Private/Closed The Merciless Mirai Region

[Pokemon Fanfiction Novels]

Matt had always been a light sleeper, even following nights when he got to bed late. He hadn't earned it- indeed, it was just how his body worked- but he prided himself on being able to rise so quickly from sleep. The noise of somebody, or something, crashing suddenly through the ninety degree "fireplace" hole was more than enough to jostle him from his dreams, and he was on his feet in seconds.

"Mimikyu! Stand by!"

Raising his crank-charge flashlight, Matt beamed a pillar of light through the pitch blackness. His light fell upon a place where the dust had unsettled, and upon which now lay a groaning humanoid figure. Mimikyu's raggedy form drifted forward to inspect, and out from under the Pikachu facade stretched an amorphous blob that steadily formed into tentacle shape. Matt felt slightly disturbed at the sight of the dark tendril, and held up his hand before it touched the intruder.

"Hold up a sec. That looks like a trainer, not a predator."

"Zuh- wha . . .?" From behind them, Sven mumbled incoherently as he sat up. "We . . . under attack?" he asked groggily.

"I doubt it." Matt took a careful step forward. "This guy came down the chimney end rather than the entrance tunnel. Besides, anyone intent on exploring a hole in the woods at midnight would be more stealthy. I think we're looking at an accident here."

"Ughhh . . . it's actually 6:40, dude."

A small growl issued from the person's form, and something moved in the dark. Matt jerked back in alarm.

"Woah! He's got pokemon out. Hey. Hey!" He raised his voice, hoping he could rouse the newcomer without having to touch or poke him, and provoke his pokemon. "I'm Matt. Who are you? Are you okay?"

 

[kyuukestu]

"I'm Matt. Who are you? Are you okay?"

Claire grimaced at the question. "Oh yes dearie," she quipped, "I'm perfectly okay! Couldn't be better in fact! I think falling into this hole was the most wonderful thing to have ever graced my body!" A scowl settled on her face as she struggled to sit upright, her body crying it protest with every motion. She glared at the one who had addressed her as 'guy', the one who now introduced himself as Matt. Exhaustion, the stumble into this hole, and now someone mistaking her for a male? This combination really wasn't helping her mood. She was too tired to pick a fight, but words cost next to nothing.

"My name's Claire and I'm very much a female. Thanks for asking though."

 

[Pokemon Fanfiction Novels]

The chamber blazed with sudden brightness as Sven lit his lantern. It wasn't intense, but compared to the nearly solid pitch-darkness from moments ago, it was enough to make anyone squint whose eyes had adjusted to the dark. The luminosity now revealed Claire sprawled on the ground, with a Vulpix, Sewaddle, and Mareep standing sentinel around her in combat postures. Matt and Sven stood a couple of feet away, hands shading their eyes, while Mimikyu hovered between them waving its incorporeal tentacles absently. The boulders surrounding everyone shifted slightly, as Onix arose from slumber. By himself, he took up roughly a third of the entire chamber. Matt clicked off his flashlight and spread his hands in a mollifying gesture.

"Sorry. This place is meant as a hideaway, not a trap. The guidebook said that there are scary-strong pokemon out here at night, so we did what we had to do for our own safety."

Internally, he chastised himself. This girl- Claire- was clearly pissed off. This was good, in the sense that she was well enough to deliver sarcastic remarks. Nevertheless, she probably didn't want to hear his excuses as the cause of her pain. He signaled to Mimikyu, and they shifted aside, giving Claire passage to the more moderately-inclined entrance/exit tunnel. "You can easily get out that way," he explained apologetically. "I'm sorry that we don't have any bandages to give you, but . . . if you got a sprain from that fall, you can have my walking stick."

"Hang on." Sven cut in, and the light shifted around him as the lantern swung gently in his upraised hand. "I need to know. Is it safe up there, Claire? Or were you running away from something?"

 

[kyuukestu]

Claire relaxed with a sigh. Though they might've been the cause of her little stumble, taking out her annoyance on them would clearly not do her any good...right now that is. Taking her annoyance out on them at this very moment wouldn't do her any good, later, on the other hand, was an entirely different story. On the note of how she'd gotten here in the first place, she was reminded that there were numerous forest fires raging on the outside, some of which may or may not have been a direct result of her own actions. She thought for a moment, organizing her thoughts and considering the implications of her actions.

"Well, as far as I know, there are at least two forest fires raging outside, and if you intend to sleep down here then you might want to forget about waking up tomorrow morning. It's likely that you'll have suffocated to death whilst asleep, and on that note, I'll take you up on that offer and leave, I'd suggest you do the same."

She wasn't injured so much as she was exhausted and the precious seconds of rest she'd gotten was more than enough to reduce the lactic acid build-up in her muscles and get her in walking shape. Unsteadily rising to her feet Claire swept Athena off the ground and made her way towards the exit. Chysa and the newly caught Vulpix, who she planned to name Homusubi, trotted after her.

=======================
Name:
Claire De Lune
Money:
1500 PokeYen
Team:
Chysa | Mareep | Female | Static
Athena | Sewaddle | Female | Overcoat
Homusubi | Vulpix | Female | Flash Fire
Bag:
Wide-Brimmed Hat, Steel Baton

 

[Pokemon Fanfiction Novels]

"Forest fire-?" Matt and Sven glanced at each other for a second, and then Sven tensed. "Oh, @#%&! We gotta go. Grab your crap!"

In seconds, the trainers had their sleeping bags rolled up and their backpacks secured. As they hurried to catch up to Claire, Matt raised his two pokeballs and recalled Mimikyu and Onix. Without Onix's support, the Security Bunker would be more prone to collapse, but it didn't matter now that they were out. Outside the tunnel entrance, it was still dim, but a faint light shone in the distance. Whether it was the first indicator of sunrise, or a far-off forest fire, at least they wouldn't need Sven's lantern for much longer. Matt raised his compass and glanced it over briefly.

"Okay. The good news is that we're in no immediate danger. The fire is relatively small and far off, which means we can always go back the way we came in the worst-case scenario. The bad news is that the fire is right between us and the remaining miles to the next city."

"Why can't we just dig under it like before?" asked Sven.

"We can, but that risks coming up in the midst of the blaze, or accidentally tunneling into a pond or lake and flooding ourselves." Matt sighed and shook his head. "Honestly . . . what idiot invented the policy introducing trained fire-types into these woodlands? You're just begging for a forest fire." He reached into a knapsack pocket and withdrew a granola bar. "We'll have to take breakfast on our feet. Most likely, we'll end up circumventing the flames, and its radius will only get bigger the longer we wait."

Sven cleared his throat, and it made a dry hacking. "I'm parched, but I'm almost out of water. Can I drink it, or will I have to save it for dousing myself?"

Matt looked over at Claire. "It's not the fire I'm worried about. It's the pokemon who've been aggravated by it. I think the three of us should stick together, in case some disgruntled creatures with stings or fangs take out their instincts on us."