heya im back im kinda satisfied with this chapter

*************************************

“The ruins…I see them!”

Youngjae points out to Daehyun. Nestled in the red rocks on a cliff not far from Heatstorm, are several pieces of rubble that looked like pillars from an ancient time. Himchan has said that a red gem can be obtained from the inside of the ruins, and it makes for a great accessory.

Daehyun can’t help but wonder. Himchan may have been some sort of Contest star when he was younger, but these ruins are pretty out-of-the-way. Forget the gem, how does Himchan even know of the existence of these ruins?

No signage or anything saying that people can’t enter. But, well, there are a few wild Pokemon roaming around the outside. Some Rufflet hanging out by the cliff’s edge. A Heatmor in search of food.

Surrounded by the ruined pillars is what looks to be an entrance to the underground. A gold-plated entrance, smeared with dirt and has long since lost its glamour, shows them a staircase that would lead them further down. Daehyun gulps visibly.

“Alright, Himchan said it’s at the furthest chamber in the ruins, right? So that’s where we’ve got to go,” Youngjae says, squaring himself. “Come on, Daehyun.”

Daehyun and Bagon take a shaky step towards the staircase, but Youngjae leads the way, Lopunny by his side, the Pokemon seemingly fearless as it moves forward, down the stairs, into near-darkness. On the way down, Daehyun nearly trips, and flinches when a warm drop of water lands on his nose.

The darkness is chased away by the glowing indentations in the walls. Elliptical shapes, with circles etched in them. The circles look a little like eyes that seem to follow them as they walk further down the corridor, but Daehyun prays it is just the imagination of his overactive mind.

The corridor takes a sharp left. At the end of it is a brightly-lit chamber. Is that where the gem is? Daehyun sure hopes so. Then they can get out of here.

Well, as it turns out, the gem is not in that chamber, but rather, there are what looks to be inscriptions on the walls that neither Daehyun nor Youngjae can seem to decipher.

The inscriptions

Is it just Daehyun or do the eyes appear to be blinking at him? He brushes it off once again. Must be his paranoia getting to him.

“But they… it’s not just me right? They look like…letters,” Youngjae says. Daehyun scrutinizes the symbols. Can it be? That they are letters of some sort? Could it perhaps point to something? If they can just read and understand it…

Daehyun hears Bagon’s call. He turns toward the sound to find Bagon scampering up to him, with something in its mouth. It appears to be a book of some sort. An ancient kind of book. The pages are bound with some string, fraying at the ends. The cover of the book has a design that resembles what they are seeing on the wall now.

“Sweet,” Youngjae looks down at it, trembling. Most likely out of excitement. “Where’d you get it?”

Bagon proudly gestures towards what looks to be a rubble, and, well, what looks to be a skeletal hand, fingers splayed. Daehyun’s stomach knots, but he looks away and tries not to think about it. He thumbs through the pages of the book, stunned by the details in it. According to the book, there are at least twenty-six such ancient alphabet catalogued within its pages.  

“Let me try,” Youngjae says, snatching the book from Daehyun’s hands.

It takes them a really, really long while. Youngjae and Daehyun pore over the book as they try to work out the writing on the wall, to the point where they are completely oblivious to their surroundings.

However, their Pokemon are not.

When Bagon first hears the sound of what sounds like the groaning of metal, it turns its head to find a floating disc cloaked in a mystical pink aura. Then another, and another. All the oval designs they’d seen earlier are coming to life!

Daehyun turns at the sound of Bagon pulling on his shirt. He is about to tell the Pokemon to give them some more time when he sees it as well. Oh crap. Instinctively, he brings out his Pokemon while Bagon, having gotten the attention of its Trainer, proceeds to attack one of the Pokemon with a Dragon Claw attack.

Youngjae shoves the book into his satchel and commands Lopunny to execute a Jump Kick attack, taking out the same Pokemon that Bagon had damaged. The metal Pokemon falls to the ground, but there are at least ten more.

Daehyun manages to get his hands on his Pokedex and flips open the device.

Bronzor. Level 34-37. Type: Steel/Psychic. Ability: Levitate (prevents damage from Ground-type moves)/Heatproof (weakens Fire-type moves). Ancient people believed that the pattern on Bronzor's back contained a mysterious power.

Bronzor. A Steel/Psychic-type. No wonder Lopunny’s Jump Kick isn’t doing as much damage as Daehyun would think.

“Crunch!”

Bagon opens its jaws wide and proceeds to bite the hell out of that Bronzor. It does neutral damage—not supereffecitve or ineffective. The Bronzor’s broken body clatters to the ground. Drats, they keep on coming!

“Lopunny! Agility!”

“Youngjae, we gotta work out that inscription. Now!”

Youngjae reaches for the book and opens it up again. They’ve found a blank page and have scrawled their deciphered portions on it. So far, they’ve managed to get:

Proceed with caution. Beware the two-eyed plates and the messenger of the sun.  

They are left with a few more symbols.

“Baton Pass!”

Lopunny gives a cry, and, surrounded by white energy, returns to Youngjae’s Pokeball and Misdreavus bursts out, the red orbs around its neck shining a deep red as it unleashes a Hex attack on the wave of Bronzor.

The Bronzor fall one by one to Misdreavus and Bagon.

In the midst of it all, Bagon glows a blinding white light, stunning the Bronzor if it is only for that one second. A vastly different Pokemon emerges from the light, all silver and white as it bounds on all fours, taking out Bronzor left and right with Dragon Claw.

Shelgon. Level 30. Type: Dragon. Moves learned: Dragon Claw, Crunch, Headbutt, Focus Energy. Ability: Rock Head (prevents recoil damage). The cells within its shell transform with explosive speed, preparing it for evolution.

“Done!”

Youngjae raises the book triumphantly as he reads the inscription out loud: “Proceed with caution. Beware the two-eyed plates and the messenger of the sun. Consequence or reward, the choice is yours.”

As soon as Youngjae finishes reading the words, the lettering glows a dark purple and peel themselves off the wall, surprising both Youngjae and Daehyun as the lettering rush towards the Bronzor, clearly Pokemon themselves.

Unown. Level 31. Type: Psychic. Moves learned: Hidden Power. Ability: Levitate. Its flat, thin body is always stuck on walls. Its shape appears to have some meaning.

The Bronzor are completely overwhelmed by the alphabet Pokemon.

“Daehyun!”

Daehyun turns to find Youngjae and Lopunny already moving down a passageway that just opened up where the Unown had been. While the Unown are busy with the Bronzor, Daehyun follows Youngjae as they head deeper down the passageway.

So, obviously, the two-eyed plates were the Bronzor. What about the messenger of the sun, then? What kind of Pokemon is that? Some god? Deity? Some kind of—

“Whoa, look at that.”

Youngjae stares at the chamber in front of them. A chamber of gold. Daehyun can only join him in staring. The chamber is empty, save for a red gem in the middle of the room sitting on a pedestal shining as brightly as the rest of the room.

“That must be the red gem that Himchan was talking about,” Youngjae says, voice breathy. The two take a small step into the room. Daehyun is half expecting the chamber to come tumbling down and burying them alive inside. However, all he’s met with is silence. Are there no y traps like in the movies?

“Wait, Daehyun,” Youngjae says, grabbing his friend’s shoulder. “I’m…mildly concerned about the thing we read earlier.”

“What about it? You mean the last line?”

“Yeah,” Youngjae says. “Consequence or reward, the choice is yours. But what choice is it referring to?”

Truth to be told, that line has gotten Daehyun rather perplexed too. The image of that skeletal hand buried amongst the rubble sends shivers up Daehyun’s spine. What is the choice? What is the reward? More importantly, what is the consequence?

Maybe the choice is the red gem. Are they supposed to take it? Is that their reward? What about the consequence?

Youngjae continues taking steps on the golden-tiled floor. No giant hammer that comes out of nowhere. No swinging axes. No giant Arbok to swallow them up. Youngjae looks back at Daehyun triumphantly when he reaches the pedestal that holds the red gem.

“Let’s just take it,” Daehyun says. “I mean, what’s the harm?””

“Well, we just saw the Bronzor. I mean, it could possibly get worse,” Youngjae says.

Before Daehyun can open his mouth to continue convincing Youngjae, the boy has already reached for the gem and taken it off the pedestal.

Well, Daehyun thinks as he feels a certain rumbling beneath his feet as well as above him. I certainly should have expected this. He should have, if the buried explorer at the beginning of the chamber was any indication.

Though, Daehyun isn’t sure whether to be thankful or not, but it is only the ceiling at the entrance that is collapsing upon them. Shelgon slams its hard, shelled body into Daehyun, sending him tumbling into the cavern. He lets out a squeak as he scrapes his elbows against the rubble.

The chamber is plunged into darkness.

Daehyun quickly grasps Monferno’s Pokeball, throwing the ball open. Monferno’s tail fire is the only source of light at the moment, and Daehyun is willing to cling onto it as long as he can.

“So, this must be the consequence,” Youngjae says. Daehyun tries not to think about the edge to his voice. He moves to put the red gem back onto the pedestal, setting it into the indent. Nothing. The rubble doesn’t clear magically. It stays right where it is.

“Holy crap,” Daehyun fumbles for his Pokedex and flips it open, tapping hard on the Contacts list, where he’s saved his travelling companions’ numbers. He tries dialling Yongguk’s number. No reception, it seems.

“,” Youngjae curses.

Daehyun tries again but is again met with the soulless woman’s voice informing him that there is no reception.

“Are we…stuck here?”

Daehyun doesn’t want to think about that. He lets out a shaky breath. “Can we…try to find a way out first?”

Not to mention that there was this messenger of the sun that they have yet to meet…

Or have they already met them?

A way out. Daehyun thinks bitterly. He doesn’t even believe in those words himself.

*

First things first. Zico has got to get that girl away from the Muk.

The Muk roars, raises the girl’s unconscious body, and flings her towards Zico.

Well, that was easy.

Furret puffs up its body, acting as a cushion for the girl as she falls onto its fluffy body. Meanwhile, Chatot has put several Grimer to sleep with its Sing move, the notes falling from its beak with ease.  The Muk looks enraged as it makes for Zico.

Well, this is a problem.

Muk roars and sends a Gunk Shot attack at Chatot, hitting it square on the chest. The bird falls from the sky, and Zico returns Chatot to its Pokeball. Muk roars again, the Pokemon’s purple body moving fluidly along the edges of the city’s pavements, absorbing the sleeping Grimer into its body.

Filicide at its finest.

Zico releases Magnezone. Surely, Muk will be unable to damage Magnezone—since Poison-type moves will not work against Steel-types.  

But something rumbles. From below the ground.

And Zico realizes all too late, when said something bursts from the asphalt, catching Magnezone unawares as it strikes from below.

Crap! It’s a Dugtrio!

Pop.

Pop. Pop. Pop.

The asphalt continues cracking as Diglett appear all over the road, along the pavement, in shops.

“Oh !” Zico yelps as he commands Magnezone to use Magnet Rise, the Pokemon levitating high above ground, where it can no longer be hit by Ground-type moves. Zico puts two and two together, realizing that Muk and Dugtrio must have been working together.

The Diglett overturn a car, the hunk of metal toppling onto its side with a loud bang.

Zico reaches for his Pokephone and dials Taeil’s number.

“Hey, Taeil. Got a bit of a problem. Mind if you start evacuating people?”

This part of the street seems to be deserted, and Furret appears to have fled, getting the girl to safety. The Muk, Grimer, Dugtrio and Diglett are harmless at the moment. Chanyeol would just have to deal with the collateral damage.

He hears an affirmation from Taeil and he puts his phone back into his pocket. The Muk and Dugtrio have lost interest in him and are moving down the road at an alarming speed.

A pained cry has Zico turning his head to the side, between two cars which are nearly bumper to bumper, parked by the roadside. A small, brown Pokemon with a fluffy mane and tail is cowering on the red sportscar, obviously afraid of the Diglett surrounding it.

The brown Pokemon, in one daring leap of faith, jumps off the car and makes for an alleyway, squeaking and hopping over Diglett that pay absolutely no attention to it, while being pursued by the Diglett that do.

“,” Zico makes a sound between a groan and a sigh, and goes after it. He’ll leave the Muk and Dugtrio to his comrades for now. Magnezone pursues the Pokemon behind the building, before finding the Pokemon cornered against the wall, staring down a legion of Diglett.

Well, the Diglett certainly haven’t seen him coming.

With a well-timed Flamethrower attack, Kecleon, bursting from its ball, defeats most Diglett without trouble, giving Zico the opening he needs to grab the Pokemon, scooping it up into his arms. The Pokemon shivers, and, well, tries to escape from his grasp.

“Hold still!” Zico hisses as he nearly loses his grip on the Pokemon. The Pokemon squirms and wriggles and is as slippery as soap. The one time the Pokemon actually manages to worm out of his hold is when Zico dives and catches it again, hugging it to his chest.

“I bet you have an owner,” Zico mumbles. “Come on, let’s get you somewhere safe first.”

The Pokemon bares its teeth at Zico and chomps down hard. On his arm. Zico screams and loosens is grip on the Pokemon, to which the Pokemon leaps down onto the ground, jumping over Diglett as it had done earlier. Zico cradles his arm as he orders Magnezone to go after it.

*

The attack had been so sudden that Himchan and Yongguk didn’t have time to respond. They are hanging out at a café, to come up with strategies in which Himchan could win the contest.

“So, the Beauty Contest, Ultra Rank,” Yongguk said.

“Yes,” Himchan nodded. They’d checked the contestants on the Super Contests’ official webpage and saw Song Minhee’s name under the list of participants for the Ultra Rank Beauty Contest.

“Your Floette is the best candidate, according to this list of, well, moves,” Yongguk says. “It likes dry food, so definitely, it’ll be more willing to eat the Pokeblocks for beauty. Not to mention that out of all its moves, both Grassy Terrain and Fairy Wind are moves that fall under the beauty category, so it’ll earn more points that way.”

It’s only after Yongguk has spoken that the tremors begin to start. The earth begins to shake. At first, Himchan thought it was an earthquake, but obviously not, because the other people at the café turn to stare out into the streets, as if an earthquake is the last thing on their minds.

A giant chunk of concrete lands right beside them, nearly taking the head off a woman sitting to their left. She screams and stares at the concrete in shock, her Pokemon, a Venonat, flinching and diving under the table.

“Everyone! Run!” Yongguk shouts.

As if on cue, people begin to move, like a big mass as they start screaming, pushing and pulling and jostling their way. Elbows shoving, hair grabbing, feet stomping, the people flow out of the café like sand in an hourglass.

Yongguk turns back towards the cause of it all. What looks to be three brown blocks in the distance, when it is near, actually has six beady eyes and three pink noses. It is moving at lightning speed, as expected from a Dugtrio.

Yongguk reaches for his Pokedex and flips it open like it’s second nature to him.

Dugtrio. Level 55. Type: Ground. Moves learned: Fissure, Earthquake, Slash, Dig. Ability: Arena Trap (prevents Pokemon from escaping). Dugtrio are actually triplets that emerged from one body. As a result, each triplet thinks exactly like the other two triplets. They work cooperatively to burrow endlessly.

As Yongguk suspects, the Dugtrio disappears below ground, the only indication of its movements is the telltale sign of raised earth denoting its route. If the Dugtrio strikes from below, it’s game over for them.

“Yongguk-ah! What are you doing? We have to go!”

Yongguk stands his ground, looking awfully relaxed. If not for the noise and pandemonium around him, people would have mistaken him for someone who’s admiring the scenery. Minus the camera. His Houndoom is by his side, silent, as if staring and welcoming their incoming doom.

“Holy , Yongguk!” Himchan yelps as he reaches for Yongguk’s arm. “We’ve got to get out of here! Leave it to the police or something.”

Yongguk still shows no signs of moving, even as the Dugtrio and its Diglett minions are approaching real quick.

“Grovyle, Leaf Blade!”

A sudden burst of red from Yongguk’s belt materializes to form Grovyle, the Grass-type bringing out a razor-edged vine, slashing at numerous Diglett at once and taking them out.

“If we don’t do something now, people are going to die,” Yongguk says. “That Dugtrio is a Feral.”

“But this isn’t something normal civillans like us can handle,” Himchan says, pulling harder now. “If we stay here, we’re going to die.”

“Civillan or not, as long as we’re strong, this shouldn’t be a problem,” Yongguk says, smirking at Himchan. The latter doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry because a smirking Yongguk complete with a background of raging Diglett and a Dugtrio is hilarious but such a reaction is somewhat inappropriate for this situation.

“You’re saying you’re weak, Himchan?”

Okay, that’s gotten Himchan’s blood boiling. Weak? He is anything but!

“Oh I’ll show you,” Himchan’s voice drops dangerously low as he releases his Brionne, the seal Pokemon smiling as it awaits its orders. Himchan can almost feel its body buzzing with excitement.

“Take them all out! Icy Wind!”

Ecstatic to be battling again, Brionne lets loose the full force of its Icy Wind, sending a freezing draft at the onslaught of Diglett. Despite the scorching heat of Heatstorm City, Brionne’s Icy Wind is powerful enough to freeze the ground, covering it in a thick, white sheet of sleet, trapping the Diglett in place.

Even Yongguk has to admit. He’s impressed. When Himchan’s competitive, he is competitive. He hates being called weak.

Now, with all the Feral Diglett taken care of, they’re left with the Dugtrio. Unfortunately for them, the Dugtrio seems to have identified its target. The Dugtrio surrounds itself with a shroud of brown, then, the ground goes from trembling and quivering to full-out quaking. Himchan stares as the sleet shatters, raining ice crystals down on them.

Cracks snake through the ground, branching just like the veins of a leaf. The ground opens up beneath them, and Himchan barely has enough time to return Brionne to its ball and release Fearow. Yongguk has returned Houndoom as well, and is now carried by Rufflet, the tiny bird Pokemon flapping its wing as it glides towards a nearby building that’s still standing amidst the destruction.

It is from this building that Himchan has a great view of the city. People are running in the opposite direction of the army of Diglett. There is combat taking place below them—a few people and their Pokemon are taking up arms, while some are ushering citizens to safety.

In another part of the city, Yongguk sees a purple, blob of slime terrorizing the citizens as well. So, there are two Feral Pokemon attacks! That explains why no one is attempting to deal with the Dugtrio.

“Do you need help?”

A Drampa gains traction in the air right in front of them and grinds to a halt. It may have invisible wings but it surely is hovering. The person on board looks lightly-dressed (who wouldn’t in this heat?), with nothing but a thin, translucent black singlet and a pair of bermudas.

“Uh, nah, we’re fine,” Himchan answers for them. “Just, you know, enjoying the view.”

The man gives them a funny look, “You know, we’re supposed to report suspicious people to the po—”

“Holy crap!”

The building they’re on begins to crumble, pieces of rock breaking off from the overall structure. Himchan’s foot slips and Fearow catches him with its beak before he can tumble into nothingness. The man on the Drampa helps Himchan onto the Pokemon’s serpentine body. Himchan buries his face into its turquoise scales.

Yongguk is airborne, with Rufflet’s strong claws on his shoulders. Himchan swallows as the building dissolves into a mountain of rubble. He’s just glad that people have already been evacuated.

“Nice to meet you,” the man on the Drampa says, without turning around. He maneuvers the Drampa such that it is nearing its target. “Name’s B-Bomb.”

Drampa looses a Dragon Pulse at the Dugtrio. The Dragon Pulse zaps Dugtrio, but is not enough to take it down. Himchan returns Fearow to its ball. It’s much too dangerous for any of his Pokemon to be out right now. Sharp pillars of earth begin to rise from the ground as Dugtrio executes a Slash attack. Drampa narrowly misses a rising stone pillar, shaving ten years off Himchan’s life.

“So, uh, what do you do for a living?” B-Bomb asks. Himchan isn’t sure they’re supposed to be having this sort of conversation now. Maybe he’s trying to keep Himchan calm.

“I’m not actually that afraid, so you can sto—!” Himchan’s composed voice turns into a schoolgirl shriek when Drampa soars up, firing a Hyper Beam from its mouth. The beam blasts Dugtrio, sending the Pokemon burrowing underground to avoid the attacks.

“I’m trying to keep myself calm!” B-Bomb lets out a squeak as Drampa s to the side to avoid another Slash attack by Dugtrio.

“Talonflame, Razor Wind!”

Himchan throws his head up to find another combatant making his way from the skies, clinging to the talon of a large bird Pokemon. The bird Pokemon is definitely a predatory bird, judging from its fierce gaze and broad wingspan. Its belly is white, its wings a sunset pink. It glides through the air with grace, sending a gale of wind towards Dugtrio which has emerged from the ground. Visible cuts appear on Dugtrio’s body, spilling Pokemon ichor onto the split ground.

“Muddy Water!”

Another voice resonates as a giant wave of water from seemingly nowhere, tainted brown, washes over the battlefield, taking out all the Diglett and dealing heavy damage to the Dugtrio.

From his right, Himchan sees a blur of black diving to the ground.

“Yongguk?” Himchan can barely make out the words when another strong gale of wind sails by him. Where in the world is Yongguk going? He squints and sees Yongguk landing on the ground, then running into an alleyway.

Himchan growls, demanding he be let down from the Drampa. B-Bomb shakes his head.

“No can do, mister. Look, why don’t you help me fight this Dugtrio and maybe—” B-Bomb doesn’t finish his sentence when Himchan, with a growl, pushes off the Drampa.

“Hey, mister!” B-Bomb’s voice gradually gets softer and softer.

“Crap!” Himchan’s hand misses the ball and he flies to the ground, landing hard, dragging his arm across the asphalt. His arm begins to burn. Red blooms in his vision. He can hear every beat of his heart, every pump of his blood coursing through his veins. Everything around him is too shaky, too loud, too everything.

Oh Arceus, Himchan just wants to pass out and sleep and never wake up. He rolls onto his side, lifting his arm to inspect the damage. He winces when he sees the wound. Red. That’s the only word to describe it. Completely crimson. That’s it. That’s the word. No, those are two words.

Himchan drags himself up and reaches for a Pokeball. Any Pokeball. He throws it and out bursts Kirlia. He smells the incoming threat before he sees it. Arceus, the scent is overpoweringly strong.

“Damn,” Himchan slurs as he notices a dark shadow looming on the ground. Whatever’s making that large shadow is behind him. , Himchan has just made himself an easy meal.

If Himchan is anything, it’s not easy.

“ing…hell,” Himchan wheezes as he clutches at his side. It’s not just his arm. He probably fractured a hipbone too.

Kirlia looks torn between dragging its Trainer to safety and fighting the purple beast that has appeared out of nowhere. It towers over them, a purple, slimy hand outstretched, ready to scoop Himchan up and plop him into his mouth.

Hell no. Himchan isn’t giving this thing the satisfaction of doing that.

“Kirlia, Calm Mind!” He has no idea what this blob in front of him is. If he’s lucky, this thing uses Special attacks since Calm Mind boosts Kirlia’s Special Attack and Defense stats. With his good arm, he reaches for his Pokedex and flips it open. The device’s screen is cracked, the glass splintered, but the images and words are as clear as day.

Muk. Level 46. Type: Poison. Moves learned: Acid Armour, Gunk Shot, Sludge Wave, Screech. Ability: Poison Touch (has a chance to poison enemy upon attacking). The stench it gives off will make your nose scrunch up. Still, there are Muk fans who think that's a good thing.

Good thing my , Himchan’s cloudy mind thinks. So, now he’s not only got a muddy triplet who don’t know how to separate bodies and he’s got a foul-smelling shapeless mass of…of substance slithering around. That thing is so fluid it can probably fit in cracks in the ground.

“Bring it on, ,” Himchan drawls in a challenging tone.

Well, the Muk is more than happy to accept that challenge.

*

Yongguk’s feet slap against the ground as he makes his way down the alleyway. Purple blobs of Grimer slip out from the cracks in the walls, attempting to hinder him. Yongguk is quick to leap over their poisonous bodies.

He’d seen a brown Pokemon running down this way. It didn’t look like it was in cahoots with the Dugtrio and Diglett. Rather, it looked like it was running away from them. He couldn’t help but give chase, and the stranger riding on the Drampa is skilled at battle, so Himchan is most likely in good hands.

The brown Pokemon darts around a corner, and purple liquid oozes from the cracks in the buildings, sloshing over Yongguk’s path. Yongguk screeches to a halt and sees the purple blobs coming together to form one organism. A Grimer.

The Grimer roars and slings a Sludge Bomb at Yongguk, who dodges it. Rufflet caws and drags its talons across the Grimer. While the Grimer looks pained, its body only distorts to follow the direction of the talons, minimizing as much damage as possible.

Yongguk returns Rufflet to its ball and brings out Ariados. At least now he can be certain his Pokemon won’t get poisoned. Poison-types cannot be poisoned after all.

A silver, thin thread shoots from Ariados’s rear, the thread arrowing through the air, spinning around, around and around Grimer, to the point where Grimer is caught in a cocoon of sticky Spider Web. While Yongguk wishes the threat has been neutralized, but the steady flow of purple globs from the tiny crevices in the cocoon tells him that it’s not over.

The Grimer emerges from the Spider Web, almost as if the web has done nothing at all. Ariados goes for a er Punch attack, landing a hit on the Grimer. The Grimer opts to go for a Fling attack, hurling its Black Sludge towards them, which Yongguk manages to dodge. The Black Sludge hits the ground, seeping into the concrete pavement, sizzling as it corrodes the earth.

“Swords Dance and er Punch!”

Buffing its Attack stat has Ariados’s er Punch hitting harder. Grimer proceeds to fling another Sludge Bomb at Ariados, hitting the Pokemon on the tips of three of its legs.

“Infestation!”

Ariados clamps down hard on Grimer, sinking its fangs into the Poison-type. Grimer shrieks and sinks back into the ground, obviously not wanting to deal with Yongguk anymore.

Great, now where could that brown Pokemon have gotten to?

Yongguk makes his way down the alleyway, Ariados right behind him. He is greeted by a blue-panelled wall, and the brown Pokemon is huddled against the wall, curled into itself, bushy tail swishing about in the air.

“Shh, shh, come on, let’s get you out of here,” Yongguk says, approaching the Pokemon. The Pokemon looks fearful as it tries to back away, only to find itself against the wall. Its tail moves to curl around its body.

Yongguk already has an outstretched hand to bring the poor thing into his arms when he hears the crack of a building and the movement of a dark shadow. He looks up, only to find the building to his left crumbling, pieces of rubble that’s going to crush both of them if—

Cursing, Yongguk grabs one of his Pokeballs and releases Grovyle, hugging the brown Pokemon close to him.

“Leaf Blade!”

With what looks to be seasoned practice and swift reflexes, Grovyle whips a vine at the incoming rubble, slicing the concrete to pieces. Large blocks of concrete rain down on them, crashing into the ground, splattering Yongguk with dirt and dust.

Yongguk looks down, where the Pokemon is trembling, looking absolutely afraid. Its eyes dart furtively across the collapsed pieces of the building.

Yongguk releases Rufflet and returns Grovyle to its ball.

“Come on, little one, let’s go.”

The Pokemon squirms and manages to wriggle out of Yongguk’s grip, making for the entrance to the alleyway. Already, the Grimer are attempting to grab the Pokemon.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Yongguk half-growls as he dashes after the Pokemon, Rufflet squawking and flying by his side.

*

“Aw .”

Jongup stares down the man who’s cornered him here, a purple barrier erected around them, in the thirtieth floor of some office building abandoned by the evacuated citizens. The man’s Crobat bats its wings by his side. The caster of the Mean Look. Perhaps if Jongup can wait this out…

“And I thought you’d be interesting,” the man continues, scratching his head. He grins a boxy grin, “If you didn’t catch it the last time, the name’s Taehyung, but you can just call me Tae.”

Jongup hates to break it to him but he cares not for his name. The only thing that has Jongup’s blood boiling is the two trapezoid shapes that make up the logo of Team BTS.

“Oh well, let’s get this show on the road,” Taehyung holds up a hand.

Crobat launches its assault on Jongup. Servine blocks Crobat’s Leech Life attack with a Leaf Blade attack, but Jongup quickly returns Servine to its ball upon seeing the Leaf Blade shrivel up right under his nose. He sends out Minun, the blue Pokemon’s cheek pouches crackling with electricity.

The building they’re in is shaky, rocking to and fro, a slave to the tremors below.

Minun looses a Discharge attack, sending sparks of electricity flying towards Crobat, shocking it into submission. Crobat’s defeat only serves to entertain Taehyung more, as he returns Crobat to its Pokeball. Taehyung releases his next Pokemon, Butterfree.

“I hate Electric-types, just saying,” Taehyung says, a sly grin on his face as Butterfree flaps its wings hard, sending a gale blowing Minun back into its own ball. One of Jongup’s Pokeballs randomly bursts open, revealing Araquanid.

At this point, the building appears to be collapsing due to an Earthquake attack from below. The entire building itself begins to slump. The walls start to disintegrate. The desks and chairs slide in their direction, slamming hard into the glass windows and subsequently breaking the glass, falling out of it.

Killer litter, is the only thought that comes to Jongup’s mind before he hears a command.

“Bug Buzz!”

Araquanid is hit by the supersonic waves from Butterfree’s antenna, the Pokemon lunging forward and attacking it with a Crunch attack of its own, lowering Butterfree’s defences while it’s at it. Taehyung releases Xatu and hangs onto its leg, the Pokemon spreading its wings and soaring up into the sky.

“Araquanid! Bubblebeam!” Jongup jabs a finger in Taehyung’s direction, but to his dismay, Araquanid has only eyes for Butterfree as it sends a jet of bubbles in Butterfree’s direction, the Pokeon dodging with ease. Realization dawns on Jongup. The Butterfree must have used Rage Powder.

More rolling chairs and desks and stationery fall against Jongup. He hisses as a pencil stabs his cheek (what luck) and jumps to avoid a drawer. By now, the building is really turning sideways. He has to get out of here, and fast.

It’s at such times that Jongup wishes he’s got a Flying-type Pokemon with him, or at least, something that can carry him to safety.

Right now, his only option is to release Servine.

Servine sends a couple of vines up to grasp at the broken windows on the other end as the building continues to fall. Jongup grabs onto its tiny body, returning Araquanid to its ball as Servine hoists them both upwards.

There is the sound of a sharp crack as the concrete that Servine has grasped suddenly comes loose. Jongup doesn’t even have time to register the shock when both Trainer and Pokemon are free-falling through the air. Taehyung appears to have disappeared. Fled, maybe?

But right now, Jongup has to concentrate on not dying.

Before Jongup can do anything, beside him, Servine flashes a bright, white light. The shape of its body begins to elongate, until it becomes nearly twice Jongup’s height. The new Pokemon that emerges from the light throws out three vines, coiling together to form a triple helix. Jongup clings to the new Pokemon’s body as it grabs hold of a building still standing.

Jongup’s heart is going at a mile a minute when the new Pokemon pulls both of them up and onto safer ground. He watches as debris falls and slams into othe buildings, taking the structures down with them. Arceus, no matter where he looks, it’s a big mess. Heatstorm is in a mess in general. He’s sort of glad Daehyun isn’t here. The boy would be screaming his head off.

“Seriously? Can you, like, you know, die?”

The singsong voice that he is growing to despise sounds out behind him. Jongup whirls around on the heels of his feet to find a face full of sonic waves. He grabs at his ears, his head feeling like it’s going to split apart. Another of Taehyung’s Pokemon is Yanmega, beating its wings in a frenzy. Xatu hangs over Taehyung’s head like a protective mother, Taehyung standing at the other end of the roof of the building, hands behind his back.

“Why are you doing this?” Jongup shouts. “Why are you trying to kill me?”

“Why? ’Cause it’s my job,” Taehyung says, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

It’s his job to kill him? Kill Jongup specifically? Or kill people in general and Jongup just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time? Plus, who is giving him orders?

“Sorry, it’s nothing personal,” Taehyung says, but there is a flicker of amusement in his eyes. “Ancient Power.”

The large pieces of concrete rise coated with a pink aura, before being hurled mercilessly at Jongup.

Jongup dodges one piece that sails over his head and would have had the wind knocked out of him if not for Serperior’s Leaf Blade attack, smacking away one of the rocks.

Man, Jongup’s not going to fight the dude here. Maybe a shorter building that wouldn’t exactly topple…

“Where are you going?” Taehyung mocks, watching as Jongup makes a dive off the building, Serperior already readying its Leaf Blade attack. “Yanmega, Pursuit!”

Jongup’s eyes widen when he hears the command, and barely has enough time to turn around when Yanmega is right by his side—that’s right, it has the damned Speed Boost ability—and it slashes hard with its claws, drawing blood across Jongup’s stomach.

Serperior slaps one of Jongup’s Pokeballs across the catch and Helioptile bursts from it. Surprised by the turn of events, Jongup narrows his eyes.

“Parabolic Charge!”

Yanmega is shocked with the discharge of electricity, enough to take it out. Helioptile clings to Jongup’s shoulders as he hangs on to Serperior’s lean body, the Pokemon swinging them to another, shorter building.

He has to get this wound tended to. The blood is already leaking out between his fingers. Damn, it hurt.

He would heal quickly if Himchan is with him, but he’s not, so…

He sees a familiar silhouette doing battle with a Feral Muk on the ground.

Jongup gapes.

*

They’ve been sitting in this accursed place for close to two hours now. Youngjae has stopped trying to clear the rubble, opting to sit down beside Daehyun, pressing himself against Daehyun’s side.

Arceus, it’s cold…

Daehyun blows on his hands.

They’ve both returned their Pokemon to their balls to escape the freezing conditions. The red gem is still embedded in the pedestal, remained untouched after Youngjae had placed it back. There has not been any sign of this supposed messenger of the sun either.

The same thought keeps running through Daehyun’s mind. The messenger is possibly the red gem, since it’s red and all. And they probably failed the test and this is the consequence. Perhaps they’d end up like that explorer, buried under piles of rubble and most importantly, dead.

Daehyun shivers. He wants to go home.

“We’ll get out. Definitely,” Youngjae says, almost sensing his desperation. “We’ve just got to figure out how.”

Figure out how. Sounds like a joke.

“Messenger of the sun,” Youngjae’s breath comes out in puffs of white. “If the gem really is the messenger, then it must be trying to tell us something. You know, a messenger has to have a message, right? Why don’t we try looking at it one more time?”

Daehyun nods, and gingerly picks himself up from his position on the ground, flinching when he can feel the cold nip at his skin. He hugs himself, trying to conserve as much heat as possible as both he and Youngjae make their way over to the pedestal.

Youngjae picks up the gem again, this time no longer triggering any ancient defense mechanisms. Daehyun releases Monferno, the Pokemon’s tail fire lighting up their surroundings. Monferno shivers, and Daehyun hugs onto it, trying to keep it as warm as possible.

Nothing, no matter how many times Youngjae turns the gem around. Defeated, Youngjae places the red gem back on the pedestal.

“No, this isnt’ the end,” Youngjae says, shaking his head. “There’s nothing on the gem. Then that means that this gem isn’t the messenger of the sun. That means that there is another messenger out there.”

Daehyun looks around. This piece of revelation gives him a little hope. Other than the blank walls that keep them prisoner, the room is empty.

But what if the walls aren’t actually blank?

Monferno’s tail lights up the room, along with Braixen’s fire. They split up and search the walls, searching for any sign of design, writing, inscriptions, symbols.

“Holy Tapu!” Youngjae motions Daehyun over, who complies, jogging to retain whatever warmth he has left. “Look at this!”

Daehyun isn’t sure how they missed it. There appears what seems to be drawings, the red faded to pink. No, not just drawings. The exact same inscriptions as the ones on the outside, which can most likely be deciphered with the notebook they found.

“Here,” Daehyun says, handing Youngjae the notebook.

Youngjae scrutinizes the notebook’s pages, then mutters, “I’m going to code something to translate this one day.”

At least there isn’t a horde of Bronzor after them this time. Youngjae stares at the inscriptions, and begins to decode them as Daehyun hangs back, Braixen sitting in his lap.

There’s nothing he can do but wait as Youngjae works the thing out one by one.

*********************************************

Pokedex entries gathered:

Bronzor

Shelgon

Unown

Dugtrio

Muk

Cameo appearances:

Furret (Zico's Pokemon)

Chatot (Zico's Pokemon)

Magnezone (Zico's Pokemon)

Venonat (woman's Pokemon)

Drampa (B-Bomb's Pokemon)

Talonflame (Chanyeol's Pokemon)

Goodra (Taeil's Pokemon)

Diglett (Dugtrio's minions)

Grimer (Muk's minions)

Yanmega (Taehyung's Pokemon)

**********************************************

Daehyun's Pokemon:

-Cottonee. Level 31. Type: Grass/Fairy. Moves learned: Giga Drain, Charm, Poison Powder, Leech Seed.
-Monferno. Level 29. Type: Fire/Fighting. Moves learned: Mach Punch, Flame Wheel, Torment, Feint.
-Bagon. Level 29. Type: Dragon. Moves learned: Crunch, Dragon Claw, Focus Energy, Headbutt
-Plusle. Level 28. Type: Electric. Moves learned: Swift, Electro Ball, Charm, Charge

Youngjae's Pokemon:

-Petilil. Level 33. Type: Grass. Moves learned: Helping Hand, Aromatherapy, Stun Spore, Giga Drain.
-Lopunny. Level 33. Type: Normal. Moves learned: Jump Kick, Agility, Return, Baton Pass.
-Braixen. Level 32. Type: Fire. Moves learned: Psybeam, Lucky Chant, Light Screen, Fire Spin.
-Cubone. Level 27. Type: Ground. Moves learned: Rage, Leer, Bone Club, False Swipe.
-Misdreavus. Level 28. Type: Ghost. Moves learned: Hex, Mean Look, Confuse Ray, Psybeam.

Jongup's Pokemon:

-Helioptile. Level 36. Type: Normal/Electric. Moves learned: Razor Wind, Parabolic Charge, Bulldoze, Thunder Wave.
-Lucario. Level 39. Type: Fighting/Steel. Moves learned: Me First, Aura Sphere, Swords Dance, Bone Rush.
-Araquanid. Level 38. Type: Water/Bug. Moves learned: Crunch, Leech Life, Bubblebeam, Aqua Ring.
-Servine. Level 34. Type: Grass. Moves learned: Leaf Blade, Growth, Leaf Tornado, Slam.
-Minun. Level 32. Type: Electric: Moves learned: Charge, Copycat, Discharge, Fake Tears.

Junhong's Pokemon:

-Clefairy. Level 32. Type: Fairy. Moves learned: Wake-Up Slap, Metronome, Minimize, Stored Power
-Weepinbell. Level 34. Type: Grass/Poison. Moves learned: Vine Whip, Sweet Scent, Knock Off, Acid.
-Meditite. Level 36. Type: Fighting/Psychic. Moves learned: Hi Jump Kick, Reversal, Psych Up, Acupressure
-Croconaw. Level 29. Type: Water. Moves learned: Ice Fang, Flail, Water Gun, Bite.
-Yamask. Level 28. Type: Ghost. Moves learned: Will-o-Wisp, Ominous Wind, Hex, Haze.

Yongguk's Pokemon:

-Rufflet. Level 32. Type: Normal/Flying. Moves learned: Hone Claws, Defog, Slash, Aerial Ace
-Houndour. Level 36. Type: Fire/Dark. Moves learned: Beat Up, Fire Fang, Howl, Faint Attack
-Ariados. Level 32. Type: Bug/Poison. Moves learned: Infestation, er Punch, Spider Web, Swords Dance
-Grovyle. Level 33. Type: Grass. Moves learned: Fury Cutter, Leaf Blade, Agility, Slam.

Himchan's Pokemon:

-Floette. Level 29. Type: Fairy. Moves learned: Fairy Wind, Razor Leaf, Grassy Terrain, Wish.
-Kirlia. Level 29. Type: Fairy/Psychic. Moves learned: Draining Kiss, Heal Pulse, Confusion, Calm Mind.
-Brionne. Level 27. Type: Water. Moves learned: Icy Wind, Sing, Disarming Voice, Bubblebeam.
-Mightyena. Level 28. Type: Dark. Moves learned: Assurance, Roar, Scary Face, Swagger.
-Fearow. Level 24. Type: Normal/Flying. Moves learned: Aerial Ace, Fury Attack, Assurance, Mirror Move.