“It’s going to okay, Linoone ...”

This piece of art is the first illustration for a complete, short novel. You can find the first part of the novel below. Due to its length, the work is spread over several uploads. If you follow the links in the text, you’ll be taken through the entire novel seamlessly. This novel also comes with a second illustration, which you can find in the third upload. Alternatively, if you want to read the entire novel in one place, you can do so here:

<Complete novel in .pdf format>

This novel deals with some dark themes that some readers might find distressing. That includes graphic depictions of violence, and descriptions of physical and emotional abuse.

It also contains major spoilers for the games Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue/Red Rescue Team, and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky. Proceed and your own risk!

Faith is part of two continuities. It is part of my own series of stories, based on Team Rangers, and part of a series of stories written by a friend of mine, LilArrin, featuring his own Team Guardians. All members of Team Guardians, and all the scenes written in his world, are based on his creations.

However, this novel was written with the intention that it should stand on its own. No previous knowledge of my fiction, or of LilArrin’s, is required to enjoy this work. The same holds true of the games. You will still be able to enjoy this work without any knowledge of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games, or even if you know nothing at all about Pokémon! This novel will tell you everything you need to know.

Music forms an important part of my art. Each artwork and story I write comes with some musical suggestions which I believe emphasises the emotions of the work, and this novel is no exception. Given its length, there are quite a few pieces of music associated with this work! I suggest listening to the following when viewing the first illustration:

<Flow my Tears – John Dowland: Paul Agnew and Christopher Wilson>

If you like listening to music while reading, I suggest listening to the following while reading Book One:

Missa Mille Regretz – Cristóbal de Morales: Heulgas Ensemble and the Hilliard Ensemble
(Mass deliberately presented in reverse):

<Agnus Dei>

<Sanctus and Benedictus>

<Kyrie>

I have also included some music at the end of Book One, which you might want to listen to when you’ve finished the first part of the novel. I’ve included links for that in the text itself.

If you’d prefer not to read the novel itself, there are some notes about this work at the very end. You can find them at the bottom of the fourth upload.

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Book One: Shame

Mille regretz de vous abandonner
Et d’eslonger vostre face amoureuse,
Jay si grand dueil et paine douloureuse,
Quon me verra brief mes jours definer.

– 15th Century Chanson (Anon)

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I : Sebastian
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Sebastian sat, his feet dangling in the pool surrounding the sleeping area in the team base, and wondered for the thousandth time why he had been left in charge of Team Rangers. Outside, the sun was setting. The glow spread through the gate at the back of the base and cast warm reflections on the water’s surface. The Linoone dragged his legs through the water in idle patterns, enjoying the feel of the water on his fur. It was small comfort.

I’m no good at this ...

It had all seemed like such a good idea at the time. He was one of the most experienced members of Rangers, after all. He had joined back when there had only been a handful of members, before anyone had even heard of the team. He had been through everything that Luke and Stan had, and had helped shape the team into the vast organisation it was today.

But that doesn’t mean I can lead it!

At first, it was fairly straightforward. The effects of the meteor had been steadily waning, and the number of Pokémon being caught in the Mystery Dungeons was relatively low. Compared to the height of the disaster, there were only a handful of rescues, and they were easy to organise. Team Rangers was a vast organisation, and there were members available for any situation. Neither terrain, nor foes, nor the most convoluted of dungeons could keep Rangers from its task. But as the months wore on, the effects of the Paralysis spread in from across the ocean.

The changes were slight at first. The sky over the sea began to grow slightly dark, as if covered by cloud. Fruits ripened early. Flowers bloomed at night. It was unnerving, but the local Pokémon had dealt with far worse during the time of the meteor. For a while, life continued on as normal. But with the darkening of the ocean sky came the first real problems. Winds began to blow in from the coast, with increasing strength and regularity. Thankfully, Robert warned the team before the worst of the storms hit. His words gave them time to shore up the buildings in Pokémon Square and the surrounding area. The whole team worked to bring the Castform’s warning to as many Pokémon in the area as possible.

But they weren’t completely successful – they couldn’t be. When the first storm hit, the Pokémon retreated to their newly-built bunkers and waited. The storm buffeted the Square for just over a day. Sebastian had been through many difficult situations in his life, but nothing had frightened him like that storm. The winds tore at the team base with a palpable hunger, each gust sounding louder than the last. He should have been comforting the Pokémon in his care, ensuring them that everything would be fine, that their hasty preparations would hold. But he couldn’t. He sat there with them in silence, expecting at every moment for the team base to collapse and destroy all of Luke and Stan’s efforts.

He could see in his mind’s eye what the two of them would have done. He had never in his life seen Luke downcast. The Mudkip would have talked to the team, encouraged them for days if he’d needed too. And Stan would have known just how to deal with those who were frightened, those weakened and injured by their work in the days before. He would have prepared some his best food to comfort them. And Luke would have sung ...

Why am talking about them in the past tense? They’ll come back.

Of course they will.

When they finally left the team base, it was all he could do to keep himself together. The core of the Square was mostly intact, but there was a lot of destruction. All the greenery had been destroyed. Trees had been ripped from the ground. Even flagstones in the square had been uprooted.

And Pelipper Post Office was gone. Not even the foundations remained. A landslide had swept the entire upper section of the headland into the sea. It was sheer good fortune that he’d managed to persuade the Pelipper to stay with him at the base. He didn’t want to think about what might have happened if they had stayed out on the headland.

The building was on a cliff! It was exposed. I should have spent more time on our preparations!

That storm was by far the worst. Since then, the storms had been getting more and more frequent, but they had been more manageable as well. And the team had learnt much from that first calamity. They had suffered no further destruction, at least in the Square, and no lives had yet been lost. But they paid dearly for it. Sebastian tried to rebuild the Post Office as quickly as he could in the aftermath. But the building was a shadow of what it once was, and a constant reminder to him of his failure.

But he refused to be downhearted. He might not be the best leader, but he would lead nonetheless. He had worked tirelessly to correct for this first mistake. There was much to do. The storms might have been weaker, but they still caused damage that needed to be repaired. Warnings and help needed to be sent out as far as possible. And, despite the warnings, more and more Pokémon sought out shelter in the Mystery Dungeons, realising too late that the cure was worse than the condition.

The effects of the Paralysis grew steadily stronger. Xatu and the others warned him of the possible dangers ahead, and he did his best to prepare both himself, the team, and those in the area to face the difficulties. Slowly but surely, even the water in the streams was slowing down. Pokémon had to be trained to get drinking water and harvest fruits even when the rivers and trees were as rigid as ice. They had to be trained to work in the dark for when twilight finally smothered the land completely.

And it will keep getting worse ...

Sebastian was exhausted. It was not so much the volume of work but the responsibility that wore him down. He spent a lot of time in the team base these days, waiting for reports and coming up with strategies, and the waiting was terrible. At least when he had been active, he had had something to take his mind off the chaos that was overtaking the world. He missed the work, and yearned to go back on missions. But he was needed here. No-one else had as much knowledge as he did of the workings of this team, even if there were others he was sure would lead the organisation more competently.

He looked up from the ripples in the water and out to the sunset beyond the water gate. He was tired and sad, and it would be night soon. He felt a sudden stab of loss for Luke and Stan.

They will return soon. They must! And then everything will be alright.

But he found it harder and harder to keep convincing himself of this. The warm glow of the sun was beautiful, and the team’s activities were all in hand, and yet he couldn’t rid himself of the melancholy feeling.

And so he sang. It was a mournful song that Luke had once taught him, a human song full of sounds he didn’t recognise, but the depth of sadness in it touched him nonetheless. He sang for a long time, giving his sadness tangible form in the cool evening air. Slowly, he began to feel better.

So absorbed was he in the song that it took him long moments to notice the presence of another Pokémon in the team base. A little annoyed that his solitude was broken, he got up slowly and turned.

“That was beautiful, Sebastian.”

It was Sarah. The Celebi hang silently in the air at the entrance to the base. Even she seemed somewhat muted recently. Sebastian stared, suddenly at a loss for words.

“I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you. May I come in?”

Sebastian quickly recovered from the unexpected entrance.

“Of course. You know the base is always open to you and any member of the team.”

He gestured to the stone area next to the water. Originally, this had been used as Luke’s bed when the base had still been lived in. No Pokémon, least of all Sebastian, had wanted to live in the base while their leader was away, so now it fulfilled a different function. Sebastian held small meetings here, and encouraged others to do the same. The stone floor was comfortable, and the whole base beautiful and peaceful. Most importantly, it was a reminder that, whilst Luke and Stan might be gone, Rangers still kept on in their spirit.

Sarah spun in the air in delight and shot to the meeting area with a burst of speed. The small water plants the grew among the stones glowed in response. The whole base seemed a little bit brighter.

“What can I do for you, Sarah?”

The Celebi looked suddenly downcast.

“I’m –”

She stopped. Sebastian got the distinct impression that she was suddenly questioning whether she should be here at all.

“Can I talk to you?”

Sebastian was confused. Clearly Celebi wanted to say something, but she was finding it difficult.

“What’s wrong? Has something happened?”

“No, no, nothing like that. I’m just worried. I’m really worried in fact.”

“You can talk to me, Sarah. You know I appreciate advice, no matter the size of the problem, or how critical that advice is. If there is something you need to say, I will listen.”

He smiled, trying to look reassuring. He wasn’t entirely sure that he succeeded.

“Okay.”

She smiled, although when she next spoke her voice was quiet and self-conscious.

“You’re spending so much time in the base at the moment. I can understand why, but I think you’re becoming cut off. I don’t think you can see the mood that’s been coming over the team recently.

“I know we’re doing well and keeping ahead of the Paralysis, and that’s partly the problem. The team can see that the whole world is falling apart, and they’re getting restless. They want to be able to do something about it, like Luke and Stan did when we destroyed the meteor.”

Sebastian sighed inwardly. He agreed with them, that was the sad thing. But there was nothing they could do. Luke and Stan had already left to deal with the Paralysis. If the two of them couldn’t stop the problem, he doubted that any other Pokémon could. And, judging by their last communication, the source of the Paralysis was over a month away by sea, a month through some of the worst storms the area had ever seen. He doubted whether there would be any way through now. Sending Pokémon to the source would be sending them to certain death.

“Sarah. You know what Luke and Stan said. We can’t follow them. There is too much to do here. We can’t spare anyone for a search, even if there was some hope that we could reach the source of the Paralysis. You’ve seen the weather. It would be suicide!”

Sarah looked a little irritated.

“I know. But there are those who are questioning our leaders’ words. It’s been over three months since they passed out of range of the Communication Orbs. We have no idea what has happened to them.”

She paused, then looked at him intently.

“Sebastian, if they’re dead –”

“No. I refuse to believe that. We have no idea how far the source is from us, and the weather between them and us is terrible ...”

An image popped into his mind. Luke and Stan being thrown from their Lapras by a wave as tall as a house. He shook himself.

“They couldn’t send Pidgeot through that. They are out of range of the Orbs. They have no way of contacting us. They are working to fix this Paralysis. I know they are!”

“But if they aren’t?”

Silence fell over the base. After a moment, Sarah spoke.

“That’s my point. It’s a possibility. How long are we going to wait before we assume they have failed? Another three months? A year? By then it may already be too late. We have to do something. The team needs to do something.”

Sebastian was concerned.

Perhaps I have been locking myself away. If I have missed such an important change in the attitude of the team ...

He thought back to the destruction of the Post Office. He shouldn’t let some lack of foresight cause any more harm now.

“Alright, I’ll call a meeting of the Council. That way, we can all state our views. I am convinced that sending Pokémon over the ocean is too dangerous, but I may be wrong, and I am willing to be persuaded otherwise. I miss Luke and Stan as much as any of our team, and I want to help them more than anything. It may be that there is a way to help that I have missed.”

Sarah smiled, and even laughed for a moment. The water flowers positively glowed.

“Thank you, Sebastian.”

“You should have spoken to me earlier, Sarah. This is a hard time, and we all respond in different ways. Not all of those ways are positive ones. If I have been hiding away from the team, I apologise. We all need to stand together in this.”

“Look, some of the team are talking about another way we might –”

Suddenly, a brilliant yellow light flooded the base, accompanied by thunderclap so loud that, for a moment, Sebastian thought the building itself had been struck by lightning. On instinct, he flung his arms over his face and dived to the floor. When there was no further noise, he gingerly lifted his head and opened his eyes. It took a few heart-stopping moments for his eyes to adjust.

Standing in the centre of the base was a Linoone. It was shaking uncontrollably, and its eyes were wild. For a brief moment, its eyes steadied and fixed on Sebastian.

“Char?”, it said, its voice hysterical.

Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, the Linoone collapsed to the floor with a dull thump and the sound of broken glass. It was only then that Sebastian noticed that the newcomer’s tail was on fire.

“Sarah. Get Chansey. Now.”

Sebastian rushed to the water’s edge. Behind him, Sarah raised her arms and emitted a deceptively mellow green glow. Then, she was gone.

The fire was spreading quickly. Sebastian cursed the lack of anything he could use to carry water, then came to a decision. Swiftly, he ducked the entire top half of his body into the ice-cold water. He dashed over to the other Linoone, and smothered the fire with his wet arms. To his relief, the water dulled the worst of the pain and prevented his own fur from catching. In a few moments, the fire was out.

The immediate emergency over, Sebastian looked at the rest of the visitor properly for the first time. He lay on the floor, incredibly still.

Is he dead?

Sebastian hesitated for a moment, then gingerly placed his arm in front of the Linoone’s mouth. A gentle breeze wafted against his wet fur. That confirmed that it was alive, at least. He gently put his arm on the visitor’s shoulder.

The Linoone didn’t stir. Sebastian put his other hand on the Linoone’s forehead. It was hot, even through the fur. The Linoone was alive, but it wasn’t in good shape. Something was very seriously wrong. He had to try to catch its attention. It looked unconscious, but perhaps he could rouse it. There was little else he could do.

“Hello? Can you hear me?”

Nothing.

“You’re with Team Rangers. You’re safe. I’ve sent for help.”

Still nothing. Sebastian looked over the Linoone to see if there was any obvious sign of injury that he could deal with. He was horrified to spot the beginnings of a dark stain oozing out from under the visitor’s back.

He’s bleeding! What should I do?

Any hesitation could prove fatal. He put his arms around the Linoone and, as gently as possible, turned him on his side. A pang of indecision stabbed through him.

Wait. Isn’t moving an unconscious Pokémon the wrong thing to do?

Sebastian found the source of the stain and gasped with relief. The Linoone was a member of a rescue team, and had been carrying a team bag. When it fell, the Pokémon had fallen on the bag and damaged some of the items inside. Something had smashed, and the fluid was slowing seeping out across the floor. The fluid was dark and, in the dim light, looked so much like blood ...

A figure rushed through the door and into his line of sight. Chansey looked Sebastian in the eye and smiled warmly.

“Thank you, Sebastian. I’ll take it from here.”

Sebastian silently thanked Sarah’s ability to make short hops in time. Had she gone to retrieve Chansey by normal means, the nurse might have taken an hour or more to arrive. Given the state of the Linoone, such a delay might have been fatal.

He hesitated briefly, then got up and stepped away from the Linoone. Immediately, Chansey knelt down and put a small bag of instruments next to her. She put her hands on the Linoone’s head and frowned.

“This doesn’t look good at all. He’s in a very bad way.”

Even as she spoke, she started taking items out of her bag. Sebastian stood and watched, hoping against hope that the Linoone would wake up. Several tense minutes dragged by.

“I think he’s going to be alright. But he’s taking quite a battering, and it’s going to take time and sweat to get this one right again. I’m going to need space, and I think this Linoone should have some privacy.”

“But I –”

“Why don’t you wait outside? I’ll let you know as soon as I know anything. And if anything goes wrong, you’ll still be within earshot.”

She turned to him and smiled once more.

“Or would you rather fall asleep each time I calm him with Sing?”

Sebastian nodded.

“Of course. I’ll be right outside. Let me know the moment I can help with anything. If you need anything from the stores, I can get it in moments.”

“Thank you. I’ll keep you informed.”

She turned back to the Linoone. Sebastian took a last, worried look at the visitor. He was getting the best treatment he could possibly get.

If Chansey thinks he’s going to make it, he’s going to make it.

He turned and walked quickly out of the base. The cold night air hit him like a wall. He had forgotten that his fur was still wet. He brushed himself down and shivered slightly. Finally, he settled down on the bridge out to the street, his back against the mailbox, and waited.

Please be okay ...

He had a feeling he wouldn’t be getting much sleep tonight.

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II : Raichu
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Raichu gently moved her tail through the sand and tried to calm down. The sunset was beautiful. All around, the Krabby were blowing bubbles. The bubbles floated over the water, each one catching the rays of the sun and bending the light in a different way, producing a brilliant display. With the soft lull of the surf and the distant cry of Wingull, it should have been the perfect place to relax.

But her heart was still racing.

It had been a terrible day. It had started out badly, as happened so often these days. Charmander had found a job on the mission listings offering a Joy Seed. He was particularly eager to get his hands on one, so he had decided to bring the whole team along. Linoone had caused some problems on the previous mission, so Charmander wanted to give him some ‘incentive’ to behave well this time around. She made herself scarce at that point, but she knew exactly what that meant. At least Linoone’s screams didn’t travel outside of the Bluff. Charmander had ensured that the base was well sound-proofed.

She shuddered.

It was unusual for the team leader to be rough on Linoone before a mission, although it did happen on occasion. Thankfully, Char had gone light on the Pokémon this time around. When the pair left the bluff, Linoone was dazed and downcast, but looked otherwise healthy. She wanted to hug him, but didn’t dare so in Charmander’s presence.

The mission had been going smoothly. Charmander even seemed to be pleased. Then, Linoone had launched an Ice Beam directly at him. Charmander whirled, ignoring the Pokémon he was attacking and, without even a word, launched a full-strength Flamethrower in his direction.

And then Linoone was gone.

The had burst of flame hit the opposite wall of the cavern and dissipated. They were both stunned. Then Charmander’s opponent got in a hit. It regretted it quickly. Within moments, the foe had been defeated.

For a second, the dungeon was silent. Then Char had turned to her, asked her what had happened in an astonishingly clam voice. But she knew Charmander well enough to feel the steel that lay behind it. When she denied knowing anything, Charmander stood for a moment, then abruptly whipped out an Escape Orb and disappeared.

Raichu had been so shocked that, for long minutes, she had stood stating dumbly at the spot where her leader had been standing.

What had just happened?

There was no sign of Linoone, not even the faint smell of ozone that occasionally accompanied teleportation. Then she remembered the unusual fight earlier in the day, and the fact that Linoone had been carrying all the recovery items. And at least some of the Escape Orbs.

Did he? No. Could he finally have cracked?

It was the only thing that made sense. Linoone’s loyalty to Charmander had been broken. He had fled, stealing some of the team’s recovery items to help him on his way. And she knew Charmander had come to the same conclusion. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for her to find her own Orb in the dungeon itself. Even so, there was something strange about working alone. It didn’t feel right.

As she held the Orb above her head, she doubted for a second. It would be extremely dangerous. She had to return, of course, but she was deathly afraid of what she might return to. She braced herself, and activated it.

She had returned to the Bluff to find it in a state of ongoing destruction. Charmander was tearing at the barrels on the far side of the base, ripping them to shreds with his bare hands. He turned to her, pure hatred in his eyes.

And so she had fled. That was nothing new – she had done it several times before, ostensibly to give her leader space when he was angry. It seemed to work most of the time, and it was a shame that Linoone had never learned her tact. Whenever their leader got this angry, she came to the beach to rest. It was lovely here, particularly at night. She always came here when she was feeling down, and it never failed to make her feel better.

But it was hard just now, and she couldn’t forget about the day’s events.

How could Linoone have just gone? Why didn’t he tell me?

She found herself missing the Pokémon terribly. She had tried to help him out whenever possible, to take the edge off Charmander’s terrible anger. She hoped he was alright. She feared that Char would chase the Pokémon down.

At least he’s faster than us.

One moment, the beach was empty. The next, the Draggie was there. That in itself was unusual. The Dragonite usually kept up an illusion of travelling normally from place to place. He said that it made people more comfortable. She couldn’t remember a time when he had simply appeared. This didn’t bode well.

“Hello Raichu. Are you okay?”

He looked at her intently.

“I –”

She looked up at the Draggie, who smiled at her.

“No. I’m not. What’s happening? Where’s Linoone?”

He looked unhappy.

“I was hoping that you knew. Something’s happened. I can’t see him anywhere. And that’s impossible. There’s nowhere he could go where I couldn’t sense him. He’s disappeared entirely.

“What happened, Raichu? Do you have any idea where he might have gone?”

She explained the day’s events, and her theory as to what had taken place. The Draggie frowned.

“I’m sorry, Raichu, but that doesn’t seem right. Linoone doesn’t plan that far ahead, and I doubt he would have the sense to pull such a stunt even if the opportunity arose. But that must mean that there’s something or someone here so powerful that they can hide him from me. And that’s impossible.”

He moved over to her and sat down on the sand.

“I’d stay away from Charmander for a while, if I were you. He’s very angry. In fact, I may have to intervene if he gets much worse.”

For a moment, the only sounds were the waves and the Wingull.

Raichu made to say something, but the Draggie suddenly turned his head towards something on the horizon.

“I’m sorry, Raichu, but something is happening. I have to go. I will let you know if I find anything out. And if you hear anything, call for me. I’ll come to you. Do the same if Charmander gets any worse. Stay safe.”

And, just as suddenly as he had appeared, he was gone.

Raichu was confused. The encounter with the Draggie had raised more questions and answered none. But now she was truly scared. If this was something that even worried the Draggie, then what hope was there for the rest of them? A cold wind started blowing down the coast. She suddenly wished that she had had time to get her hat from the Bluff.

Perhaps Charmander has calmed down by now?

As if on cue, an distant explosion rolled down off the cliff.

Maybe not.

She settled in for the long haul. She lowered herself onto the sand with the intention of trying to sleep. But, just before she closed her eyes, she caught a glimmer of something in the sky. It was a brilliant golden streak. It was there only for a moment, and then it was gone. It was strange, but it didn’t make things any clearer. Besides, maybe it was only a shooting star anyhow. She made a note to tell the Draggie next time he appeared.

She closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

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III : Linoone
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The sky was less terrible during the night, but it was still noticeably wrong. Most of the sky was normal. But in a thick band close to the horizon, nothing moved. The stars didn’t even twinkle. It was a small thing, but compared to the rest of the sky it looked terribly jarring.

Sebastian stretched, and looked at his watch. In a few hours, it would be dawn. As he’d expected, he hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep. He’d caught brief snatches of sounds of tools and song from inside the base on occasion, and once a brief cry that definitely belonged to the Linoone, but otherwise everything was silent.

The moon was bright and full and, were it not for the cold and the band of frozen stars, it would almost be a nice evening. Sebastian sat looking at the sky.

After a long while, Chansey left the base and walked up to him.

“Well, the good news is that he wasn’t in as bad a way as I first thought.”

Sebastian smiled with relief. It sounded like the visitor was going to be okay. But then he noticed that Chansey was frowning. That put him so off-kilter that he knew something must still be badly wrong. Maybe he had jumped to conclusions.

“When he arrived, he fainted out of shock. It looks like a blast of fire caught him before he travelled, but I’ve cleaned up the burns and he’s essentially as good as new. But whilst I was fixing him up, I found something that I think you need to be aware of.

“This Linoone has been fixed up on many previous occasions. He has more injuries that I have seen on any Pokémon I have ever treated. There’s a lot of permanent scarring under the fur. It’s so bad that there are patches where the fur’s thin enough that I could touch the skin with my bare hands.

“I don’t know what caused this, and he refuses to talk to me, I’m afraid. But I’m worried that this Pokémon might have been somewhere terrible, or possibly even tortured. If so, we have a duty to keep him safe. He could still be in danger from whoever or whatever hurt him.”

She sighed, and suddenly sat down on the bridge in front of him. She looked exhausted.

“I’ve done what I can, and I’ve been able to help with some of the more recent scarring, but there’s only so much I can do.”

Chansey looked Sebastian squarely in the eyes.

“There may be deeper damage, damage that I can’t heal. He’s been through something more horrible than I can imagine, and the events may have left more than physical scarring.”

Sebastian was stunned. He had seen some terrible things in his time with Rangers, but he had never come across anything like this. Certainly, he was aware of what Pokémon were capable of, but even the possibility that the Linoone he had saved earlier that night had escaped from torture made the scenario feel terrifyingly real.

How could another Pokémon do such a thing? No! He must have been in an accident of some kind. A ... series of accidents ...

It didn’t sound all that convincing. He felt a sudden need to understand what had happened to the poor Linoone.

“I –”

His voice broke.

“That’s horrible.”

It felt like a rather dramatic understatement, but he couldn’t think of any way to express how awful he felt.

“How is he right now? Is he going to be okay?”

Chansey smiled weakly.

“He woke up a short time ago. He’s in no immediate danger, and he should be fine for the time being, but I’ll want to keep an eye on him for the next few days. I tried to encourage him to get some rest, to recover his strength, but he refused to listen to me. He’s in there now, staring into space.”

For a moment, both Pokémon were silent. The Square was quiet, though a small breeze lapped water against the side of the bridge.

“I’m worried, Sebastian. But we might be able to get some answers.”

She stood up.

“He’s asking for you. He was quite insistent. He wouldn’t speak to me, but perhaps he’ll tell you something.”

Sebastian followed suit and stood up. He looked over to the entrance of the base. The glow of candles warmed the entrance and spilled light out onto the porch.

“But why does he want to talk to me?”

“He didn’t tell me. But it’s very important that you do. We have to learn more about what has happened to him. If his injuries have been caused by another Pokémon, we have to learn its whereabouts. It may be causing harm to others and, if so, we have to stop it. I can’t bear to –”

Sebastian turned, and with a shock realised that Chansey was crying. It lasted only a moment before she pulled herself together. But that was all that was needed. Sebastian had never seen the stoic nurse cry. Something truly terrible must have happened to the Linoone in the base.

“Thank you so much for all your help, Chansey.”

He put his arm over her shoulder and tried to be of some comfort.

“You’ve done a fantastic job, and you should be proud.”

But I haven’t even seen the Linoone yet. What a stupid thing to say ...

“You must be exhausted. I’m tired enough, and I’ve just been sitting out here in the cold. We’ll need all the strength we can muster to deal with this, and losing sleep won’t help us. Why don’t you go home? I’ll stay with the Linoone and, if anything happens, I’ll contact you immediately. I’ll do what I can to learn what has happened to him.”

Now it was his turn to look the nurse in the eye.

“The Linoone is safe, Chansey. He’s going to be alright. And if his injuries have been caused by another Pokémon, I assure you that Rangers will find it.”

Chansey, to be honest, didn’t seem all that relieved, but she tried to put on a brave face.

“Thank you, Sebastian. If you need help, I’ll be right with you.”

She glanced back at the base.

“Good luck.”

Sebastian removed his arm. Chansey turned and, without looking back, walked off into the night.

Sebastian hesitated for a moment and looked back up the stars, trying to summon up the strength and courage for what he needed to do next. He was more tired than he could recall being for a long time, and he wanted more than anything to curl up somewhere warm and sleep. But he couldn’t.

The moon pushed out from behind the clouds, momentarily flooding the area with its glow. It was beautiful, and he felt his resolve return. There was a Pokémon in there that needed the help of Rangers. He had a sudden memory of a phrase Stan used to use when he wanted to encourage the team.

Let’s always do our best ...

He walked into the base. The Linoone was sitting on the meeting area with his back to him. He seemed to be staring at something, but it was hard to tell from behind.

“Hello?”

He was encouraged with how level his tone was. The Linoone spun around with a surprising burst of speed. On catching sight of him, he seemed to relax.

Chansey had indeed done a good job. At a first glance, it was hard to tell that anything was wrong at all. His fur was smooth and glossy. It looked like the nurse had combed it. And she had cleaned up the tail well, for there was no sign of ash or burns. The Linoone was lucky – it looked as if Sebastian had stopped the fire early enough that a layer of fur still remained. But the fur was thin.

Now that he thought about it, the fur was thin in other places, just as Chansey had said. In the candle-light, he could see the faint pink of his skin through the fur on his belly. The nurse had done well to hide it – that must have been why she had combed the fur – but she could only work with the materials she had.

The Linoone was staring at him vacantly. There was something deeply unsettling about that look. He made to speak, but the other Linoone got there first.

“What’s wrong with the sky?”

For a moment, Sebastian was baffled. He had tried to anticipate what the Linoone might say when he awoke, but he hadn’t expected this. He was caught off guard for a split second before maintaining composure.

He smiled warmly. It felt genuine.

“It’s the Paralysis. Something has stopped time somewhere far away, and the effects are slowly spreading. Do you remember that?”

The visitor’s gaze suddenly sharpened. He looked confused.

That’s only natural. Perhaps the trauma he’s been through has caused him to lose his memory.

“But that’s impossible. The Paralysis is over. We stopped it.”

Now it was Sebastian’s turn to be confused. He wasn’t sure whether to feel delighted at the possibility of an end to the Paralysis, or concerned that the Pokémon might be delusional. Either way, he felt it wasn’t a good idea to contradict him.

“That’s good to hear. We haven’t had any contact with the source. Perhaps the effects are taking time to wear off ...”

“No.”

The Linoone was intent.

“Team Guardians stopped the Paralysis over a year ago. The effects never got this bad.”

The Pokémon looked down at the floor. When he next spoke, his voice was sad and barely audible.

“I don’t understand.”

Sebastian walked into the base, slowly, and settled down next to the Linoone. The Pokémon turned to face him, but didn’t speak. Sebastian tried to look encouraging.

“My name’s Sebastian. But you can call me Seb. Not even even the legendaries get to call me that.”

He smiled. The Linoone looked confused.

“What’s your name?”

“Linoone.”

The Pokémon had clearly misunderstood, and so he asked again.

“I know. What’s your name?”

“Linoone.”

That was confusing. He wanted to ask why, whether it was a name imposed on him by his team or something different altogether, but now didn’t seem the time. He needed to comfort the visitor. Questions could come later.

“It’s nice to meet you, Linoone.”

This was going to get confusing, and referring to the Pokémon that way made him feel uncomfortable. He needed a name.

The moon pushed out from behind the clouds, momentarily flooding the area with its glow ...

It was perfect.

Lune.

“I’m the leader of Team Rangers.”

He looked down at Lune’s bag pointedly.

“It looks like you’re a member of a rescue team too. Are you part of Team Guardians?”

He noticed that the team badge was lying a little way from the bag. The clasp was bent backwards. It must have been damaged when Lune collapsed. The design wasn’t familiar. It looked a little like the old Rangers badges, but the shape was subtly different.

Lune looked up at him again.

“What’s a rescue team? Team Guardians is an exploration team. Fully graduated.”

He sounded proud.

“We’re the strongest team in Treasure Town. And we stopped the Paralysis.”

The moment of pride was gone. Now Lune simply looked forlorn.

Treasure Town.

Sebastian racked his brains. But, try as he might, the name didn’t ring a bell. It was certainly nowhere nearby. He also didn’t recognise Team Guardians either, and that was unusual. He knew all the teams in the area; he needed to coordinate with them for rescues on occasion when his own resources were limited. And Lune clearly wasn’t making it up. He had a team badge, and a bag carrying supplies.

There was at least some truth to his story, then. It also meant that he must have travelled a long way to be here. But that didn’t make any sense. He said he was still part of his rescue team.

Wait, he called it an exploration team, didn’t he?

If so, what was he doing here? Where was the rest of his team? He couldn’t think of a single reason why a Pokémon would travel here alone, and so violently.

“Is that where you came from? Treasure Town?”

“No. We were on a mission. We weren’t far from our base. But something happened. And then I was here.

“I don’t understand.”

But that meant that Lune must have travelled here from somewhere outside of Rangers’ influence in a single bound. That was impossible. The most powerful Teleport Gems the Team possessed could barely move a single Pokémon to the nearby islands. Lune must have travelled a lot further. And accidentally. Something was wrong here.

“Maybe I can help you. Linoone, why don’t you tell me what happened right before you came here? Maybe we can find out what happened to you.”

He smiled again. Lune still looked miserable, but Sebastian got the impression that his mood was lightening. He hoped he wasn’t imagining it.

“I was on a mission. Its reward was a Joy Seed, so I needed to be extra careful.”

Lune winced slightly. An idea began to form in Sebastian’s mind. He didn’t like it.

“But it was very difficult. There were lots of foes. And I was so nervous about getting things wrong. Char keeps telling me all the things I need to do to be a good team member, and it’s so hard to remember them all. We were getting penned in. I wasn’t sure what to do, but I saw that Char was in trouble, and tried to help out. But I got confused. There were a lot of foes around, and I needed to act quickly. I shot an Ice Beam at the Pokémon attacking Char. But I missed, and it hit him instead.

“He really doesn’t like it when I do that.”

Something came over Lune’s face, something terrible. It looked like he was about to weep. Sebastian had to do something.

“What happened then? Linoone?”

It came out a little like a command, but it worked.

“Char was angry. As soon as the beam hit, I knew he would be angry.”

He looked at the team bag suddenly, as if he had forgotten something.

“He’s scary, and I knew I had done something wrong. I get hungry when I get scared, so I reached into the bag to try to find a Max Elixir. They always make me feel better. But I couldn’t find any.”

He seemed to want to go over to the bag, but he thought better of it.

“Char turned to me. I knew he would be mad, so I took out a handful of seeds and ate them. I thought I would feel better. But they made me feel ill. And then Charmander shot a flame at me. And then I was here.”

Sebastian’s suspicions were confirmed. This Charmander, whoever he was, had set Lune on fire. It sounded like this Pokémon might have been the cause of some of his other injuries, too.

“Do you remember what you ate? What did the seeds taste like, Linoone?”

“They were bitter and nasty. Only one thing tastes like that. They were Warp Seeds. I don’t like them at all. And I had a whole handful. It wasn’t very nice.”

He ate a whole handful of Warp Seeds? What would that even do?

There seemed no other explanation. Somehow, the Warp Seeds had thrown Lune across a vast distance. He suddenly had an idea.

“Linoone. Were did the Paralysis come from? What caused it?”

Lune looked at his claws.

“It was Dialga. There was an accident, and Temporal Tower collapsed. He went mad, and time stopped flowing.”

“Where’s Temporal Tower?”

“In the Hidden Land. About a day’s journey from Treasure Town.”

So this Linoone came from the source of the Paralysis! If he could somehow learn about the effects of the Warp Seeds, maybe he could even travel there and help out Luke and Stan!

But something wasn’t right. The effects of the Paralysis were still very much present, and Lune seemed to think that the problem had been solved long ago.

“How was the Paralysis stopped? Did you defeat Dialga?”

He didn’t recognise the name, but he assumed it was a Pokémon of some kind.

“Well, our Team did. Char, Raichu, and Grovyle.”

Grovyle! Could it be?

It had to be. If Treasure Town was near the source of the Paralysis, Stan must have been there. The Grovyle was strong, and he would have found a way to the very source of the problem no matter the difficulty. And he had worked with local teams. That sounded right. Perhaps Luke had helped out with the locals in Treasure Town, while Stan had worked to solve the problem.

“Linoone, this is very important. Did the Grovyle have a name? Did he work with a human?”

“A name? His name’s Grovyle. And he worked with Charmander.”

That was ominous. When Luke was sent away from Pokémon Square by Gardevoir, Stan had dropped his name in grief. He had insisted that everyone refer to him as Grovyle only. Perhaps something had happened to make him upset.

Luke?

His heart was racing.

“What happened to him?”

Lune looked at his claws more intently. He didn’t answer. Sebastian knew he should be more careful, but this was vital.

“Please, Linoone. Where is he?”

When Lune spoke, his voice was distant.

“Char didn’t like him very much. He caused all sorts of problems, and nearly ruined everything by messing up the Time Gears. Char didn’t like that. He –”

The Pokémon stopped.

“Linoone? What happened? You can tell me.”

“When time reset, Charmander hunted him down. And ... and he beheaded him. He keeps his head preserved in storage. He shows it to me sometimes, when he wants me to behave.”

Sebastian felt as though he had been hit in face with a hammer.

A thought came to him. Luke had died on the journey, killed by the storms. Stan had been distraught, and returned to calling himself Grovyle. He had made mistakes. Mistakes that had caused this Charmander to kill and mutilate him.

They can’t be dead. They can’t ...

He pulled himself together. It could have been any Grovyle. Luke and Stan had to be still alive. They had to be. He pushed the idea from his mind. There were other, more present concerns.

“Who is Charmander? Is he your team leader?”

Lune nodded weakly.

Sebastian took a deep breath, and then put voice to his suspicious.

“Does he harm you?”

He suddenly noticed that Lune was shaking, and felt terribly guilty. He had gotten too caught up in his speculations about Stan. He had pushed too hard. But he had the answer to his question.

“Oh Linoone, I’m so sorry.”

He moved up to the Linoone and hugged him gently. Lune started to cry.

“It’s going to okay, Linoone. I’m not going to let anyone harm you now. You’re safe. Charmander is never going to hurt you again.”

Lune was sobbing uncontrollably now. Sebastian held him tighter and tried to comfort him. He felt awful. This Linoone had been tortured by its team leader. It was only with a stroke of luck that he had escaped.

Lune cried for a long time. Sebastian stayed with him until, as the dawn crept in under the water gate, he finally feel into a turbulent sleep. Sebastian couldn’t leave the Pokémon alone in such a state. He lay down next to him and drifted off into slumber.

His dreams were full of monsters.

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IV : Stan
__________________


Grovyle couldn’t sleep. He opened his eyes and looked around the Bluff. Everything was quiet. The Meowth was curled up in a corner, breathing heavily. And the Pikachu was right beside him.

Luke ...

Stan had felt prepared for every contingency when he had returned to the past. He would have done anything to bring Luke back. And, now that he was here, there was nothing he could do. There was a barrier between them so strong that he feared he would never be able to break it down. And he couldn’t do so without hurting the Meowth.

It was so hard to cope. He missed Luke terribly. But he had to keep going. He had to collect the Time Gears, or else the whole world would be damaged beyond recognition. He had seen what had happened around Temporal Tower when he and Stan had arrived at the source of the Paralysis. He dreaded to think what would happen if the effect spread. He thought of Pokémon Square, of his home forest, frozen forever, all the Pokémon he knew in a state of terror. He had to stop it.

He lay down again and tried to sleep.

But he couldn’t.

__________________

V : Charmander
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When Sebastian awoke, the sun was already setting. He’d slept through most of the day. Lune was still asleep, and was muttering weakly. He must have slept fitfully, though, for the Linoone had moved next to him during the day and buried his head in Sebastian’s fur. Sebastian was weak, and exhausted from the long night, but he somehow felt better. At least now he knew the situation. Now he could do something.

He gently extricated himself from Lune, careful not to wake him, and stood up. As he did so, the fading light flared off the back of Lune’s team badge. Gently, and still a little woozy from sleep, Sebastian bent down and picked it up.

The similarity to Ranger’s badges didn’t stop in the shape. The wings were the same pale cream. But the centre of the badge was jet black. It looked like some kind of onyx, but he couldn’t be certain. Either way, it didn’t correspond to any of the team ranks he knew. But that wasn’t surprising. Lune came from another continent, over a month’s journey by sea and out of communication, and he couldn’t assume that anything would be similar there. Still, the similarity in shape was surprising.

Perhaps Pokémon really do travel between there and here.

But the back of the badge was ruined. The pin was bent back at such an angle that it couldn’t function as a clasp. It felt brittle, and he doubted he could bend it back into shape. He looked back at Lune, who was still sleeping, then walked over to the other side of the base and found the set of tools he kept there. A little more searching earned him a stock of Rangers’s own badges.

It’s been a while since we’ve recruited anyone, hasn’t it?

At another time, he might have laughed. But his heart wasn’t in it. He took out a set of pliers and went to work on the black badge. As he had expected, the pin snapped cleanly before he could do any work with it. So instead, he removed the entire clasp. He did the same with one of Rangers’ badges. He was just finishing attaching the new clasp to the Team Guardians badge when he heard Lune stirring behind him. He picked up the badge, and then made to turn. But before he did so, he was struck by a sudden memory.

Something like this has happened before ...

Stan had told him what had happened when Luke had first arrived in Pokémon Square, how he had stayed in the base for a while, ill and confused. Stan had felt compassion for the wounded Mudkip and made a decision. From that one event, Rangers had been formed.

He picked up another badge, and turned to Lune. The other Linoone was rubbing his eyes, trying to clean away the stains of his tears.

“Hello Linoone. How are you feeling?”

His voice was soft. Lune lowered his hands from his face and looked up at him.

“Hello ... Seb?”

His voice was shaky, but he looked a little better. Sebastian hoped that his outpouring of grief last night had helped somehow. He walked up to the Linoone and sat down beside him. He suddenly felt oddly embarrassed.

“I fixed your team badge. It must have broken when you fell. Here.”

He offered it. The other Linoone took it and looked at the jewel. For a second, it looked like he would start crying again. But then a look passed over his face, something that Sebastian couldn’t quite identify. When he looked back up, he looked better, although still downcast.

“You did this for me?”

He didn’t give Sebastian time to reply.

“Did you mean it? Am I safe?”

“Of course. Everything’s going to be alright, Linoone. You came here by accident. Charmander has no way of following you. And even if he does, I’ll be here to protect you. All of Rangers will, too.”

Lune looked away.

“He does hurt me.”

His voice was distant, as if he stood at the end of a long tunnel. But it was strong, too. Sebastian had a feeling that the other Linoone had wanted to talk about this for some time. He felt a surge of compassion.

“I ... I get so nervous. Working with Guardians is such an honour. But Charmander and Raichu are so good at what they do. I try really hard, every day, but it’s so hard to keep up. I do my very best, but even then I make mistakes.

“And when I do, Charmander hurts me. He’s an amazing Pokémon. The greatest I know. But he gets so frustrated when people aren’t as good as he is. And no-one is as good as he is.

“Charmander tells me so many things, points out all my mistakes. But it’s hard to remember everything. He thinks I’m a moron. He always says so. But I’m not. He makes me so scared that I can’t think straight. It’s so difficult. I –”

Lune paused for a moment. He seemed to be on the verge of something important but, whatever it was, he didn’t say it.

“And when I don’t remember what he tells me, he tries to think of ... other ways to get me to remember.”

The Linoone starting rubbing his chest, apparently unconsciously.

“I’m a good team member. I take whatever punishment he gives me. If it helps me to improve ... if it keeps me on Team Guardians ...

“But it hurts. It hurts so much. And sometimes ... sometimes I’m afraid that he will get so angry that he won’t stop. That he will kill me.”

Sebastian found himself hugging the Linoone again. For a moment, no-one spoke.

“But that’s all over now, isn’t it? I’m safe?”

“Yes, you are. No-one is going to hurt you here.”

Lune smiled. It wasn’t a real smile, and was clearly forced, but it showed at least that Lune wanted to feel better.

“What Charmander did to you is awful. No Pokémon has a right to do that to any other. No team is worth that. Not even one run by the most powerful Pokémon in the world.

“Linoone, I want to help you. Team Rangers is a powerful team. We have branches spanning the whole continent. Several months ago, we even stopped a meteor that would have destroyed the world.”

Lune perked up.

“But we have lot of work to do, and we need help. You have a lot of experience. You’ve worked with the famous Team Guardians! I was wondering, would you help us?

“Do you want to join Rangers?”

Perhaps that wasn’t a good idea. It sounded so tacky when he came out with it. But Lune looked almost happy. It seemed he was proud of his exploits on Guardians, despite his problems. Maybe giving him a task would help him forget the trials he had been through for a while. There were enough easy missions going that he could work him in slowly.

But he also didn’t want to push him too hard. This Linoone had barely arrived. Perhaps this was all too sudden. Maybe he had made another mistake.

But Lune was smiling again. It looked genuine this time.

“I ... I can’t go back, can I? There’s no way.”

“I don’t see how. You came here by accident. I’m sure we could find a way if you really wanted to, but ...”

He stopped, not sure how to continue.

“Then I can’t return to Guardians. You’re nice, Sebastian. Chansey was nice too. I’d really like to help you out. I want to think about things for a while, too. But there’s nothing to stop me helping while I do.”

Sebastian thought that was as close to a yes as he was going to get. Perhaps he had been right after all.

“Then you’ll want this.”

He handed over a Rangers team badge. Lune took it, then looked confused.

“Why’s it shaped like a Lucario? Aren’t you the team leader?”

Not quite ...

“It’s a legend in these parts. There used be a Lucario so strong that he helped Pokémon over the entire continent. He’s the symbol for the rescue team movement, and for the most powerful rescue teams.”

Lune still looked at the badge quizzically, but he seemed to accept it.

“Thank you, Sebastian.”

“You know, it’s going to be confusing referring to you as Linoone in team business. Would you mind if I gave you a team name? Just for team work.”

“I guess. Yes. I’ve never worked with other Linoone before.”

Neither have I.

“I was wondering ... how does Lune sound?”

He looked down at the lightness of the Linoone’s fur. The other Linoone followed suit.

“It means Moon.”

The Linoone thought for a long moment, then made a decision.

“It’s beautiful, Seb. Thank you.”

That had gone better than he had thought. Maybe everything was going to be alright after all. He smiled at the other Linoone. And this time, his smile too was genuine.

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<The story continues here.>

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