a/n: Shit happens, but so does recovery. I think I'm back on track now that life events are looking up.

Also: Yesterday marks one year since I first published this story. So yay! But I still have a ways to go, so bear with me friends!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

Chapter 13: Gaining

[Previously…]

"This seems… unnatural," Mark commented.

"I agree," said Victoria.

"What did he say, dear?" Charles asked.

'Dear? Why is he calling her that?'

"His nightmare seems unnatural," Victoria repeated.

"Unnatural, you say?"

'I thought he couldn't understand them perfectly?' I thought.

[…]

Before I could say anything back, Charles made his presence clear.

"Melanie?" he asked. The dragoness looked at him and her eyes widened.

"Charles is that you?" she asked. I looked between the two wondering what kind of situation I was in now.

"How long has it been?" Charles asked.

"30 years… I think," Melanie responded alongside a hug.

[…]

"I've had about enough of this bullshit. You know, just when I think I'm about to get closer, and closer, to achieving my goal, the same fucking thing always happens. I'm always knocked back. I take one step forward, and get pushed 2 miles back."

[…]

"Nothing has changed…

…because my choices led me here…"

[…]

I drank from the bottle sip after sip. Those sips turned into shots, and shots into chugs. Sooner than I realized, the bottle was out and I was hammered. I don't remember much from that night. There was a face and a body that gave me the release I needed, but I couldn't put an identity on it.

[…]

"Michael… can we… talk?" Melanie asked.

Something inside of me wanted to answer the door. It wanted to yell at her for being a hindrance – to hug her for coming back for him – to close it again to make some sort of statement. However, I couldn't gather the strength and inner-fortitude to accomplish that task. Whatever it was inside me that wanted to act, it wasn't me. It would be foolish of me to listen to ideas which were not formulated inside my mind – which was too broken in the first place.

"Michael?" She asked again through our bond. I, again, see this thing as a curse. I could ignore her all day long just by shoving a pillow over my head, by going to sleep, or just waiting until she left. Aura was different – it is a part of you, and something tugging on you cannot simply go unnoticed. It was as if somebody pulled on a single strand of hair, or blew into my ear, or even brushing my unit. After enough time of the same action, something has to be done… unless weird folk like the former two.

"… Go away," I told Melanie.

"I just want to talk," she replied.

"About what? I've already said enough to all of you. What more is there to discuss?"

There was a moment of silence between the two of us. Her aura was still present, but she felt as if she was thinking heavily. So much, in fact, that I wished there was some way to cut the connection so I can have true peace and quiet.

"It's been a month," she responded, "Chance missed you…"

"Then he could've come over and be disappointed himself," I stated dully. I could feel her anger beginning to rise, but to my shock, she looked like she was shoving it aside. The next thing I knew, I heard a click at the door and Melanie walked through. I should've guessed for a psychic dragon.

"I'm glad we aren't at the island if this is how you take care of yourself," she scoffed as she looked around the room. I could tell she was trying to crack a joke… but she was still horrible at jokes. That notion didn't make the pain any less further away.

"I see you're still as forceful as ever," I replied. Her expression wavered off into small regret.

"I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

"Yet here you are."

Another period of silence rolled through and the only action she took was shutting the door behind her.

"Michael, why are you so distant suddenly? Why are you acting like this?"

"I'm not acting," I argued, "I'm just… I don't know. Just leave me be."

"Come with me. Come back to us; we could still find a way to get you back-"

"And then what?!" I shouted. "What would happen then?! I've been lying to myself this entire time by telling myself that there is a reason I need to return. But with everything that's happened, I don't know if I can hang on to what I want to do. What I need to do!"

Melanie's face lost her hope and her eyes became downcast.

"So you're just going to abandon us because you think we'll hold you back? Because you think we have nothing to offer you?"

"That's not," I hesitated, "what I meant-"

"Well, what did you mean?! Every time you speak, ten different meanings fly out of your mouth. I don't know what you want. None of us do! If you could tell us all, whether you want revenge, or whether you just want to clear your name, then we can help you. But you cannot do this without help. You are in an unfamiliar world with powers you don't know how to control; yet, you wish to carry on this crusade by yourself."

I stood up and walked to the window. The rain continued to fall; leaving the outside scenery concealed from my vision.

"All I ever wanted, since my father passed away, was for my life to just turn around. I just wanted to be happy. I wanted some sort of joy to take away that pain. But there's always gonna pain to take away my joy. I never wanted any of this. I don't know the… the causal factor in my coming here, but I just wish it never happened."

"I don't know if anyone has told you this yet," Melanie said, "But you need to move on. It's too late to change what has happened. There is no possible chance for you to go back in time and change that, so there is no reason for you to think about it. Everyone that's dead is already dead, but what about us, Michael? What about the people that are alive and next to you in this moment? You can definitely change that for the better." She paused as she collected her next words. "You once told me that you hated all the sad attitudes, so end yours right now."

God, I just wanted to smack her for her insolence. She dared to come to me and tell me how to live my life?

"Move on? Move on?! How can I move on?! How can I just forget those people! I tried moving on, and you know what happened? YOU! You happened! I left to move on and you come back into my goddammed life! For what: to give me direction? I don't need any! I don't need your help! I didn't need anyone's help with my life! I became the best soldier without anyone pushing me! There was no one to lean back on. I worked, with blood gushing out of my mouth, to survive, and there was no one there to acknowledge it! I became the best, because of the memory of the people I loved that died! I got where I was because I didn't move on!"

I paused to catch my breath, allowing the sound of the rain to flood into the room.

"But you," I said, "You had everything. You had-"

"Everything?" Melanie repeated. "You think I had the perfect life? Is that what this is about?"

"Don't deny it."

"Do you know what it's like? Being immortal? Living and watching everyone you built a relationship with wither away into the past? I never had everything. I could hardly even establish a relationship with someone."

"I think it's because no one could stand your bitchy attitude," I interjected.

"That's not the point!"

"Then what is, Melanie? Is the point, that your life is worse than mine?"

"Charles was right," she said with her hand against her forehead. I chuckled.

"Oh of course. It all comes back to Charles, now doesn't it?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You and that old bastard have been chummy since the moment your eyes met. 'It's been thirty years'," I mocked. "Evidently my life would have gravitated back to you even if you didn't show up."

"Charles is just an old friend," she tried to establish.

"Hey," I said holding my hands up. "I don't give a rat's ass what you two do in bed. Why don't you go fuck him right now? That might cheer you up."

"That's enough!" she yelled. "I can't take this anymore; if you can't get over this façade, then I'll have no choice but to do it for you."

I leaned towards her and said, as calm as a breeze, "try me, you chimera bit-"

I was unable to finish my sentence due to a terrible pain coursing through my head. It reminded me of when I had been injected with the aura serum, but it was worse at the same time. My hands clenched the sides of my head and pulled on my scraggly hair to even out the pain.

Visions of war and chaos churned through my eyes as I watched scenes of battles I had never experienced play out like they were real. They came in fragments like memories, but each were so pure that I might as well have pressed pause and studied the contents.

It showed a world run to the ground from war. Bodies upon bodies, human bodies, piled on top of each other creating mountains of corpses under a red dusk. Atop those mounds were monsters of likes I had never seen – monsters that couldn't even exist in this world.

I was then shown a large meteor heading into the world's atmosphere, though it appeared organic rather than solid material. Hands reached out from the world welcoming it like the second coming of Jesus.

Next were four silhouettes standing upon a mound of bodies. One resembled a soldier from the future with a multitude of advanced technology. Another resembled a western outlaw holding a staff. The next two stood side by side, resembling the first person, holding their hands.

The next image was of multiple masks scattered across a floor. Each with a different expression, but the same structure. A mask was hung on top of a wall that was painted with blood. The blood was painted as a message saying, 'Glory to the New World. Glory to Alexander.'

It all stopped as suddenly as it had arrived and I stood still with an expression of shock and fear on my face. I was about to speak when another flash of images came through. Though… these were different. They were all a ceiling with a fan running in circles. I couldn't move my head, but I could hear a voice whispering to me – calling out to me. Same with the first set of images, these stopped just as suddenly.

The next thing I know, I'm on the floor with Melanie holding me up against her. Her mouth was moving, but I heard no words. All I could hear was a constant ringing for a while. I couldn't even move my body. I just laid there with Melanie trying to bring me back from whatever it was I had experienced.

Eventually, my senses came to and I was able move, breathe, and speak.

I looked into her eyes once more and whispered, as if the last 10 minutes of conversation never existed, "What's happening to me?"

"I don't know," she replied frightened to the core. "I-I tried to look into your mind and…"

"What? What did you see?" I asked.

"I couldn't see anything. Michael, I can't see inside you."

The way she said it was so terrifying that I began to shake slightly.

"What do you mean? Aren't you psychic?"

"I am… but…"

"But what, Melanie?!"

She reached her hand towards my head and I, once again, began to convulse in pain.

My vision went dark and a pair of red eyes and brass teeth looked at me with grave intention.

"I wanted to see you," an eerie child's voice called out. "I've searched for so long, but I could never find you. Now that I have, there is no one that could take you away from-"

Before I knew it, I was staring into a pair of eyes that were a darker shade than what I had just seen. They were Victoria's eyes.

"Michael," she asked, "Are you alright?"

I took me a moment to come to my senses and notice that the pain had disappeared. I nodded my head and stood up. I looked around the room to see Melanie on the ground being comforted by Charles, Chance, and Riolu.

Mark and Victoria were at my side, but, when I looked around the room, I realized that something horrible must have happened. The place was a mess. The mattress was torn to shreds and the windows were shattered, allowing the rain to fall inside the room. The walls were cracked and torn and the door was open with citizens outside peering in with mouths agape.

"What happened?" I asked.

"You did this, you son of a bitch!" Charles said as he came and introduced his fist to my face. I was sent back down while Victoria began to growl at Charles.

"Charles, calm down," Melanie said exhaustedly. Riolu barked at her, probably something along the lines of, 'Stay down, you're not well yet.'

"No," Charles spat back. He brought this plague upon us."

"We can fix it," Melanie assured.

"Back away, Charles," Victoria warned.

"You trust him, over me?" Charles asked.

"What is going on here?" a new voice entered the room. Immediately, all eyes went to the front door and four of us were thoroughly surprised.

"Nadira?" I asked.

"Michael?" Nadira asked.

"Nadine?" Charles asked.

"You?" Melanie asked.

"Dad!" Nadira exclaimed.

"Dad?!" Melanie and I asked.

"Nancy!" Victoria exclaimed.

"Tori!" Nadira exclaimed.

Victoria ran to Nadira and the two hugged in a small and apparent reunion.

"Wait, you're his daughter?" I asked the newcomer.

"You two know each other?" Charles asked with a hint of aggression in his voice.

"Yeah, Dad," Nadira responded. "We met during the Solar and Lunar festival in Mossdeep."

"You never said you had a daughter," Melanie commented.

"Yeah, I just caught up with you a few days ago, and you," Charles pointed out at me, "You have explaining to do."

"I think all of you do," another new voice said; though, this one was more masculine.

We all, once again, turned our heads to the source to see, what appeared to be, a police officer. His eyes scoured the room and a look of horror and utter disgust fell upon his face when he looked at the beasts in the room.

He picked up his radio and spoke into it, "I need two Chimera Squads at Fortree Inn. One absol, two dogs, and one… acorn."

"I am no mindless seed!" Mark rattled at the cop.

"I need all humans to please get to one side of the room," he ordered.

"No, you're misunderstanding-" Nadira tried.

"Back away NOW!" he barked.

"No," Melanie stated. "They have done nothing wrong."

"Ma'am," the officer said while placing his hand on his hip, "I need you to follow my orders if you don't want to get hurt."

"The only one that's going to hurt us is you!"

At the time, I was still disoriented from the previous events, but I stepped forward to make a remark.

"Officer, none of my friends, are responsible for this. I am."

"Michael, what are you doing?" Melanie asked through telepathy.

"I'm telling them the truth." I turned my head to look her in the eye. "Seeing as I'm the only one whoever does." As I finished speaking to her, I flicked my hand in order to produce an aura sphere.

However, I became distressed and confused when nothing happened. I flicked my arm again with the same result. I looked around the room and even outside with all eyes on me.

I closed my eyes and attempted to activate my aura, only to see the blackness of my eyelids.

"That's… that can't be right," I whispered to myself.

"Michael?" Melanie asked. I was too occupied on what was happening to even consider or respond to her question.

"Shu," the officer said, "Wubre un da'eng?"

For a moment, I was stunned by his speech. Everything was happening so fast that I felt as if I was going to faint.

"Victoria?" I tried asking. I was only met with a whimper and several purrs. I asked Mark and Chance as well, only to hear a series of rattles and mews. I tried to ask Nadira what was going on, but she only looked at me as if I was speaking gibberish.

"You lost your aura…" Charles said heavily. I looked at him with a shred of hope and grabbed onto his shirt.

"Can you understand me?" I asked him. He nodded and I felt slightly relieved. I looked to Melanie and she only shook her head.

"Michael… can you understand me?" she asked through telepathy. I nodded in response, and she sighed thankfully.

The officer then began to speak his strange language towards Charles.

"He's… asking what you are trying to say… and that you don't speak any language of Indigo."

Is that what they meant by Indigo? Whenever anybody mentioned language, I assumed they just had another term for English.

It all clicked in my head once I brought aura into the equation. Back when Melanie and I visited Sootopolis, she told me to remain quiet because I couldn't speak the native language. It was when I understood them perfectly that something seemed off. And all the times I heard others cursing and that 'Arn' fellow mentioning dialects.

It all came together in one word: aura. I was able to, not only understand other languages, but to speak them fluently to others while I retained the thought of simply speaking English.

As I thought more on the idea, three more men in uniform arrived with cages.

"Kek li mer tohli ron," the first officer said. Before I could even guess what they were trying to say, two of the men barged in and grabbed Mark and Chance. Victoria and Riolu began to resist as the third moved towards them.

"Victoria, easy," Charles tried to order.

"Fyep!" Nadira screamed, only for her voice to go unnoticed.

I tried to move and stop them, but the exhaustion of the recent events as well as losing my aura caught up to me, and I became a useless heap on the ground. I then heard the sound of electricity and looked up to find both Victoria and Riolu electrocuted by stun guns. Both passed out quickly and Melanie stood in front of them. Even without aura, I could tell she was about to do something as drastic as showing everyone what she was.

I was right, but just as her golden wings unsheathed themselves, she too was shot by the stun gun. Charles then began to voice his anger in this turn of events, but the first officer pulled a sidearm on his face, effectively silencing the guardian. Nadira looked at the scene helpless, just as I was.

In a span of several minutes, all pokemon were taken into custody and the hotel room was left with only Nadira, Charles, and I. It all happened so fast that I was unable to recall what had even happened.

I began to fell nauseated. Losing my powers and having almost everyone taken from me felt all too familiar. Charles cursed into the air and left the room in a storm, and Nadira came to my side and helped me up. The motion was too much as I hurled the alcohol from last night onto the floor, causing Nadira to slip and drop me.

I hit my head on one of the bottles and the day ended with my unconsciousness.

"Don't worry. No one can hurt us anymore."

I awoke with a cold sweat, a feeling that's becoming more and more of a habit. The bed I was on was warm and smelled sweet like berries. As I looked around, I became aware that night had fallen, but the rain continued its downpour.

I felt sick; every muscle in my body throbbed in pain as I shuffled around in the sheets. I could hardly move without feeling discomfort, but I wasn't the only one moving. I felt another entity shift positons under the sheets next to me. It was human, and naked. Its skin was soft and warmed me to the core. I had forgotten, after so many trials of misfortune, what it felt like to sleep next to another human being.

Disregarding the pain, I turned over and lifted the sheets to find a mess of silky, black hair that could only belong to one person. As I lifted the sheets higher, I was able to look further down and discover that this person was completely in the nude. Normally, I would have savored this moment in my memory and stared to my hearts content. I might have even gone to cop a feel, but something in me, aside from my condition, didn't feel right.

So, I covered Nadira's body with the sheets and went to crawl out of the bed, only to discover that I, too, was naked. I didn't have the luxury of comfort to wonder why I was like that, so I walked on over to the bathroom.

I turned on the sink and let the water warm up as I looked into the mirror. There were many things to say, one being the red forehead, and another being the bump growing from the same, but one opinion was formulated best out of all the features in that glass reflection of me: I was a mess.

My eyes, bloodshot from the alcohol and illness, drooped in tiresome. My mouth was crusty with what could have been either drool or vomit, and I prayed for the former. My nose dripped with mucus, and yet, felt as dry as the Sonora desert. I drop of liquid began to leak through my nostril until it came to a single point on the tip of my nose. The red substance, as uncomfortable as can be, dripped into the sink and washed away with the running water.

An urge, more powerful than hormonal desire and the need to hurt those I hate combined, formed in the pit of my stomach and branched through my esophagus. I had luckily made it to the toilet bowl in time, but the feeling was none the better. I began to tear up from the bile's sting as well as the lack of air entering my lungs.

For two hours, I remained at that bowls side and let the illness drain out of me in more than one way. When I felt that I had finally finished, I turned on the shower and stepped in. The water was hot, but not enough to burn my skin. I stepped in and let the filth wash away from my exterior as I simultaneously scratched my balls and my ass.

I looked up and opened my mouth to let the water come in and wash the leftover vomit out. I shuddered as a small amount of the substance crept back into my stomach.

I felt weak, so terribly weak. I spent two hours excreting waste from both my mouth and my colon, and the shower did nothing to replenish my vitality. I had forgotten how it felt to be normal, to be useless, to be susceptible to any threat or emotion on the planet. The worst part was that I wasn't truly over it.

I quickly shoved aside the curtains and threw myself into the mouth of the porcelain throne. There, I lost more and more of my life and my motivation to continue onward. With everything that happened – with what I remembered – it was hard to continue.

But was it something I really had to do? I flushed the toilet and went to the mirror, letting the water drip down from my body without a care in the world. I wiped the steam off and looked into the reflection of something. I couldn't tell what it was, but I didn't see it as human. It was less than human – something that both didn't deserve death, but didn't deserve life. It was half-human, half-alive. It was something that neither man nor beast can identify, but know enough to steer clear.

What was it called? Was it monster? Or was it thing? Maybe it was something worse, but it definitely wasn't able to be human. What has it done? Has it accomplished anything? Has it conquered its demons? Its goals? Had it given life? Had it pleased Death?

One thing was for certain: I looked at it with malice, because I hated it more than anything. How could it continue on with everything it had already fucked up? It wasn't God – it couldn't fix everything with a snap of its fingers. At this point, it couldn't fix anything.

But, it thought about those that had tried to help it. It considered the sentiment they tried to bring across its crosshairs. It thought about Chance, and the unconditional love he gave it. It thought about Mark, and the wisdom he shared with it. It thought about Victoria, and the comfort she provided when it was down. It thought about Charles, and his training that strengthened it. It looked outside and thought about Nadira who slept soundly. It thought about how much she must have cared to nurse it to health.

Finally, it thought about Melanie. It thought about the first time they met each other's eyes. It thought about how golden and full of life she was. It thought about her promise to help it. It thought about her grace when she flew with the sunrise. It thought about her smile that brought upon its. It thought about her laugh, and how genuine it was.

Finally, I thought about her relentless effort to take me under her wing and help me getting home. How could I not help them after what they've done for me? I wiped the steam off the mirror, once again, and looked into the eyes of the half-human. A small smile crept on my face, and I gave a slight chuckle before heading back into the shower. Before I entered the hot rinse, I looked back towards the toilet and studied the substance I had created.

It was too late to change the past, and – like words – I couldn't take back what was forced out of me. I spit into the toilet and flushed the bile away.

I laughed once again, this time much more hearty, because my spirits began to lift upwards. And, the one thing that did so, was looking at a pile of vomit.

When I exited the bathroom, I found Nadira sitting up, the blanket wrapped around her, drinking a cup of coffee. She looked up at me and smiled. She knew she couldn't communicate with me, but I didn't need words to understand her happiness with my feeling better. Furthermore, she didn't need words to understand that my smile was meant to thank her for her assistance in doing so.

I had noticed that the rain had stopped, and the dawn's light began to flood the room, illuminating Nadira in a way I had never imagined. He skin was smooth, and her face, was detailed perfectly to reflect the image of beauty. Lastly, her hazel eyes glowed like lights in a dark alley.

I walked up to her in silence and took her coffee out of her hands. Placing it on the table, I looked back to her and held up a hand for her to take. She did so and stood up, allowing the blanket to fall on the bed and her body to be fully illuminated by the sun.

I scanned her body up and down thoroughly, appreciating the beauty that she had hidden under those sheets. Now that it was out in the open, I thought she would be embarrassed, but she wasn't shy in the least. She was confident, and she took the first move. She firmly placed her hands on the side of my head and began to kiss me in a passionate manner. Our lips were locked sealing away the desire that came out of our mouths.

She slipped her tongue into the mix and began to move against mine like a fiery dance for dominance, but I was no child. I stood my ground and, soon enough, thoroughly convinced her to give in. My tongue moved in her like unexplored territory. She was soft, as were her moans.

As our faces merged together, so did our hands with the others' body. One of her hands moved down to my chest as she kept the other softly on my neck. They too were soft and gentle, as if she thought I was a porcelain figure that needed care not to break. She traced a finger around my ear, making the experience all the more pleasurable until I felt my body fall on the bed. The lustrous woman climbed on top of me and resumed her assault.

My hands moved up and down conquering every inch off skin on her body. She was smooth, and free of hair. As I felt the warmth of her body bleed into mine, I worried that my hands were a bit too cold for her and pulled away – only for her to grab them and slap them forcefully onto her ass. I took it as permission to increase the pace and grabbed her rump with vigor. She pulled away slightly to release her seductive song, but left herself vulnerable. I took advantage of her position to take control of her chest. Her tits were round and had a bit of softness to them, but they were ripe with young firmness. I moved my mouth to one and began to kiss and caress the nipple, causing her to moan loudly with pleasure and hold my head to her chest even harder. With the other breast, I gently, yet with purpose, placed my index finger and my thumb on her nipple and tugged like a teething pup.

Her hips began to rotate on my pelvis, causing an uncomfortable sensation to rise in my full-grown length. I tried pulling away to focus on getting her hips higher onto my stomach, but she greedily forced me back in a type of order I just couldn't refuse. So, I settled for the middle-ground and flipped our positions so I was on top and she on bottom. I still continued my advance on her breasts, but my now-stagnant hand found new purpose in discovering her lower regions.

I swiped a single finger across the top of her slit, now soaked with juices, and – while still sucking on her melon – watched as her back arched and a loud moan erupted from her mouth. With the same finger, I began to circle around her clit and added two more to the mix as Nadira became accustomed to the feeling. When I saw her hands reach up to grab on the mattress above her head, I took the advantage to bring my head down her body and closer to the core of her ecstasy.

This time, she let me go and I found my mouth inches away from the sweet sight of her lower lips. My fingers continued to tease her sensitive spot, but it was time for me to enjoy the meal. Without a hint of hesitation, I brought forward my head and began to dig in to the nectar she provided. Like a bee to a flower, I lapped up the juices and enjoyed my presence there. My beard absorbed the excess and became soaked like a wet sponge.

It was so warm, and sweet like honey. There was no pubic hair getting in the way and the scent of her pussy sent me into a state of primal lust. I grabbed both of her legs and pushed my mouth further into her slit. I left no area untouched as my tongue tasted her walls like a savage glutton.

The longer I ate her out, the louder she screamed. Her legs then crossed over behind my head and she began to squeeze. The pain was nothing compared to the ensnaring appeal of her taste. As I stuck my tongue deep into her canal, I felt her legs increase the pressure on my head. I could no longer hear, but I knew she was getting close.

Without delay, I inserted two fingers into her slit and began to probe both my tongue and chin inside as well. All four went in and out repeatedly until I felt her walls tightening around my fingers and a hot liquid shooting out into my mouth. Her legs had tightened so much I thought that my head would pop, but as her climax died down, so did the energy in her legs.

I stood up with my face and my chest drenched in her juices. I looked at her exhausted body breathing heavily. Her arms were up at her sides and sweat glistened her forehead. I watched fervently as her chest rose and fell with her breathing. Her hips twitched every now and then with the aftershock of her orgasm and her legs were drained of all vitality. She looked so helpless, so vulnerable.

She looked me in the eye, nodded, and – with the rest of her energy – beckoned me with a curl of her fore finger to fulfill my own desire. There was no time to spare as I lined up my throbbing member with her soaked entrance. Without warning, I penetrated her easily. She was tight – oh God, she was tight. I had a difficult time trying not to cum then and there, but a few seconds thinking of Rose O'Donnell fixed the issue.

I thrust my hips in and out like pistons powering a large locomotive, and there was no stopping this train. I squeezed, groped, grabbed, spank, and pulled every inch of skin within reach as I fucked her. It wasn't long before Nadira began to moan again in bliss. She grabbed one of her tits in one hand while rubbing her clit with the other.

Growing tired of this position, I flipped her over on her stomach without taking myself out of the game. She knew thee drill and got to her knees, but I pulled on both her hands to keep her head in the mattress. My heart began to beat faster, and sweat started to form all over my body. Meanwhile, Nadira's screams continued to get louder and louder. I smacked her ass several times and became even more excited watching her tan skin turn red.

All of a sudden, I was kicked onto my back. When I looked up, the black-haired beauty was preparing to straddle me and I rushed my hand over to my rod to ease the process. I could tell that she had done this before. As a matter of fact, it was a no brainer that this wasn't her first time. Because, when I re-entered her, her hips moved in ways that were alien to me, yet I had never felt as stimulated as this. She moved in large circles and played with her tits as she rode me to kingdom come. I decided to join in the fun when she smacked my hands away and brought her lips onto my neck.

There, she began to lick and nibble on my earlobe as her movements changed from circles to back and forth. I could barely see her back arching as she pushed her body onto mine, but it was nonetheless erotic. I grabbed ahold of her back, positioned my legs, and began thrusting myself in and out of her at an alarming rate. I bit on her neck, an action that was rewarded with a pleasurable gasp. She looked me in the eyes and moved her mouth to the side of my head where she whispered something so unfamiliar, yet so horny that I couldn't help but be thrown over the edge.

I forcefully grabbed on to one of her tits and played with it violently – an act that she was surprisingly okay with. I began to move faster and faster in her until I heard her scream sweet honey into the air and her walls clamped around my length. I couldn't take the feeling any longer and climaxed into her, allowing her to milk the seed I spurted inside.

I felt as if a large weight was lifted off my chest as the sensation of our simultaneous orgasm filled our bodies – one more than the other. We sat in that position with her over me for several minutes, catching our breath and basking in the sunlight.

"That… was nice," I heard myself say. I felt her mumbling something into my chest, so I picked her head up and looked at her repeating the same thing.

"Lo… engrid," she said between breaths. I chuckled and kissed her before gently laying her off to the side.

It was a fun experience, one I'm sure to remember and cherish in this hell of a world, but I had other problems. The largest of which was getting everyone out of whatever prison they were keeping them.

"First I have to ask Charles to help me."

"No," Charles denied straightforwardly. I sunk my head, but kept eye contact with him to see if he was joking. If the two shots he drank in a row was any indicator, he wasn't.

"You're not going to help them?" I asked with a hint of malice. It was bad enough that Charles was drinking this early in the morning, but for him to refuse to help Melanie…

"It's not that I don't want to, but it's a very bad idea to do it."

"How so? You're the only one who can translate and it's not like I'm going to break in and steal everyone," I said honestly.

"I know, that's probably your backup plan," he said while waving the bartender for another drink.

"It probably is- that's not the point!" I yelled, much louder than I intended. I looked around to find the treefolk staring at me. Soon enough, they began to mind their own business and so could I./

"Don't bullshit me, you care for Melanie. Victoria too," I reasoned with him.

"And what makes you say that?"

"The fact that when you and Melanie laid eyes on each other, the first thing you said was 'it's been thirty years,' that right?" I asked. He put a finger up to rebut, but I went on ahead, "Also, I overheard you and Victoria talking about me when I was passed out."

"What's wrong with me talking to a pokemon? I'm a Guardian," he tried to state like it was an obvious oversight.

"How about the fact that, when I still had my aura and could understand Victoria, I heard her talking and you understood what she was saying. You also called her dear," I stated. There was no way he could deny it. He would have to be the most idiotic, stubborn, and contradicting man I know.

He swallowed the rest of his mug, payed up front, and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh come on!" I exclaimed. "Are you really just going to pretend that I don't see something you know is there?" He began to walk away when I grabbed his hand and pulled.

He looked at me with deathly eyes and said, "Don't forget, I'm the one with power over you-" I spat in his face before he could finish and gave him a good right cross.

"You don't forget that I don't give a fuck who's more powerful than I am. Since when did you become such a coward. Aren't you a soldier? A warrior? How are you supposed to be a guardian if you aren't able to guard the things you care about?" He stared at me with twitching eyes before he considered the attention the two of us were getting inside the bar.

"Let's take this somewhere private."

[…]

The two of us stood behind the bar with cigarettes in hand. Charles took a drag before beginning his short story.

"First of all, I know Melanie because she had once frequented the Guardian villages a long time ago. We became friends as I grew up and I shared with her the adventures of my days – the growth of my abilities, past girlfriends, etcetera.

When the Latias and Latios started to be hunted down, I-"

"Wait, they were hunted down?" I asked worriedly. I often wondered why Melanie, of all the pokemon I knew, was more cautious.

{'You think I had the perfect life? Is that what this is about?'} I remember her telling me yesterday.

"You don't know this?" Charles asked with a smoky breath.

"I didn't grow up in this world," I reminded him bluntly.

"Well that's another story for another time. You could ask Melanie yourself. Anyway, when they started to be hunted, Melanie stopped visiting and I never saw her again until a few days ago.

Victoria was the family pet. She guarded us and played with me until I went off and joined the army ten years after Melanie left. When I had Nadine after my enlistment, my father often visited along with Victoria and let the two play together. Both grew together with a bond that couldn't be broken."

"So… Arn's your father?" I asked. It would only make sense, seeing that the two were so comfortable around each other.

"Yes. I take it that's where you received Victoria. Anyway, Nadine and Victoria had a bond, but it wasn't an aura bond. You see, Nadine wasn't born with the gift of Aura. She's what the guardian community refers to as a 'Mourn'."

'So that's how she knew what I was back then… even if I didn't pay attention to it.'

"Anyway, that's enough about those three. I won't do this mission because, and I'll be honest, I'm afraid. I've already lost a platoon because of my intervention. I won't lose anyone else."

I wanted to smack him. I wanted to take the rest of his cigarette and put it out in his eyes that were already blind.

"That's exactly how you'll lose them – by not doing anything. We still must try, and if we fail, we try again. That's how humans work. We try and try again until we find a method that brings a good solution." Charles smoked the rest of his cigarette and burned the butt in a flame of aura which I casually threw mine into as well.

"I just need you to translate for me," I reasoned. He stared at me with cold eyes, eyes I've seen before. Eyes that said, 'know your place,' but I knew my place. It was helping Melanie and the others escape.

"I wish you could see yourself through another's aura. You're so stupid," he said while spitting at his feet, "but you're also courageous. I can see your army did good things for you."

"If they did I wouldn't be here. So, you gonna do it?" I asked once more for confirmation. Charles only nodded and signaled me to follow him.

[…]

I was taken to a large building that resembled a piece of government property or a place of historical importance. The two of us entered through the doors and immediately, I knew where we were. It was an animal shelter. Only instead of animals, they were all pokemon. And instead of shelter, it was a prison for death row inmates. The place reeked of feces and wet dog. Almost instantly, I found all of my friends in a single cell.

Charles told me to go to them while he dealt with the man at the desk. As I walked through the area, I looked around at the different cells and the pokemon they held. One held a Manectric wearing a collar that seemingly disabled its ability to generate electricity. Another held a what appeared to be a wooden figure. I shuddered when I realized, from looking at the nose and feet, that it was a Shiftry with its hair shaved and its leaves torn off.

Another was a cell full of Poochyena all trying to kill each other. There was no effort in removing them nor was there any attention placed on their behavior. I felt disheartened, what world would do something like this?

I shuddered once again and dropped my head when I realized that my world would do the exact same thing. I heard a familiar yip and rattling coming from Melanie's cage. Everyone inside looked at me and walked towards the cage. All except Riolu and Melanie. Riolu was just being the mutt he is, but Melanie was out cold on the floor.

"Melanie!" I called out to her, the cry echoing throughout the building. I was unheeded by her, and I question the reason for such an event. Of course, a possibility came clear to me when I looked around the room: dark-types. With the shiftry and poochyena around, along with Victoria, their combined dark energy may have rubbed off on Melanie's psychic power and forced her to unconsciousness.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath. I had questions to ask her - one considering how I lost my abilities, and she was the only one, aside from Charles, that could understand me. Seeing that she was out for the count at the moment, I decided to console with the others.

I took a knee down by the cage and stuck my hands through to pet Chance and Victoria. "Can you guys understand me?" I asked. However, I only received blank stares from all of them – a sure sign that I was still stuck in a self-dug hole. I pounded the ground with a curled fist, an action that was sure to bruise me later. I could say that I was frustrated, but that would be ignoring the source of the problem. In all actuality, I was angry; angry at myself. If I hadn't gone and bitch about my problems, we wouldn't be in this mess. If I hadn't refused Melanie's help, I would already be halfway across Hoenn by now.

I shook my head and slapped myself; I was feeling doubt once again. Doubt, like a parasite, sowed itself deep in my head long ago and its growth is finally beginning to show like a bamboo shoot.

However, that analogy gave me an idea: a parasite. I began to wonder if these depressed feelings were even mine in the first place. It made sense that whenever I was around Melanie, I would begin to feel some sort of doubt or negative emotion.

Could it be that I was being possessed?

I felt a wet object scraping the back of my hand and I looked up. Victoria was licking me until we made eye contact, in which case she stopped and raised her head. She then bowed with her horn oriented away from me.

A sign of permission? I took it as such and began stroking her fur. It was a little ruff and scraggy from her brief time in this prison, but it was just as soft as the first time I had felt it. The feeling brought a smile to my face, and Chance decided to join in the fun. I laughed and began to pet him as well before I looked over at Mark who seemed to be having a detailed chat with the mutt… Riolu.

Ever since I picked Victoria and Mark up, I wondered if they would get along with Chance and Riolu should they ever meet.

"Michael," Charles called over. I turned my head and felt aa tinge off disappointment when I noticed him shaking his. "It won't be any good getting them out ourselves."

"Am I sensing an exception to that statement?" I asked expectantly.

"We would have to attain permission and a document strictly from the mayor himself. I'm afraid a soldier's bonus won't do us any good here," he said with a downcast head.

"Those never do any good," I remarked after turning back to the group of Pokemon that were waiting for me. "Well, if that's what it's gonna take…"

"Wait, you don't mean…" Charles trailed off.

"Yep," I confirmed, "We're seeing the fucking mayor!"

[Translated by Charles]

"You can't see the mayor," the security guard outside of this town's City Hall stated bluntly.

"Well," Charles began, "Thank you for your time and consideration."

He began to walk away when a grabbed onto his collar and said, "Not so fast Chuck! They're still waiting for us," I said referencing our captive mates.

"My answer remains unchanged," the guard stated firmly yet again.

"Well, I have urgent business from Sootopolis," I said boldly, "The Chieftain demands it." In a swift turn of stature, I watched the security change from looking like John Cena, to Michael Cera.

"Give… m-me a m-m-moment," he stuttered before stumbling into the mayor's office. I turned to Charles giving him a confused look. He looked at me in a way that said, 'another story for another time,' as he shook his head.

"You may enter," the security guard said from the inside.

"Finally!" I exclaimed and walked into the office. It was roomy. The entire room was crafted from wood – from the walls, to the floorboard, to the furniture. Even the chandeliers hanging off the walls were wooden. The place reeked of moldy potatoes, cigar smoke, and alcohol. Books adorned the shelves with dull colors making the only thing in the room to stand out was the mayor's utterly ridiculous suit.

If you could have seen this guy's green tuxedo, you would've guessed that he took his inspiration from Dumb and Dumber. And purple hair beyond even that.

"Welcome boys!" he said with a flamboyant tone – something I was going to get tired of real quick.

"What's his name?" I whispered nervously.

"You didn't read the sign?!" He snapped back at the same volume.

"Boys," the strange man asked, "Can I help you?"

"Uh… yes Mr…"

"Kanemaru," he finished for me.

"Right… Mr. Kanemaru, I need to ask if you can let my friends go please. They mean a lot to me and I know for a fact that they did nothing wrong," I reasoned. Kanemaru nodded and smiled.

"Oh sure thing honey…"

Goddammit.

"It's always lovely to see good ffriends take care of each other. So what are their names?" he asked as he pulled out a clipboard from seemingly nowhere.

"Oh, it's Victoria, Melanie, Chance, Mark… and uh…"

"I'm sorry, honey, but I don't see their names on the list. Could you describe them to me and we could walk down to the police station together?"

"What?" I questioned without understanding the confusion happening. "Oh no, they're not… people. They're-"

"Chimera's," He said with eerie tone. I gulped and nodded feeling the tension in the room shift to the feeling of several thousand pins just centimeters from my neck.

He sighed, "I'm sorry, honey-"

"Please don't call me that-"

"But there's nothing I can do. And I thought you said you had business from Sootopolis?"

Well, if the previous method wouldn't work, this one had to. I stood up and stood at attention before stating my true reason for even being in this shitty treehouse of a town.

"Mr. Kanemaru," I said boldly, "I'm here to challenge you in a duel of…" I hesitated to say the word. I knew that it meant nothing to me, but if Melanie were to catch me saying it of my own volition…

"Chimera's?" Kanemaru finished for me again. This time, his voice dropped to a low tone akin to a man with high levels of testosterone. I nodded bravely while also chanting 'shit' to myself repeatedly as this man-thing or whatever took his sweet time to answer.

Finally, he took in a deep breath and pressed the button on his intercom.

"Attention Fortree, we have a special guest visiting on behalf of Sootopolis to participate in the duels this weekend. I encourage all residents to attend and cheer on your home-city."

I looked at him dumbfounded. I thought this whole thing would be in private, but as my luck goes…

"So you'll do it?" I asked with wide eyes.

"I can't turn down a challenge, sweety," he said reverting back to his flamboyancy. I cringed and went to ask him one more thing, but he seemed to already know.

"Should you win, I'll release your chimeras and you all can go on your merry way; however, should you lose, and you will become my personal assistant for the next two years. You can only fight with two chimeras; should you break this rule, you will be forfeited and executed for breaking a law regarding chimeras. Now sign this," he said while throwing a few papers and a pen my direction. I was still dumbfounded by his bet, but if it was the only way of getting my friends out…

I signed the paper and bit my cheek as I handed it back to him. I felt his hand swipe against mine and I swear to God I never cringed and shrieked like I just had.

"See you on Monday. Wear something presentable," he said with a smile before ringing a bell. As we exited the office, Charles looked at me worriedly.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I've already hurled last night into the toilet this morning, Charles. I don't need to do the same with breakfast."

I had to win, or else that Machamp wouldn't be the worst thing I dealt with here.

a/n: So yeah... a few things happened. All the pokemon are in jail, Michael issues his first challenge, and we get a bit of backstory for some characters. Aaaaand the lemon too... that happened as well. Does that mean those two are in a relationship? Who knows.

Next chapter you can expect a bit of training and some information on what the hell is going on with Michael.

So without further ado, I bid you... adieu.