Into the Unown Ch 212 +212.5 (Coffee tier)

Chapter 212

“This is it right, Magneton?”

“Bzzt… Beep boop.”

“Hmm…” Nina hummed in contemplation then turned towards Espy who nodded in affirmation. She could sense the familiar Psychic signature ahead as well — that of the Unown.

“Right, I guess we’ve finally arrived then. Question is, how do we get in?”

The girl and her Pokemon companions were currently staring at a broken section of the tunnel. Whatever passage that led into the ruins beyond had long since collapsed into a pile of rubble and debris. Probably due to all the seismic activity nearby.

“I wonder if Onix’s colony was being repelled by the electromagnetic field inherent to the ruins?” That would explain the Rock Pokemon’s hesitant behaviour back in the caverns. “Though I suppose this does save me the heartache of needing to break into the ruins...” Nina mused as she released Nitey from his Pokeball.

“Alright, Nitey, Clody, please work together to clear a path into the chamber.” The girl commanded. “Espy, keep an eye out on the cave’s integrity. If you sense a collapse coming, then try your best to hold everything up until Clody can intervene.”

Nina’s trio of ace Pokemon all cried out in affirmation as they got to work. Meanwhile, Nina pulled out her Pokedex and asked Lucy’s Magneton for some help.

“Magneton, do you think you can maybe straighten out some of this magnetic interference? The Unown are apparently transmitting radio waves from the ruins and I’d like to listen to what they’re saying.”

“Bzzzt…”

The triplet of magnet Pokemon did a jerky little spin and widened their eyes. Nina could feel the hair rising from her skin as sparks of electricity danced across Magneton’s metallic frame, from one magnetic appendage to the next.

All around her, Nina could see pieces of rock and debris wobbling and levitating in place while Magneton focused on establishing their electromagnetic domain. And before long, the inorganic triclops’ eyes all turned to look at Nina with a flash of yellow.

She had no idea what that look meant, but Nina decided to tune into her radio to relieve Magneton of their strain as soon as possible.

Silence and static, on and off, loud and low. It took some fiddling, but the rookie adventurer was finally able to find the frequency on which the Unown were broadcasting.

[LATITUDE: 34.4711417. LONGITUDE: 135.8215426]

More static.

[LONGINUS. NOMAD CALLING ON LONGINUS. REQUESTING EXTRACT.]

And on and on it went, repeating ad nauseum. The voice was mechanical, androgynous, sounding like the AI generated voices of Nina’s past life, with not a shred of personality. 

But more importantly, the voice was speaking English — the good old lingua franca that Nina had almost forgotten about at this point. In fact, it was uncanny to hear the Queen’s dialect after all this time. It had felt almost like an entire lifetime since, probably because it actually was.

To Nina’s disappointment though, those coordinates were of little use to her. Because a quick check on her map indicated that it was the approximate location where the Ruins of Alph were situated.

That said, she still harbored hope that perhaps that specific point contained some sort of hidden treasure or archive. So Nina made a note to double check once she got out, in addition to recording the radio broadcast for posterity.

A cacophony of thoughts and speculation roiled in Nina’s mind, of all the possibilities that the broadcast entailed. One thing was for sure though; the nomads that settled around this region were a splinter group. Likely some sort of advanced reconnaissance unit that lost contact with their command center.

“Longinus…” Nina mused. “Is that the name of their base? A mothership, maybe?” She was reminded of the murals she saw in the caverns leading to the Moon Shrine and of the ancient Kantonian legend of visitors from the moon, be they humans or Pokemon.

“Though the chances of the interstellar visitors being humans are seeming more likely with this newest revelation…”

“But then, what about the Unown? What the heck are they?” And more importantly, what relation does Longinus have to the Spear Pillar? Or was it all just one big coincidence?

“And so, the clan of Unown worshippers journeyed North, to the legendary Hisui, the supposed cradle of the world… It was there that they encountered a group of nomads, claiming to be heralds of the mythical Spear Pillar.” The little excerpt that Nina read in Professor Elm’s archives came to mind.

“Bzzzt… beep… boop…” As Nina continued to stew in her own thoughts, Magneton cried out in strain. The magnet Pokemon could hold onto its domain no longer.

Nina jolted and turned to Magneton with a sheepish smile. “Sorry, buddy. You can let go now. I’ve already gotten everything I need.”

“Bzzzt.” With another cry, Magneton powered down, their magnet-shaped appendages wilting in exhaustion as Nina produced some juicy battery cells from her fanny pack to reward them with, courtesy of Lucy.

Not long after, Espy called out to Nina to inform her that the excavation was nearly done.

“Thanks guys, you’re all the best! Berries for everyone once we make it out of here.” Nina proclaimed.

Then, with a final strain, Nitey moved the final piece of debris blocking their way in a plume of dust, the microscopic particles shimmering silver under Nina’s headlight.

“Urgh… I probably should have put my rebreather back on.” Nina covered her face and did her best to fight back her cough and hold her breath. The air in the cavern was stale and musky, making the girl wonder how long it had been since anyone was last here. Even the Pokemon were scrunching their nose in displeasure.

But none of that mattered, because Nina’s mind was soon distracted by the view of the ancient stone chamber that opened up before her; of Unown etched into the walls and a crude statue of Mew adorning the center. 

“Espy, do you mind?” And with that, the dark expanse of the enigmatic chamber was soon illuminated by a ball of artificial sunlight conjured by the Espeon. Curiously though, there was not a single live Unown in sight, only the inert ones carved into the wall.

“Hmm… Maybe I need to activate them first? But where’s the puzzle?” The room was functionally empty, save for the statue in the middle. And she knew for a fact that the puzzles were a thing since she had already seen one previously.

However, as Nina began to approach said statue, she felt a sudden warmth suffuse her — a pristine divine aura that cleansed away the stagnant air surrounding them. 

“W-wha…?”

“Es.”

At Espy’s urging, Nina looked down at the searing light leaking from her fanny pack. And rummaging through it, she procured the burning shell of the GS Ball, its golden top half emitting a radiant light.

“Ho-Oh’s feather, it’s reacting to the ruins!” Driven by instinct, Nina approached the statue with the golden light in her hand. And as she did, the statue gradually shifted, revealing a hidden passage underneath. “These stairwells look exactly like the ones in the main ruins…”

As the base of the statue grinded to a halt, so too did the light of the GS Ball dim, leaving only the residual warmth of the sun on Nina’s palm. “Curious…” Even more so since only the top half of the enigmatic Pokeball lit up. “I remember one of the puzzles being in the likeness of Ho-Oh…”

And sure enough, as Nina and her Pokemon gingerly made their way down the stairs, they found massive stone slabs laid atop an indent on the floor, each depicting disjointed lines and complex patterns. 

“These slabs… they’re too heavy to be lifted by humans.” Nina mused as she peered over one of the puzzle pieces. “Which means it was intended to be solved with the help of Pokemon.” Quite appropriate really.

“Es.” Nina’s thoughts were interrupted by Espy’s paw.

“Oh? Do you want to have a go at it, Espy?” It seemed that the archaic artwork had piqued the Espeon’s artistic sensibilities.

Espy nodded and strutted forth confidently while Nina exchanged an amused glance with Nitey and stepped back to watch.

“Let us know if you need any help, okay?”

“Niiite~”

But Espy dismissed her companion’s concerns and began shuffling the stone slabs around by levitating one and shifting another in its place, rotating the pieces as appropriate.

Nina could tell how heavy the pieces were just from seeing the sweat dripping from Espy’s brow. The chamber gradually dimmed the more that Espy concentrated as she diverted energy away from her Sunny Day to her Psychic prowess, necessitating that Magneton take over with Flash — Nitey’s weather moves were way too potent for such a tiny space.

It also didn’t help that the puzzle room was completely sealed off with very little air circulation. So the girl asked her Dragonite to circulate some Flying and Ice Type Energy for their comfort.

“Remember Espy, we’re looking to construct a mural of Ho-Oh.” Nina chimed helpfully, only to receive a mental pulse of annoyance in return.

The girl giggled and continued to observe. It seemed that Espy was having trouble figuring out the center pieces — specifically, the correct orientation and position of the head. Nina nodded in solidarity, she remembered having the exact same problem as well back when she used to play the games.

“Es. Espeon!” After what felt like ages, Espy finally slotted the last piece in place and declared her success with a triumphant cry.

“Great work, Espy!” Nina cheered. But before she could reach down to pamper her little genius, the entire chamber began to rumble and Nina’s mind was assaulted with discordant images.

Visions of a massive metallic construct trapped in a turbulent storm of energy; colorful plasma, roiling black clouds and spinning debris — some sort of vessel, a space ship maybe? Followed by the terrifying sound of metal torn asunder, frantic yells and explosions. But like a broken record, the vision shattered, as abruptly as it came.

The experience would have left a hyperventilating Nina reeling on the ground, were it not for Espy who caught her in time.

As the quake began to subside, the Unown sigils etched into the far wall flashed a golden light. The mysterious alphabet Pokemon came to life and rearranged themselves to form coherent sentences.

WE HUMANS MUST LEARN TO WALK IN HARMONY WITH THEM

WE DEPART FOR THEIR SAKES

And with another flash, the newly arranged words merged into the wall in place of the previous gibberish.

“T-That… What was that.” Nina was shaking, her mind in chaos at what she just saw.

“Nite… Dragonite…” Nitey, sensing the distress of his partner, pulled Nina into a hug to placate her. The Dragonite’s familiar grasp did wonders to help settle the raging storm savaging her mind.

“Thanks, Nitey… You’re the best.” Nina gave her partner a loving kiss and breathed in deep to organize her thoughts, her exhale sounding raspy and unsteady.

“That vision… it felt too real… But incomplete…” Nina raised her head and really took in vestiges of history surrounding her, now shrouded in dust.

“Collin once said that no one knew what the purpose of the Ruins of Alph were, even joked that they might just be glorified toilets. But…” Nina knew. Or at least she had a working suspicion on the function of these ancient ruins.

“Memories… The Ruins of Alph is one big database, made to pass down knowledge to future generations. Knowledge of how humans came to be…” All made possible through the Unown — primitive, yet highly advanced at the same time.

“But then… Why were there no other records of similar visions? Was there deliberate censorship?” No, the Unown Report — it was too raw, too informal. And no signs of redaction.

“The Ruins of Alph, they’re broken. Incomplete somehow…” 

While the girl and her Pokemon were still processing the events that transpired, the Unown on the side walls gradually came to life and floated into view. One of them in particular really caught Nina’s eye.

“That Unown looks like it’s glitching out…” 

The Unown in question was the “Z” that was missing from the Unown report. But it seemed unstable, constantly phasing in and out in a mess of pixels and noise while jerkily drifting in the air. Almost like… “MissingNo.?” 

MissingNo. referred to the glitch Pokemon in the original first gen games — the result of a programming error and happenstance rather than anything intentional. The glitch took on the form of a mess of broken pixels, presumably of some corrupted Pokemon sprite.

But in the case of the Unown, Nina could still make out the “Z”, just that it would occasionally break apart into visual noise before merging back again. The Unown itself did not seem to be suffering, not that she knew if the species was even capable of pain.

As Nina was looking around the cavern to see if she could spot another Z Unown, Nitey groaned. Continuous observation of the anomaly seemed to be giving him a headache as Espy shielded their minds with her Psychic aura. Meanwhile, Haunter left Nina’s shadow and hovered in front of her human as a shield, earning her a kiss from Nina.

“Do you want to return to your Pokeball, Nitey?”

“Nite-nite!” Nitey shook his head in denial and opted to avert his gaze instead. He wanted to be on standby in case anything dangerous were to happen.

Nina giggled and handed over a pouch of Nitey’s favorite Bluk Berry to assuage her endearing partner, much to his delight.

The girl sighed, feeling relieved that Nitey was okay. But equally, Nina was also feeling a little anxious. She felt that she needed to make a decision soon, on what to do with the Z Unown.

“I don’t see any other Zs around. Do you, Espy?” The response was a mental wave of denial.

“I remember in the games, catching MissingNo. required some convoluted steps to be made before it could be done. And after capture, it would cause all sorts of weird glitches to occur.” Not that Nina was all that familiar, she never really cared much for breaking the games like some people did. So naturally, her memory was filled with more holes than a Shuckle.

The girl let out another sigh and took out her Beast Ball, feeling a little reluctant all the while. “Didn’t think I’d find use for this so soon… Let’s hope this won’t be a waste.” 

Nina also desperately prayed that Maizie would come through with her research on recreating the Beast Ball, and that the Z Unown would be stabilized after being captured. Thus, with much apprehension, Nina approached the glitchy Unown with Haunter and Espy in tow. 

“Hey there, little guy… My name is Nina and these are my family. Do you mind if I captured you? I want to see if this Beast Ball here can help fix whatever problems you’re having.”

The Unown turned to regard Nina at her call before glitching out again, but otherwise remained unresponsive. Even Espy shook her head in ignorance, not sensing any sort of Psychic response from the sentient alphabet.

“Welp… Can’t be helped then.” With no other recourse, Nina waited for the Unown to stabilize before pressing the Beast Ball against it. The webbed pattern of the Ball coming to life with a pulsating blue light as it sucked the Unown into its confine. 

Interestingly enough, the Beat Ball did not open, the Unown simply morphed into incandescent light before siphoning into the button. Then, with a brilliant yellow flash from the cross fins and an electronic beep, the Beast Ball dimmed and turned inert with nary a whimper.

“So err… did we do it?” Nina turned to look at Espy, who responded with an indolent shrug.

“Welp, I guess there’s only one way to find out… I choose you, Zed!”

Once it hit the ground, the Beast Ball came to life again in a carnival of lights. Without needing to open the midnight blue sphere, the central button exploded in a flash and expelled Zed the Unown back into the cavern. Only this time, the Z Unown looked a lot livelier, without any telltale signs of the glitches that plagued it prior.

Zed looked around in confusion; left, right, down and up, before doing a little twirl and blinking its eye in astonishment. It then jolted and turned to look at the human waving at it.

“Hey there, how’re you feeling? No more glitches?” The girl asked. “My name is Nina, in case you didn’t hear it the first time. Sorry about the force capture, but I couldn’t think of any other way to fix you. Hope you don’t mind.”

Zed did a little tilt and scanned the girl from top to bottom, as if assessing her. It then hovered close and nuzzled against Nina's hand with one of its protruding appendages in a sign of friendliness.

“Hehe…” Nina giggled and returned the gesture with a gentle handshake. “I’ll take that as a yes then. Oh, and let me introduce you to my family… This beautiful princess right here is Espy and this is Haunter — she’s the sweetest Ghost you’ll ever meet.”

Nina released Poppy and Brucey, and one by one, she gestured towards her team and introduced each of them to Zed. It was a good thing that the EMI surrounding the ruins prevented the transfer of her newest capture. Though she wasn’t sure if this would continue even after she left, given that the Beast Ball wasn’t officially registered to her.

“And lastly, this is Magneton. They’re actually on loan from a friend of mine, Lucy.”

Zed floated up to Magneton, their beady pupils and pure white sclera meeting with the Triclops’ in a staring contest.

“Beep. Bzzzt… Boop.”

And as if achieving some sort of acknowledgement, Magneton did a little spin, which Zed imitated before moving away from the magnet Pokemon.

“The heck?” Nina turned to Espy for an explanation, only to receive another shrug in return. The Espeon was equally confused by the exchange.

“Were they communicating via radio or magnetic waves perhaps?” Nina would have to experiment a bit further later on to find out.

“Anyways… So yeah, we’re just a motley crew out exploring the world and looking for adventure.” Nina continued with a sheepish smile. “I know I kind of captured you without permission and all, but I was wondering if you'd be up for joining us in our little journey?”

Zed stared at Nina once more and did a little spin, which Magneton helped to interpret by flashing green in approval.

“Heck yeah! Welcome to the family, Zed!” Nina cheered, prompting the rest of her Pokemon to follow suit.

***

Author's note:

Those coordinates are real btw. It's corresponds to an actual location in Japan.

If anyone wants to engage in a little ARG, you can look it up. Cookies for anyone who can figure out what meta significance that location holds.

Also, I'd just like to clarify that Nina's pursuit of the Unown mystery has nothing to do with the Mew Gem. The former is a personal quest on her end where as the latter was imposed onto her.

There are some overlaps in the sense that all Legends and Myths are connected in some way. But the plotline pertaining to Mew is entirely its own thing which we will resolve by the end of Part 3.

The Unown mystery on the other hand will mark the end of this story at its resolution. Although, these days I have been considering bring it forward just so that people will have a jumping off point if they wish. Not that I would stop writing of course. There's still more to Nina's journey.

Chapter 212.5: Lucy

“Don’t you dare!” 

Lucy forcefully clamped down on her friend’s big dumb mouth before Justin got the chance to let loose with a bellow.

“Mphff hummf. Hmwt hwo!”

The boy glared at Lucy, struggling to pry her steel fingers away from his face. But to no avail. Lucy had always been freakishly strong for her age — hence why Justin often referred to her as a Slaking behind her back.

In one smooth motion, Lucy transitioned her grip to a chokehold, suffocating Justin behind her muscular forearms. “Have you forgotten Nina’s warnings? If you make a ruckus in this place, you’ll attract a whole swarm of Zubats to our location. Not to mention the risk of a cave-in!” She whispered in aggression.

To their side, Kerry chuckled at their shenanigans and assuaged Lucy with a gentle caress on her back. “I think he’s learned his lesson, Lucy. Why don’t you let go before Justin actually suffocates.”

“Hmph.” And with a little scoff, Lucy loosened her grip, allowing her childhood friend to collapse onto his knees as he desperately gasped for air.

“Dammit! What gives, you stupid Slaking?!”

Lucy twitched, but just before she could grab hold of him again, Justin sprinted and with a stupid cry, dove face first into the massive underground lake to their side.

“Nana ninana Try and catch me if you can, dummy! Oh that’s right, you don’t have a Water Pokemon. Haha!” Justin taunted, his infuriating voice reverberating all across the wide empty space.

“Lucy, wait—”

Before Kerry could stop her, the girl growled like an aggrieved Houndoom and jumped into the water after Justin — she may not have had a Water Pokemon on hand, but that did not mean she couldn’t swim!

“Oh shoot!” Justin panicked and started swimming, but his speed still fell short of Lucy’s who shot across the water through sheer brute strength and force of will.

Kerry sighed, internally cursing Nina for leaving her alone to babysit the rowdy duo. “Polly, go and drag them back, will you?” The nurse girl asked as she released her Poliwhirl with a flash.

Lucy and Justin’s current behavior was extremely dangerous, liable to attract wild Pokemon in the water or get hurt and drown themselves. Luckily, Kerry got Polly to take part in Pokemon lifeguard training back in school, so the Poliwhirl was well equipped to pacify the two troublemakers in a safe manner.

Once secured, Justin was practically coughing his lungs out as Polly plopped him onto shore — the boy had swallowed quite a fair bit of water during their little aquatic tussle.

Lucy, though, still looked defiant as she glared daggers at the boy. That was, until Kerry stepped in between them and stared down on her with a face full of displeasure.

“That’s enough! The two of you could have gotten yourself killed! Either you behave or I’m calling off our outing for today.”

Lucy immediately shrunk back with an apologetic look, while Justin wilted with a “Yes, mom— I mean— Yes, Kerry…”

The nurse girl snorted, then burst out into laughter alongside Lucy.

“Did you seriously just call her your mom, you dork?!” Lucy guffawed while giving Justin hearty slaps on his back, forcing more liquid to sputter from his mouth.

***

“So? Anything catch your eye?”

Lucy shook her head with a frown.

The trio of budding young trainers were currently in their swimsuits and sitting atop the shell of Justin’s Blastoise with the goal of maybe finding a Water Pokemon for Lucy.

“I see a couple of Quagsires around,” chimed Kerry as she waved at the derpy blue blobs who were friendly enough to wave back. “Nina’s always going on about how cute they are…”

“Nah… They’re not really my style, you know?” Lucy responded, eliciting a snort from Justin.

“Heh. This musclehead here only catches Pokemon that look all cool and menacing. Like that Marowak of yours, until you beat her to it.”

“I don’t wanna hear that from the guy who owns a Sharpedo!” Lucy shot back, with a great deal of incredulity. Even Kerry raised an eyebrow at Justin’s hypocrisy.

“Hate to break it to you, Jonathan. But she’s got a point.”

“It’s Justin! Jonathan doesn’t even have the right number of syllables!”

Lucy laughed. “I’m surprised a dummy like you even knows what a syllable is.”

Justin groaned and primed himself to jump at the girl before settling down with a silent glare from Kerry.

The nurse girl sighed. “That was my bad, so I’ll apologize. But no more fights from the two of you or I’ll have Blastoise send you guys back to the outpost in his canons.”

“Blast~” cried the Pokemon in affirmation.

“Traitor! Aren’t you supposed to be my partner?!”

Cry as Justin might, but it was a universal law among trained Pokemon to never disobey a Joy.

***

“Are you sure about this, Justin?” Lucy asked.

“Yeah, I mean look at all these Zubats. They gotta be coming from somewhere.” The main cavern they were in had too much human traffic during the day, which made it unideal for the bat Pokemon to nest in.

“I had Noivern do a bit of scouting earlier.” The boy continued. “She said that there’s actually lots of little tunnels high above. And some that we might even be able to fit through.”

Justin turned towards his friend with sparkling eyes. “That’s gotta be where the Lapras song is coming from. I mean, aren’t you curious?! It's a Lapras, Lucy! I betcha even Nina would be jealous if we somehow manage to catch it for you.”

Lucy averted her gaze. The fact that her friend was doing this for her did make her feel a little warm inside.

“Yeah, but I still think we should tell Kerry. I kinda feel bad about leaving her behind.” The nurse girl was currently preparing lunch for the group. “And what if something bad happens and we need first aid?”

“It’ll be fine~” Justin drawled. “And besides, aren’t you worried that she’s gonna throw a Fast Ball on you again? I mean if I were a Pokemon, I sure as heck know who I would pick…” That last part was said with a low mumble, but Lucy picked it up all the same as she pulled the boy in for a vicious noogie.

“Fine.” Lucy said once she had her fill of punishing the mouthy Justin. “I’ll come along. But we need to take precautions so we don’t get lost.” Lucy accompanied Nina when she went shopping for cave survival gear and got some stuff for herself as well.

“Cool! Let’s gear up and get going!”

***

Lucy gasped in awe at the underground lake before her, glowing a brilliant cerulean gleam, like shimmering sapphire in liquid form.

However, that awe was short lived as she noticed the Lapras stranded atop a little island in the center, moaning in distress at the malevolent swarm of glowing Tentacools floating menacingly in the surrounding waters. Each eagerly flailing their tentacles and vying to drag the poor helpless Lapras into their ravenous embrace.

“I thought we already got rid of those guys!” Justin exclaimed.

“We dispersed the mega bloom, but it doesn’t mean that the Tentacool are just gonna go away. They’ll still approach, but in more manageable swarms.” Lucy frowned as she released her Manectric into the cavern and hopped onto his back.

“Let’s go, boy! We need to protect Lapras!”

“Mane!” The Manectric howled in affirmation as he ran towards the edge of the shore and pounced onto the Lapras’s solitary island in one massive leap.

“Priii!!!”

The Lapras cried out in distress, alarmed by the sudden strangers who intruded upon its sanctuary.

Lucy’s immediate instinct was to try and calm the Lapras, but quickly decided against it, thinking that actions spoke louder than words. So she called on her Manectric to blast the lake with Thunderbolt to disperse the Tentacool.

Lapras shrunk and trembled in fear from the booming noise, eyes shut tight from the flashing lights. But once the commotion settled, she felt a tender caress upon her slender nape and a gentle voice calling out to her.

“Hey… It’s okay now… Those meanies are all gone. No one’s gonna hurt you anymore…”

“Prii…?”

With a great deal of hesitation, Lapras slowly opened her eyes, to meet the concerned gaze of the blonde haired girl in front of her.

“Hey there, buddy… Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” Lucy rummaged around in her Berry Pouch. “Here, have some Oran Berries. They’re good for you, and super tasty too!”

The girl steadily brought the Berries close to the lip of the apprehensive Lapras, making sure to maintain eye contact and a toothless smile all the while.

“Prii…” The Lapras preened in uncertainty, but eventually came close and gave the Berries a little nudge before lapping it up. Lucy giggled at the sensation of Lapras’s slender tongue.

“Hihi… My name’s Lucy, a Pokemon Trainer from Viridian City. Nice to meet you, Lapras!”

“Priii!”

The girl giggled once more, leaning in close to nuzzle her face against Lapras’s coarse exterior. “Your skin’s a little dry, Lapras. How long have you been stuck on this little island?”

“Priii…” Lapras wilted, her beautiful visage drooping in sadness.

“Aww… Poor girl.” Lucy pulled the Lapras in for an embrace. “Don’t you worry. Those bullies are gone now if you want to dive back down into the lake. I’ll make sure to protect you while you go in for swimmies, how’s that sound?”

“Prii!!” Lapras preened in delight as she nuzzled against her newfound protector.

“Hehe. Mind if my friend joins in? Justin’s an idiot but he has a couple of Water Pokemon that’ll come in handy.

“Priii~”

And so, Lucy waved at Justin to come over as they dove into the Tentacool infested lake.

***

With a team of reliable bodyguards by her side, Lapras was fearless as she munched on a nearby Tentacool, stripping it of its blue gelatinous exterior while deftly avoiding the tentacles and glowing red “gems” on its head, where the bulk of its Poison was stored.

Lucy was absolutely fascinated by the sight. “Do Lapras feed on Tentacools? I’ll have to ask Nina when we get back.” 

Before long, the population of the jellyfish Pokemon dwindled to a more manageable number — one that even Lapras could handle without fear of being overwhelmed. 

One thing that Lucy couldn’t help noticing though, was how narrow the tunnels leading into the lake were. None of which seemed large enough to allow a Lapras to pass, juvenile or not.

“Where did you come from, Lapras?” The girl asked.

“Prii…” Lapras moaned in sadness as she lowered her head.

“Were you born here?”

Lapras responded by nuzzling her head against Lucy, eyes moist with tears. Just the thought of Lapras being confined in such a limited space from birth was enough to make the girl furrow her brows in anguish.

“Would you like to leave, Lapras? Go out on an adventure under the sun?”

“Pri?” Lapras tilted her head, not understanding the girl’s words.

Lucy giggled. “Of course, you wouldn’t know what the sun is, would you? It’s this big ball of light up in the sky. It rises during the morning and sets at night.” She then took out her Pokedex and pulled up a picture of the sunset that she took on Route 32.

“Priii!!!” Lapras’s eyes sparkled at the never before seen sight, her voice tinged with a yearning towards the world that lay beyond these rocky walls.

Lucy beamed at her new friend with a hopeful gaze. “So? What do you say, Lapras? Wanna go out on an adventure with me?”

“Pri!” Lapras nodded and nuzzled against Lucy, eliciting boisterous cheers from Justin who was closely monitoring the exchange.

“Yeah!!! You did it, Lucy!”

The girl laughed, feeling an immense wave of happiness wash over her. “Welcome to the family, Lapras!”

However, before she could bring out any of her Pokeballs for the capture, the entire cavern quaked as one of the walls broke, falling apart to reveal a gang of unruly looking, black clad individuals led by an older man in a strange silver outfit.

“Hmph! Another empty cavern… How are you lot so incompetent?! Does this look like ancient ruins to you?!” The older man barked, until his eyes halted on the pair of kids in the cavern and the sight of the rare Lapras accompanying them.

***

Author's note:

There is a special place in hell reserved for whoever designed Hunter's March, likely the same person who did the Path of Pain. I like to imagine it's filled with buzzsaws and thorns. And once they reach the end of the road, redemption in sight, the pixelated souls of dead Hollow Knights and Hornets would manifest and send them back to the beginning.

That aside, I am thoroughly burnt out on Into the Unown. I squeezed my creative well for all its worth and now I have nothing left to give. But at least I now have a healthy backlog of chapters.

So I'm gonna switch tracks and work on writing GESTALT for now. I should have all the rewrites done and another 5 chapters by the end of this month, hopefully.

Additionally, does anyone know if a Mega Pokemon is given any new moves in this games? I can't for the life of me remember.

This definitely doesn't have anything to do with a certain tubby, ice cream loving Dragonite or anything. Nope, definitely not. Although... if there're any secret Nintendo informants around, I wouldn't exactly be opposed to taking a sneak peak at a Mega Dragonite's stat sheet.