-like larval body they were attached to.

“Grub-ub-ubbin!” the stout Bug-type exclaimed, and Derek stumbled back when it clashed its pincers together. While he never hated insects, he couldn’t help but stumble back at the sight of a foot-long grub with pincers just as big. As it let out a warcry, he looked back at Eve before he said, “Alright, Eve, let’s give it our best!” The wild Bug-Type turned to him in surprise, but Derek took advantage of the distraction to declare, “Let’s get in there with a Quick Attack!”

Eve shook herself at the declaration, and shot forward with a white glow. The Grubbin barely had time to turn back to look at her before she struck, knocking the Bug-type out of the hole and onto its back. The Bug-type screeched in pain when it slid into a table leg, but quickly flipped itself over. As it turned to look at Eve, Derek prepared to tell it to dodge. However, both him and Eve were shocked when it spat out a thick rope of white strands at the Normal-type.

Eve jumped to the side, thankfully avoiding most of it. However, the wild Grubbin soon turned to follow Eve, and she was pushed back when the strands struck her side. Derek winced when the rush of webs pulled her back, and she soon collided with a table as the webs bound her to it. The Grubbin let out a cry at the sight of Eve being pinned, and clashed its pincers together before it shot towards the Normal-Type.

Derek’s breath hitched as the Grubbin’s fangs widened, an acidic green aura coating its mouth, before he looked at Eve and shouted, “Eve, use Tackle to break out of the webs!” Eve looked up at the command, and pulled herself into a ball before she shot up. However, the Grubbin moved at a surprising speed, and as Eve jumped free of the webbing, its inner mouth carved a line of bite marks on her leg before he tore through the table leg with his pincers.

Eve cried out in pain at the bite marks, but landed on her feet with the back leg lifted up. The table, on the other hand, soon tipped over as Grubbin knocked it over, hiding him from sight. Seeing Eve struggle to stand on three legs, Derek pursed his lips in worry. When the Grubbin failed to come out from around the table, he eventually told her, “Just get one last Quick Attack in, then get back here for Indiana to take over.”

Eve gave a stunted nod, and began to charge forward. Despite only moving on three legs, Eve reached a rapid pace before Grubbin jumped over the table. With a mighty leap, Eve hit the Bug-type right in the stomach, causing it to let out a cry before it flew into the wall. Eve let out a cry of triumph, and began to limp over to Derek.

As she neared the group though, the floor faintly shook before the Grubbin burst out again from underground. Derek couldn’t even get out a warning before it lunged at Eve. As it got close, it began to emit sparks before the Bug-type wreathed itself in electricity. Eve could barely stumble forward before the Grubbin slammed into her.

Derek’s heart clenched when Eve let out a scream and fell at his feet. As Eve struggled to get back on her feet, he looked down at Indiana. Seeing the raccoon Pokemon get incensed at how Eve struggled to move, he pointed at the Grubbin and shouted, “Indiana, get in there with a Tackle!” As Indiana charged in to replace Eve with a fire under him, he pulled his backpack open and began to rummage around. Shit, where were the other PokeBalls? He could’ve sworn he put them in the side-pocket!

Indiana crashed into the Bug-type with a hearty thwack, and as the Grubbin stumbled back, its sparks dissipating, Derek finally pulled out an unused PokeBall and expanded it to full size. As the Grubbin began to get back on its feet, a lime-green aura slowly enveloping it, Derek reared his arm back and focused on the Pokemon. “Alright, PokeBall go!” he shouted, and chucked the ball at it in an overhead lob…

Only for the ball to overshoot the Grubbin, bounce off the table, then finally hit the Bug-type in the back of the head. Derek held his breath as the Grubbin was sucked into the PokeBall, and the ball began to violently shake back and forth. Several seconds passed as the PokeBall rocked on the tiling, its button repeatedly glowing red, before it finally popped a flash of white.

Derek pumped his fist in victory, and grabbed the still Pokeball before he knelt down between Eve and Indiana. “Great job, both of you,” he told them, scratching them between their ears before he lifted Eve up, “I can see both of you getting a treat tonight!” The two let out a weak cheer at that. When Eve winced at the motion, Derek glanced down at her before he pulled out her PokeBall. “However, you should probably go into your PokeBall until we get back, for some healing,” he told Eve, and she gave a jerky nod before she vanished inside.

As he pet Indiana between the ears, trying to remember what supplies the Zigzagoon had found, a stern cough made him turn his head back to the sound. Titania glanced down at the two of them, her eyes rapidly examining everything, before she adjusted her glasses and commented, “I must admit, you seemed to handle this surprisingly well. A bit too well-prepared, in my opinion.”

“Honestly, a good portion of the battling aspect came from the Pokemon games,” Derek answered, and scratched Indiana behind the ear as he added, “All the supplies and other stuff came from this little fella finding it all before I found him this morning.”

Titania nodded in thought, before a faint groan from her Bronzor made her glance at it. “In that case, you’ve managed to make decent progress,” she commented, before she looked at the Pokeball and asked, “And how long have you had your… Eve?”

“Actually, I ran across her last night, after I left the meteor shower,” he said, rolling her PokeBall in his hand as he remembered what happened, “Just as I neared city limits, I saw a rainbow light off the road. When I walked closer, I found an Ultra Wormhole in mid-air, and… well, she just popped out.”

Titania’s eyes widened at the explanation. “You saw an actual wormhole?” she asked, and pulled out her phone before she began to rattle off, “How big was it? Was there any specific color it had? What was the angle it was facing?”

Derek stumbled at the verbal barrage, trying to recall the details. “I dunno, five meters across? Mainly cyan? Tilted towards the ground? It was literally too hard to stare at, like a visual seizure.”

Titania rapidly typed away on her phone, before she eventually stopped and pocketed her phone. “Thank you. That’s honestly a real breakthrough with the details,” she said, and looked at the PokeBall in his hand and asked him, “Do you have anything scheduled tomorrow?” When Derek shook his head, she then told him, “In that case, I’d appreciate it if we met up tomorrow around 2 o’clock to discuss things.”

Derek frowned at the question, but as Bronzor began to orbit Titania’s head, he gave a nod and said, “Alright, I suppose I can do that. Where do you want to meet, then? It’s not like we can show up at the library, with them out.”

Titania gave him a look before she shook her head. “I’m not foolish enough to consider something like that. I have something less risky in mind, though,” she said, and brushed her black locks back into position before she pointed north. “Tomorrow, follow Evergreen Avenue up to Cliff Trail, then follow it to the end. My driveway will be the one on the left. Understood?” When Derek gave a nod in agreement, her device vanished under the folds of her coat before she finally walked away.

Derek watched as she walked away, his expression impassive. Once she was gone from sight, he removed his hand from Indiana’s head and returned the Normal-type. With his team’s Pokeballs safely pocketed, Derek stood up and walked back towards the back parking lot. His mind actively pondered what was happening, but all he knew for now was that they needed some healing, a healthy meal for supper, then some time to think things over…