All eyes were on George when the dust settled. Shiftry uprooted himself, pure hatred settled in his face.
“...you think you’re clever?! GET THAT DEWOTT! NOW!!”
Thorns sprang out the earth in a line, charging towards George. There was no time to celebrate evolution: He let go of his scalchops and jumped away, right as one thorn lashed at his leg. His newfound vitality saved him from worse than a bruise.
‘Now we’re talking!’
George jumped around. The previous thorns withered away, spare for two holding his scalchops. Camerupt was still on the ground, while Shiftry’s thorns engaged in a fierce struggle against Minos, smacking at her legs while trading blows with her flowers. All the while, orange and white flashed on the other side of the rock. Blitzer rolled on the dirt, claws bearing a metallic shine as he struck out at an unseen foe.
With no time to waste, George put his hands out. His eyes turned as blue as his fur. Psychic energy flowed through his fingertips and towards the scalchops. With a yank, they both broke their thorny bonds and flew back into his hands. He gazed back at the others. Camerupt had gotten up, and was headed to assist Shiftry in taking Minos down.
The Dewott gritted his teeth, and charged ahead swinging both scalchops. Camerupt caught wind, and blew fire at George’s feet. George leapt aside, then over, in between plants as they caught fire, nimbly manoeuvring around sharp pebbles by his feet. Camerupt’s eyes widened, then squeezed shut as his final efforts to escape the inevitable failed. No amount of training would’ve helped.
Watery essence shined from both scalchops as George slashed away. Fur, howls and water filled the air. Hit after hit, Camerupt had no chance. By the end of the onslaught, he collapsed, his green scarf cut to pieces. George put a foot on his head, then screamed at the sky.
“URAAAAHH!”
Shiftry wasn’t having any of his celebrations, right on the face of his own comrade no less. “Jeol!! You little- ACH!”
Any of Shiftry’s frustrations were pummeled back into him by Minos, who smacked him straight in the face with a bouquet of flowers.
“I was talking to you, bastard! Don’t you dare ignore me!”
Minos launched a flurry of attacks at Shiftry, each with a hiss and of saliva flying out of her mouth. Shiftry stuck his hands against her flowers and claws. Some attacks connected with Shiftry’s mane, and he groaned with each hit. Others were blocked out right. Nevertheless, the initiative was gone. Roots sprang out at Minos; she sidestepped them effortlessly.
George tucked his Scalchops away. Shiftry still was keeping an eye on him, but Minos wasn’t giving him room to work with. But George had little to work with. Water wouldn’t work, psychic not in a million years. One cleverly launched spear of ice, perhaps, but one misfire could knock Minos flat.
With few other options, he hopped onto the rock. Blitzer and Naclstack were still brawling on the other side. Both were covered in dirt and scratches. Blitzer gritted his teeth at Naclstack’s sharp eyes. He slashes away with his claws, growling with each hit; Naclstack’s heavy body must’ve been doing a number on his arms.
Naclstack was slow to respond, but threw its entire weight into a body slam. Blitzer grunted out loud, staggered back, and was teetering on his feet.
George kept his distance as he shot a jet of water at Naclstack, just as it was about to respond. It rumbled and stumbled into the dirt, leaving an opening for Blitzer. One wild swing of his claws cut deep. George followed up with another shot of water, spraying Naclstack down its back. Blitzer went in again.
Two versus one, not fair by any means, but fairness was the last thing on your mind out in the wild. Winning was all that mattered. More than ever, George was determined to win here. To show the world he was not to be trifled with. Soldiers never played fair. Had the tables been turned, there wouldn’t have been any conflict like George had.
‘They started this… they started this,’ George repeated in his mind as he unleashed one final blast of water into Naclstack. ‘They’d kill me if they could. Like all the others. Like back home. The others back home…!’
Upon Naclstack going down, George wasted no time pursuing the final foe. Shiftry tried stabbing him through the chest with another thorn from the ground. This one struck half true; it left its brambly mark just above George’s hip. He sank on his knee, moaning and clutching the spot. A wave of heat came over him as Blitzer came to him.
“You okay?”
“I’m fine enough. What about you?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll make it,” the Charmeleon panted. “We need to help Minos, fast!”
They rushed over to Minos’ side. She had cornered Shiftry against the wall of the farmstead. As he scraped further past the wall, and George and Blitzer entered his sight, he threw his hands up.
“Alright, ALRIGHT!! ENOUGH! I’ll let you go, just… just don’t hurt my guys, okay? We won’t come here anymore…”
Minos hissed at him, the venom in her voice strong enough to kill a Tauros. “And why should I believe you now?! You always come back for more!”
Shiftry hissed in a breath. For some reason, his nose seemed a little longer than it did before. “Listen, listen alright? That was the past, and I- Okay, okay!! I’ll admit, I didn’t think you’d fight back like this, with your… friends-”
“Coward!” Blitzer shouted at him.
“Yes!! Coward!! Call it whatever, just- Let me go, I’ll never come here again, and neither will my guys, okay…” Shiftry sniffed. “Just trying to make a living here…”
“Well, find a better way to make a living then! One that doesn’t involve stealing from people!” George said with a clenched fist. “In fact, why don’t you take that damned scarf off? Show us right now you won’t come back. And when I say now, I mean now!”
“Yes, yes I’ll…” Shiftry stuttered over his own words, even as his leafy hands were already headed for the knot in his bandana-like scarf. He threw it off, and after being fleeced to his comrades, forced them to take theirs off as well. Afterwards, they were driven off onto the road, and chased away into the hills. George gave a stern look ahead, then sighed.
‘Maybe they’ll learn. At least something good would’ve come from all this.’
Minos patted down her arms. “Thanks, guys. I owe you one. Need to get check in on my old man here, give me a moment,” she said. Without waiting for a response, she walked back onto the farm.
“We’ll see you in a moment,” Blitzer said, before turning to George with a large grin on his face. He was still a little taller, but the difference was no more than a long finger. “Hey, George… congratulations! That was incredible! And now, of all times, too!”
The Dewott stuck his tongue out the side of his mouth, then bit down on it as he scratched the back of his head. The pain from earlier had ceased to exist. It had faded alongside his Oshawott form. A newfound strength was in its place, one that teemed through every muscle and blood vessel in his body, as if he was full of sunshine.
It didn’t feel much different.
“You know, after you evolved and told me how this whole evolution process works, I didn’t think I’d have my turn in the spotlight anytime soon. Guess I thought wrong, huh,” George deadpanned
Blitzer laughed right back at him. “Hahaha! C’mon, George! You’re as feisty a fighter as I am at the very least, and you’re surprised? You’ve been aching all day for a few weeks now, it was bound to happen soon enough! Don’t say it’s because you’re a human, you’re a Pokemon now!”
George clicked his tongue. “Well, actually, yeah? I mean, it’s only been a few months since I’ve been here, right?” ‘And I’m still not just a Pokemon. I mean, I’m nothing special as a human either, but still. There’s bound to be a difference.’
The Charmeleon grabbed George by the shoulders with both claws, and gave him a good shake. “Nah, don’t pant it too much. Really, Othersiders are stronger, in my eyes.”
George folded his arms. “Why do you think that? There’s nothing special about me, physically.” ‘It’s a mental thing, if anything. A mindset. I don’t think like a Pokemon does.’
Blitzer threw his arms up. “Don’t know! But there’s gotta be a reason why pretty much every othersider out there gets remembered. And I do mean every one.”
“Are you sure about that?” George rubbed the tuft of fur on top of his head. “You don’t know the ones that might’ve gotten lost in the woods and ended up getting eaten by ferals.” A shiver went up his spine as his thoughts settled. ‘That… could very well have been me, couldn’t it.’
“Well, there’s Pokemon out there that can detect when an Othersider shows up. Terez said she’d felt your presence on the road once,” Blitzer said while tapping his chin.
George sighed. “Let’s just leave this for what it is. We should check up on Minos and her dad.” ‘That, and I hate thinking about this. Just, no.’
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Biting his lip all the while, George walked back onto the farmstead. Minos was comforting her father, who was still reeling from the fight. She had already given him the rundown of what happened, and he was thankful for the Soldiers being chased off, but the scars of battle would be a reminder for a long while. Scorch marks, the smell of burnt grass, the broken boulder by the road, among other things. Chasing ferals off the property would’ve been fine, but this?
Sapient, trained Pokemon fighting was terrifying. George had his fair share of experience with it now, but the human side of him felt that same fear. Flames to burn a forest, quakes to collapse a building, water to cause a flood, all had been chucked at the enemy without regard for the aftermath. The spare amount of damage was a stroke of luck. One bad miss would’ve destroyed this entire farm, and the Pokemon that lived from it.
The old man was still shaking. Minos told George and Blitzer to wait on the road while she helped him back to rest, and they obliged without any further questions.
“Well, we did what we could to help,” Blitzer pouted. “I get she doesn’t think we’re any good at helping her dad, but c’mon. Didn’t so much as invite us in.”
George played around with his whiskers, running his fingers along their length as he waited. The dexterity in his fingers had improved; there was a simple enjoyment in playing with them now. “Well you can’t just say she’s forgetting about us. I doubt it. She just wants to take care of her dad, and you can tell he’s not the happiest about all this. You saw him shaking, right?”
Blitzer frowned. “Of course, it’s hard to miss that! Could barely speak.” He let out an annoyed chirp, then climbed onto one of the rocks that hadn’t been broken to sit down on it. His tail curled down to catch as much sunlight as was possible, like an actual lizard would. “Still though, it’s not like I’m bad at talking to hurt people! I don’t have a bad bone in my body, come on.”
George folded his arms. “Well, opinions vary on that. Not saying I disagree, but-”
A grumble came out of Blitzer’s throat. “Let me guess, it’s because I’m a Char, ain’t it,” he said with a scowl aimed at the dirt. “It’s always because I’m a Char. Everyone always thinks I’m reckless and hotheaded. And stupid. As if I’m about to set everything on fire because I sneezed or because I’m fed up.”
Frustrations were boiling up to the surface, and George wasn’t having it. “Hey. Don’t say that. You don’t know what she’s thinking or why she doesn’t want us there. And besides, I’m not even allowed in. Do I look like a Charmeleon or a hothead to you?”
Blitzer grimaced. “Well, no, but-”
“Then don’t do it,” said George with a raised hand. “Just wait here for her to come back, and then you can ask, alright?”
The wind picked up and stirred through George’s fur. He stood like a statue even as the grass was blown flat against the ground, his mood unaffected. Blitzer swallowed. And he wasn’t alone there.
“Well, I’d be damned! Of all the things for ye kids to run off ‘n do, evolvin’? Ha!”
A gruff-looking Darmanitan came running their way with a fat grin on his face, the black pendant around his neck dangling back and forth. “But ‘ey, can’t say it’s a surprise. We did just establish that ol’ Georgie here’s had the cramps now, didn’t he? Hah! So whaddya get up to, anyway? Thought I told ye to stay close.”
Blitzer stared at him with a dumbfounded expression, while George was neutral about Porov finding them.
“Oh! Well uh, we were just practicing, but then this Meowscarada girl came running up to us. Said she needed help with Soldiers that were harassing her, so we helped her,” Blitzer said.
A sparkle appeared in Porov’s eyes. “Really?! Ye ain’t just makin’ stuff up here, are ye?”
“No! Why would I? George can back me up here!” Blitzer pointed a claw at the freshly evolved Dewott, who nodded in silence. “See? We’re not lying! In fact, she’s about to come back out to say thanks again, properly. She’s just taking care of her dad right now, that’s all.”
To this, Porov struggled to come up with any response that wasn’t a chuckle. He clutched his pendant, pinched his skin, punched himself in the chest, yet the laughter spilled out of him like the fire out of his eyebrows.
“And, and here I was still havin’ my lil’ doubts ‘bout whether or not the two of ye were takin’ this deeply serious. What happens? I look away for a few minutes, and here ye are runnin’ around puntin’ the Soldiers outta here like it’s nothin’! Didn’t even need to say anything about it!”
“Well, that’s our job now, isn’t it?” George said, fiddling with his whiskers. “We’re with the Alliance. Our job’s to take care of Soldiers. Help people. So why would we avoid doing that unless told?” He smacked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. ‘Actually, what kind of a job is that. Fighting others? Why not peacekeepers? Something friendlier?’
“True,” Porov grunted. “But eh. Plenty ‘o people would rather duck ‘n dodge rather than do that stuff, if they can help it. Sucks, but eh, what can ye do?”
George hummed a dull note. Porov’s words rubbed him the wrong way, in a way that he couldn’t just let slide. He felt a kind of impulse from deep within his mind that made him want to argue about this. As if it was instinct, not a conscious choice.
“You make it sound as if people have to be coerced into fighting for the Alliance. I thought people volunteered for this entire cause in the first place. Don’t they?” He asked, then slowly blinked. ‘Not sure what I’m even rambling about, but let’s just pursue it now. Why not.’
Porov’s eyebrows dimmed in intensity as he sat down on the road. “Eh. ‘course plenty of people come in here ‘cause they’re tired of Soldiers, but ya know what ends up happenin’? They end up gettin’ in their first fight, and then they get cold feet. Maybe they’re just not big fighters. Or they’re scared of landing in prison. Crest ain’t too kind to people who rebel, y’know. ‘S why we have to keep watchin’ each other’s backs. ‘S why I didn’t want you runnin’ off in the first place.”
“...Right,” George said after a moment’s hesitation. And right afterwards, agile footsteps came running up the road his way.
“There you are!” Minos said while panting a little. “Man, I thought you’d stay put. It wasn’t going to take that long to put my old man to bed, you know.”
“Just wanted to give you some space, that’s all,” George said. “Anyway-”
“Eh? This the girl you helped out?” Porov studied her with sparks flying from his eyebrows. “Well, ain’t she alright lookin’? If only I was a lil’ younger-”
Minos let out a brief yet sharp hiss. “Hey, cut it out. We haven’t even seen each other for more than ten seconds. So keep your comments to yourself. And second, I’m not even that young. Getting close to thirty here.”
Porov threw his hands up. “‘Ey. Didn’t mean it that way, my bad. But eh, yer who me boys here helped out with a ‘lil Soldier problem, did I hear that correctly?”
The Meowscarada sighed. “Yes, that’s right. I needed some urgent help. They weren’t my first choice, but I didn’t have a choice. But hey, they got the job done, so that’s what counts. Sent the bastards running off into the sunset.” She got onto her knees next to George; Blitzer joined them moments later. “Thanks again, I owe you boys.”
“You’re welcome!” Blitzer said with an energetic swing of his tail. “And don’t worry about owing us anything. Helping other people is just something you do, no questions asked! Especially when there’s Soldiers involved.”
Minos put her paws up. “No, really, you don’t have to just leave it at that. It’s a job well done, you deserve-”
Blitzer shook his head vigorously, like an animal tearing its prey apart. “Nope! Nope nope nope nope nope! Honestly, I don’t want a reward. Why? Because… I’ve been where you are now, and I didn’t get any help. And… I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. No one should have to go through that. At all,” he said, somewhat reserved. “And besides, seeing my best friend evolve is enough of a reward. Really.”
“Really?” Minos asked.
“Really.”
Eyes fell on George, who winked back at all the attention. ‘I’m lucky I met him before anyone else. He’s too pure.’
“Actually, hang on a sec.” Porov licked his lips, then rubbed his hands together. “Blitzer here ain’t got much he wants, but I’d like to put in a request, ye? Ain’t sayin’ ye got to do it, but it’s somethin’ pretty useful for us, if ye will.”
Minos raised an eye. “What is it?”
Blitzer’s face soured at the prospect of being superseded. “No, we really don’t need anything. I mean it. She’s got it hard enough as is.”
Porov shook his head. “True, but listen out. It ain’t takin’ anythin’. ‘Tis more getting her to vouch for us, if ye will. Ye know how George here’s the Othersider?”
“Told me all about it,” Minos replied. Blitzer was watching Porov like a nervous Braviary. Then Minos’ eyes flew wide open. “Oh, I get you. This is about the Azure Flute, isn’t it?”
The Darmanitan grinned as he held his pendant in the palm of his hand. “‘S right! That’s what we’re after. How’d ye guess?”
Minos shrugged. “It’s pretty obvious. I mean, someone like the Othersider showing up in the ol’ Source Hills? Nothing to see up here but the flute, what else would you be after? Dirt? Vegetables?”
Porov laughed. “Well, can’t say ye ain’t hittin’ the nail on the head there, that’s for sure. Love this place like any real Rubyfolk ought to, but I’d be damned if ye ain’t tellin’ it like it is. Well then, whaddye say? If ye ain’t convinced, keep in mind that we want these Crest bastards gone just as much as anyone else, and ye want ‘em gone just as much as we. Flute’s gonna help with that if we get the whole thing.”
The Meowscarada licked her lips, before nodding. “...Sure. Provided you stick around for the festival, alright? I’ll be in Verdant Valley for it with my dad. And no, I won’t take no for an answer-”
“Good thing no wasn’t an answer in our books either, ain’t that right, me boys?” Porov laid a hand on both of their backs, yanking them over to his side. George clenched his nose; Porov had a funky smell.
“...Yeah.” ‘Smells even ashier than Blitzer…’
“Of, of course.” Blitzer’s mouth twisted around as he tried pointing his nose as far away from Porov as he could. As much as one could in a grip that tight, anyway. His tail flopped on the ground.
“Well, that settles it!”
Minos folded her arms. “Yes, but don’t let me down. Still got plenty to worry about. And the last thing I want to be remembered as is the girl who sold everyone’s soul to the devil.”
“Don’t sweat it, it ain’t anythin’ like that,” Porov said in a hushed tone; his grip on George and Blitzer weakened enough for both to free themselves. “There anythin’ else we can do for ye? Was thinkin’ about sendin’ some people out here to keep an eye out for any other Soldiers, if ye will.”
A sigh came from Minos. “I suppose that’s for the better, isn’t it.”
“Sure is!” a reinvigorated Porov said, giving both his thumbs. George’s ears went flat against his head. The up and down nature of Porov was exhausting to follow. At some point, one was done subjecting themselves to it. How Blitzer managed to train with him was a complete mystery. “Boys, ye know how to find yer way back to Verdant Valley, right? Me and Minos are gonna sort the rest of this out, I’ll be followin’ close behind.”
“Got you,” George sighed out in relief. He pulled his eyes towards Blitzer; their scarves flailing in the wind. “You want to grab a bite to eat?”
Blitzer nodded. “Sure. All that fighting leaves me hungry. I’ve been getting hungry a lot in general.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. They say it’s a Charmeleon thing.”
“Am I going to get a similar appetite?”
“Maybe.”
True to their word, George and Blitzer made their way to Verdant Valley across the hills, their pace fast. Porov didn’t catch up with them before they dived into a local inn, paying for a meal with the wage they’d been getting for their work thus far. The food was good enough to forget about everything for a while. Spirits were lifted as thoughts moved from Alliance work to George’s evolution.
* * *
Rugged and worn, Shiftry and his companions dragged themselves into the night, their injuries an ever growing problem. They were worn, hungry, and exhausted from their long run. No scarves, no money, nothing.
“There’s got to be a town around here somewhere…”
“Do you think they would let us in?”
“Of course they would,” Shiftry panted. “Rubyfolk look after one another.”
“True,” Jeol said. “We have no money, however… and no guarantee we’re finding any Crest people around here, either. It’s hard.”
“We’ve got to,” Shiftry said, his leaves rustling with the wind. “The Othersider, he’s-” He gulped. “Evolved. And here. And they’re getting stronger. We have to tell what happened.”
The light vanished from the horizon in the blink of an eye, casting the world in starlit darkness. No moon anywhere in sight tonight.
“Jeol, quick. Light up.”
“We’d be seen.”
“I can’t see anything… We need to find a town, and it’s dark… how, even?”
Jeol timidly sparked up, casting the surrounding rocks in an orange glow, which faded after a stone’s throw worth of distance. “I’m tired.”
“Keep pushing,” Shiftry groaned. “We’ve got to alert everyone. There’s a real, real problem around these parts. And we have to stop-”
“Leave that to me, will you?”
The three stopped dead in their tracks. A red glow stared them down on the road ahead, a shadowy outline of ectoplasm gathered around it. Below, the faint yellow flicker of a maw and eyes loomed.
“Who are you?! Identify yourself! C-crest business!” Shiftry hacked out. To the ears, it was the most pathetic shout imaginable. The ghost responded in kind.
“Well now… how odd. I thought you had dropped your banners earlier in the day? At the farmstead?”
“Wh-what do you know about the-”
A hollow rumble echoed throughout the landscape.
“Everything.”
Shiftry and his companions all backed away independently from one another.
“What do you mean?! Who are-”
“Someone you would rather not have met… but I digress. I have been watching your every move in the past day. And… you have seen a few things that you shouldn’t have. Knowledge destined to kill if it spreads.”
“You… you’re with them, aren’t you?! Argh-” Shiftry attempted to make a stand, but his injuries got in the way.
“Not exactly,” echoed the Dusknoir as he revealed himself in the light, his eye and maw glowing and wide. The mere sight of him struck terror into the hearts of Shiftry, Camerupt and Naclstack. Three measly Soldiers in it for the paycheck. “As a matter of fact, you would be mistaken entirely. I have no masters.”
“You… are…”
The Dusknoir spread his hands. An attack formed in his palms and maw, tethering the three to him. They felt their minds being drained dry, and nothing more. They didn’t even notice how little effort their attacker was putting in, before passing out.
“You may know me as ‘The Lone Eye’. I prefer a simple ‘Hein’, if you will.”