keep your head up!

     The shriek of a pokemon unknown to him woke Sir Aaron in a small state of panic before looking around and seeing Lucario and Pidgeot nestled a few feet away in the tree house. “ We have to find out where we are,” he whispered to himself.

Deciding his faithful friends needed their rest he went out into the forest to try and find any clue as to where he had wound up and why he couldn’t seem to remember anything after he left the palace. 

     Having walked for almost an hour Aaron found himself along the shores of a beach. Never before had he seen the beauty of water so clear as he could see the tentacruel and remoraids swimming around. But as he gazed upon the lake he was met with the despair as the thought dawned on him that there was no end to the lake in sight. “All lakes lead to somewhere, i’ll have to get Pidgeot to fly me over it when i get back” he said to no one in particular.

     Aaron, proud of his discovery of the lake, went back on his way to the tree house but along the way realized that he had not come in contact nor seen traces of any other people since he had been there. He pondered if he was truly alone here with his team or if others were here and if so did they know how he had gotten there?

People had told Keith before that his restlessness was going to kill him someday, and only now did he believe them. Ever since waking up in the bizarre forest, it had been practically impossible for him to sit still except to sleep -- and he didn’t even bother doing that sometimes. He was always wandering, looking in vain for a way out; it wasn’t like there was much else to do anyway, besides talk to the others. No matter who he spoke to, though, it seemed like no one knew where they were, or how they had gotten there. 

He had spent the day at the lake again, but he still hadn’t seen anything noteworthy there besides how truly big it was. Its length was immeasurable, and despite the clarity of the water he found it impossible to see just how deep it was. He’d once tried using his Buizel’s Surf to get out on the water and then swim to the bottom, but with them both being obviously mammalian neither could hold their breath long enough to reach it. He then decided to worry about the lake’s hidden depths another time.

Right now, however, he was more concerned with a stranger he’d noticed at the lake -- and never before had the strange in stranger seemed more fitting. The first thing Keith noticed was his peculiar outfit -- not that Keith was really one to talk in his bright red and yellow uniform.

As the man turned to go, Keith made the rash decision to follow with the intent of starting a conversation. Despite his strangeness, he looked wise and dressed like he could be someone important, which meant he could potentially know something about the forest that Keith didn’t.

At least the plants would be watered (as long as it didn’t flood — too much water was bad, that much she knew, not that she could stop the rain from falling). Humming happily, she imagined a field with lush green leaves, and a lavish harvest of berries.

She started meandering in the direction of the pond, catching a flurry of movement out of the corner of her eye, turning just in time to see someone slip and fall. Wincing sympathetically, she changed course, stopping a couple feet away from the stranger. “Are you alright…?“

If he had any pride left after getting a faceful of mud, it was diminished at the sound of a stranger’s voice. He turned to see a small pink-haired girl standing there. A peculiar bird-like Pokemon he’d never seen before followed close behind, relishing in the dismal weather. Keith made a mental note to ask later what the hell that thing was.

                    The air around the lake was pretty cold, but Curtis didn’t mind it at                     all. Not when he was sitting comfortably on a folding chair with a                     line out into the dark blue depths of the water, both objects found                     within the closet of his cabin. How was it that everything that he                     could have ever wanted to use was in there? The questions just                     continued to pile up. But now that he was here fishing, all of them,                     his troubles and questions, just seemed to melt away as he stared at                     the calm surface of the water.

                    As he raised his arms to stretch, his green eyes saw the figure of a                     boy a few years younger than him looking around the area with                     caution and hesitancy. For a moment his heart skipped a beat as he                     watched the other, wariness creeping up its way through him at the                     thought of having to deny being Christoph to another person. But                     perhaps it was because he was by the water where he felt at home,                     but he felt he could do it confidently. So when the other approached                     him after noticing him sitting by the water, he gave him a friendly                     smile and spoke in a gentle voice.

His Buizel, seemingly oblivious to the sheer oddity of it all, was eager to swim after being on land for so long. While the Sea Weasel was exploring the lake itself, Keith tried to circle the perimeter on foot -- a harder task than he had expected. The lake was enormous, far bigger than any body of water he’d ever seen in his life save for the ocean. 

After walking for what seemed like an hour, finding nothing out of the oridinary, he noticed a boy sitting on the beach, a fishing pole in hand. Somehow it hadn’t occurred to Keith that there could be other Pokemon in the water’s depth, and a twinge of fear struck him at the thought of a wild creature attacking his partner. No way that’d happen... this place is peaceful, right? he thought, trying to push the worry to the back of his mind.

“Speaking of weird,” she exclaimed as she pointed her finger to the border of the clearing a few yards away, where a path leading somewhere was in plain sight. “That path over there wasn’t there when I decided to live in this house, but one day it was just… there. Isn’t that strange?”

A puzzled look crossed her face as she said those words, but they disappeared as she listened to the other began to talk about being a Pokémon Ranger. That was what they were called! The bright look that crossed his face made Lyra smile unconsciously—it was always a pleasure to see someone talk about something they were passionate for, and it showed very clearly in the boy’s face.

“Seems like you really enjoy your job!” she said as she grinned at him, her Meganium next to her nodding in agreement. “I think I came across a few when I was traveling, but they were Trainers as well as Rangers since they always challenged me to a battle.”

“Actually, do you perhaps know how to cook with these?” she asked as she motioned to the fields behind her. “I have all these berries and vegetables ready to harvest, but it’s a little tedious to just eat them raw… ah, but if you don’t it’s fine! I was just wondering!”

He noticed her smile as he began to babble on about his job, and he couldn’t help but grin back. “Oh, yeah. It’s hard work, but it’s a lot of fun, y’know?” He paused to consider her next statement. “Huh. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Rangers that battled on the side, but maybe it’s different in other regions.” This made him wonder where the girl was from, anyway, and made a mental note to ask her sometime.

        “ Yes, that’s very true—logically speaking, there should be a way to leave… ” Miyuki tapped the top end of the pen in her hand to her chin, thinking for a few quiet moments. It was all quite illogical and strange really, how everybody had managed to find themselves in here. Practically every body she had come into contact with had stated that they woke up here… did it mean that they were in some sort of dream world? However, the young woman knew that she was not asleep prior to arriving here—instead, there was a… certain event that occurred that she really, really did not want to remember right now.

        “ I guess it means that we’ll just have to find a way out… somehow. ” she said finally, giving the boy a short glance. The young woman had been staring off into the distance when she thought, finding that staring at a person always put her on edge. As such she didn’t even notice that the other was staring at her, if he even was.

“No such thing as a cage with no doors, right? There’s got to be a way out of here, but... I don’t know how to go about finding it.” he admitted, habitually gritting his teeth. “I’ve tried, but like you said, every time I leave the clearing I just end up circling back to where I started.” In every attempt, he’d start walking away from the area until the persistent fog overwhelmed his field of vision. When the haze finally cleared, he was back at his starting point with nothing gained but an increasing amount of frustration.

        “ That’s acutally something I want to know as well, ” she replied, her face falling at her inability to provide an adequate answer, alongside their current predicament. It wasn’t the first time someone had questioned her on their surroundings, but no matter who she talked to it seemed like everyone was in the same boat—unable to leave this mysterious uncharted forest.

“Dammit,” Keith muttered. He realized she must have been asked the same question by the forest’s other captives -- and they all received the same answer, apparently. No one knew where they were, nor what they were doing here. 

He then considered asking if anyone knew the way out, but this was quickly addressed by her next statement. They really were trapped, then. Mentally, he kicked himself for being so quick to get pessimistic about it. “There’s gotta be some way out of here. If we got in, we can get out, right?” 

Of course, getting there hadn’t been as simple as just walking in and getting lost; evidently, they’d all woken up there. Maybe Keith should have been asking if she knew how they got there, then. Had someone -- something? -- dragged them here while they were knocked out? Was this all some twisted fever dream he was having while really still out cold back in Almia?

“Truth be told… I’m not sure where we are either.” she replied, laughing the slightest at how strange her answer must’ve seemed. After all, shouldn’t that have been a big problem? “I just stopped wondering after a while, since my Pokégear doesn’t help much either; it says ‘location unknown’ no matter where I go in this place.”

“Oh! I can’t remember how long I’ve been here either, isn’t that strange?” she exclaimed as her Herb Pokémon bent his head down to nab an Oran Berry from a nearby plant. Lyra turned her head to look at him, curious of the reason behind his movement. She chuckled upon seeing his mouth chewing the missing blue berry, and reached out to gently pet his wet head before looking back at the boy.

“This is all way too weird,” he said as he noticed the Meganium taking one of her berries. Despite its tremendous size, it was apparently gentle, and to think he’d been scared by it just moments before... He had to mentally kick himself for that.

Her next question piqued his attention, his worries about the forest forgotten even if only momentarily. “Oh? I’m a Pokemon Ranger! I guess we’re not really as well-known as Trainers in a lot of regions, but instead of battling we work to protect Pokemon and their environments. Stuff like that, y’know?” 

          Finally, a cry of a pokemon he didn’t recognize echoed in the forest, followed by a sound that he did recognize–a Kabutop’s agitated cry.  He couldn’t mistake that pokemon, since he had one in his PC back in Kanto.  The trainer stood up at once, fishing rod and bag left by the pond as he let his Pikachu lead the way.

            After a few minutes of running through the undergrowth as red hues focused on the yellow pelt of the electric mouse, he soon saw what had caused a Kabutop’s cry.  A male, holding a orange pokemon in his hands seemed to be trying to run from it–since he could see the boy’s fatigued figure.  Had he stumbled upon the shellfish pokemon’s nest?  Or was it just naturally hostile thanks to its nature?

              Either way, he had to help.  Fingers soon grazed the pokeball of his beloved water type before with a flash of light came from the spherical object.  With his Blastoise materialized, he pointed toward the Kabutops before his words formed in a hoarse voice.

                “Hydro Cannon.”

                 At once, water shot out from the cannon like tubes in it’s shell, effectively hitting the brown pokemon back into the undergrowth.  His mouse pokemon soon raced its way over before pulling on the other male’s socks as if to say “Quick, Get Away!”  

Evidently not being one to forgive and forget, the Kabutops pursued. The Shellfish Pokemon let out an ear-splitting shriek that would easily alert anyone else in the vicinity of its presence. A feeling of dread settled in the pit of Keith’s stomach when he heard more footsteps from somewhere deeper in the forest, coming for him. If there were any other hostile Kabutops in the area, he knew he was about to be dead meat.

Instead of another Kabutops, however, a Trainer and his Pikachu came charging out of the undergrowth. Keith watched incredulously as the other withdrew a small sphere -- a Poke Ball, he noted -- and released a Blastoise. Instinctively, Keith wanted to warn him not to provoke the Kabutops, but this was what Trainers did for a living -- and this Trainer in particular seemed to know what he was doing. At his command, the Blastoise discharged a powerful blast of water from the cannons mounted in its shell.

Before Keith could react to the downed Kabutops, he felt something tugging insistently at his sock. He looked down to see the Trainer’s Pikachu there, staring up at him as though alerting him to get out of the way. In the same instant, he could hear Kabutops recovering in the underbrush. The Ranger stumbled back, taking care not to trip over the Pikachu as he moved toward its Trainer.

“Hello! I haven’t seen you here before, are you new around here?” Lyra asked, keeping a smile on her face in order to try and alleviate his nerves. She made his way over to him, taking care to not step on any of her plants as she did so. Thankfully she was wearing boots, or else the mud would’ve been up past her knees.

He felt himself smile back at her despite his persistent nerves. “Ah, yeah. I think I’ve only been here for a couple days now.” Truthfully, as intuitive as he tried to be, he’d lost track of how long he had been here. Days blurred together, and he could only hope it hadn’t been too long since his disappearance. “Hey, listen, do you know where we are?” he asked cautiously, praying he didn’t sound as crazy as he thought.

        Miyuki honestly found it quite strange how the weather seemed to be perfect every single day. The sun was shining brightly, the wind was providing a pleasant soothing breeze… just like the day before, and the day before that. She wasn’t even sure if the occasional horde of clouds even appeared in the sky. It wasn’t like she was going to complain about it though, since nice weather meant that she could spend the day outside.

        And that’s exactly what she was doing, as she sat at the base of a tree writing in a notepad on her lap. It had been a while since she found time to sit down and really relax, since she was always on the move and eager to reach her next destination. In the branches above her, Solis was somewhere with her legs wrapped around a thick branch, taking a comfortable nap in the shade of the leaves.

        The young woman was completely enraptured in her work, writing down possibly anything and everything that came into her head. She even failed to notice the sound of approaching footsteps until her Ariados began to make some loud and threatning hissing sounds. Immediately she looked up to see the figure of a boy coming her way, but she was too late to stop Solis from shooting a well-aimed String Shot right in front of his feet—her warning for him to go away.

Not surprisingly, he wasn’t the only one with that sentiment. He noticed a girl that looked to be a few years older than him, seated under one of many trees that circled the clearning. She was fervently writing something in a notebook, oblivious to her surroundings. (He had to wonder what could have been that important to write down.) 

Keith realized since there were evidently other people in the forest, they might know something about it that he didn’t. With this in mind, Keith started to approach the girl in the hopes that he was right. Enthralled in her writing, she didn’t seem to notice him at first, until there was a loud hiss from somewhere in the branches overhead.

Much to his regret, he hadn’t even seen the source of the noise until it was too late, and the massive Long Leg Pokemon had already lashed out. Keith cried out and stumbled backward, nearly losing his footing before he realized it was only a String Shot -- still, it was a warning that came through loud and clear. The Ariados was studying him from above with its round purple eyes, gauging his appearance, and he was sure if its Trainer hadn’t intervened he would’ve been dead meat.

“Megu, how’re they lookin’?”

The trainer stood underneath the eaves of her cabin with only an open umbrella in hand as she watched her Meganium looking over the fields. Lyra had little experience in taking care of plants and the like, so she was quite glad that she had at least one Grass-type Pokémon that could help her with this task. The Herb Pokémon, completely unbothered by the rain, let out a cry of satisfaction towards his trainer after his inspection.

“Oh, they’re ripe already?” Her question was answered with an eager nod from Meguri and a wide grin spread across her face as she approached the fields. “That’s great! I didn’t expect them to be ready so soon but—ah, I don’t even cook that well, let alone with Berries… hm…”

He had to remind himself that by the looks of it, this probably wasn’t a wild Pokemon. It was friendly to the girl, at least. He guessed she was probably a Trainer... which further confirmed his suspicion that this forest wasn’t anywhere near his home region. He felt a creeping sense of dread at that, but he pushed it down and tried to refocus himself.