Trials of The Guardian Clan(Part 2)
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I have added another rank in the pokemon as well as trainer classification. It is the Intermediate Rank in between Novice and Advanced. So, the ranking of pokemon and trainers from low to high is:—
Novice —> Intermediate —> Advanced —> Elite —> Elite 4 Trainee —> Elite 4 —> Champion —> Legendary
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As the Pidgeot cut through the air, the upcoming trials and tribulations increased the tension within Gary Oak. To divert his attention and to calm down his nerves, he starts to think about the current scenario of the pokemon world.
It has been 4 years since Lance took the position of Kanto Champion after an intense battle against Agatha, the then strongest Elite 4 where his Dragonite collapsed just few seconds after Agatha's Gengar lost consciousness. So, he currently holds the joint position of Dragon Elite Four as well as the Champion.
Johto currently only has Elite Four Bruno as well as the newly recruited 18 year old Psychic Elite Four Will who is still quite inexperienced. The condition of Johto will take a turn for the better only when Lance will assume the role of their Champion.
Two years after the coronation of Lance, Steel Master, the heir to the commercial Giant, Devon Corp and also the son of the family with the only known Metagross Colony, Steven Stone defeated former Hoenn Champion Wallace and became the present Hoenn Champion.
In Sinnoh, THE Cynthia Shirona has not yet become the Champion. But the granddaughter of Professor Carolina has earned herself quite a name as a battle prodigy and is expected to take up the mantle of Champion in one or two years.
Unova is currently in quite a precarious situation where the Elite Four has lost their prime. Though Alder is a strong Champion, he is unable to manage the entire region single-handedly. But Gary knows that very soon strong trainers like Caitlin will enter the ranks of the Unovan Elite Four.
Diantha officially became the Kalos Champion around the same time as Steven. According to his grandfather, Diantha along with Professor Sycamore has done a beautiful job in rooting out the weeds of the corrupt former Kalos Elite Four. Trainers like Siebold, Malva took up the cudgel on behalf of them.
Gary's train of thoughts was suddenly interrupted when he spotted a large cave mouth on a ledge. Noticing his line of sight, Professor Oak let out a small chuckle, "That cave is the abode of Ignotus, my Charizard. He acts as the gatekeeper of the Valley, taking care of unwanted and extra curious personnel."
The eerie chuckle that left his Grandfather's lips sent a shiver down Gary's spine. He couldn't help but pray for the well-being of the people who tried to trespass into the Valley.
"What does the Clan guard, gramps? What is so important in Pallet Town that a pokemon clan has been protecting it for eons?"
In response, Professor Oak smiled mysteriously.
"I can't answer this question now, the right time had yet to arrive."
The tone of his voice contained a mood of finality and left no leeway for the young Gary to pester him with the question.
But Gary felt that he was missing out something very important related to Pallet Town. He was racking his brain to recollect the piece of information.
"By the way, you have the pocket knife that I told you to always keep with you, right?"
"Yes, Gramps."
Pidgeot suddenly took a sharp dive towards the ground which jolted Gary out of his musings. His hands involuntarily clutched Professor Oak's outer coat tightly.
"You will not fall, feel the wind!", shouted the Professor over the howling of the wind.
Gary loosened his hold and closed his eyes, only the cutting sound of the wind remained in his mind.
Pidgeot landed in front of what looked like a path to the entrance of a valley shrouded under dense trees and deep foliage.
Gary got down from the bird and looked around. The sunlight only illuminated the path upto a small distance, the rest of the path was pitch black. One will not even be able to see what is right in front of him.
"Why did we not come here through Alakazam's teleportation?" Gary sent a questioning glance towards his Gramps.
The Professor shook his head and said, "Try to feel it, there are psychic fluctuations outside the valley, which disturbs Alakazam's teleportation." Gary released his psychic sense and felt the unstable psychic energies around the place. But surprisingly, the energies went back to the normal levels as his sense approached the path entrance.
He quickly reined in his senses as it the sensation was disorienting him.
"The rest of the path you will have to travel alone. It will take around three hours to reach the place. Be careful! There are a large number of ferocious pokemon there. Don't stray from the path."
These words of his grandfather dumbfounded young Gary. He looked at his grandfather with an "Are you kidding?" look.
"Don't look at me like that!" Samuel Oak raised his both hands as if trying to say he had no hand in the matter.
Seeing no way out, Gary turned towards the path and steeled his nerves. Calming down his breath, he took a step forward and entered the forest path.
As he stepped into the path, he astonished to see that any noise from the outside has been completely blocked. There is an eerie silence spread throughout the foliage that covers the forest path. Gary's entire body was stout with tension as if ready to take action at any moment.
The survival skills he learned in his last life kicked in. He advanced forward slowly step by step expecting some sort of danger. As he stepped into the darkness, his entire vision blacked out. All he could see was a blank black canvas. He could not even see his own body parts, let alone his surroundings. The dark surroundings along with the uncanny silence created an atmosphere of terror.
Keeping a calm mind is the most important thing for survival. Using this motto, Gary tried to find a way to know his environment.
'What should I do? What should I do? ...Wait! What did Gramps say, one needs to be a psychic to pass the test! Yes, that's it! If I can't see, I can use my psychic sense to scout!'
Gary slowly spread out his psychic sense which covered a radius of 10 metres around him. His psychic sense could feel the path which was devoid of any vegetation. Having solved the immediate problem, he cautiously advanced along the path.
Approximately, an hour has passed since Gary started walking. He has still not come across any resistance in his path.
Gary suddenly felt something soft under his feet. He bent over slowly and tried to feel the thing with his hand. Hus hand touched something which felt soft and silky and sticky to the touch.
'Wait, silky & sticky??!!'
Instantly, Gary jumped a few steps backward. A crescent blade like thing flashed and tore through his sleeve leaving a deep gash on his left hand.
"Aaargh!" Gritting his teeth, he endured the pain of the inflicted wound refusing to give up his exact location by sound.
He took out the knife, his sole weapon and readied himself to strike. Acting on his instinct, he sidestepped to the left to dodge another webshot and again to the right, to dodge another of the predator's sharp limbs.
Gary with his psychic sense, made out the exact location of Ariados' head and stabbed the knife with his entire strength there.
Instantly, a hiss of rage resounded throughout the area.
Unwilling to give up on the advantage, he hurled the wounded pokemon to the forest in his left by his half-based telekinetic powers, he sprinted forward into the jungle.
(An hour later)
Gary is still walking forward but his state of being has reduced to dregs. His entire hair and attire has been disheveled, even though his left hand has stopped bleeding, there are cuts throughout his body. His pants has large cuts which has torn through the fabric. His right hand has been itching continnuiusly due to rushing straight into a slimey plant.
Yet his eyes possess a steely reslove that is rarely seen even in the eyes of an adult. He has already determined to persist till the end.
In the past hour, he had encountered a Ghastly that was hell bent on sucking out his life force. He had felt true despair then when his psychic powers were rendered useless. A stroke of luck had allowed him to escape the terrifying ghost pokemon.
He has been feeling dizzy for the past 15 minutes, the poison of the Ariados has started to act up as the adrenaline settles down.
Gary can see a patch of light like a door out of the dark caverns. As he progresses, he feels as if the source of the light is receding back. He feels lost and confused as if his end has come. Shaking his head, he tries to get rid of the negative feelings.
Accumulating the last bits of his strength into his legs, he breaks into a sprint like the last burst of fire before it dies down. He makes a desperate jump in the direction of light when his consciousness starts to blur out. He expects a jerky impact with the ground but his fall is suddenly interrupted and he gently lands face first on the dry grass shining under the sunlight as the last bit of his consciousness evaporates.
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END
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The next chapter will most probably reveal the identity of the mysterious clan. Till then stay tuned.