The day of the battle would be in two more days. All the teams were still preparing the weaponry and discovering new weaknesses in the witch’s minions. The team was practicing with their moves against some targets to hone their skills; they need to be in good shape for the combat. After the incidents from the previous day, Alex was more calmed, but he was still thinking about what happened in the Karuka caverns. Jaina did her best to remember him that some situations cannot be controlled, that it was always the uncertainty in them; but it wasn’t enough to get rid of it.
When they were resting from the training session, Zack looked to the roots of a tree and saw a paper. With Psychic, he picked up and read what’s inside.
“Guys, look at this” Zack said to Alex and Nya who were near.
“What’s up?” Alex asked.
“Another paper like the one you found in the dessert”
“What does it say?” Nya asked.
“It says: ‘Look where the river and mountains meet. Those seeking a ruin where no light is needed should explore here. But They should be cautious of the water: it holds danger before Their first destination. Within, electricity dances; always a threat but never an opponent. Step carefully, but do not slow down. Godspeed to those who risk their lives and goodwill to those who do not’; that’s all”
“Electricity and water; we’ll be zapped if we try to touch it” Alex said.
“Perhaps; in any case, we’ll go there?” Nya asked.
“I’m not sure this time; the guilds need us here”
“Alex; we’ll go there; you need to get rid of what happened yesterday and that ruins maybe help you to focus again” Zack suggested.
“¿Seguro?”
“Completely; Peach is fine for now and you did your best to give her some light; as you said, the guilds need us, but if you’re distracted like that, not much help you can offer”
“*Sigh* okay; we’re going there”
“Do you need help to get there?” Someone asked.
The three of them looked to a Sawsbuck who was passing there.
“Yeah, who are you?” Zack asked.
“I am Liferan; I was planning to go to the same ruins as you were talking about” The Sawsbuck presented.
“We are Alex, Zack and Nya from team Shadow foxes, accompanying the tabiran expedition” Alex presented.
“You know where they exactly are?” Nya asked.
“Of course, we normally go there and leave offerings to a spirit who resides there”
“A spirit?” Alex asked.
“Correct; that means if you go there, I suggest you to leave an offering first”
“When are you planning to leave?” Zack asked.
“In one more hour; I was preparing the trip for two days, because… you know; with hooves it’s more difficult to pick some things without the mouth”
“Okay; where we meet you?” Nya asked.
“Near the entrance of the Karuka caverns”
“We’ll see you there” Zack said.
Alex grabbed his gear and Nya went to find something to offer to the spirit. She brought the false totem they made and Alex decided to erase the warning and placed one of the team badges they were carrying in it. Aside of that, they didn’t wanted to bring anything else this time. They also told to Jaina and the others they would go alone in this one.
When the hour passed, they headed to the entrance of the Karuka caverns and saw Liferan waiting with some bags attached to him.
“Ready to go?” He asked.
“Ready as we ever will” Zack said.
“Then let’s move out”
They took at least two hours to get there. On the way, Zack carried Alex through the skies from time to time as a way to relax him and enjoy the view.
“Is something wrong with your friend?” Liferan asked.
“Let’s just say; one of our missions didn’t end up really well” Nya answered.
“It involved someone?”
“Yes; that Pokémon is fine, but the situation she got in… he blames himself for that”
“It happened before?”
“Similar cases in the past, yes; there are some things you cannot ask to disappear magically”
“That’s true; in my opinion, he has his failures to the people he cares as his enemies”
“We tried to help him, but…”
“That kind of wound is something you cannot heal with external help; he has to do it by himself, facing his own demons”
Nya kept quiet for a while.
“Is that maybe the reason why you go to the temple?”
“The original idea was from Zack; he thinks Alex can recover his focus by going there”
“A little bit risky, but sometimes those who seek answers in those places, they’ll find them and help the to mature”
“I don’t know if that spirit you were talking about will be happy to see that someone is wandering in its residence”
“Mmm; if this would help; the spirit will ask you to fight between yourselves until there is one victor to grant you access to the temple’s inner sanctum, but you can also convince it to do another trial”
“A trial of the spirit”
“That could work”
They reached a shrine, about 100 meters near the temple. It simply consisted in a roof, four wood pillars, a stone base and a pedestal in the middle with some candles and a symbol; all of it surrounded by shrubbery.
“This is where we have to pay our respects?” Alex asked.
“Yes; I’ll go first” Liferan said.
He went to the shrine, picked up his offering from one of his bags and placed it in the pedestal. Then he began to pray, kneeling and lowering his head. Alex, Zack and Nya waited for at least 3 minutes. When he finished, he stood up, turned around and headed to them.
“Alright, it’s your turn” He said.
“What do we have to say? We heard you praying” Zack mentioned.
“It’s my personal pray; in your case, thank what you have and ask what you really need”
Alex, Zack and Nya looked to each other. Then, they proceeded to the shrine and placed their totem in the pedestal. As well as Liferan, they knelt and lowered their heads.
“Who start?” Nya asked.
“Me” Alex said and began his pray. “Great Spirit; I thank for have a big family; from my parents and siblings, to the friends I made in my life; for all those missions that let us grow; for have one more day of life; and for be part of this continent’s history”
“I also thank the opportunity that presented to me and Jack, to change our ways and help instead of steal; for had a great experience here in which we met a lot of people” Zack continued.
“And I thank for meting Alex; for Jaina’s care; for my family; and for being myself again” Nya finished the first part.
“We ask you for your help, especially for Alex; he had a bad experience yesterday and he needs to see things clear again” Zack said.
“And if possible, for knowledge to defeat Gilgamarsh” Nya said.
As well as Liferan, they stood up and headed to him.
“I guess you’re going now to the temple” He said.
“That’s the idea” Zack said.
“Then this is where we part ways from now; I’ll be heading up to find some herbs”
“It means you wait for us when you finished?” Alex asked.
“I don’t see why not; you can help me to get them back”
They looked to each other. “We agree” Nya said.
“Very well; good luck”
After a while, they found the entrance of the temple, with the entrance sealed tight. After looking for a few minutes, they found a lever in the wall and opened the entrance. They headed in, but they had to stop a few meters ahead, since the floor has some pools charged with electricity.
“I guess I was right” Alex said.
“Mmm; there is a path between the pools, but we have to be careful in those places where is thin” Zack observed.
“At least you have enough space to fly to the other side” Nya commented.
Slowly, Nya and Alex crossed to the other entrance following the path between the pools. For Alex it was less problematic, since being half steel type nullifies part of the electrical charge, being the one taking the lead. Once all of them crossed, the second entrance opened by itself.
“I guess it’s waiting for us” Alex said.
“Then let’s not keep it waiting” Zack said.
They reached an empty room with three doors; one at front and two at each side. For the looks of it, there was no way to open them, because they spent ten minutes looking for a mechanism.
“And now we’re lost” Zack said.
“Maybe there’s a way to open them? Just like the ruins in Ywaru Canyon” Alex suggested.
“I don’t think so; I cannot see anything” Nya said.
“Who dares to come to my temple?” A voice asked.
They turned to the door at the front and saw an energy floating with orange, black and yellow colors. Then it materialized in the form of Tapu Koko.
“I am Zack and they are Alex and Nya; are you the Great Spirit?” Zack asked.
“It is I; why did you come to this place?” The Great Spirit asked.
“Call it what you want, but… we have to be in this place”
“Is that so? Then you have to prove to me you are worthy to be here”
“What we supposed to do?” Nya asked.
“A duel against me; but as you can see, I cannot do it; so you have to fight between yourselves to prove who is the strongest; after that, I can grant you passage to this door”
“Actually, we want to do something else if you agree”
“Oh?”
“Alex, could you and Nya wait outside the room?” Zack asked.
“Why?” Alex asked confounded.
“You only have to trust me in this one”
Both of them headed to where they come from and waited at some distance from the entrance.
“Why Zack want to talk with the spirit alone?” Alex asked.
“Because he has another idea of a trial” Nya answered.
“You know in what consist?”
“No; Liferan suggest us to reason with the spirit to change its trial and I commented to Zack, but he didn’t told me anything of what we’re going to do”
Zack called them after a few minutes.
“Okay guys; the Great Spirit agreed we’re not going to fight between each other” He said.
“So, what are we’re going to do?” Alex asked.
“It’s not all of you; you two are the ones who will do the trials” The Great Spirit said.
“W-what?” Nya asked.
“This is a test of the spirit; both of you have to face your fears in the rooms on the left and right, alone” Zack continued.
“The only reasons I do this with you is because you brought an offering to me, prayed in my name and your friend explained your situation” The Great Spirit said.
“But why you don’t have to do it Zack?” Alex asked.
“Because that’s part of the agreement with the Great Spirit; both of you have a great burden in your shoulders; I can live with mine, but you… you really don’t have to” He explained.
“Your friend will wait here with me here; I warn you, the flow of time when you’re in there will be different from outside” The Great Spirit said.
“Meaning?” Nya asked.
“Few minutes in the rooms could be an entire hour here”
“Oh”
“Don’t worry about me; this is your challenge; maybe I’ll head out to find some food, but I’ll stay here as long as you need” Zack assured them.
“Thanks Zack; we should start now?” Alex asked.
“If you feel ready, you can procced” The Great Spirit said.
“We are” Alex and Nya said at the same time.
The Great Spirit raised his arms and both doors opened, showing a white light coming from them.
“I guess this is it Nya” Alex said.
“Promise me you’ll make it”
“You too”
“Remember, you can pull this up; do not let your fears trap you” Zack said.
Alex, Nya and Zack hugged each other in a compact circle. Then Nya and Alex headed to their respective doors.
“Good luck” Zack said and both of them headed to the light. Then both doors closed.
“Are you worried they’ll be hurt?” The Great Spirit asked.
“No; I worried that their own problems block them; but it’s up to them to see things clear; I have to trust them”
“Only time will show the answer”
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Nya awoke in a forest of orange leaves. For the position of the sun, she deduced it was midday and started to walk. ‘I know this place; it’s the Avadion forest, where I trained and made the oath’ Nya thought while she was passing between the trees. Guided by her memories, she headed to a clear. When she reached it, she saw six big obelisks carved with pictograms disposed in a semicircle, separated 15 meters approximately from each other; and a stone platform near two of them in the middle.
When she was heading to the platform, someone said:
“So you finally dared to come here”
When she looked to the source of the voice, she saw a Gothitelle at the top of one of the obelisks, really irritated.
“Mentor Catelyn” Nya said nervously.
“You shouldn’t have come here; you rejected your oath when you decided let that Riolu convince you to join him”
“That’s not what happened” Nya said in defense.
“Lying to you won’t do any good; our loyalty is with the entire kingdom, not with a stranger and his criminal friends”
“They’re not…”
“Quiet; you don’t even deserve to talk to me; you failed to us and it’s fitting you’ll pay for your sins”
Catelyn went down and landed softly using a spell. Nya took out her twig and prepared for the upcoming battle. As far as she knows, Catelyn is a powerful sorceress; demonstrated in some of the training sessions she had with her; she doesn’t hold back and sees any kind emotion as a distraction, an obstacle that it has to be removed. Even if Nya was able to beat her in her final test, that doesn’t mean the same thing will happen again.
“I didn’t fail to my oath; keeping that way of life only made my life worse; my friends helped me seeing that” Nya said.
“They only blinded you; feelings are nothing more than an annoyance; we cannot take sides with anyone, not even our families; if people have to die because it’s necessary, so be it; their personal problems are not our concern” Catelyn explained.
“I won’t become that monster again”
“There is where you are wrong; you have to get rid of the monster you’d become”
Nya headed towards Catelyn and attacked using Flamethrower. Catelyn blocked the fire, using Protect and making an ark with her hand, launched Shadow balls. Nya evaded the attacks and chanting a spell, she used Psyshock. Catelyn teleported to the top of the obelisk she was before and using Psychic, she grabbed Nya, raised her and crashed her to the ground.
“And this is the power of one of the best sorceress? It is obvious these friends made you weak” Catelyn said.
Nya stood up and chanting another spell quietly, she used Fire pledge and hit Catelyn.
“I’m not done yet” Nya said.
And they kept fighting, unleashing all the spells they know.
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Alex awoke in a room. When he saw clearly, it was like one of those training rooms he has been; with a big square arena in the middle surrounded by white boards, windows at the top of white walls and two sliding doors; with one in the opposite wall of the other. He was looking to the nearest door; then he turned around and saw a Lucario with a mask and armor, knelt with a katana in its sheath in front of it and its paws in its thighs.
“You finally came” The Lucario said. The voice identified it as male.
“I… I come here because there is a test I have to do” Alex said.
“There’s no test for you; you’re already failed” And he stood up, taking the katana.
“What are you talking about?” Alex asked with in low tone.
“Those dead people, the Fennekin being arrested, your failed missions; you proved you cannot protect them; the tabirans will be destroyed fighting against Gilgamarsh; there’s no hope left in this continent” The lucario said as he approaches.
“It’s not over yet”
“Try to fight and you’ll fail; to really stop the witch, you have to get rid of any kind of life he can absorb, so his power won’t increase” And he pulled out his katana.
Alex did the same with his own katanas.
“This people cannot be saved; stand aside”
“I won’t let that happen” Alex challenged.
“Then you made your choice”
Alex attacked first and the katanas clashed. Both of them pushed their blades in the direction of the opponent. Then they jumped back and continued clashing their katanas with complicated maneuvers; rolling, jumping, rotating, evading and hitting. They also used their move sets.
Alex cut in half an Aura sphere coming to him, then used Psychic to grab the Lucario and sent him to the wall. The Lucario reacted by doing a cartwheel in the air, landing with his feet in the wall and propelling in the direction to Alex. When he crossed his katanas to block any incoming attack, the Lucario used the same move as Alex and pushed him to the wall.
Alex dropped his katanas when he was sent to the wall. The Lucario landed between his weapons and him. Alex used Psychic to take back his katanas and oriented the blades to the Lucario. He evaded the attack and Alex recovered his weapons. They both clashed again.
“These are all your skills?” The Lucario asked.
“More than enough for me” Alex answered.
“I think not”
They separated again and the Lucario jumped to the other side of the arena. Alex kept himself on guard as he was panting.
“This is a pointless battle; you’re only delaying the inevitable” The Lucario said.
“I won’t fail them; they know I’ll help them; that is my way” Alex responded.
“Then why don’t you talk to her and repeat the same thing?” Looking to his right.
Alex looked in the same direction and saw a Fennekin standing in two feet and with chest armor. Alex recognized her immediately.
“P-Peach?” Alex asked.
“You failed to protect me; you lend me to that charizard and now everyone thinks I’m a witch thanks to you” She said with hate.
“B-But…”
“Be quiet! I would be better without you; but you have to come here to ruin my life; now it’s time for you to pay” And chanting a spell, she generated a magic blade and grabbed with her paws.
Now Alex was trapped in a dilemma. Fighting the masked Lucario was one thing, but a battle against Peach was a completely different thing. He thought in a sense she was right, but what worries him is that she’s more confident than before, more aggressive and better prepared. ‘Something is not right here; how she managed to get here? And how she looks more as a warrior than the Fennekin I know?’ Alex thought.
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Nya had a hard time trying to beat Catelyn. She used all her skills and spells to match the mentor’s power, hitting her sometimes, but not enough to bring her down; Catelyn was still more powerful than her and in the entire battle, she was discouraging Nya for abandon her way, making her act more rash with every sentence. Then, when Nya was exhausted, she grabbed her again using Psychic and brought her close.
“Why don’t you see it? You only make things harder on yourself” She said.
“I… I thought about it; every moment when I chose to follow Alex” Nya said with difficulty.
“So you have doubts about it; that it was worth it”
“Yeah; it was a touchy subject I don’t talk often; when I decided to join him in his journey, it was more for assuring that the kingdom will not be threaten; but as the time passes, he showed me that the power of one Pokémon couldn’t be enough, that the real power comes from the efforts of everyone”
“That doesn’t explain that you need feelings to join to others”
“It explains it, because relations of any kind are built with emotions; if not, then why we have them if you said they’re useless? Why we born with them?”
Catelyn kept quiet.
“That is what he reminded me; that’s what I believe; alone I’m not powerful, but with my family beside me, we can make it; I see it now, I see I lived with that burden for enough time”
Catelyn brought Nya closer and saw her face to face.
“No matter what you think, I’m not turning back” She closed her eyes, waiting for the punishment.
Few minutes passed and nothing happened. Nya opened her eyes and saw Catelyn smiling.
“That’s what I wanted to hear”
She moved Nya to the ground and dropped her. Then, she went down from the obelisk and landed near her. Nya looked to her confused.
“I accepted your choice when I learned about it long before you even finishes your first journey”
“Why?”
“Because that was your real path; they didn’t make you forget our traditions, they embraced them; you’re grown beyond my highest expectations”
“So… you didn’t hate me?”
“I have the feeling your real problem was your fear to face the one that taught you those things, more than that period of time you had to live; is that right?”
Nya lowered her head.
“Then this lesson will suit you; whatever you do from now on is because your mind desires; as long as those desires are to do good and respect the others, you can see them through the end”
“I will, thanks Mentor Catelyn”
“Don’t thank me, thank yourself; I guess you have to return now; you can use that path” And pointed to a mass of light.
Nya headed to the light and let herself engulfed by it.
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Alex didn’t have enough time to solve his questions, because Peach started to attack him, using Flamethrower. He evaded it, but he didn’t counterattack. She approached to him and began to swing her blade. Alex blocked the incoming blows, but he refused to respond. Suddenly she covered her paws with magical claws as she did before in the Karuka caverns. Instead of blocking with the katanas, Alex returned them to their sheaths and by stepping aside; she grabbed her paws with his and threw her to the other side. She rolled up and stood up again in two feet.
“Peach; I didn’t know that would happen; I kept quiet about what happened back there” Alex said.
“Poor excuses; it was your responsibility to anticipate those things” Peach responded.
“Well, you didn’t talked about it to begin with; and I didn’t want to press the issue, since it was a really sensible topic”
“I don’t care; you’re out and I’m trapped; I’ll never forgive you for that”
She resumed her attack, with the masked Lucario this time. Alex had to fight defensively, rather than offensively. He concentrated in only use his move set against the Lucario and evade Peach at any cost. Then by accident, an Aura sphere launched to the Lucario; were deviated and hit Peach instead, making her fall.
“PEACH!” Alex shouted and headed to her.
“What did I told you? You cannot protect anyone” The Lucario said.
Alex knelt to her and placed a paw in her shoulder. She slowly looked to him, trembling.
“You… you…” She said with a weak voice
“*Sigh* you’re right, I failed again” Alex said and lowered his head. “I cannot protect everyone forever, not even from themselves; they only think I can do is help them the best I could”
The masked Lucario approached to him with the katana unleashed. Alex felt that and closed his eyes, waiting for his end. Instead, the Lucario placed a paw on his shoulder. Alex looked back to him.
“You now know there are some things you cannot control; you cannot change everything you see wrong, but you can lift a part of the burden of those who have problems” He said.
“I guess I understand that now” Alex said.
“But it took you some time to accept it”
“Because I always thought I can do something about that; but you’re right; there’s a limit to intervene in the lives of others; I’m not a hero; I’m just a Pokémon who wants a better world”
“Then you have passed the test; now rise up”
Alex did it and when he saw again where Peach is, she was gone.
“Where is Peach?” Alex asked.
“She was an illusion, built from your memories and fears; she wasn’t even here to begin with”
That relaxed Alex a bit and made him remember this was not real.
“Before you go, you have to know this; these kinds of tests are something that appears constantly in your life; conquering one time doesn’t mean it’s over” The Lucario said.
“It’s a way to get you centered when you’re lost your way” Alex said.
“You get the idea; it also reaffirms who you are, your believes and your feelings”
“Thanks, thanks for help me”
The Lucario took of his mask and Alex saw himself. “Thank yourself, because you decided to help yourself” He opened the door, using Psychic. “I guess you have to return to the real world”
Alex only nodded without being able to say anything and headed to the light.
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Both Alex and Nya went out from the rooms they entered. Zack smiled when they went out.
“So… how it was?” Zack asked.
“It was… different” Alex answered.
“I… really don’t know what to say, really” Nya said.
“You come a long way in a short time” The Great Spirit said.
“How… how long did we been there?” Alex asked.
“An entire week”
“Wh-What!?” Nya asked worried.
“Heh; don’t worry, you’re been there for at least three hours”
“Don’t you dare to scare us like that again” Alex said.
“Anyway; you proved yourselves to me; I’ll grant you access to the inner sanctum; you earned it”
The Great Spirit opened the front door and everyone moved in. They saw a lot of artifacts, trophies and older electrical machinery.
“Wow, it’s a lot of things here” Zack said amazed.
“Mmmhhhmmm; it’s so much history in these things; it’ll take me a month if I tell you about them” The Great Spirit said.
“Well, we can see them as long as we’re here” Alex said.
“Take all the time you need”
They explored, took and inspected everything it was in the sanctum and then left it where they picked. Nya picked a saber and looked it closely. For some reason, she wanted to take it.
“Great Spirit, do you have any problem if I take this with me?” Nya asked.
“You want that saber?”
“Yes”
“Why do you want it?” Zack asked.
“Mainly it’s because there are some battles you cannot fight with magic and move sets; I guess it’s time for me to train with a proper blade”
“I don’t think we have enough time to cover the basics of sword combat before fighting Gilgamarsh” Alex pointed.
“No; but after that, we’ll have plenty of time”
“True”
“If you’re sure about it, you can have it” The Great Spirit said.
“Thanks” Nya said.
“Great Spirit; May I ask you something?” Alex asked.
“Go ahead”
“We have to fight against a big witch in two more days and… I want to know if you have any information about him and how to defeat him”
“I’m sorry to say, but I don’t have that knowledge; it’s something you have to figure it out by yourselves”
“Oh… Thanks anyway”
They explored a little more, until they checked all the objects.
“I guess we’re done” Zack said.
“Not yet; there’s one last thing for you; Alex, come to me” The Great Spirit asked.
He approached to the Great Spirit.
“Your friend picked her reward and I’ll give you one”
“What is it? Nothing here picked up my attention” Alex said.
“And what about this?” The Great Spirit asked and showed him a kite.
“I… didn’t saw that”
“It’s a Steel-Threaded Kite; this object can allow you to fly”
“Is that simple?”
“No; it has its complications; it’s not effective in combat the way the move Fly is, and will generally move you in the direction of the wind; given that you’re dangling on a string, this can be dangerous”
“And if a flying type could help him generating an induced air flow; that could work?” Zack asked.
“Never thought on that; mostly because I never heard anyone trying it in that way”
“Well Alex, it’s up to you if you want it” Nya said.
Alex thought for a while. Then he said: “You know what? I’ll give it a try; who knows? Maybe with some practice and patience, this kite can help us”
“Then it’s yours” The Great Spirit asked.
“We really thank you for this” Zack said.
“You’re welcome”
The team Shadow foxes exited the temple and when they reached Liferan in the shrine, headed back and arrived at night. Alex decided to do a quick check to Peach. He saw her from some distance inside her tend, but it was better to not disturb her. He turned around and went back to their tent to have a deserved rest.
