MagiStream

its pretty good..... kinda makes me want to buy the game

I want to see the exploration to Fogbound lake. Wigglytuff is a crackup there.

[ ha ha, yeah. Wigglytuff is one of my fav. characters in that game.]

Chapter 4 - The Vision

The next morning I was awakened by the same loud voice I'd heard the morning before.

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!"

"Ugh! Good morning, Aria." Pips said after Loudred had left and our ears had stopped ringing so bad. I groaned inwardly at the thought that I'd have to endure such a wake up call every morning. I wasn't looking forward to it even as we both got up and hurried to the gathering room for the morning cheers. When everyone had left, I headed for the ladder, I figured we'd get another job, but Chatot's voice stopped us.

"Oh, you two! Still wondering around lost it seems... Well, come with me." I kept my mouth shut though I thought to remark that we very well were NOT lost in the guild. It wasn't that big, how could one possibly get lost in a place this small? I just followed Chatot with Pips, not saying a word, figuring it was best I didn't. He led us to the opposite side of the room from the other day.

"Huh? Last time we did a job it was from the board on the other side..." Pips said, confused.

"Correct! Today we'll have you do a job listed on this side." I was a little puzzled, what difference did it make what side we took?

"How is this different from the board on the other side?" Pips asked before I could.

"Take a closer look!" Chatot replied and we looked at the board, there were pictures of all sorts of Pokemon on this board.

"Oh, look, Aria! There are posters up here that show a variety of Pokemon! Wow, they all look pretty cool! Are they famous explorers? Who are these Pokemon Chatot?"

"The Pokemon posted here... are outlaws. They're all shady characters and they're wanted for committing crimes." Pips was shocked, somehow I wasn't too surprised.

"Oh no! they're outlaws?!" I kept my mouth shut, my ears were still ringing from Loudred's rude and loud awakening. I just tried to listen.

"Correct. So there are bounties on their heads. In other words, there is a cash reward if you capture one. There are so many aggressive Pokemon around these days that everyone's finding it hard to keep up with the problem."

"Wait! You're telling us to go catch these outlaws?" Pips asked in pure surprise.

"You can't be serious! That's not possible!" I was a little surprised at his outburst at Chatot, but I had to agree, there was no way we were ready to face a rough outlaw. Chatot started laughing. I wondered what was so funny.

"Just joking. The bad Pokemon come in all shades of badness! Some of those Pokemon are completely wicked through and through... but there are also bad Pokemon who are merely petty thieves. So you've got evil to naughty ... and everything in between!" Somehow I didn't feel too much better, an outlaw was an outlaw after all, but at least it meant that maybe there was someone we could catch who was on our level.

"So I'm sure we can avoid giving you a job catching a super bad Pokemon.. hee-heee! So look over these posters, then pick a Pokemon that looks weak enough for you to bring to justice!"

"Um... You say some are weak... but they're still bad Pokemon aren't they? I'm scared of dangerous Pokemon!" Pips said. I didn't blame him. No one wanted to be knocked out and the more dangerous the Pokemon the more likely that would be.

"It's all part of your training. You'll work through it, I'm sure, but I suppose you do need to be prepared to confront a tough opponent... So I'll have someone give you a tour of the facilities. Hey Bidoof! Bidoof?!" A brown, fat Pokemon came down the ladder and joined us, he was all out of breath.

"Yup, yup! ... You called?" He asked.

"Ah, Bidoof! These are the new recruits that just joined us. Take them and show them around the town."

"Yes sirree! By golly, I'll do just that! Yup yup!" Chatot then turned from him to us.

"This is Bidoof. He's one of your fellow apprentices. I want you to pay attention to what Bidoof has to say and follow his orders. Off you go!" Chatot said before leaving us with Bidoof.

"Aw, shucks, I'm overjoyed!" Bidoof said once Chatot was gone.

"Why's that?" Pips asked.

"I'm glad to have members junior to me! I'm almost overcome right now... I might just blubber with happiness! Before you all signed on, I was the most recent rookie..." He sniffed before going on.

"Well, I'd best show you around. Come with me please. First things first!' He introduced us to Croagunk, a purple Pokemon, and told us he wasn't sure exactly what Croagunk was up to with the cauldron he had. Then he pointed out the mess hall, the crew rooms and the Guildmaster's chamber; places I was sort of familiar with now that I'd been around the guild a couple of days. We followed him outside to a small well called the Watering Hole where he explained how team pokemon often waited there before going on missions. After that, he led us to the main square of Treasure Town.

"I can tell you all about it." Pips said suddenly, before Bidoof could tell us about the town and explained to me how Duskull's Bank worked, then about Electrivine's Link Shop, though he wasn't there, the Kecleon Market and lastly, Kanghaskan Storage.

"Thanks for the tour Bidoof." Pips said, once he was done talking to me. Bidoof blushed.

"Shucks, it was nothing. When you're ready to go meet me back at the guild." He then left.

"Okay, let's go. I'd like to see what items are available! Let's go to the Kecleon Market! Before we head back, a visit to Kecleon Market is a must!" Figuring he'd know better then I about that, I followed Pips to the market. When we got there, we saw two round, blue pokemon approaching the market stall. The smaller of the two had a longer tail, but both had a round ball at the end.

"Ah! Little Marill and Azurill! Welcome my young friends!" The green lizard like Pokemon behind the stall greeted them, the other, looked much like the first except that he was purple instead of green. I wondered why that was but decided not to ask.

"Hello. May I buy an apple?" Azurill asked.

"Oh, most certainly!" The green Kecleon said and handed over an apple, the young Pokemon handed over the money.

"Thank you, Misters Kecleon!"

"No, thank you, my young friends! You are to be admired!" He replied and the two left. We went over to the counter.

"You see, those delightful children are brothers." He said to us, apparently he'd noticed we were nearby and had seen the whole exchange.

"Lately their poor mother has fallen sick. So those youngsters come and do the shopping for her. It's quite remarkable. Though very young, they've stepped up and taken charge." Azurill and Marill rush back to the counter.

"Misters Kecleon!"

"Oh? What's the hurry? What makes you return in such a rush?"

"There was an extra apple!"

"We didn't pay for this many." Marill said.

"Oh, yes... That, young friends, is a gift from me and my brother. Please, share it among yourselves and do enjoy." The green Kecleon replied.

"Really?!" Marill exclaimed.

"Yay! Thank you, Mister Kecleon and Mister Kecleon!" Azurill said.

"Oh, not to worry, my young friends. Do take care on your way home." The two start off again and Azurill, bouncing after his brother, trips and drops one of the apples that rolls towards us. I pick up the apple and move over to Azurill who gets up.

"Yowch!" He then turns to me and bows.

"W-we're sorry to bother you. Thank you so much." I handed back the apple, suddenly I felt something pushing at my mind. Huh? What was that? Am I dizzy or... ? I didn't have a chance to finish as suddenly a voice pierced my mind, screaming.

"H-h-h... HELP!" I blinked in shock, I was thoroughly shaken. What was that? I'm sure I heard a shout for help... Did that shout come from you..? I looked at Azurill as I tried to figure out what I'd just heard.

"Is something the matter?" Azurill asked, but I didn't get a chance to answer.

"Hey, Azurill! What's going on? Hurry home!" Marill shouted from a ways away.

"Yup! I'm coming! Wait up!" Azurill said.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"Yup!"

"We're done with our shopping.. Now we gotta look for an item we've lost! Let's get going!" Marill said.

"Yup! I'm coming!" Azurill said and the two brothers left.

"Ha! Those little guys are cute." Pips said then looked over at me.

"Oh? What's the matter Aria?"

"Did you hear a shout for help when I gave Azurill the apple?" I asked after a moment's hesitation, wondering if it wasn't just me.

"Uh, no... I didn't hear anything like that." Pips replied and turned to the Kecleon brothers.

"Hey, Kecleon brothers. Did you hear anything strange just a moment ago?"

"No, nothing out of the ordinary." The green Kecleon said.

"I didn't hear anything odd either." The purple Kecleon replied.

"It sounds like the Kecleon brothers didn't hear anything odd either. You must have imagined it Aria." No, I'm positive that I didn't imagine it. I thought. I definitely heard it! That shout I heard... There's no mistaking it... that was Azurill's scream!

"Uh, are you day dreaming? Let's move it Aria!" I shook away my thoughts though I was certain I hadn't just imagined that. Something was going on, but what and why had I heard a scream when no one else seemed to have? I shook the thoughts away as we stored some things in Kangskhan's Storage before heading toward's Duskull's bank. When we got back to the main square, Pips spoke up.

"Oh! What's going on there?" I looked to see where he indicated. The two brothers were standing with a yellow and brown pokemon that stood up right. It had a strange nose and the bottom half was brown while the top half was yellow.

"Yaaaaaaay!" Azurill said.

"Thank you!" Marill said.

"Please, it's nothing." The other Pokemon said even as we went over to the group.

"What's going on?" Pips asked.

"Oh! Hi!" Azurill said.

"Some time ago we lost an item that's pretty important to us... We've been looking all over, but we haven't found it yet! Then Mister Drowzee came along and he says he may have seen our lost item somewhere! He even offered to help us look for it. We're so happy about this!" Marill explained.

"Yeah! That's great for you!" Pips replied. I was happy for the two as well. It was nice to see that they could find someone who would know how to help them.

"Thank you, Mr. Drowzee!" Azurill said.

"Oh, please... I'd have to have a cold heart to ignore kids in need! I can't turn a blind eye! Let's be on our way to begin our search!" Drowzee replied.

"Yup!" Marill replied.

"Yup!" Azurill said with his brother and the trio sets off, as Drowzee moves with them he bumped into me.

"Whoops! Excuse me." He said before rushing off after the two brothers. I felt the same sensation before almost immediately after. Urk.... What... what is this?!

"That Drowzee sure was a nice Pokemon, isn't he? I'm impressed. With more and more bad Pokemon around... it's hard to do good deeds." Pips said as he watched the group go. It's happening again.... another... dizzy spell. I thought and suddenly the scene around me faded before my eyes and I saw that I was on a rocky peak of some sort. Ahead was Drowzee with Azurill.

"If you keep being difficult, it will mean big trouble for you!" Drowzee said.

"H-h-h... HELP!" Azurill cried, tears in his eyes.

Just as soon as it happened it was gone and I was back in Treasure Town once more. What was that?! I wondered in sheer surprise. What had I just seen?

"It would be nice if those little guys found their item soon." Pips said then turned to me.

"Huh? What's the matter Aria? You're looking awfully grim..."

"I need to tell you something." I said and quickly explained what had happened.

"Huh?!" Pips said shocked.

"You had a dizzy spell? Then you saw Azurill being threatened by Drowzee?! So you want to go rescue Azurill right away and it's an emergency?! Well, what you describe does sound like an emergency, but.... Well, it's not like I don't trust you, Aria, but I just can't believe it! After all, Drowzee seemed to be a sincerely nice Pokemon, didn't he? I watched the three of them go off earlier... They looked like they were having a good time, didn't they? You're probably just tired, Aria. Maybe that's why you had that bad day dream." Was that it.. Just a bad day dream? But come to think of it... that Drowzee didn't seem like a bad Pokemon. I thought, wondering if maybe I was over reacting and if my partner wasn't right.

"Anyway, we're only apprentices. we can't just go do whatever we want. Sure, it's worrying, but... we have concentrate on our guild work for now. Let's get ourselves ready to explore. Then we should find Bidoof. Bidoof's suppose to be waiting for us on the guild's upper underground floor. Let's go Aria!" I nodded and we made a deposit at Duskull's Bank before returning to the guild, now all set for our first outlaw mission.

"Huh? Are you folks all set and ready for some exploring?" Bidoof asked when he saw us.

"Yup." I replied.

"Oh, yes Sirree! Reckon you all are all ready! Then let's pick ourselves a lawbreaker for you to find. Well, you've got your pick of this sorry bunch of characters."

"Let's see, which should we pick?" Pips asked, looking at the board.

"Ahem. As your mentor, how about I do the choosing?" Bidoof suggested.

"Don't choose anyone too scary!" Pips replied. I didn't think any of them looked scary, but I figured that was just me.

"Yes, sirree, I hear you! Let's see. Eenie, meenie..." I couldn't believe he was going to pick THAT way! Suddenly an alarm went off, startling the three of us and a voice called to us.

woah.... Aria has premonition? O_o

[ ha ha, not exactly wingforce... you could call it that, but it goes by a different name.]

Chapter 5 - The Outlaw

"Stand clear! Updating listings! Stand clear! Updating listings!" The ground began to shake.

"What's that? What's happening?" Pips asked.

"Oh, the data's getting updated." Bidoof replied.

"It's being updated? Yikes! Did you see that?! The panel flipped over! What's going on here!" I wondered that myself, though I wasn't half as curious as to how the updating worked as my partner seemed to be. The ground finally stopped shaking and the alarm shut off.

"The Outlaw Notice Board and the Job Bulletin Board are set up on revolving panels. While the panel is flipped over a Pokemon named Dugtrio swaps out the old jobs with new ones.

"Dugtrio?"

"Updating data is Dugtrio's duty. He tunnels his way to our guild. Then he flips the panel and updates the data. This duty doesn't get noticed much, but it's very important. Yup yup! That's why Dugtrio takes such great pride in the duty he does!"

"Oh, is that so?" Pips asked and the alarm went off again and a voice called out to us.

"Update completed! Stand clear! Update completed! Stand Clear!"

"Oh, looks like he's done." Pips said and the ground shook again and the panel flipped back then the shaking stopped once more.

"Yes sirree! The data is updated. The list of outlaws has been refreshed, so let's pick one." Bidoof said, but Pips said nothing. I looked towards my partner, he was shaking like a leaf in a breeze.

"Huh? What's ailing you? Why are you shivering all of a sudden? It's not cold here, after all." Bidoof said, confused.

"L-l-look at this, Aria! At the top!" I glanced at the board and shock hit me when I saw it even as Pips went on.

"On the left! It's Drowzee! H-he's a wanted criminal! We have to get moving! Azurill will be in danger!" We ran out of the guild only to see Marill was waiting for us.

"Look! There's Marill!" We ran to meet Marill.

"Marill, what's the matter? Where are Azurill and Drowzee?" Pips asked.

"Yes... about them... After we left, we went looking for our lost item together but I wound up all alone when Mr. Drowzee went somewhere with Azurill. I called and called but they didn't come back. I got scared.

"So, which way did they go?!" Pips asked.

"Th-that way!" Marill said and pointed towards the way the two had gone, showing us the way. We rushed in the direction. I hoped that we got there in time. At the base of what looked like a mountain, Pips asked Marill.

"You think Drowzee and Azurill went in this direction?"

"Yes." Pips then turned to me suddenly.

"Oh! The Drowzee and Azurill you saw in your dream. You were saying you saw them in a mountainous place, right?" I nodded.

"I get the feeling that they're up ahead here. Let's get going Aria!" I nodded again and we raced off into the dungeon. We just had to get there in time. I didn't think of anything else as we battled our way to the final floor in time to hear Drowzee's threat to Azurill just as I had heard in my dream. It was a lot like deja vu, but I didn't comment. I was focused on helping out Azurill.

"Stop right there! We won't let you do that! Drowzee, you bully!" Pips shouted as we stopped a couple feet away. I was ready to fight if need be.

"H-how did you find this place?!" Drowzee asked, surprised to see us.

"We're Team Styxz! An exploration team! No criminal can escape us!" Pips said with more bravado then was truth. I had to admire my partner's sudden courage as my tails lashed. I was just as angry with Drowzee for his trick on the brothers as my partner.

"An exploration team?! You came here to apprehend.... Huh? Are you trembling? A-ha! I've figured it out!" So had I... Pips' earlier bravado was being taken over by his fear. This wasn't good.

"You say you're on an exploration team, but you're total rookies!"

"Urk!" Pips said, I could see he was trying not to let his fear get the better of him.

"Heh. That's right, I'm a wanted Pokemon with a bounty on my head, but can you two do the job? Can you confront this outlaw and bring him to justice?" I wondered that myself, but pushed the doubt aside. We had to try!

"Urk!" Pips said then suddenly his anger seemed to overcome his fear.

"Y-yes. We can! Yes, we can! We'd never lose to a bad guy like you!"

"Ha ha ha! I've been chased by all sorts of exploration teams in my day but never a sorrier-looking bunch then you two!" I felt my anger boil at the comment. Sure we were just rookies, but that didn't mean we were sorry looking!

"Urk!" Pips muttered in reply. I hoped that my partner's courage held out because it looked like we were in for a fight.

"This should be a laugh. Let's see if you can take me down. Show me what you've got!" You're gonna regret your words! I thought as I launched myself into battle. It was two against one, not good odds for the overconfident Drowzee who, after a few minutes of facing my fire and Pip's water, collapsed where he was. He'd underestimated us and had paid the price. My anger having been satisfied by the battle's victory, the two of us went over to Azurill.

"We came to rescue you. Are you all right? You're not hurt, are you?" Pips asked.

"I'm okay." Azurill replied.

"Great! What's a relief! Your big brother is waiting. Let's go home!" Pips said happily.

"Okay." Azurill said and we headed back to the entrance, Pips and I shoving the beat up Drowzee ahead of us. The outlaw wisely kept his mouth shut as we headed back to the entrance where we found three other pokemon waiting for us along with Marill. Two looked like giant balls with magnets on each side while the other I wasn't sure exactly what I could compare it to. It was the larger one of the three that spoke after the two smaller ones moved to either side of Drowzee.

"Zzzzt! I am Magnezone, the primary officer in this region! Zzzzt! Thanks to you we have been able to arrest a wanted outlaw! Zzzzt! We owe you a great thanks for your cooperation! Zzzzt! We will send the reward to your guild. Thank you again! Zzzzt!" Magnezone then turned to Drowzee.

"Zzzzt! Now come with us! Zzzzt!"

"Awww..." It was all Drowzee had to say before he was led away with Magnezone leading the way as we watched the group leave.

"Azurill!" Marill said once the group was gone.

"Marill!" Azurill ran over to Marill.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaah! Marill! It was so scary!"

"You okay, Azurill? Are you hurt?"

"He's fine. The little guy hasn't been harmed in any way." Pips replied.

"Really? That's a relief! OH, Azurill... Azurill..." Marill said. It was a happy sight to see the two brothers reunited again and safe.

"I'm glad you kids are happy!" Pips said with a smile. So was I, though I didn't say anything.

"You did this all for us, Pips and Aria. We won't forget what you did for us. Thank you so much." Marill said with a bow.

"Come on, Azurill. You too."

"Yup... Thank you very much!" Azurill said with a bow.

"Thank you for rescuing me!"

"Really... thank you!" Marill said and I just smiled. Pips and then headed back to the guild after seeing the two brothers off. When we got back to the guild we saw Chatot was waiting for us near the Outlaw Notice Board.

"I've gotten the bounty from Officer Magnezone for the captured outlaw! Well done you two! Here's your share for the job. It's yours to keep!" Chatot handed over 300 to us.

"What?! this is all we get?! After all that hard work..." Pips said, I couldn't blame him. I wasn't too happy about that myself.

"But of course! It's all part of the training! and we expect just as much effort tomorrow!" Chatot replied, then chuckling, he left.

"Urf... I'd be happy if our share of the reward was just a little bigger, but that's all right. We managed to rescue Azurill and it's all thanks to you Aria! Because you had that dream... We learned about Azurill's trouble in advance. " It's true! I can't explain it, but... that first shout I heard from Azurill... and that dream I had... both of these events.. they took place in the future! Why was I able to see something like that? What was that dream about? I wondered. How was it that I was able to see something from the future anyway? As if it wasn't strange enough that I didn't have a clue who I was, now this! A growling noise interrupted my thoughts.

"Oh! My stomach growled!" Pips said then, as if affirming that we were hungry, so did mine.

"Ha ha ha! Your stomach growled too Aria! We must have worked up a big appetite! We were so focused on rescuing Azurill that we didn't notice at all!" Our stomachs growled again.

"Now I'm even hungrier! Come on, let's go get dinner, Aria!" We headed for mess hall to eat. Later that night a storm rolled in. Rain was accompanied by lightening and thunder. Pips watched the storm at the window and jumped, shocked by the sudden flash of lightening and the thunder that followed.

"Wow, that lightening's intense! It looks like it's really stormy tonight. Hold on! You know the night before we met Aria? It was storming that night. I found you out cold on the beach the day after that stormy night. Well, do you remember anything about being out cold on the beach? Can you remember anything at all?" I thought for a moment. I wonder... Hmmm... There was a storm, but how did I end up unconscious there? I thought and tried to remember, but nothing came.

"No, I can't remember a thing." I replied after a moment.

"I guess it won't be that easy, but that's all right. Just try remembering a little at a time. We have to get up early again tomorrow. Let's get some sleep." We lay down, but a few minutes later Pips spoke again.

"Listen Aria. Are you still awake Aria? I've been thinking it over since it happened. That strange dream you had. Maybe it has to do with you personally. Huh? Me personally?

"That's just the feeling I get. I sure don't know any other Vulpix that dreams about the future and I've never heard of a human suddenly turning into a Pokemon either. That's why I think the two events are connected. I can't help feeling that way." The key to unlocking my memory... was it in that dream? Even if that were true how does it relate to anything else?

"I have no way of knowing what you were like as a human Aria, but I think you must have been a good person." Pips went on.

"After all, Aria, it was your dream that helped us catch that bad Pokemon." Yeah... that reminds me of what Chatot said. That the growing number of bad Pokemon has been caused by time going out of whack. I wonder what my role in all of this is... or was.

"You know time is getting messed up, bit by bit, all over the world. No one seems to know why, but everyone believe that the Time Gears are involved."

"Huh? Time Gears?" I muttered, wondering what he meant.

"They say Time Gears are hidden in secret places around the world. Like in a forest or a lake in an underground cavern. I've even heard that there is a hidden altar inside a volcano. At the center of such places is what's known as a Time Gear. Time Gears serves a very important function. Each one protects time and keeps time flowing properly in its region, but... what happens if a region loses it's Time Gear? I don't really know the answer to that question, but my guess is that if a Time Gear is removed from a region... the flow of time in that region will probably stop too. That's why everyone makes sure never to disturb the Time Gears. Everyone has long been certain that some kind of disaster would strike. So everyone stays away from the Time gears and doesn't tamper with them. Even the most hardened criminal Pokemon know to avoid messing with them." The was the last thing I remember hearing my partner say as I soon fell asleep. The following morning we were awakened, as usual, by Loudred's voice. When our ears had stopped ringing we went to the main hall for our morning cheers.

"Ah, you two. Let me give you your assignment for today. Look up jobs on the Job Bulletin Board and Outlaw Notice Board. Do the listed jobs, that will do for today! Understood? No shirking your work, okay? Well? If you understand get on with it!" Chatot said and Pips and I went up the ladder to pick out some jobs. We found four for a dungeon we'd visited before and headed out. We had little trouble with the missions and we even leveled up a couple of times as we fought our way from floor to floor. We were exhausted after dinner that night and fell asleep instantly.

[A/N: I know it's short, but some of my chapters will be that way just due to the way the storyline plays out]


Chapter 6 - Sentry Duty

The following morning went as the morning of the day before. Loudred’s voice jolted us awake and we joined the others for the morning announcements, nothing special was said though or that concerned me or Pips; just assignments for a couple of the other members. Once the others had dispersed after the guild cheer Chatot hopped over to us.

“Ah, you two. Le me give you your assignment for today. Look lup jobs on the Job Bulletin Board and the Outlaw Notice Board. Do the listed jobs. That will do for today! Understood? No shirking your work ok? Well? If you understand, get on with it!” Chatot sure is bossy... Pips and I picked a few missions that were in the same area and went off to do them. I figured we’d leave the outlaw board alone for a little while. Pips and I both had quite enough facing up to Drowzee. I hadn't been scared, but I wasn’t eager to chase after law breakers either and I know poor Pips had been scared pretty bad during that mission though he’d gotten past it and had fought against Drowzee by my side. I shook away the thoughts as we finished the mission and ate supper with the others before going to bed. I was no closer to finding anything out about myself, but I wasn’t worried. After all, I had a lot of time to figure it out didn’t I? Thinking that, however, bothered me. I wasn’t sure why, but fell asleep thinking that there was something I just needed to remember and that time was not on my side....

The next morning went the same as the day before, but after the morning chant it was Loudred who approached us instead of Chatot.

“HEY, you two! We need your help with something today!” I flicked my ears back just a little, Loudred really was a lot louder than he needed to be... We followed him over to a hole where Diglett was waiting.

“Diglett, I brought them!”

“Thank you, Loudred.”

“You two are doing sentry duty today!” Loudred announced suddenly.

“Sorry. I’m usually the one to do sentry duty. But today my dad gave me his duty of updating the boards. That’s why I can’t man my post. It would be great if someone could take over my sentry duty for today. And that’s why you’re here. Please do a good job for me. Bye!” Diglett then disappeared into his hole and was gone.

“And that’s THAT.” Loudred said, just as if we’d volunteered. Oh dear, well I guess we’re stuck with it today... I thought, withholding a sigh.

“Hugh?! I didn’t follow that at all! Why are we involved in this?” Pip asked. We both soon wish he hadn't.

“Shut your YAP! NO MORE BELLYACHING! GO DO YOUR DUTY!” Loudred yelled in annoyance.

“Ow... My head is pounding...” Pips moaned, I cringed, my ears flat against my head but I still had a headache despite it.

“What are we supposed to do?” Pips asked once our heads had stopped beating like drums, though my poor ears still ached.

“Climb down this hole and stand guard. You’re on sentry duty!” Loudred replied.

“Sentry duty?” I wished Pips would quit asking questions like that, I didn’t think my poor ears could take much more of Loudred’s loud voice, but the other pokemon spoke in a normal tone when he answered, fortunately.

“You heard right. Sentry duty. We can’t have suspicious characters coming into the guild. So we station a sentry below the guild entrance to evaluation Pokemon visitors. When you first came, you had your footprint evaluated, right?”

“My footprint? What do you...?” Pip began, then remembered, just as I remembered the first day we’d come. “Oh, now I remember! There was that weird hole in front of the gate... I stood on the grating, then someone shouted up at me. It was startling! OK, you want us to climb down this hole. And then?”

“The tunnel down there leads to the sentry post. Diglett burrows through it and pops out underneath the sentry post. From the sentry post, Diglett inspects the footprints of visitors, identifies them, then informs me. Then I decide if the Pokemon is suspicious or not and open the gate if he passes muster. So we serve as the guild’s gatekeepers. That’s the gist of it. Look, all you two have to do is inspect the footprints of visitors, then tell me what pokemon they are. All right? Understood?”

“Yes.” I replied, this should be a fairly easy job, but as I thought about it realized it might not be so easy. I mean, I knew Pokemon, but did I know them well enough to identify them just by their feet?

“Good! Then let’s get to WORK! Buck up and do a GOOD job!” He left and Pips and I went down the ladder that led to the tunnel.

“Ack! It’s pitch black in here, Aria. We’ll have to feel our way...” A few minutes of walking down the tunnel ahead of me, Pips spoke up again.

“Well, we should be getting close tot he sentry post... Oh! There! I see light Aria!” Finally. We found ourselves beneath the grate. It was definately different look up through the grate than it was looking down.

“HOW’S IT GOING?! Have you taken postion at the sentry post?!” Loudred shouted at us.

“Yes! We’re in position!” Pips shouted back.

“GOOD! Pokemon visitors will step onto the grill above the sentry post! Identify them by footprint, then inform me! Get that?!”

“Yes! Understood!” Pips called back.

“GOOD! Let’s get started!” So between me and Pips, who called out to Loudred names of various Pokemon after we’d collaborated to identify the footprints we saw. Later that day, when it began to get dark, Loudred called us back and we made our way back out of the tunnel. Chatot was waiting for us with Loudred.

“You’ve worked an honest day you two!” He said to us when we emerged. “Let me revier your sentry-duty performance.” He then spoke quietly with Loudred before turning to us.

“Well well! Your results were completely perfect! You identified every visitor correctly!” I was absolutely relieved, I had a feeling Pips was too. It had turned out to be harder than I’d first thought.

“Excellent!” Loudred said with a grin.

“We did it!” Pips hopped up and down with excitement, I just smiled.

“We’ll reward your effort! Generously, I might add! You all deserve an especially large reward!” Chatot said happily and handed over 500 poke, a Joy Seed, Ginseng, and a Life Seed.

“So many rewards! Can you believe it?” The both of us yammered happily, I couldn’t help but be caught up in Pip’s excitement. This was more than we got from our usual jobs too!

“Keep up the good work!” Chatot said. Later that night, after dinner, when Pips and I were back in our room.

“We should get some sleep too. Let’s make tomorrow another good day, Aria!” I nodded in agreement. “OK, good night.” We lay down to sleep. The next morning was just like every morning, Loudred woke us up with his loud voice and we went about the day as usual. Picking jobs to do and heading out to do missions. The day that followed after, though, wasn’t exactly the same however once we all stood for morning announcements. Today, Chatot seemed to have more to say than usual.

Chapter 7 - The Waterfall

“Er, ahem. Everyone listen up. I have an important announcement to make. Far to the northeast, then further into its outer most reaches there lies a place named Treeshroud Forest. In Treeshroud Forest time has apparently stopped.”

“Huh?!” Diglett asked, puzzled.

“Eek! What did you say?!” Sunflora exclaimed.

“You’re saying time stopped?! Hey, hey, hey!” Corphish pipped up.

“Yes, that’s correct... Time has come to a standstill in Treeshroud Forest... The wind has stopped. The clouds are motionless... Dewdrops on leaves won’t fall... They just hang there, suspended. In Treeshroud Forest, time itself has truly stopped.

“T-time has stopped?!” Dugtrio stammered.

“But... How could something this awful happen? It’s unthinkable!” Sunflora said. I was wondering that myself, but then again, who was I to say? I didn’t even know who I was.

“Yes, the unthinkable has happened. Why has time stopped in Treeshroud Forest? Well, it’s because Treeshroud’s Time Gear was... stolen!” Chatot replied, answering my question, partly. Time Gears again... Pips spoke of them before....

“Huh?!” Bidoof exclaimed.

“The Time Gear was stolen?!” Dugtrio nearly yelled in surprise.

“That’s what made time stop! Hey, hey, hey!” Corphish said suddenly.

“I heard it was possible! But now it’s really happened.” The usually silent Chimecho spoke up.

“I don’t get it though! Why would ANYONE take a Time Gear?!” Loudred exclaimed angrily.

“Quiet everyone! Officer Magnezone has already started an investigation. It’s hard to believe that anyone would dare steal a Time Gear. But if one Time Gear can be stolen, the others may also be in danger. The officer asked to be notified immediately if we notice any suspicious characters. So keep that in mind. Let us know if you notice anything. That is all. All right everyone! Here’s to another day of work!”

“HOORAY!” We all shouted, though I’d no doubt not everyone was as enthusiastic as we were pretending to be. Everyone but Chatot left and as usual he approached us, I wasn’t surprised.

“Oh, you there. You two, come here. You’ve become quite good at your work. I’m impressed with your capture of Drowzee. That was very admirable! So! You will finally be assigned a mission worthy of a proper exploration team.”

“R-Really?! Hooray!” Pips said happily, I could tell he was definitely looking forward to it.

“Let me see your Wonder Map.” I handed it over to him and he pointed on the map.

“Treasure Town is here and over here is where we would like you to investigate. See? There is a waterfall flowing here. By all appearances, it’s just an ordinary waterfall. But we’ve received intelligence that the waterfall may conceal a secret. And that’s where you come in. We want you to investigate the waterfall and determine what’s there. That’s all. Do you understand what this mission entails?” We nodded. “Good! All right, I’ll leave all to thoroughly investigate the waterfall!” Pips began to tremble.

“Huh? What’s wrong? You’re shivering.” I looked at Pips, sure enough he was... and there were tears in his eyes. I wondered suddenly, was this excitement or was he scared?

“A-are you all right?” Chatot asked in shock.

“Yes. I”m OK. It’s just the anticipation that’s making me nervous. This will be the first time we get to do a real job as an exploration team. I’m feeling a little worked up....” He stopped shaking after a moment and turned to me. “Oh, I feel like I’m going to burst from excitement! Let’s do our best, Aria!” I nodded, relieved that I had been right, it was just the excitement that was getting to him. He was definitely an emotional one, but that didn’t bother me and we set off to get ready for our exploration. As we walked out of the guild, I looked at our list of jobs that we’d taken from the job board the day before.

“Pips... I know you’re eager to go on our first exploration, but I’m not sure we have enough supplies and it’s just the two of us... I mean, we don’t have anyone else to help us out if we run into trouble. I think it might be a good idea if we did a few other jobs first before we go off on this exploration.”

“Huh? Well... I guess I can understand. Couldn’t we just buy supplies from Kecelon Market though?” I shook my head.

“We don’t have enough funds yet. I mean, we’ve been saving up I know, but it’s not enough yet.”

“That’s disappointing, but I guess it wouldn’t do to go on the exploration without being prepared. Where should we go then?”

“I have a few jobs at Drenched Bluff. We’ll start there.”

“All right, let’s go then!” Drenched Bluff lived up to its name. It was a cave that was full of pools of water and all the rocks were wet. Pips was in his element, but me... It was annoying. How I managed to keep from getting soaked with every step was a mystery to me as we navigated through the dungeon. It was as I turned the corner in a hallway that I came face to face with a Shellos. I was use to seeing this pokemon. This one was pink and of course, like all other pokemon, it wasn’t just going to let me pass. It lunged at me, but missed. I slammed into it, sending the pkmn sprawling.

“You’re tough.... can I join you?” I blinked. This pokemon wanted to join us?

“Sure, what’s your name?” I asked.

“Shero.” Pips smiled at Shero as he got back up.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Pips and this is Aria.”

“Like wise. So, where are we going?” I pulled out the notes I’d taken from the job board and showed him the levels we needed to get to and the items we had to find.

“Geez, it’s like a scavenger hunt. Fun, fun! Let’s get going!” I nodded and the three of us went off, fighting our way to the next floor. I was near the stairs that would lead to the next level when an Anorith blocked my path.

“This is my room!” She said grumpily.

“Well, if you’ll move we’ll be out of here.”

“Oh no... you’re not going no where!” She lunged at me, I stumbled back from the blow, but it hadn't hurt too much. I slammed into the pokemon, sending her flying into the wall on the other side of the stairs.

“Ouch....” She flipped herself back over. “You’re a rough one.... I like that. Can I go with you?” I blinked. This was really an odd way, in my mind, to make friends, but I had to admit that it couldn’t be that bad and I smiled.

“The more the merrier! Welcome to Team Styx, what’s your name?” Pips said.

“Anora.”

“Nice to meet you Anora. I’m Aria, this is Pips and Shero. We’re on our way to the lower floors to gather some items.”

“Lead the way.” Anora said and followed us to the next floor. Two floors later, wandering around, trying to find the stairs to the next floor, I almost bumped into a Chingling. I slammed into her without hesitation, the little bell pokemon fell head over heels, crying out a little in surprise. I’d gotten use to fighting every pokemon I saw in these dungeons now. Its cry sounded a lot like a bell, at least that’s what I thought. She stood up and brushed herself off.

“Hey... Are you an exploration team?”

“We are.” I said.

“Really?! Can I come with you?” I nodded.

“Great! My name’s Cinla!”

“I’m Aria, this is Pips, Anora, and Shero.”

“Nice to meet you!” The little bell pokemon smiled and we were on our way again. We cleared our missions a couple floors later and went back to the guild for some food and a good night’s sleep. We trained for several more days in other dungeons and gathered supplies. When we were finally ready, nearly a week later, we had three more members to our group, but as per guild regulation, we really could only have two others accompany us in missions. Anora and Cinla had been the members I’d chosen to train with us for our exploration. We met just outside the cafe on the day of our exploration.

“Today we head for Waterfall Cave. This is our first exploration as a team. Let’s do our best.” I said and got nods from the others before we headed out. When we reached the waterfall, we were astounded. It was massive and it was really roaring! Pips and I stood near the edge with the other two behind us.

“So this is the waterfall that supposedly has a secret.... “ Pips moved to get closer, but the force of air from the water knocked him back.

“Yow! That water’s coming down hard. Try getting close to the waterfall, Aria.” I moved closer. It’s true... This is incredible... I can barely stay standing near this deluge! I tried to get closer only to be knocked back by the air just as Pips had been.

“See? It’s intense. If you were to fall under this waterfall, you’d probably be battered. I didn’t think it would be pouring down this powerfully!”

“Me either.” I admitted.

“Where should we even start looking?” I wasn’t sure. Hmm... something seems familiar. It’s that dizziness I felt before. Suddenly I saw it!

A figure leapt through the waterfall during a dark evening. It was a pokemon’s shape, the pokemon rolled as it landed on a ledge behind the waterfall.I blinked as the vision disappeared. It happened again! I saw something... but what did I see exactly... ?

“Huh? What’s the matter, Aria?” Pips asked and I looked at him. I described to him the vision I’d just had.

“What?! You had another vision? This time you saw a lone pokemon leap into this waterfall?! And not only that... there’s a hidden cave behind the waterfall?!” I nodded. “Hmmm. but it looks like that water is coming down really heavily. Imagine if there was actually a solid cliff wall behind that waterfall! Ouch! If we tried to jump through... We’d be pounded badly!” That was true, if I was wrong... if what I’d thought I’d saw wasn’t true. Why would I see it though if it wasn’t true? I couldn’t doubt that it was.

“So Aria.... What do you think? IS there really something behind this waterfall? Are you really convinced that there is a cave there?” I nod again. “Well.... OK. I’m putting my faith in you, Aria! Yes! I totally believe in you.” We stepped back, Cinla and Anora had looked doubtful as well, but decided that if Pips trusted me, that they would too. We all stepped back to get a running start.

“Yikes! OK, I gotta be brave now! If I get scared and fail to leap through at full speed... I’ll be smooshed no mater what I do!” Pips was talking to himself again. I waited patiently as he continued to mutter to himself. “If I’m doing it, I have to do it without hesitating. Be brave... Be the bravest ever!” He looked at me then. “Ready! Let’s go Aria! Three... Two.... One... Now!” We ran and leapt through the waterfall, tumbling through the water and onto a ledge just behind it.

“Yowowowowow...” Pips muttered as he slowly got up.

“Wow what a trip.” Cinla said, trying to be cheerful as she got up followed by me and Anora.

“W-what is this?! Yes! It is a cave! You were right after all Aria!” Pips said, excited. “Let’s go explore this cave!” I nodded and the four of us ventured into the cave. It was a long walk, but soon we came to a room where a path of gems seemed to be a shallow island, pools of water on both sides of it.

“Wow! Look at that, Aria! Look at all the gems sparkling!” It was a pretty sight to behold, it was like a rainbow of colors with all the gems about. “Whoa, look over there! It’s a gigantic gem!” Sure enough, there it was, a pink gem that looked like it was at least as big as Pips was! He jumped up and down in his excitement. “Wow! I’ve never seen a gem this huge! This is an incredible treasure! Everyone will be amazed if we take this back.” We went over to it to get a closer look, yup... it was about as tall as Pips was, which made me wonder how we were gonna get the thing back to the guild. He tugged on it.

“Urge! Urge! Ugh.” It didn’t move even an inch no matter how hard he tugged. “Nope, it’s nod budging... It’s really stuck tight. Can you give it a try, Aria?” Well, I could try.... I went over to the gem and took a hold, I pulled as hard as I could. I pulled and I pulled and I pulled, but I wasn’t having any more luck than Pips had. Whoa! This is really stuck! It won’t budge!

“Nope, it’s no good.” I said, unable to pull anymore.

“So you couldn’t move it either... but we can’t just give up. If we try hard enough, we’ll probably get some kind of result! I’m going to give it another go!” I moved aside and Pips tried again. I just watched. Hmmm... it’s not buding one bit... I felt a little dizzy. Huh? The feeling slowly got worse and worse. Oh no... It’s happening again... It’s...

The pokemon from before stood before the gem. Pushed against it, it went “click” then there was a rumble and a wave of water swept the pokemon away. The vision ended suddenly just as it had began.

“Urge! Urrrrrrgh! It’s not good. I can’t pull it out.” Pips stopped pulling, instead he leaned against it, pushing it. There was a resounding click.

“Aaack! That’s...” I didn’t have time to warn anyone as suddenly the ground began to shake and there was a terrible rumbling. I knew what was coming next even as Pips called out.

“Huh? What’s going on?” Then he saw the water rushing towards us. “Waah! It’s a flood!” We try to run, only to be swept up. “Waaaah!” Pips cried out as we were swept by the fast moving current. The next thing I knew we were flying through the air on the water that had suddenly became warm and we hit a pool of water with a splash! Shaking the water out of our eyes, we all looked around to see that there were other pokemon about in the water as well. A torkoal was standing on the edge of the spring.

“Huh? What? where are we?” Pips asked as he looked around.

“Hi, hi! Are you two okay?” A Teddiursa asked. “You plopped down from nowhere! Oh, you startled everyone!” Everyone? I looked around and saw that besides Teddiursa, there was also an Ursaring and Vigorish in the water along with a Mankey and Primeape.

“Where are we?” Pips asked again. This time it was the Torkoal who spoke.

“This is the Hot Spring.”

“H-hot Spring?!” Pips stuttered in surprise. A hot spring? Well that explains the warm water... I thought.

“Indeed! This is the Hot Spring. The Hot Spring works wonders on tired muscles and creaky joints. Many pokemon visit here. Tell me, youngster, have you a map?”

“Map? Oh, if you mean our Wonder Map, yes, we have one.” I could have smacked myself. What other map could the old pokemon have meant?

“Unfold it for me.” The old pokemon said and Pips took the map out of the bag that hung around my neck. and unfolded the map in front of him.

“There. We are here. This in the Hot Spring’s location.” The old pokemon said, pointing it out.

“Oh. I see. The waterfall is here, so... Hey! Check this out , Aria!” He said in sudden surprise. “The waterfall carried us all the way over here.” The Torkoal blinked in surprise.

“My goodness! It was the water that carried you all this way? What a long journey that must have been! Let the Hot Spring wash away your fatigue before you make your way home.”

“Good idea. We’ll do that. Thanks everyone!” We soaked in the water for a while before starting back, Chatot was waiting for us upon our return. We told him about the waterfall’s hidden secret, the huge gem, and the hot spring.

Chapter 8 - Guild Exploration

“Hmmm. Let me see if I got all this straight. Behind the waterfall, there is a cave... In the deepest part of the cave there is a gigantic gem... When you pushed on the gem, it triggered a trap of some kind... And surprisingly, you were flushed off to the distant hot spring? Is that the gist of your report?”

“Yes. It’s really disappointing that we couldn’t bring the gem back...” Chatot flapped his wings excitedly.

“No, no, no! Emphatically, no! This is a major discovery!”

“R-really?!” Pips asked excitedly, but I wasn’t so sure about that.

“Undoubtedly! After all, the presence of the cave behind the waterfall... No one knew about that before now!”

“Oh, I see! We made a discovery!” I frowned thoughtfully. When I had those dizzy spells... The shadow of that Pokemon I saw... That shape... I’ve seen that shape before... That shape... There’s no mistaking it! That was... Wigglytuff!

“Your waterfall discovery was just amazing! The Guildmaster must be told!” He looks at me and so did Pips.

“What? What’s wrong Aria?”

“I don’t think we’re the first ones to discover this. I think.... Wigglytuff was there first.” Pips stared at me in shock.

“Huh? You’re saying Wigglytuff may have been at that waterfall before?!” Chatot was staring at me in surprise.

“No, no, no! Emphatically no! That’s inconceivable! If that were so, the Guildmaster wouldn’t have ordered you to investigate the place, right?” You’d think, but... my visions showed me Wigglytuff....

“No, I’m positive.” I say.

“Hmmm, since you insist, I will confirm it with the Guildmaster...” He turns away from us, muttering, unaware we can still hear him. “Hmm... but why would they want to spoil their own discovery! How strange! I should be use to it by now... These apprentices are yet another strange crew, aren’t they... ?

“What was that, Chatot?” Pips asked, not quite catching it. He turns back to us, surprised.

“What? Oh, nothing. Nothing at all! Anyway, I will go confirm what you told me with the Guildmaster. Please wait here.” He went into the Guildmaster’s chambers. I was certain he’d only come back confirming that my visions had been right about who I’d seen... or who I thought I’d seen anyway. He reappeared minutes later.

“So how did it go?” Pips asked.

“When I asked the Guildmaster, he mulled it over for a bit and then he said... “Oh memories! Sweet memories! YOOM.. TAH!” Then he danced around a bit. And then he said. “Yes, yes! When I think hard, maybe I did go there once!” And that’s just what the Guildmaster said. To sum pit up, it’s just as Aria suspected... He has indeed already been to Waterfall Cave.”

“Oh... OK. That’s kind of disappointing... We really thought we’d discovered a new place. I wish Wigglytuff had told us right from the start...” Me too... poor Pips, he’s so disappointed...

“The Guildmaster can be rather, uh, erratic at times... Even I can’t quite fathom what goes on in his head. Well, that’s too bad for you. Nevertheless, I shall expect your best effort tomorrow!”

“Urf!” It was all Pips could say and I didn’t blame him. Later that night, when we were in our room, Pips didn’t go to sleep right away and neither did I. Today was exhausting. I should get to sleep early... I looked at Pips who was staring out the window of our room. He sighed.

“We went through a lot today. But you know what? It was incredibly fun for me!” I smiled at that. “Sure there was that huge let down... but it was our first exploration! I thought I was going to explode from excitement and anticipation the whole time. It made me realize I made the right decision in joining an exploration team.” He pulled out the fragment he’d shown me the first day we’d met. “One day I’m sure I’ll solve the secret of my Relic Fragment. That’s the dream I have. If it ever came true I’d surely faint from sheer happiness!” We both laughed. I couldn’t help thinking as I did though. I hope your dream does come true. He put the fragment away.

“But seriously, thanks...” Huh? I wondered what he meant by that as he went on. “I can explore because of you, Aria. Yes... I’m the biggest chicken around and even I managed to work up the courage! And it was all because you were with me, Aria. Seriously, Aria, Thanks!” He said happily, it was infectious. I wasn’t sure why, but I felt happy so long as my partner was happy. “... Oh yeah! You know, I was thinking... I noticed something about your dizzy spells. You always seem to be touching something when they happen.” Come to think of it, Pip’s right! When I heard Azurill’s scream... I was touching his apple. And that other time... Drowzee bumped into me. And when we were exploring Water Fall Cave! Then I touched the water and the gem! It... it’s true. It was always after touching something! That’s when I got those dizzy spells! When I touched something, I see something, connected to it ... right?

“There’s one more thing. When we rescued Azurill, you had a vision of the future... but this time you saw Wigglytuff going into the cave, right?” I nodded. “So that means...” He trailed off, picking back up quickly as shock covered his features. “This time you saw an even that occurred in the past.”

“Th-that’s true!” I stammered a little in shock.

“In other words, Aria... If you touch something, you see its past or future. You must have that kind of special ability! This could be something totally incredible!” He said excitedly. “You could use it in lots of ways! Not just for exploring, either! The ability, could be useful for many things! It’s fantastic, Aria!”

“W-well, yes! I guess that’s true... but that doesn’t mean I always get a vision every time I touch something... It would be useful if I could have visions when I wanted, but... “ I trailed off, I never finished my thought as Chatot came into our room.

“Hey, you two! The Guildmaster wants to see you right away.” We followed him out and to the Guildmaster’s chambers.

“Guildmaster, I’ve brought you Team Styx.” Wigglytuff seemed to be staring at the wall. I wondered what he was thinking. “Guildmaster.... Guildmaster?” There didn’t seem to be any response and then suddenly he turned around.

“Hiya! Your team went through a lot today! Yes, a lot lot! But don’t worry! I’m keeping watch on your activities! I should tell you why I called you here. We’re planning to mount a full expedition soon!”

“An expedition?” Pips asked.

“Yes! The guild will go, explore some place far away! It’s much harder than exploring our nearby area. That’s why we need to prepare for the big trip properly. We carefully choose which guild members go on the expedition.” An expedition... This was what Pips had been hoping for. I wasn’t sure I was ready for such a thing yet, but I hoped Pips was chosen.

“Really?!” I could tell Pips was excited at the idea.

“Usually, we would never, ever consider rookies to be expedition members. But you two are working so very hard! That’s why we’re making a special exception this time! We decided to include you in the list of candidates for the expedition!”

“R-really?!” Pips was hopping up and down with excitement now. I could tell he wanted to go. The more excited he got the more I wished he would get his wish to go.

“Now, now! You haven’t been chosen as expedition members yet. There is still time before we set out on the expedition. If you fail to do good work before then, you cannot expect to be selected for the expedition.” Chatot said.

“I’m sure you two can do it! Try hard!” Wigglytuff said encouragingly. Pips turned to me, his eyes glowing with his excitement as if he hadn't heard Chatot.

“Yes! An expedition! Isn’t it fantastic, Aria? My heart is pounding all of a sudden! Let’s try our best and make sure we get picked for the expedition!” I nodded and we left the Guildmaster’s chambers to get some sleep. I wasn’t sure that I’d make it, but I would do everything I could to make sure that Pips did. He deserved it.

[A/N: Sorry I haven't added more, but aside from a hectic work schedule that I now have I have lost my notes... found them... lost them again... found them again... and lost them again... so until I have both my notes and time I appreciate your patience on this matter. Until then, feel free to make comments about any of the previous chapters.]

Chapter 9 - Memory


Over the next few days, Pips and I did all we could to ensure that we didn't make any mistakes that would exclude us from the coming exploration. I wasn't sure if we'd make it after our failure in Apple Woods, but that failure hadn't been entirely our fault. I didn't like to think that there was such thing as a bad pokemon, but Team Skull was as rotten as it got and hadn't drowzee, our first caught criminal, been a bad pokemon? Why were pokemon acting this way? That was just one more mystery to me. There had to be some cause, right?