Infection
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Hoenn had been quiet for far too long, it had seemed to most. The silence was almost eerie. Something was amiss, however, in the far reaches of the ocean. Team Aqua and Magma had come across new technology at the same time, in an undersea cavern outside sootopolis. They stopped outside the doorway to the final room, and began to fight about who was the rightful owner of the interesting technology. Why both of them wanted it was a mystery, but as they opened the door, they got it.
Spread from the seawater and then transferred into the air, a mysterious miasma traveled out into Hoenn. Humans were unaffected by it, but the pokemon were. It seeped into the pokemon's blood stream and got to their minds, making the pokemon easily angered and violent. This was how it would spread to humans. With even the slightest scratch, humans were at risk from contracting pokemon DNA, and forming a human-pokemon hybrid. Scientists deemed this new species 'pokemorphs'.
A cure is currently being looked into, but so far, nothing has been found. The virus was locked away to keep it from spreading again, but after being tampered with, Team Aqua and Magma had released the virus onto the world.
And they said, "Perfect."
Unaware of the growing storm, a young boy stood on the deck of a ship, which was sailing from mossdeep. He was a pokemon researcher, and had been assigned to help find a cure to the disease that had spread a few days before. he was to go to the mainland and study samples, in order to gain valuable research in hopes it will help for a cure. He was Michael Trent, and that is where the story begins; as his ship lands in lilycove city.
A girl stood near the dock, scanning the crowd for someone in particular. She had been told that there was a researcher or someone like that coming to study the pokemon, for whatever reason. Why anyone would get near them now was beyond her, with the rumors floating about. Still, she had been told by her boss that she was to keep him safe on his little research trip, since she was a pretty strong trainer. What she had failed to tell him was that her pokemon had run off when the disease hit but... Empty pokeballs looked like full ones, and she was desperate to get away from the paperwork she knew she would have been given had she stayed. Suddenly, one of the people caught her eye. There was the good researcher. "'ey!" She called over to him and waved, to try and get his attention.
He glanced over as he heard someone yelling to him, realizing it was his contact. He walked over with a slightly grim smile. "I trust you're the escort the order assigned me, then?" he asked. He wasn't sexist, but when he envisioned a bodyguard he figured they would be more... well, masculine. He shrugged, though, figuring she would have pokemon to help defend them. All of his were stored away in the pokemon center computers.
"Mhm, Kat's the name." She nodded and introduced herself with a grin, looking at him with her dark green eyes. She didn't quite know what to make of him, but all she could hope for is that they were going to go to some nice peaceful spot where trouble would be hard to find. "And you're the researcher. So, where are we headin' out to?" She asked him, leaning slightly back on the railing of the dock and waiting for his answer.
"Please, name's Mike," he waved a hand as she called him 'researcher.' he hated formalities like that; he was the most laid back researcher in mossdeep, some said, because his attitude. "I'm going to be heading into the continent, probably until around... mauville?" he guessed, unsure how far he was expected to go. She sighed inwardly. Mauville, while not the farthest place to go, often had pokemon slinking around in the grass and trees on the routes to it. Ah well, perhaps they would be feeling nice today.
"Alright, so are we goin' to take the long route with the stop in Fortree, or are you looking for a quick way?" She asked him, still smiling in a friendly and confident way, so he wouldn't be able to guess the real situation. She could pretty much guess with her luck, he was going to pick the way with more pokemon along. After all, that was the whole entire reason why he was here right? Still, a girl can hope.
"Well, preferably the route through fortree. I would need to stop in the weather center on the way, anyway," he nodded, and then looked to her. "If that's alright with you, anyway." he added, just in case. She seemed a bit worried, for some reason, but he wasn't quite sure why.
"Fine with me." She replied before getting off the railing. The route through Fortree was harder, yes, but at least there was a small resting point in between where she might be able to 'convince' her friend to part with some of his pokemon. He usually was easily bullied into lending her his Duskull, so she doubted it would be too much of a problem. "Alright, let's get outta here. Unless you need anything to check up on here?" She asked, a little eager to head out so they could reach their destination before the pokemon got too agitated by trainers running through there already.
He shook his head. "I'm good to go." he crossed his arms with a small smile, beginning to walk in the direction of the exit. For a moment he considered changing out of his short sleeved black shirt and into something more durable, in case something attacked them. He would have more defenses against the virus, anyway. In the end, he decided against it as he stopped at the edge of town.
"Then let's move out." She grinned slightly to herself, liking the way that sounded. 'Arg, come on Kat, focus!' the sane part of her mind reminded her but she ignored it for now. Everyone needs a little fun now and then. She walked forward, leading the way through the route and keeping a weary eye out for any pokemon. Her crimson tank top didn't offer up much protection for her either, but hey, pokemon usually went for the legs, right? And her black cargo pants offered more than enough protection for her legs. Still, rather be safe than sorry.
He followed behind her, looking around as he went. His hands were up behind his head as he walked, careful not to get too close to anything. They were heading into the long grass, and anything in there might be angry enough to attack and infect one of them. He hoped the truly dangerous pokemon were out further, as he stepped into the tall grass.
Kat moved forward still, wading through the tall grass carefully. There was nothing really dangerous this far out, only Duskulls and Shuppets, usually. Zigzagoons and Linoones were also common, but she didn't think the disease had made them much bolder than they were. The real trouble would start once they got out a ways, with Absols patrolling the grass, and a few other pokemon she couldn't quite remember. But she tried to make conversation with the researcher, Mike. After all, maybe human voices would scare the bolder pokemon away. "So, just what are you trying to research out here?" She asked him, glancing over from over her shoulder.
He looked back at her from his distractions as she addressed him. Luckily, he had been fully informed of what he was looking for well ahead of time. "I'm investigating pokemon behavior after infection," he explained. "I've also been told to gather blood samples of the virus if possible, but that might be difficult." he stepped over a zigzagoon in his path, shuffling further through the tall grass.
She laughed. "I can imagine. I don't think you'll find a willing subject for that." She said with a grin. A pokemon would be hard to handle without getting scratched and she had never seen one of these so called 'pokemorphs.' Supposedly pokemon could transmit their DNA or something if they were infected. Though she had never personally witnessed it, she had heard gruesome tales.
"Indeed... and if I get infected, there's no cure." he sighed a bit as he walked. "So it would probably be best to just observe, for now." he laughed a little. He had witnessed several changes around the lab, and each was more gruesome than the next. First symptoms of a horrible cold, then flu symptoms, then the changes were worse in themselves. Excruciating pain throughout the body usually knocked out the unfortunate soul infected as the changes progressed, though. He shuddered a bit as he recalled them.
She nodded and smiled. "Don't worry, that's why I'm here, you know." She said, taking out one of her pokeballs and twirling it on her finger before stopping it. "To keep you from getting infected." She reminded him, still holding onto her pokeball as they trudged through the long grass. Even if it was empty, there was some reassurance in holding it, almost like a security blanket. As if by magic her pokemon would reappear and be alright. Well, they were half way there and no incident, so that was good news.
"I'm sure you'll do a fine job, too." he chuckled a little, stopping as they came to a small clearing. He stopped and looked around for a moment, and then blinked. "Feels like... something's watching us." he pondered.
"Huh?" She questioned as she stopped and looked around, suddenly uneasy. Why did she have to jinx it with that thought? She didn't see anything that looked too out of the ordinary, but never ever were you supposed to ignore instinct and now she was aware of it too. "Get in front of me." She said, now in a very serious manner, her eyes still sweeping the area as she gripped her pokeball even tighter. While it may have sounded like she was using him as a shield, a pokemon was more likely to attack from behind, so she was actually protecting him. If it came from the front, he would have a chance to move and react. "Let's hurry; we're sitting ducks in a clearing like this." She said as she started moving forward.
The forest was quiet as they moved slowly out of the clearing. As they left, a small patch of dirt shimmered a bit, then a lizard-like creature faded into view, before fading out again. They wouldn't have seen this, however, as they were looking ahead of themselves. The grass rustled lightly as the wind blew around them, and then the grass abruptly stopped, into a clear path. "Eh?"
She sighed and started to relax as the grass rustled and broke the silence. Even she knew silence in a forest was a bad sign, but at least now there was some noise. And then there was no grass, which meant fewer chances to be attacked. "Hm?" She questioned as he made that noise. "What's up?" She asked, moving so she stood next to him, now that there was room to stand side by side and so she could see whatever had caught his interest.
He took a few steps forward, blinking a little. "What the... this isn't the right route." he muttered. "The safari zone should be this way..." he looked around, blinking."I knew I went that way before once, and the safari zone was right there. Hm..." he walked down some steps, where a puddle was on the ground. He stopped on the edge, blinking a little again.
She groaned and whacked her forehead with the palm of her hand. "Knew I should've gotten that map..." She muttered. Not that it would have done her much good anyhow, she was not very good with directions. Though it figured she ended up right by the safari zone. She turned her back Mike to puzzle at the forest, trying to figure out which way they should go from here. Though a little part of her mind found it a little odd that there was a puddle in the middle of the path, but she figured she was just starting to get paranoid.
He thought hard for a moment as he looked into the puddle, then shook his head. "This isn't the path." he muttered, looking around a little. "This isn't even real, it seems." he put a hand out, as if feeling around as he walked. "Probably a ghost pokemon doing some kind of illusion. They forgot to include reflections."
"Ah... crap. then..." She said. How were they supposed to wander their way out of an illusion? She wasn't all too worried about the ghost pokemon itself; they did things like this all the time so it wasn't all too uncommon. Still, she would like to be able to get out of here before nightfall, when they would feel particularly malicious.
"Have any psychics on you?" She asked him, eyes wandering around the scenery. A psychic pokemon would most likely be able to break the illusion, and she had nothing of the sort.
"Alakazam, but its back in storage." he sighed a bit. "Let's see, though..." he stopped, put his bag down, and opened it up, beginning to shift through the items inside. After a moment, he produced a pokeball. "Alright, ghost pokemon... if my eyes can't find you, the pokeball can," he tossed the ball into the air, straight up. As it went the ball opened, beginning to search for the pokemon meant to be captured with its red energy.
"Huh... that's clever." She remarked, a bit surprised. Never thought of that solution. "Now, let's see if you got a Duskull or a Shuppet, if this disease hasn't screwed around with the places the pokemon hang out anyways." She said with a small smile. While she wasn't very good with the actual directions, she knew what type of pokemon lived where, or perhaps she should say that she used to know. In any case, they lived off of Mt. Pyre and often floated down here.
He chuckled a little, the pokeball finding its target and absorbing the pokemon. As it fell to the ground, the scenery flashed, and then changed to the main road, outside of the safari zone. He walked over to the pokeball, which had stopped flashing, and tossed it to her. She blinked in another look of surprise, but caught it none the less. Had he guessed she was pokemon-less, or was he just being nice? Well, no matter the reason, it was a nice gesture, one that made her smile.
"Thanks." She thanked him with a small bow of her head and a small, embarrassed blush. And here she was supposed to be the one protecting him. Ah well... At least she now had a pokemon. "Alright, let's see who we have to thank for getting us lost." She said, taking her focus off of him and onto the pokemon. She released it in a stream of white light.
"Shuuuuuppet!" It announced itself, floating in the air and slightly glaring at the boy and girl before accepting its position and hovering by its new trainer's shoulder. She grinned, happy it had gone over well, and then she brought up a question. "So, shall we turn around and head back?"
"Head back? We're almost on the right path." he pondered, looking around. "... well, I think." he blinked, and then got confused again. "Maybe we should keep going, though." he sighed, looking up at the sky as a few clouds seemed to have formed, turning things dark quickly. The shuppet had disguised the weather during the illusion, it seemed.
She shook her head. "I meant head back so we could get on the right path again, but... eh... I think I know the way to Fortree from the safari zone so..." She shrugged. He really should just ignore her rambling. She nodded though at his suggestion to get going as she looked at the sky as well, not liking the way the weather was deciding to turn on them. "Then onwards we go!" She said cheerfully and took the lead on what she thought was a path that would lead them to Fortree safely.
He let her take the lead again, putting his hands behind his head as they walked out. The air already felt like rain, but he wouldn't mind as long as they got to Fortree before it was pouring. Behind them, the mysterious figure from before shimmered into view, poking out of the grass and looking out before disappearing again.
Shuppet turned for a moment, thinking he had heard something, but seeing nothing but Mike, he turned back around and shook his head. Now with a ghost pokemon beside them, it didn't seem like any other ghosts were going to attempt to trick them again as the path was laid out clear. At least, so it would seem.
Mike looked up at the shuppet, tilting his head a little. "I wonder what possessed it to make us confused like that." he muttered, ignoring the pun. As they walked, a low bellowing sound echoes around the area, coming from up ahead, where tall grass had popped up again. "What was that?" he muttered.
Kat couldn't help but give a small chuckle at the pun while Shuppet simply gave a small glare to him. "Oh I dunno, ghosts often pull pranks like that so it might've had no reason at all. Then again, you never can tell..." She trailed off, now that he had gotten her thinking, though the bellows quickly interrupted her train of thought.
"I swear, fate plays against us." She shook her head. And of course, they had to wade through here in order to get to Fortree. "Shuppet, make sure nothing touches Mike." She ordered and the pokemon nodded before floating beside the researcher's shoulder.
"Alright, stick close and stay as quiet as possible. I do not want to attract the attention of whatever made that noise." She said now to Mike before muttering "God knows it's probably an angry Ryhorn or something..." to herself before leading them into the tall grass.
He looked around as they started into the grass. Several pokemon were rustling up ahead of them, and one raised its long neck over the grass to look at what was coming. It was a massive Tropius, which were usually seen in the area close by. It gave another bellowing noise and moved closer to the incoming humans, to investigate them. Kat couldn't help a grin. Scared over a Tropius. Wow, she really did have to stop being so paranoid. She visibly seemed to relax as it wandered over to them. They were usually pretty peaceful so there was nothing to worry about. Still, she let Shuppet continue to float beside Mike. No sense in relaxing totally and leaving themselves open for attack.
He moved over to the tropius, looking it in the eye as he moved around it. "Fascinating... it's infected, I can tell, but it's not acting aggressively." he pondered, not getting near enough to touch it, or get touched by it.
"If it's not aggressive, how can you tell?" She asked him as she looked at the Tropius that was looking at them curiously. She also stayed at a distance, now knowing it was infected, but with the news, she wasn't sure what to make of it. It was peaceful, yet diseased... weird. She glanced at the sky while he looked it over; knowing they probably weren't making it to Fortree without getting wet.
"there's only one other symptom of the pokemorph virus in pokemon, aside from aggressiveness..." he motioned to the Tropius, who had leaned back up after finding what they were. "The infected pokemon have pupils that look like their swimming. Murky and grey, you see?" he explained. "Most people notice the other symptom first, though."
She nodded in understanding as she looked at the Tropius' clouded eyes before it started to go. "Huh, strange how it's not aggressive then... You think maybe it's because we didn't startle it?" She mused. After all, they had not given it the slightest reason to attack and so it didn't. But what if somehow, the disease heightened the senses of the pokemon, and that's why they were so much more aggressive, because they perceived more things to be threats. But she wasn't a scientist, and she had more than one crazy theory on the subject so she kept her idea to herself.
He shook his head. "Perhaps. It's worth looking into." he nodded, frowning a little. Suddenly, the Tropius stood in attention, and then turned to leave. Apparently something had startled it, but what, he thought, looking around. The answer was only a second away, though, as a slight flash of lightning went off in the distance. "crap." he muttered.
"Oh joys..." Kat muttered as she noticed the lightning. It would only be a matter of time until they were drenched in water. "Do you happen to have a coat?" She asked him as she moved forward, back on track again. The least they could do would be to try and gain a little ground so they wouldn't be too wet once the rain caught up with them.
"Nope, I don't have a coat," he sighed after looking in his bag. "Knew I forgot something..." he muttered, walking back onto the path and starting off faster.
Suddenly, something black flew at him and landed on his head. "Don't rip it or I'll feed you to some starving Gyarados." She said with a grin over her shoulder as he wore her rain jacket on his head. Well at least he would stay dry. She could deal with a bit of water, no sweat. Indeed, the thunder sounded a bit closer, but that was alright, just a little while longer and they would reach Fortree.
He made a small face, fixing the jacket over him with a bit of difficulty, before he was safe from the oncoming rain. Fortree was just around the corner, when he bumped into something. "Eh?" he blinked, looking around. He put his hand out in front of him wondering what he had bumped into.
"Uh-oh." last time he had said eh, they were lost in Shuppet's illusion. "What's up this time?" She asked, looking to see what had he found this time, eyebrow slightly raised in curiosity.
He blinked again, and then something bumped into him and sent him off balance, making him fall over. "It's something invisible," he said as he got up, looking around. He then realized how futile that was, and sighed, waiting for the next hint of movement.
Now this one she did know. "Kecleon... Urg, annoying little buggers, but I guess there's no getting around it. Alright Shuppet, lets see what you can do." She said before clamping her hands over her ears and gesturing for Mike to do the same.
"Screech." She ordered, hoping to startle the pokemon into changing back to its normal colors so they can see it, or perhaps startle it into leaving. Shuppet grinned before opening his mouth and letting out a horrible wailing noise.Michael gave a small groan as he heard the wailing through his hands, shaking his head when it was over.
The Kecleon blinked a bit into visibility for a moment, and then faded out again. The shimmering outline seemed to hop back, then a multi-colored beam of light fired at shuppet. Kat smiled, happy she was correct in her thought, but now she had to focus on the battle.
"Dodge and put a Curse on it!" She said. Shuppet attempted to move out of the way of the multi-colored light, floating upwards, the bottom of its body touching the beam a bit, making him wince and glare at the shimmering outline, trying to concentrate on it before he closed his eyes and a purple fog seem to swirl around him. Suddenly he opened his eyes and the fog shot forward at the Kecleon, trying to disappear within the pokemon and suck away at its energy.
The kecleon jumped as the curse flew at it, its outline disappearing as the curse missed. Suddenly, several claws appeared in the air, slashing at shuppet to make it back away.
"Shu!" The Shuppet cried out in shock as he backed away, narrowly missing the claws. This was going to be a big problem already, not being able to see his opponent. For right now he floated, careful for the next movement, while Kat tried to figure out how to make the Kecleon visible.
The Kecleon seemed to hop backwards, and then disappeared again. It was quiet for a moment as the pokemon hid, and for a moment nothing happened. Then, Michael's shirt ripped in the middle, and the Kecleon came out of hiding with its claws out. Michael was a bit surprised by the sudden attack, but his weight had shifted a moment before the strike, so the claws hadn't hit him. Luckily, he was wearing her rain coat open, so it wasn't hit.
"Shuppet!" Kat said, as the sudden attack on Mike took her by surprise. He swooshed over and hovered in front of spot that Kecleon had attacked. He let out a Shadow ball to fend off the pokemon, if it was still in front. Kat cursed in her head. This wasn't good at all, an invisible pokemon and she hadn't seen its eyes so she had no idea if it was diseased or not. How she wished she had her Umbreon or Drowzee right now...
The kecleon jumped, the shadow ball hitting the ground where it had been standing before. As it landed, it disappeared again, but before it could completely get hidden, it was knocked aside by a black horn, an absol charging in and bashing the lizard-like pokemon away. This was an interesting turn of events, but Kat wasn't going to complain as she saw a moment of opportunity. "Shuppet, shadow ball again." She commanded and the ghost pokemon conjured up another ball and launched it at the spot where the Kecleon was landing, so it wouldn't have a chance to get back up an attack.
The absol turned, and then jumped in front of the shadow ball. Being a dark pokemon itself, the ball stopped as it neared the absol, and then was shot off to the side. A voice echoed around their heads as the absol communicated.
'Calm yourselves, humans. This pokemon does not mean you true harm, it is the work of the virus.' it said soothingly. Shuppet glared, upset that his attack had been neutralized, but he could already tell that challenging the Absol was a very bad idea. Still, he kept his eye on the spot where the Kecleon fell and continuing to hover in front of the boy, making sure that it didn't try and attack again.
Kat blinked and shook her head slightly as she heard the voice. Was it her being delusional, or did that pokemon just talk? Since she had never heard voices before, she was going to assume the second one. "Sorry about that." She apologized very quickly. "Still, it means us harm all the same; virus or no virus and I have a job to protect him." She added and gestured to Mike, though by the look of his shirt, she had certainly failed to do a very good job of it.
"As protector of the pokemon in the area, perhaps it would be best if you do not challenge me," the absol advised, baring his fangs slightly. "These pokemon are being hurt needlessly because of fear of the virus. If anyone is to be harmed, it should be the ones who caused this madness." the absol growled a little, but not at them.
"Can't disagree with that, though I'm not exactly sure of who's to blame." Kat said. She had a few guesses, but since it had simply swept all of Hoenn, there was no evidence it was Team Rocket, Magma, or any team at all. "In any case, I don't want to needlessly hurt the pokemon either but if we're attacked, we can't simply sit back." She said in a less persistent tone so it wouldn't take it as a challenge, simply a statement.
The absol bowed his head a little in thought, and then looked up again. "Negotiations would work. That is how former trainers calmed the Tropius earlier on today. Sadly, one was still infected." he sighed a bit, the noise coming out like a bark. "While I can't advise this, your best method of protecting would be to bond with a pokemon with the virus." he glanced between them a moment. "Once you're infected, the other pokemon won't attack you normally, and then you won't worry about more infection." he said, scratching a claw in the dirt a bit.
She blinked a few times to let the information sink in fully. "So, in other words, the best way to keep away from attacks is to allow the Kecleon to scratch me?" She repeated, before closing her eyes and sighing. Well... That was just perfect. She shivered a little recalling the stories she had heard about the transformations that took place when a person was scratched or bitten. "Is there any other way?" She asked hopefully, though she didn't expect there to be.
"Not the Kecleon, per say," the absol shook his head. "Any pokemon infected would work. Depending on personal preference, I suppose." he paced around a bit. "I have heard talk from pokemon that this boy is a researcher for the cure to the virus," he nudged his head at Michael. "If this is true, then getting infected would be easily solved once the cure is found." he offered. "But, the virus is made to make pokemon target humans. Pokemorphs wouldn't be targeted, though. I'm not sure of another way to keep you safe."
She said nothing for a few moments as she tossed the idea around her head, back and forth. The idea of transforming into a pokemorph frightened her inside, but she knew that the Absol was right. If... No, once Mike found the cure, it would be an easily solved problem. Plus, they wouldn't be attacked any more by the other pokemon. She sighed again and then nodded. "I'm up for it." She finally said determinedly. "How about you?" She asked Mike to see if he was willing to infect himself with the virus.
He was also thinking, off to the side. "Fair enough. I could research the changes as they come if we were to change, and get a first had feel for the transformation, as well... might be a bit uncomfortable, but it won't be much of a problem, I'd assume." he shrugged a bit.
The absol nodded a little. "Now it is just a matter of choosing the pokemon to infect you..."
"No Snorlaxs." Kat said immediately before she could stop herself. If that bit them, she doubted that they would have more than half of them still left to transform. She rubbed the back of her head a bit sheepishly because of her sudden comment but the composed herself. "But other then the Snorlax, I'm fine with any sort of pokemon. Though it would be nice if it had claws or something to that nature." She admitted. While she wouldn't need it if what the Absol said was true, she still wanted to have something to protect herself with.
The absol thought a moment. "well, depending on your course of action, you could have many sources of defense... for instance," he moved to the Kecleon, who had sat up and was listening to the conversation, "Kecleon can turn invisible and have both a long tongue and claws." he looked over at shuppet. "Ghost pokemon would make you ghostly, but it's not very convenient for when you can't control the powers. It's up to you, though."
She nodded again. "I'd prefer a ghost pokemon." She decided. She had run a ghost/dark/psychic team before they had all run off, so the thought of being a ghost or any of those types was a little more comforting than being something she couldn't relate to. "What are you going to get scratched by?" She asked him, curious to see what he would choose.
He was still thinking, and then he snapped his fingers. He walked over to the absol and looked down at it, then in a quick motion his hand passed by its horn. It didn't take long before a gash appeared on his hand, then it began to bleed.
"Absol." he said, answering her question as he pulled out a bandage, wrapping it around his hand. That was actually a pretty smart decision, though she hadn't even considered the protector, or noticed his eyes. Never the less she had made her decision and offered her hand out to the Shuppet. It had been listening to the whole conversation and grinned evilly before chomping down on her hand as hard as he could, leaving a row of needle sized holes where his teeth cut in. She flinched slightly and glared at him before sighing. No turning back now. Unlike his wound, she simply left hers to bleed out.
"How long does it normally take for a person to morph?" She asked to either Mike or Absol, whichever of them knew the answer.
"Normally from two to three hours from infection. The actual process is about two hours long." he sighed a little, nodding. "We should set up camp, though, because we'll be out of commission once the changes begin." he said to her.
"Right." She said to him before turning back to the Absol. "Thanks." She thanked him for giving them at least a temporary solution and if not that, for simply hopping into the battle in the first place. Well, now to set up a camp. She looked up at the sky to see the clouds still moving at their snail pace, but moving all the same. Who knew; maybe the storm would blow over, but no sense in risking it. She started gathering up a few sticks, either to make a fire or to make a small lean-to, which ever they needed first.
"No, I don't think we'll need that. Look," Michael pointed a bit down the path, the way they came, where a ladder was leading down to where a small cavern was. It was usually used for a secret hideout, but it could probably serve as a temporary dwelling. He watched the Absol leave and the Kecleon disappear, and then started towards the ladder. She childishly stuck out her tongue while his back was turned, but put some of the sticks down and slipped the rest into her backpack. They could still use it as a fire or something like that she supposed. Shuppet hovered around her until she finally recalled him into his pokeball and followed the boy up the ladder and into the cavern.
----
Hoenn had been quiet for far too long, it had seemed to most. The silence was almost eerie. Something was amiss, however, in the far reaches of the ocean. Team Aqua and Magma had come across new technology at the same time, in an undersea cavern outside sootopolis. They stopped outside the doorway to the final room, and began to fight about who was the rightful owner of the interesting technology. Why both of them wanted it was a mystery, but as they opened the door, they got it.
Spread from the seawater and then transferred into the air, a mysterious miasma traveled out into Hoenn. Humans were unaffected by it, but the pokemon were. It seeped into the pokemon's blood stream and got to their minds, making the pokemon easily angered and violent. This was how it would spread to humans. With even the slightest scratch, humans were at risk from contracting pokemon DNA, and forming a human-pokemon hybrid. Scientists deemed this new species 'pokemorphs'.
A cure is currently being looked into, but so far, nothing has been found. The virus was locked away to keep it from spreading again, but after being tampered with, Team Aqua and Magma had released the virus onto the world.
And they said, "Perfect."
Unaware of the growing storm, a young boy stood on the deck of a ship, which was sailing from mossdeep. He was a pokemon researcher, and had been assigned to help find a cure to the disease that had spread a few days before. he was to go to the mainland and study samples, in order to gain valuable research in hopes it will help for a cure. He was Michael Trent, and that is where the story begins; as his ship lands in lilycove city.
A girl stood near the dock, scanning the crowd for someone in particular. She had been told that there was a researcher or someone like that coming to study the pokemon, for whatever reason. Why anyone would get near them now was beyond her, with the rumors floating about. Still, she had been told by her boss that she was to keep him safe on his little research trip, since she was a pretty strong trainer. What she had failed to tell him was that her pokemon had run off when the disease hit but... Empty pokeballs looked like full ones, and she was desperate to get away from the paperwork she knew she would have been given had she stayed. Suddenly, one of the people caught her eye. There was the good researcher. "'ey!" She called over to him and waved, to try and get his attention.
He glanced over as he heard someone yelling to him, realizing it was his contact. He walked over with a slightly grim smile. "I trust you're the escort the order assigned me, then?" he asked. He wasn't sexist, but when he envisioned a bodyguard he figured they would be more... well, masculine. He shrugged, though, figuring she would have pokemon to help defend them. All of his were stored away in the pokemon center computers.
"Mhm, Kat's the name." She nodded and introduced herself with a grin, looking at him with her dark green eyes. She didn't quite know what to make of him, but all she could hope for is that they were going to go to some nice peaceful spot where trouble would be hard to find. "And you're the researcher. So, where are we headin' out to?" She asked him, leaning slightly back on the railing of the dock and waiting for his answer.
"Please, name's Mike," he waved a hand as she called him 'researcher.' he hated formalities like that; he was the most laid back researcher in mossdeep, some said, because his attitude. "I'm going to be heading into the continent, probably until around... mauville?" he guessed, unsure how far he was expected to go. She sighed inwardly. Mauville, while not the farthest place to go, often had pokemon slinking around in the grass and trees on the routes to it. Ah well, perhaps they would be feeling nice today.
"Alright, so are we goin' to take the long route with the stop in Fortree, or are you looking for a quick way?" She asked him, still smiling in a friendly and confident way, so he wouldn't be able to guess the real situation. She could pretty much guess with her luck, he was going to pick the way with more pokemon along. After all, that was the whole entire reason why he was here right? Still, a girl can hope.
"Well, preferably the route through fortree. I would need to stop in the weather center on the way, anyway," he nodded, and then looked to her. "If that's alright with you, anyway." he added, just in case. She seemed a bit worried, for some reason, but he wasn't quite sure why.
"Fine with me." She replied before getting off the railing. The route through Fortree was harder, yes, but at least there was a small resting point in between where she might be able to 'convince' her friend to part with some of his pokemon. He usually was easily bullied into lending her his Duskull, so she doubted it would be too much of a problem. "Alright, let's get outta here. Unless you need anything to check up on here?" She asked, a little eager to head out so they could reach their destination before the pokemon got too agitated by trainers running through there already.
He shook his head. "I'm good to go." he crossed his arms with a small smile, beginning to walk in the direction of the exit. For a moment he considered changing out of his short sleeved black shirt and into something more durable, in case something attacked them. He would have more defenses against the virus, anyway. In the end, he decided against it as he stopped at the edge of town.
"Then let's move out." She grinned slightly to herself, liking the way that sounded. 'Arg, come on Kat, focus!' the sane part of her mind reminded her but she ignored it for now. Everyone needs a little fun now and then. She walked forward, leading the way through the route and keeping a weary eye out for any pokemon. Her crimson tank top didn't offer up much protection for her either, but hey, pokemon usually went for the legs, right? And her black cargo pants offered more than enough protection for her legs. Still, rather be safe than sorry.
He followed behind her, looking around as he went. His hands were up behind his head as he walked, careful not to get too close to anything. They were heading into the long grass, and anything in there might be angry enough to attack and infect one of them. He hoped the truly dangerous pokemon were out further, as he stepped into the tall grass.
Kat moved forward still, wading through the tall grass carefully. There was nothing really dangerous this far out, only Duskulls and Shuppets, usually. Zigzagoons and Linoones were also common, but she didn't think the disease had made them much bolder than they were. The real trouble would start once they got out a ways, with Absols patrolling the grass, and a few other pokemon she couldn't quite remember. But she tried to make conversation with the researcher, Mike. After all, maybe human voices would scare the bolder pokemon away. "So, just what are you trying to research out here?" She asked him, glancing over from over her shoulder.
He looked back at her from his distractions as she addressed him. Luckily, he had been fully informed of what he was looking for well ahead of time. "I'm investigating pokemon behavior after infection," he explained. "I've also been told to gather blood samples of the virus if possible, but that might be difficult." he stepped over a zigzagoon in his path, shuffling further through the tall grass.
She laughed. "I can imagine. I don't think you'll find a willing subject for that." She said with a grin. A pokemon would be hard to handle without getting scratched and she had never seen one of these so called 'pokemorphs.' Supposedly pokemon could transmit their DNA or something if they were infected. Though she had never personally witnessed it, she had heard gruesome tales.
"Indeed... and if I get infected, there's no cure." he sighed a bit as he walked. "So it would probably be best to just observe, for now." he laughed a little. He had witnessed several changes around the lab, and each was more gruesome than the next. First symptoms of a horrible cold, then flu symptoms, then the changes were worse in themselves. Excruciating pain throughout the body usually knocked out the unfortunate soul infected as the changes progressed, though. He shuddered a bit as he recalled them.
She nodded and smiled. "Don't worry, that's why I'm here, you know." She said, taking out one of her pokeballs and twirling it on her finger before stopping it. "To keep you from getting infected." She reminded him, still holding onto her pokeball as they trudged through the long grass. Even if it was empty, there was some reassurance in holding it, almost like a security blanket. As if by magic her pokemon would reappear and be alright. Well, they were half way there and no incident, so that was good news.
"I'm sure you'll do a fine job, too." he chuckled a little, stopping as they came to a small clearing. He stopped and looked around for a moment, and then blinked. "Feels like... something's watching us." he pondered.
"Huh?" She questioned as she stopped and looked around, suddenly uneasy. Why did she have to jinx it with that thought? She didn't see anything that looked too out of the ordinary, but never ever were you supposed to ignore instinct and now she was aware of it too. "Get in front of me." She said, now in a very serious manner, her eyes still sweeping the area as she gripped her pokeball even tighter. While it may have sounded like she was using him as a shield, a pokemon was more likely to attack from behind, so she was actually protecting him. If it came from the front, he would have a chance to move and react. "Let's hurry; we're sitting ducks in a clearing like this." She said as she started moving forward.
The forest was quiet as they moved slowly out of the clearing. As they left, a small patch of dirt shimmered a bit, then a lizard-like creature faded into view, before fading out again. They wouldn't have seen this, however, as they were looking ahead of themselves. The grass rustled lightly as the wind blew around them, and then the grass abruptly stopped, into a clear path. "Eh?"
She sighed and started to relax as the grass rustled and broke the silence. Even she knew silence in a forest was a bad sign, but at least now there was some noise. And then there was no grass, which meant fewer chances to be attacked. "Hm?" She questioned as he made that noise. "What's up?" She asked, moving so she stood next to him, now that there was room to stand side by side and so she could see whatever had caught his interest.
He took a few steps forward, blinking a little. "What the... this isn't the right route." he muttered. "The safari zone should be this way..." he looked around, blinking."I knew I went that way before once, and the safari zone was right there. Hm..." he walked down some steps, where a puddle was on the ground. He stopped on the edge, blinking a little again.
She groaned and whacked her forehead with the palm of her hand. "Knew I should've gotten that map..." She muttered. Not that it would have done her much good anyhow, she was not very good with directions. Though it figured she ended up right by the safari zone. She turned her back Mike to puzzle at the forest, trying to figure out which way they should go from here. Though a little part of her mind found it a little odd that there was a puddle in the middle of the path, but she figured she was just starting to get paranoid.
He thought hard for a moment as he looked into the puddle, then shook his head. "This isn't the path." he muttered, looking around a little. "This isn't even real, it seems." he put a hand out, as if feeling around as he walked. "Probably a ghost pokemon doing some kind of illusion. They forgot to include reflections."
"Ah... crap. then..." She said. How were they supposed to wander their way out of an illusion? She wasn't all too worried about the ghost pokemon itself; they did things like this all the time so it wasn't all too uncommon. Still, she would like to be able to get out of here before nightfall, when they would feel particularly malicious.
"Have any psychics on you?" She asked him, eyes wandering around the scenery. A psychic pokemon would most likely be able to break the illusion, and she had nothing of the sort.
"Alakazam, but its back in storage." he sighed a bit. "Let's see, though..." he stopped, put his bag down, and opened it up, beginning to shift through the items inside. After a moment, he produced a pokeball. "Alright, ghost pokemon... if my eyes can't find you, the pokeball can," he tossed the ball into the air, straight up. As it went the ball opened, beginning to search for the pokemon meant to be captured with its red energy.
"Huh... that's clever." She remarked, a bit surprised. Never thought of that solution. "Now, let's see if you got a Duskull or a Shuppet, if this disease hasn't screwed around with the places the pokemon hang out anyways." She said with a small smile. While she wasn't very good with the actual directions, she knew what type of pokemon lived where, or perhaps she should say that she used to know. In any case, they lived off of Mt. Pyre and often floated down here.
He chuckled a little, the pokeball finding its target and absorbing the pokemon. As it fell to the ground, the scenery flashed, and then changed to the main road, outside of the safari zone. He walked over to the pokeball, which had stopped flashing, and tossed it to her. She blinked in another look of surprise, but caught it none the less. Had he guessed she was pokemon-less, or was he just being nice? Well, no matter the reason, it was a nice gesture, one that made her smile.
"Thanks." She thanked him with a small bow of her head and a small, embarrassed blush. And here she was supposed to be the one protecting him. Ah well... At least she now had a pokemon. "Alright, let's see who we have to thank for getting us lost." She said, taking her focus off of him and onto the pokemon. She released it in a stream of white light.
"Shuuuuuppet!" It announced itself, floating in the air and slightly glaring at the boy and girl before accepting its position and hovering by its new trainer's shoulder. She grinned, happy it had gone over well, and then she brought up a question. "So, shall we turn around and head back?"
"Head back? We're almost on the right path." he pondered, looking around. "... well, I think." he blinked, and then got confused again. "Maybe we should keep going, though." he sighed, looking up at the sky as a few clouds seemed to have formed, turning things dark quickly. The shuppet had disguised the weather during the illusion, it seemed.
She shook her head. "I meant head back so we could get on the right path again, but... eh... I think I know the way to Fortree from the safari zone so..." She shrugged. He really should just ignore her rambling. She nodded though at his suggestion to get going as she looked at the sky as well, not liking the way the weather was deciding to turn on them. "Then onwards we go!" She said cheerfully and took the lead on what she thought was a path that would lead them to Fortree safely.
He let her take the lead again, putting his hands behind his head as they walked out. The air already felt like rain, but he wouldn't mind as long as they got to Fortree before it was pouring. Behind them, the mysterious figure from before shimmered into view, poking out of the grass and looking out before disappearing again.
Shuppet turned for a moment, thinking he had heard something, but seeing nothing but Mike, he turned back around and shook his head. Now with a ghost pokemon beside them, it didn't seem like any other ghosts were going to attempt to trick them again as the path was laid out clear. At least, so it would seem.
Mike looked up at the shuppet, tilting his head a little. "I wonder what possessed it to make us confused like that." he muttered, ignoring the pun. As they walked, a low bellowing sound echoes around the area, coming from up ahead, where tall grass had popped up again. "What was that?" he muttered.
Kat couldn't help but give a small chuckle at the pun while Shuppet simply gave a small glare to him. "Oh I dunno, ghosts often pull pranks like that so it might've had no reason at all. Then again, you never can tell..." She trailed off, now that he had gotten her thinking, though the bellows quickly interrupted her train of thought.
"I swear, fate plays against us." She shook her head. And of course, they had to wade through here in order to get to Fortree. "Shuppet, make sure nothing touches Mike." She ordered and the pokemon nodded before floating beside the researcher's shoulder.
"Alright, stick close and stay as quiet as possible. I do not want to attract the attention of whatever made that noise." She said now to Mike before muttering "God knows it's probably an angry Ryhorn or something..." to herself before leading them into the tall grass.
He looked around as they started into the grass. Several pokemon were rustling up ahead of them, and one raised its long neck over the grass to look at what was coming. It was a massive Tropius, which were usually seen in the area close by. It gave another bellowing noise and moved closer to the incoming humans, to investigate them. Kat couldn't help a grin. Scared over a Tropius. Wow, she really did have to stop being so paranoid. She visibly seemed to relax as it wandered over to them. They were usually pretty peaceful so there was nothing to worry about. Still, she let Shuppet continue to float beside Mike. No sense in relaxing totally and leaving themselves open for attack.
He moved over to the tropius, looking it in the eye as he moved around it. "Fascinating... it's infected, I can tell, but it's not acting aggressively." he pondered, not getting near enough to touch it, or get touched by it.
"If it's not aggressive, how can you tell?" She asked him as she looked at the Tropius that was looking at them curiously. She also stayed at a distance, now knowing it was infected, but with the news, she wasn't sure what to make of it. It was peaceful, yet diseased... weird. She glanced at the sky while he looked it over; knowing they probably weren't making it to Fortree without getting wet.
"there's only one other symptom of the pokemorph virus in pokemon, aside from aggressiveness..." he motioned to the Tropius, who had leaned back up after finding what they were. "The infected pokemon have pupils that look like their swimming. Murky and grey, you see?" he explained. "Most people notice the other symptom first, though."
She nodded in understanding as she looked at the Tropius' clouded eyes before it started to go. "Huh, strange how it's not aggressive then... You think maybe it's because we didn't startle it?" She mused. After all, they had not given it the slightest reason to attack and so it didn't. But what if somehow, the disease heightened the senses of the pokemon, and that's why they were so much more aggressive, because they perceived more things to be threats. But she wasn't a scientist, and she had more than one crazy theory on the subject so she kept her idea to herself.
He shook his head. "Perhaps. It's worth looking into." he nodded, frowning a little. Suddenly, the Tropius stood in attention, and then turned to leave. Apparently something had startled it, but what, he thought, looking around. The answer was only a second away, though, as a slight flash of lightning went off in the distance. "crap." he muttered.
"Oh joys..." Kat muttered as she noticed the lightning. It would only be a matter of time until they were drenched in water. "Do you happen to have a coat?" She asked him as she moved forward, back on track again. The least they could do would be to try and gain a little ground so they wouldn't be too wet once the rain caught up with them.
"Nope, I don't have a coat," he sighed after looking in his bag. "Knew I forgot something..." he muttered, walking back onto the path and starting off faster.
Suddenly, something black flew at him and landed on his head. "Don't rip it or I'll feed you to some starving Gyarados." She said with a grin over her shoulder as he wore her rain jacket on his head. Well at least he would stay dry. She could deal with a bit of water, no sweat. Indeed, the thunder sounded a bit closer, but that was alright, just a little while longer and they would reach Fortree.
He made a small face, fixing the jacket over him with a bit of difficulty, before he was safe from the oncoming rain. Fortree was just around the corner, when he bumped into something. "Eh?" he blinked, looking around. He put his hand out in front of him wondering what he had bumped into.
"Uh-oh." last time he had said eh, they were lost in Shuppet's illusion. "What's up this time?" She asked, looking to see what had he found this time, eyebrow slightly raised in curiosity.
He blinked again, and then something bumped into him and sent him off balance, making him fall over. "It's something invisible," he said as he got up, looking around. He then realized how futile that was, and sighed, waiting for the next hint of movement.
Now this one she did know. "Kecleon... Urg, annoying little buggers, but I guess there's no getting around it. Alright Shuppet, lets see what you can do." She said before clamping her hands over her ears and gesturing for Mike to do the same.
"Screech." She ordered, hoping to startle the pokemon into changing back to its normal colors so they can see it, or perhaps startle it into leaving. Shuppet grinned before opening his mouth and letting out a horrible wailing noise.Michael gave a small groan as he heard the wailing through his hands, shaking his head when it was over.
The Kecleon blinked a bit into visibility for a moment, and then faded out again. The shimmering outline seemed to hop back, then a multi-colored beam of light fired at shuppet. Kat smiled, happy she was correct in her thought, but now she had to focus on the battle.
"Dodge and put a Curse on it!" She said. Shuppet attempted to move out of the way of the multi-colored light, floating upwards, the bottom of its body touching the beam a bit, making him wince and glare at the shimmering outline, trying to concentrate on it before he closed his eyes and a purple fog seem to swirl around him. Suddenly he opened his eyes and the fog shot forward at the Kecleon, trying to disappear within the pokemon and suck away at its energy.
The kecleon jumped as the curse flew at it, its outline disappearing as the curse missed. Suddenly, several claws appeared in the air, slashing at shuppet to make it back away.
"Shu!" The Shuppet cried out in shock as he backed away, narrowly missing the claws. This was going to be a big problem already, not being able to see his opponent. For right now he floated, careful for the next movement, while Kat tried to figure out how to make the Kecleon visible.
The Kecleon seemed to hop backwards, and then disappeared again. It was quiet for a moment as the pokemon hid, and for a moment nothing happened. Then, Michael's shirt ripped in the middle, and the Kecleon came out of hiding with its claws out. Michael was a bit surprised by the sudden attack, but his weight had shifted a moment before the strike, so the claws hadn't hit him. Luckily, he was wearing her rain coat open, so it wasn't hit.
"Shuppet!" Kat said, as the sudden attack on Mike took her by surprise. He swooshed over and hovered in front of spot that Kecleon had attacked. He let out a Shadow ball to fend off the pokemon, if it was still in front. Kat cursed in her head. This wasn't good at all, an invisible pokemon and she hadn't seen its eyes so she had no idea if it was diseased or not. How she wished she had her Umbreon or Drowzee right now...
The kecleon jumped, the shadow ball hitting the ground where it had been standing before. As it landed, it disappeared again, but before it could completely get hidden, it was knocked aside by a black horn, an absol charging in and bashing the lizard-like pokemon away. This was an interesting turn of events, but Kat wasn't going to complain as she saw a moment of opportunity. "Shuppet, shadow ball again." She commanded and the ghost pokemon conjured up another ball and launched it at the spot where the Kecleon was landing, so it wouldn't have a chance to get back up an attack.
The absol turned, and then jumped in front of the shadow ball. Being a dark pokemon itself, the ball stopped as it neared the absol, and then was shot off to the side. A voice echoed around their heads as the absol communicated.
'Calm yourselves, humans. This pokemon does not mean you true harm, it is the work of the virus.' it said soothingly. Shuppet glared, upset that his attack had been neutralized, but he could already tell that challenging the Absol was a very bad idea. Still, he kept his eye on the spot where the Kecleon fell and continuing to hover in front of the boy, making sure that it didn't try and attack again.
Kat blinked and shook her head slightly as she heard the voice. Was it her being delusional, or did that pokemon just talk? Since she had never heard voices before, she was going to assume the second one. "Sorry about that." She apologized very quickly. "Still, it means us harm all the same; virus or no virus and I have a job to protect him." She added and gestured to Mike, though by the look of his shirt, she had certainly failed to do a very good job of it.
"As protector of the pokemon in the area, perhaps it would be best if you do not challenge me," the absol advised, baring his fangs slightly. "These pokemon are being hurt needlessly because of fear of the virus. If anyone is to be harmed, it should be the ones who caused this madness." the absol growled a little, but not at them.
"Can't disagree with that, though I'm not exactly sure of who's to blame." Kat said. She had a few guesses, but since it had simply swept all of Hoenn, there was no evidence it was Team Rocket, Magma, or any team at all. "In any case, I don't want to needlessly hurt the pokemon either but if we're attacked, we can't simply sit back." She said in a less persistent tone so it wouldn't take it as a challenge, simply a statement.
The absol bowed his head a little in thought, and then looked up again. "Negotiations would work. That is how former trainers calmed the Tropius earlier on today. Sadly, one was still infected." he sighed a bit, the noise coming out like a bark. "While I can't advise this, your best method of protecting would be to bond with a pokemon with the virus." he glanced between them a moment. "Once you're infected, the other pokemon won't attack you normally, and then you won't worry about more infection." he said, scratching a claw in the dirt a bit.
She blinked a few times to let the information sink in fully. "So, in other words, the best way to keep away from attacks is to allow the Kecleon to scratch me?" She repeated, before closing her eyes and sighing. Well... That was just perfect. She shivered a little recalling the stories she had heard about the transformations that took place when a person was scratched or bitten. "Is there any other way?" She asked hopefully, though she didn't expect there to be.
"Not the Kecleon, per say," the absol shook his head. "Any pokemon infected would work. Depending on personal preference, I suppose." he paced around a bit. "I have heard talk from pokemon that this boy is a researcher for the cure to the virus," he nudged his head at Michael. "If this is true, then getting infected would be easily solved once the cure is found." he offered. "But, the virus is made to make pokemon target humans. Pokemorphs wouldn't be targeted, though. I'm not sure of another way to keep you safe."
She said nothing for a few moments as she tossed the idea around her head, back and forth. The idea of transforming into a pokemorph frightened her inside, but she knew that the Absol was right. If... No, once Mike found the cure, it would be an easily solved problem. Plus, they wouldn't be attacked any more by the other pokemon. She sighed again and then nodded. "I'm up for it." She finally said determinedly. "How about you?" She asked Mike to see if he was willing to infect himself with the virus.
He was also thinking, off to the side. "Fair enough. I could research the changes as they come if we were to change, and get a first had feel for the transformation, as well... might be a bit uncomfortable, but it won't be much of a problem, I'd assume." he shrugged a bit.
The absol nodded a little. "Now it is just a matter of choosing the pokemon to infect you..."
"No Snorlaxs." Kat said immediately before she could stop herself. If that bit them, she doubted that they would have more than half of them still left to transform. She rubbed the back of her head a bit sheepishly because of her sudden comment but the composed herself. "But other then the Snorlax, I'm fine with any sort of pokemon. Though it would be nice if it had claws or something to that nature." She admitted. While she wouldn't need it if what the Absol said was true, she still wanted to have something to protect herself with.
The absol thought a moment. "well, depending on your course of action, you could have many sources of defense... for instance," he moved to the Kecleon, who had sat up and was listening to the conversation, "Kecleon can turn invisible and have both a long tongue and claws." he looked over at shuppet. "Ghost pokemon would make you ghostly, but it's not very convenient for when you can't control the powers. It's up to you, though."
She nodded again. "I'd prefer a ghost pokemon." She decided. She had run a ghost/dark/psychic team before they had all run off, so the thought of being a ghost or any of those types was a little more comforting than being something she couldn't relate to. "What are you going to get scratched by?" She asked him, curious to see what he would choose.
He was still thinking, and then he snapped his fingers. He walked over to the absol and looked down at it, then in a quick motion his hand passed by its horn. It didn't take long before a gash appeared on his hand, then it began to bleed.
"Absol." he said, answering her question as he pulled out a bandage, wrapping it around his hand. That was actually a pretty smart decision, though she hadn't even considered the protector, or noticed his eyes. Never the less she had made her decision and offered her hand out to the Shuppet. It had been listening to the whole conversation and grinned evilly before chomping down on her hand as hard as he could, leaving a row of needle sized holes where his teeth cut in. She flinched slightly and glared at him before sighing. No turning back now. Unlike his wound, she simply left hers to bleed out.
"How long does it normally take for a person to morph?" She asked to either Mike or Absol, whichever of them knew the answer.
"Normally from two to three hours from infection. The actual process is about two hours long." he sighed a little, nodding. "We should set up camp, though, because we'll be out of commission once the changes begin." he said to her.
"Right." She said to him before turning back to the Absol. "Thanks." She thanked him for giving them at least a temporary solution and if not that, for simply hopping into the battle in the first place. Well, now to set up a camp. She looked up at the sky to see the clouds still moving at their snail pace, but moving all the same. Who knew; maybe the storm would blow over, but no sense in risking it. She started gathering up a few sticks, either to make a fire or to make a small lean-to, which ever they needed first.
"No, I don't think we'll need that. Look," Michael pointed a bit down the path, the way they came, where a ladder was leading down to where a small cavern was. It was usually used for a secret hideout, but it could probably serve as a temporary dwelling. He watched the Absol leave and the Kecleon disappear, and then started towards the ladder. She childishly stuck out her tongue while his back was turned, but put some of the sticks down and slipped the rest into her backpack. They could still use it as a fire or something like that she supposed. Shuppet hovered around her until she finally recalled him into his pokeball and followed the boy up the ladder and into the cavern.
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Chapter End Notes:
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended, and is applicable for all consecutive chapters that follow.