Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Whitewing ❯ Chapter 9 ( Chapter 9 )

Whitewing

 

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Only the idea and OC's.

 

Author Notes:

-- This will be used for scene breaks and for when the story switches to another character, but it does not mean that a new section of the story has started.

= = = = = = This will identify where each paragraph breaks.

(Character thought)

 

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon, never have, never will. Only the idea and OCs behind the story are mine.

 

= = = = = =

 

Chapter 9

 

Four years had passed since Erika birth. After graduating, Alex was quickly able to find a job that more then paid for the work he put into it. Now Alex wasn't just exploring dungeons as a hobby, but Johnson had hired him as one of the team. Of course, it was a dangerous job, but with the birth of his daughter, Alex was even more cautious then normal. With all the years he spent exploring dungeons, he was finally able to completely master his abilities as he aged. He had even found out some clues about other evolved humans, but he found nothing to tell him who he might have been. He still had his enclosed personality, but he had picked up a few more friends with whom he actually talked about.

 

As for Aelita, she had also taken a job under Johnson, just not one as dangerous as her mate. Johnson had hired her to help with watching over the base camps and helping Andrew with PR problems. Seeing as how everyone took kindly to her, it was quite an easy job. She had become quite a cook over the four years and even surpassed Alex having a natural talent at the art. Her body had grown not just physically, but apparently by having Alex expand his own spirit energy into her so may times, she was slowly able to gather up her own spirit energy, but only for a few seconds.

 

Erika had grown over the four years as well; her silver fur now shined brighter then the day she was born. Her horn had grown in as well, but it was small. Where the normal Absol's horn would come down past their shoulders by now, Erika's horn barely reached the bottom of her head. It was rather sharp however and Aelita would often had to dull the edges on both her tail and horn twice a month for safety reasons. She had grown in height and now up her mother's waist. Just like her mother, almost everyone took an instant liking to her. Her green eyes had become a perfect shade of emerald as well. To top this off, she had her father's sense of adventure always looking around trying to figure out what everything was.

 

--

 

It was just another day for the Whitewings. They were relaxing at their house up in the mountain. While the old bathhouse had been completely outfitted with power and glass windows, it still looked just as elegant as the days when it was first used. Aelita was busy playing with Erika in her garden. Erika always enjoyed looking at all the violet roses that were quite abundant here in Aelita's private garden.

 

Erika was busy looking through all the flowers. Aelita was following close behind watching as her daughter inspected almost every flower pointing out the various colors of each one. “Mama, this one is leaning over.” Erika stated as she came across a withering violent rose.

 

“Let's go get some water and see if that will help it stand back up.” Aelita smiled.

 

Both of them wore matching clothing, dark blue jeans with matching dirt stains on the knees. Both of them also dark green shirts with similar dirt stains. These were the clothes that they wore when working in the garden. They were strong and easily washed.

 

A sound behind them caught both females' attention.

 

“I see your tending the garden again.” Alex said as he walked into the enclosed garden wearing his usual shorts with a T-shirt. “I hope you're having fun.”

 

“And what did Johnson want?” Aelita asked.

 

“He told me to go to Kartonu and pick out some winter gear. Johnson will be heading to Northern Kanto to a ski resort where someone seems to have stumbled upon a ritual site.” Alex replied. Now in his early twenties, he had a stronger build, but appeared to be in his late teens. His only guess was that it was one more of his unknown abilities.

 

“Alex, you're not thinking about leaving to some random site with our anniversary coming up are you?” Aelita asked with a sudden serious tone of voice.

 

“No, what he wanted to talk about was an invitation to the resort and winter festival taking place there. Yes, I will be going to look at the ritual site, but I thought that it would be nice to spend our anniversary in the snow for once.” Alex replied. “Johnson has offered us an all expense paid trip down for the whole where we will have a five room cabin for ourselves for two weeks. Besides, it's been a while since we had a chance to enjoy winter properly.”

 

“Wait, why would he pay for this. I know he has the cash, but why would pay for a full two weeks for the whole team?” Aelita asked. Sure Johnson was kind, but he never stayed in the cold for longer then he needed to. It was always get in and get out with him.

 

“It has something to do with that Ninetails lady, Putanna Pearl. He wouldn't say anything other then her name when I asked him about the matter.” Alex replied.

 

“You don't think he…” Aelita asked.

 

“I don't know and it's not my place to ask who he gets involved with.” Alex replied. “So, are we going to see Kanto with Erika.” Erika turned upon hearing her name get called.

 

“It would be her first time in the snow.” Aelita smiled.

 

“Then I guess we should all start packing. Johnson asked us to show up in Kartonu City by late afternoon tomorrow if possible.” Alex informed his mate.

 

“Are we going to see Uncle Johnson?” Erika asked.

 

“Yes we are.” Alex kneeled down to look his daughter in the eye. A sudden gunshot startled the three of them.

 

“The only bad thing about living up here are the poachers who try to come after Aurora.” Alex sighed. “Keep Erika safe while I go see if she needs help.”

 

“Come back without a bullet if can you can this time.” Aelita stated as she picked up her daughter heading for the back into the main building of the bathhouse.

 

“I'll do my best not to.” Alex stated as he walked for the exit to the garden.

 

--

 

It didn't take long for Alex to make it to the lake where sure enough, Aurora was fending off a pair poachers. The larger of the two was a Dusknoir that stood an easy seven feet tall. Aurora had her hands full avoiding his Shadow Ball attacks while trying to hit him with her own Hydro Pump attack. It was stale between them as the Dusknoir's attacks were too slow, but at the same time, he was fading out too quickly for Aurora's attacks to hit him.

 

The Dusknoir's partner, a Vigoroth was busy trying to pull something out a batch of Yoshama Berry bushes. Although Alex couldn't see what it was, that fact that it was a gunshot that had alerted him to the poachers and him not seeing a gun told him that was what the Vigoroth was trying to retrieve.

 

Alex charged in ready to help Aurora. He wasn't about to let some poacher take his friend off. Alex charged in quickly around the lake. He knew he had to get there fast. Aurora was easily able to handle one of the poachers, but he doubted that she could hold off two given the stalemate she was in at the time.

 

Aurora jumped up as another Shadow Ball hit the ground where she had been standing. While in the air, she let loose another torrent of water upon her foe who faded out of existence. As skilled as he was, he must have spent years practicing these moves because like all anthro Pokemon, even ghost type anthros lost a portion of their abilities.

 

The Vigoroth had finally managed to retrieve the rifle she had lost to the berry bush as Alex charged in. Before the Vigoroth even knew Alex was there, Alex made his move. By building up a layer of spirit energy into his right arm, it began to glow a brilliant shade of green. Ghost like fingers extended out from his own as he grabbed the female, his new spirit hand reaching all around her head. Both of them flew back a bit where Alex had slammed the Vigoroth's head into a tree bringing an end to the spirit palm attack.

 

She was caught off guard, but managed to hang on to the rifle as Alex planted his knee in her gut. She screamed which earned Alex the attention of the Dusknoir.

 

Aurora saw her chance let one of her most powerful Hydro Pump attacks loose. The stream of water struck her opponent hard, but failed to knock him out.

 

The Vigoroth was able to recover faster then Alex had planned and she immediately turned her rifle on him. Alex jumped back before she could fire and fired off a Spirit Surge attack. The attack wasn't head on, but it was still powerful striking her in the her side. The Vigoroth was once again stunned, this time dropping the rifle.

 

Alex charged in again and jumped forward so that he was now on his hands with his back to the ground. He quickly slammed his right leg onto the left side of her neck while planting his left leg just between her legs. He flipped himself over to his right side jerking his of his legs in opposite directions. The effect was what Alex had planned on and just like the first time he had performed the move. The Vigoroth who was back against the tree had no way to escape causing her flip head over heels before landing hard on the ground. She screamed loudly before landing hard and rolled along on the ground some like a rag doll.

 

The Dusknoir once again turned to see his partner take the attack, which seemed to enrage him. With his mind now bent on anger, it would be hard for him to fade out again. Aurora landed another blow on him that he shook off before he fired a pair of Shadow Balls. One of them hit Aurora causing her to loose her footing on the water. There was a large splash as Aurora fell into the lake.

 

Alex quickly picked up the rifle and emptied of its munitions before he whistled. The whistle caught the attention of the Dusknoir as planned. The large ghost froze in fear upon the sight before. Alex had the now empty rifle pointed right at the Vigoroth. He had never fired a gun in his life, but he quickly found that by letting the poachers who tried to capture Aurora think he had a loaded weapon, he could often convince them to leave without much of a fight. It worked once again as the Vigoroth slowly looked up to see her own gun in her face.

 

“I don't want any trouble and neither does my friend.” Alex stated as Aurora was now back on the water making her way toward the opposite shore line of the lake. “Just take yourselves and leave and I'll forgot this ever happened. I really don't want to have to explain to the police about a dead body on the mountain.” Alex kept his voice in a controlling tone to keep the poachers attention, but also slightly relaxed to show the he wouldn't have a problem making them he didn't care if he pulled the trigger. He knew the weapon was empty, but they did not adding to his act. “Now you have a chance to run, so just take it. However if I see you here again, I won't be so kind.”

 

“Let's…. let's go.” The Vigoroth slowly got up backing towards the woods. Fear was heavy in her voice. The Dusknoir was quick to follow his friend before leaving.

 

Alex relaxed himself as he lowered the empty rifle. He looked it over quickly and realized that the poachers didn't care what condition that would have caught their prey in.

 

Alex waited a few minutes for Aurora to return with Julian by her side. Julian was half of her mother's height now, but still had a long way to grow.

 

“You have my thanks again.” Aurora stated bowing her head. “Is there anyway I can repay you?”

 

“I hate to ask this, but it may be better for all of for a while. Someone else besides me and my family know you are here and they want you for some reason. Do you have another nest to stay for a while? I'm not always going to be here to help you.” Alex replied. He hate to have to ask her to leave for a while, but over the past year, there had been a slight increase in poachers, but never the same one twice. Many of them caught shortly after leaving the mountain for some reason.

 

“I understand. I regret having to leave you like this. You are a good friend.” Aurora said. “I will return one day, but until then, I will keep my ears open for rumors of other humans like yourself as I always have since I met you.”

 

“I'm sorry to see you go. I'll let Aelita and Erika know that you have left for now. Please be careful on your journey.” Alex stated.

 

“Come Julian. We must leave for now.” Aurora looked down at her daughter who had slight look of sadness. Julian and Erika had become quite good friends. She knew however that if her mother said that they must leave for now, then she would go.

 

“Bye, Alex.” Julian said as she started to walk off.

 

“I will miss you both.” Alex responded as both took off running.

 

--

 

Alex was walking back to his house when a sudden feeling over came him. He quickly found himself kneeling on the ground as this strange feeling flowed through his body. It felt like he had some sort of strong energy in his body, but couldn't quite tap into it to release it. It was warm and seemed to flow through his entire body for a second. He felt his spirit energy spike as hie entire became covered in a very light green mist of energy before it quickly subsided.

 

“What was that?” Alex looked over his body. He felt a bit stronger, even his leg felt a bit better then normal. He could only recall one time even similar to what he had just experienced.

 

One of Aelita's friends, an anthro Eevee called Tina was close to evolving one day. Everyone knew she was getting ready to evolve soon and she wanted to become an Umbreon. It had been midday after a quick track run when she claimed to have felt a sudden spike in energy, a change of sorts. Her body began to glow, but she quickly suppressed that feeling. An hour later at the Pokemon center, the doctor simply told her that was simply going to evolve, but because she wanted to become an Umbreon so bad, she had subconsciously stopped herself from evolving then. It was only after the moon had risen that night when the feeling returned and she became an Umbreon.

 

This feeling brought about a few questions to Alex's mind. He had already evolved, so he couldn't evolve again…could he? There were a number of Pokemon that had a stage two evolution, but did he. There was no one else to compare himself to and there were no records of evolved humans, so he couldn't be sure. If he was going to evolve, shouldn't it have happened sooner though considering how often he had run those dungeons. Even Bryan evolved to his final stage only after three years of working with the team. A new thought crossed his mind. Some Pokemon had to meet certain requirements other then experience to evolve like mastering certain physical abilities or reaching certain state of mind. Had that last battle triggered something?

 

“It couldn't be…” Alex quickly got up and returned home. He would discuss with this Johnson as soon as he got the chance. He decided for now that he would not tell Aelita about this, as it would only cause her worry. Alex returned home with a decent smile on his face. He took the rifle out back to where there was a large stone. He had used this slab before with a sledge hammer to destroy various kinds of weapons poachers used when hunting prey. The rifle he had taken was just another one to add to the pile and another pair of marks to add to score board of defeated poachers.

 

= = = = = =

 

Alex and his family was packed with the basics expect for heavy winter gear by the time the sun had set. It was going to be the usual half day's drive to Kartonu City from Nenwill. They woke up next morning and Alex loaded his jeep while Aelita fixed breakfast. Alex's jeep was just like the one Bryan owned, only Alex's jeep was much cleaner compared to his steel type coworker's jeep. On the hood of the vehicle was the Yelstien family logo, a fancy letter Y on top of a kite shield, both wonderful golden color. Johnson had paid for his jeep along with Aelita's first vehicle, a Honda Civic that also sported the Yelstien family logo. While Aelita's vehicle was good for city roads, Alex's jeep was great for off road travel and was perfectly suited to carrying some cargo, even on the less the smooth mountain drive way that led up to their house.

 

After breakfast, they were off. Erika was strapped in a little bit tighter then normal, her curiosity would always get the better of her and when she saw that caught her eye, she just had to twist and turn and move about to get a better look at it. Alex's jeep did have a top, but it was more of tarp covering and did little more then keep the wind out, keep some heat in, and provide cover from the rain.

 

Alex decided to take the highway straight there as he knew that if he took the scenic route, they'd have to make a few additional stops along the way and personally, he would rather just get to the city even if he didn't like the massive crowds living there.

 

The drive was peaceful and despite a light shower, the city of Kartonu was as active as it had always been. Alex headed straight for the Dragon's Den, where he always met up with the team. It was mid-afternoon when Alex pulled into the Dragon's Den and headed straight for the back parking lot reserved for special people. Alex's reservation for the spot was the emblem on the hood of his jeep.

 

A pair of Machamp saw his arrival and walked out to help him with his bags. “Let us take your bags, Mr. Whitewing.” The first one said taking a smaller bag in each arm leaving the second Machoke to grab the two larger suitcases.

 

“Thank you.” Aelita smiled as they took their bags for them and headed to the elevator which led up to Johnson's pent house.

 

“Just set them down on the elevator, we can take them from there.” Alex stated dismissing the Machamp to return to their breaks. Alex pulled out his keycard for the pent house and slid in into the card reader. There was quick beep before the elevator started its rise to the pent house. Aelita let her daughter down where she couldn't wait for the doors to open. She started walking about and almost lost her footing for a second. Alex smiled as he saw his daughter's eagerness to meet up with Johnson and the crew. To her, the whole team was a crew of heroes.

 

The door's opened as Alex took both suitcases in his hands while Aelita slung two of the smaller packs over her shoulder and carried the other two in her arms. Johnson walked by just in time to see the doors open before Erika rushed to meet him.

 

“Uncle!” she shouted announcing their arrival to the whole team. Johnson knelt down to place a hand on Erika's head.

 

“Hey there. How are you doing today?” He asked. His fur was slightly damp and his blue rings seemed to give a slight glow. It was obvious that he had just taken a shower or come from of the pools. Judging from the towel on his back, he had come from the pools.

 

“I'm fine.” She smiled revealing her shiny fangs that had just grown in a while ago. They were still short and looked rather cute just barely longer then her other teeth. “I gots a question. Where are we going this time? Is it a castle, a graveyard? Oh, maybe it's a temple with lots o fire.”

 

“She certainly adventurous.” Cheryl stated as she walked in.

 

“Cheryl!” Erika shouted running to go meet the Mawile. “I like your new necklace.” Cheryl wore a large emerald necklace around her neck.

 

“Thanks, but I can't stay.” Cheryl said. “I've got a date, so I'll talk with you later, okay.”

 

“Alright.” Erika looked down just a bit. It was obvious that Erika liked Cheryl.

 

“It's a bit early for a date, might I ask where you would be going this time of day.” Alex asked. It was only a little after three o'clock.

 

“I've still got some time before I have to meet him, but I still need to pick up a dress of mine from the dry cleaners for tonight.” Cheryl stated. “I want to make sure everything is set before I meet him.”

 

“I hope this guy is worth the hassle unlike that George guy.” Aelita stated.

 

“I thought he was bit stronger then he was. He nearly broke down after seeing me in that cast last year.” Cheryl said. George was a large, powerful Toxicroak and he knew that Cheryl's job was dangerous. He underestimated the danger though and nearly had a heart attack when he saw first hand the damage that could happen. They tried to work things, but Cheryl wasn't about to give up her passion for dungeons.

 

“Dan has a similar job to our own, so I don't think my job will worry him too much.” Cheryl stated.

 

“So, where are Bryan and Andrew?” Aelita asked as Cheryl headed to her room for a last second check on things.

 

“Bryan is sleeping, he had long night last night. His first solo recovery. Andrew was his backup, but right now he's busy finalizing our reservations with the resort.” Johnson replied.

 

“And as for me, I just got done gathering up the basic gear we'll be needing. You're also going to finally have the pleasure to meet my mate Vivian for the first time as well.” Justin said walking in from one the halls leading out of the main room.

 

“Justin.” Erika ran over to greet the Sandslash.

 

“You've grown since the last time I saw you.” Justin replied.

 

“I'm gonna be as tall as you one day.” She stated.

 

“I'll always be taller then you.” Justin joked.

 

“We'll see.” Erika crossed her arms with a smile.

 

“Well, I'll take your bags to your room while you guys head and grab some new winter gear. It's been almost a two years since we hit any real winter site, so I think you'll be needing some new gear.” Johnson stated as Cheryl returned.

 

“Good idea. Come on Erika, we need to get you some winter clothing.” Alex said to which Erika rushed over to his side.

 

--

 

Alex and Aelita took their daughter to a local winter supply shop. Now, in most regions that had year round good whether with almost no snow at all, a heavy winter clothing shop would be considered strange. However, in Kartonu City, there were actually four such shops. Many people in the Welforth region would often head to Kartonu and buy their winter gear in the city before taking a plane or boat to whatever region there were going to.

 

As for Alex and Aelita, there were in The Arctic Supply Zone, the best store to stop by for winter gear. They had all manor of thick, yet lightweight clothing, all sorts of various winter coats and body suits; they even sold snow mobiles for to the wealthier customers. They even went so far as to help ship their goods to pick up points in the other regions.

 

“Now, I'm thinking we all pick out three sets of clothing each for those colder days and a heavy winter coat each.” Alex stated.

 

“Sounds like a plan.” Aelita agreed. They would have everything else under control so they didn't have to grab much then for the days should a storm arrive.

 

They spent the next hour looking around before picking out their gear. Alex of course went with single color gears, blues, greens, and blacks. He was never one to grab a shirt based strictly on company or design. He bought simple clothing that would last. As for Aelita, she found a nice collection of floral patterns and picked the three best looking ones she could find. As for Erika, she picked up a pair of floral designs like her mother, but got a nice sapphire blue set as her third pick of winter clothing. All them choose the same style of winter, just different colors.

 

They would have been in and out a bit faster, but there were a few people there who just had to ask them questions seeing that being connected with Yelstien made them quite popular.

 

As Alex paid for their gear, he noticed that they still had some time before they had to be back.

 

“Well, we've got our gear. I'm gonna head back to the Dragon's Den. I'll leave the jeep with you and I'll walk back. I want to get the heads up on the site anyway.” Alex explained.

 

“All right. I know you don't like the city much.” Aelita replied. Some things had never changed. “We'll be fine, just be careful.”

 

“I always am.” Alex stated.

 

= = = = = =

 

While Aelita and their daughter Erika decided to explore the city for a while longer, Alex began his quite walk home.

 

The city was active this afternoon as it always was. Shops were open everywhere, the streets were filled, and sounds of people filled the air. Deciding to avoid most of the major crowds taking to the underground market. While the underground market was mostly filled with various small stands rather then actually stores. It was quite becoming truly active at night.

 

As Alex walked to nearest stair case where he entered the market place. He knew it was going to be a walk no matter what path he took, so he choose to make a few stops along the way.

 

While mostly lit up by large lamps, there were a few open areas that served as gardens to brighten up the market place. Alex had just walked into one of these very gardens as he entered the market. A few of the vendors around him took notice of his presence, but did not approach him. One person however did.

 

The young Lucario morph was walking up slowly. She wore a common dress, a purse over her shoulder. “Alex, it's been a while.” She said as she moved closer. Alex turned upon hearing his name get called. There before him stood Danette, still just a bit shorter then Alex.

 

Before Alex had a chance to recognize her, a thief struck. The Meowth morph was fast, simply reaching out to grab the strap on the purse as he ran. With a sudden jerk, Danette was pulled to the ground as the strap broke.

 

Alex reacted as fast as he could. His target had a slight head start, but all of Alex's dungeon running experience made sure he was fast. In a few seconds, he had already closed the gap between them by half. A second after that, Alex lunged forward. He gathered his spirit energy into arm and again, a new ghost like hand extended forth from his own. This spirit hand grabbed onto the thief's tail.

 

Alex stopped hard and jerked his hand back, the ghost like copy mimicking his actions.

 

The sudden stop caused the thief to fall hard on his face. People all turned to see what was happening as Alex ran over to where the Meowth lay. Alex leaned down and picked up Danette's purse as she ran to catch up with him. “Why is that almost every time we meet, you end up getting into trouble?” Alex joked. With her purse in hand, Alex handed it to back to his Lucario friend as the thief got up and took off running.

 

“Thanks.” Danette said as she retrieved her stolen item.

 

Alex turned to see if could see the thief, but with the crowd that had gathered, it wasn't possible. The crowd was quick to dissipate as Alex once again felt the surge of energy rush through his body. Like before, his body gave a quick green glow before he returned to normal. If only by luck, everyone else but Danette had turned to go back to their shopping. “What just happened?” She asked.

 

“I'm not sure myself, but don't worry about.” Alex responded. He was slightly worried, but for now, he would keep it to himself. “So, what are you doing here?”

 

“I came to do some shopping, what else.” Danette responded. “So, what have you been up to lately?”

 

“Same old, same old.” Alex responded. Alex once again started on his way back to the Dragon's Den.

 

“And how are Erika and Aelita?” Danette asked.

 

“They're fine, but Erika is getting a little too curious at times.” Alex told her.

 

“I see, but then again, look who she has for a father.” Danette stated as Alex stopped by a small shop in the market. “You would pass up a fortune just to risk your life and explore a dungeon if only to see who made it.”

 

“I can't argue with that.” Alex admitted. The shop he had stepped into a small antique store that Alex knew all too well. To the owner, an elderly Lopunny, Alex was a repeat customer.

 

“Ah, Alex.” She bowed as Alex entered her little corner of the market. “I still owe you a four hundred for the last statue you traded me.”

 

“I thought it was three hundred.” Alex replied attempting to double-check the math in his head.

 

“Oh no, I remember my repeat customers quite well.” The Lopunny stated. She motioned over towards a rack of new goods she had just picked up recently.

 

As Alex approached the tray that had been placed on a small counter, a small silver object caught his eye. Alex tilted his head as he looked at the silver wolf's head; its sapphire eyes seemed to stare back. “Hey Molly, what is this?” Alex held up the silver wolf head by the copper chain that was attached to it.

 

“I'm not entire sure, but I do believe that it belonged to the early Ironhold culture judging by the craftsmanship that was put into it. I'm not sure however, because the runes in the eyes say its mid Spellsworn.” She explained walking over to the counter where Alex and Danette were standing. Just like with all Ironhold crafts, the small silver wolf head was flawless. It was so real, that it looked life it's fur would start to ripple should the wind hit it.

 

“It's quite pretty, but it's not my style.” Danette said as Alex held it up to his face. Something about it just seemed to plainly draw him in.

 

“I would have to agree that the runes are in fact Spellsworn, but it's a little hard to read them.” Alex stated taking a long look at the eyes. “And I'm also going to agree that this level of craftsmanship is definitely consistent with Ironhold smiths. How did you end up with something like this?”

 

“I traded a dented Imperial blade for that. The man who traded it said that he could restore the sword.” Molly stated.

 

“How much?” Alex asked.

 

“I'm thinking I can get about a thousand for it, but since you're a…” Molly started.

 

“Then a thousand it is.” Alex pulled out his wallet and drew out seven hundred. “And with the amount I you still owe me for that last statue, this should be enough to cover it.” Alex handed her the bills. “Keep the change.” Alex said as he placed it around his neck.

 

“It looks good on you Alex.” Danette complemented Alex.

 

The rest of the walk back to the Dragon's Den was quite. Alex and Danette parted ways when Alex returned to the surface. He made his way straight the Dragon's Den where he would have a talk with Johnson.

 

--

 

Alex failed to see the jeep in the parking lot as he returned, which meant Aelita and Erika were still out.

 

As Alex returned to the pent, he went to talk with Johnson. Alex found him in the study. “Hey Johnson, I need to talk with you.” Alex walked up behind his friend.

 

“What's going on? You curious about this suggested site.” Johnson asked turning his chair around to face Alex.

 

“Well, not right now. I've got something else on my mind.” Alex stated taking a seat. “We both know that I have evolved once. Do you think it's possible that I might be able to evolve again.”

 

“With you, anything could be possible. Might I inquire what brought this thought up?” Johnson asked, a look of interest in his eye.

 

“Yesterday, another group of poachers attacked Aurora again. They were dealt with, but on my way back to the house, I felt this surge of energy. It over took my body; I just couldn't tap into it though. It was a powerful feeling and yet, calming.” Alex began. “It felt like my body is changing, but not quite changing at the same time.”

 

“Now that does sound familiar. When I evolved, I had a similar feeling. It was powerful and calm. I felt invincible in that second.” Johnson stated. “But given the amount of time that you spent running dungeons, my first thoughts would be why wait till now to evolve.”

 

“One of the first questions I asked myself when the thought crossed my mind.” Alex stated. “Now, today when I was walking back here, I had a similar feeling. The only common factor between the two times I felt that feeling was that it was shortly after using my spirit based abilities.” Alex added.

 

“It is possible that you may have to meet a unique set of requirements to evolve. Much like how Riolu have to reach a certain level of emotion to evolve or how Pikachu require a thunderstone.” Johnson stated. “It may be that if you're going to evolve, you may need to meet some sort of requirement. You said that both times you felt this energy, it was shortly after the use of your spirit based attacks.”

 

“That's right. The first time was after that battle with the poachers. I used a few attacks. The second time, I used an extended spirit limb to take back a stolen purse which takes a lot energy in itself.” Alex explained.

 

“Then it may be that you must reach a certain level of spirit energy to evolve. It may also be on a subconscious level that you don't want to evolve and keep your current form.” Johnson concluded.

 

The elevator doors sounded and with it came the voices of Aelita and Erika. They seemed to be talking with another female whose voice Alex could not place. “Can I ask you to keep this quite and don't tell Aelita about it?” Alex asked.

 

“I can do that, but you do know that she will have to be told eventually.” Johnson stated.

 

“Thank you.” Alex got up and then made his way to the elevator to help with the bags. “So where all have you been?” Alex asked his mate.

 

“We went to go look at few things after you left.” Aelita responded.

 

“Looky what I got.” Erika exclaimed holding up a new book. It was part of her favorite series, The Caster. The series was about a teen human back in mid-evil times with a strong ability to cast spells and the numerous adventures he often ended up in the middle of whether he wanted to or not. While Erika herself still had some trouble reading it, she was always happy to sit down and listen to her parents read it.

 

“I'm glad to see you got the next one.” Alex smiled.

 

Alex looked up for a second and that's when he noticed the third passenger on the elevator just getting off. The Mismangus morph stood just a bit taller then himself, her body a seemed to almost float like a vapor, but in physical form.

 

“Hello.” She said with her backpack over her shoulder full of clothes. “You must be Alex. Your mate and daughter both speak highly of you.”

 

“And you must be Vivian, Justin's mate.” Alex stated. He nodded his head, but as per his still partially enclosed personality, he wasn't completely open with Vivian yet. While he had grown to be more open thanks to spending so much with his mate, he wasn't entirely there yet.

 

“I hear that we'll be staying at the Stone Mountain Ski Resort.” Vivian explained.

 

“Justin's told me about that. But now that I'm done studying abroad, I'll be taking a job at the Imperial Crafters site here in Kartonu late next month.” Vivian stated.

 

“I thought I heard your voice.” Justin said as he walked into the room. He quickly approached his mate and took her bag before taking the last two bags from the elevator. Vivian gave him quick kiss before they retreated down to Justin's room. They returned a few moments later to talk with the group.

 

“So, you said that you were going into interior design.” Aelita stated.

 

“That's right.” Vivian stated. “I always had an eye for patterns and designs.”

 

“Imperial Crafters is hoping that she can bring some new life to some of their smaller departments here in Kartonu.” Justin explained.

 

“I could see how that would work.” Alex said. “There has been a slight decline in their business lately.”

 

“Well, I hope that I can help.” Vivian smiled. “And with my good eye on the subject, I should do just fine.”

 

“I know you will.” Justin added.

 

= = = = = =

 

Four days had passed before the group was ready to take off. Cheryl had returned since her date and seemed to be quite the happy mood. With everyone packed up and ready to go, they headed to the airport. While none of the team had a private jet, Imperial Crafters did have one that they would lend to Johnson on occasion given that he continued to give them his services. Along with their bags and gear, Johnson also packed up a pair of his HUMMERs to take with them.

 

The flight over to northern Kanto was a fast one, only an eight-hour trip. Most of the crew spent the trip resting in some form or another whether it just listening to some music like Aelita had chosen to do or completing a number of crossword puzzles like Andrew.

 

Of course, while most rested, there were two that were active. Erika couldn't help but look out the windows and point each and everything thing that caught her eye. Johnson was there with her being sure to point unique landmarks or major cities.

 

As the plane left the Welforth Region to cross the ocean, Erika happily made the announcement. Everyone smiled at her eagerness. There was no doubt that she would follow in her parents' footsteps and ask to join the crew when she was older. Of course, her parents would have the final say until she was of age.

 

To keep Erika busy for the time that they were over the ocean, Johnson had decided to tell her a few tales of his original dungeon runs.

 

After a few hours, Erika was once again back by the window announcing that they had returned to land. She returned to pointing out everything that caught her eye.

 

At last, the pilot announced that everyone needed to return to their seats and prepare for landing. The plane was landing at a mid-sized airport just a few miles from the resort. The airport was located in a valley surrounded by mountain, each one white in color. The weather was fine right now, the wind was down and sky was clear as the plane landed.

 

As the plane had landed, a representative of resort that they were staying at was there to greet them. The Blaziken had driven a small bus with a trailer carrying the five snowmobiles that Johnson had rented in advance.

 

“Greetings and welcome to the Stone Mountain Ski Resort.” The Blaziken stated as the crew got off the plane.

 

“Glad to be here.” Johnson replied, as he was the first one off the plane.

 

“Miss Pearl is waiting at the resort.” The Blaziken informed him as he approached the trailer behind the truck.

 

“Very well.” Johnson turned to face Andrew, Vivian, and Justin. “I'd like you to take three of the snowmobiles to the resort and get our cabin keys.” Everyone already knew who was going to stay with who.

 

Alex would share a five-room single floor cabin with Aelita and Erika. Johnson was going to have a four-room cabin to share with this Miss Pearl. Justin and Vivian would also have a similar four-room cabin; both with a single floor, while Cheryl, Bryan, and Andrew would share an eight-room two-story cabin. It was going to be a bit pricey, but Johnson was more then willing to pay for it given that this was not only a small site, but also a vacation. In addition, the crew of six manning the plane were also given an equal amount of time off and cabins as well all paid for my Imperial Crafters.

 

As Andrew, Vivian, and Justin unloaded the snowmobiles, everyone else including the person from resort started unloading the bags from the plane. It was a quick job unloading the plane and loading up the HUMMERs with the help of everyone.

 

--

 

After roughly seventy minutes, the group was set and plane stored away. With that done, the group got into the vehicles and followed Andrew, Vivian, and Justin to the resort.

 

It was a twenty minute up there with the snowy roads. At last, the resort came into view. The resort itself was huge, a three story building outlined with a stone pillars and large glass windows. While at the front of the building, all three floors were quite visible, the bottom floor and part of the second floor were covered with snow and the mountain. The back end of the roof was more of a patio of sorts with a few hot tubs under a set of pavilions.

 

A short distance from the resort itself were the cabins for those spending more then just a few days up there. The cabins came in a few variations. There were the smaller four room cabins mostly for couples on extended vacations. There were also the five and six room cabins for small families. All of them were single floor cabins. The two story cabins came in eight and ten rooms for larger families and groups who want an extended vacation.

 

The cabins were built in rings, with each ring of cabins surrounding a small group patio under a large pavilion with a hot tub for each cabin and group set of grills for the warmer months. Each cabin was also given a small single car driveway, which could hold up snowmobiles if they wanted to instead of a car.

 

Most of the rings came with four four-room cabins, two five-room cabins, and either an eight or ten-room cabin. Johnson had rented out an entire larger ring containing two four-room cabins, three five-room cabins, and an eight-room cabin. The crew from the plane took the two empty cabins that Johnson's crew weren't using.

 

Andrew, Vivian, and Justin had already collecting the keys to the cabins, rented additional snowmobiles, and also made sure each cabin was stocked up. As Johnson and the crew met up with them, the smaller group was found to be talking with a Ninetails and a Jynx, both females. Most of the crew recognized the Ninetails as Putanna Pearl, a Ninetails with small figure just a few years younger then Johnson. As for the Jynx, no one was able to place a name to the face.

 

“Johnson, over here.” Andrew waved calling them over. “This is Celia, she is the one who claims to have found the possible ritual site.”

 

The Jynx nodded her head as Johnson approached. “Hello.” Johnson stated. “I wasn't expecting to look for you until tomorrow.”

 

“I saw Andrew and knew his face from the papers. I decided I'd track you down when I heard you were coming here and offered to pay an additional week of vacation just to have me lead you to this site.” Celia stated.

 

“It was fortunate for both of us that someone from Imperial Crafters Archeology department was here and overheard you in the first place. If he wasn't here, he wouldn't have done a partial check of the site and then contacted me.” Johnson explained.

 

“Indeed it was.” Celia stated. “It's about a third of a days hike out, so we can't head out today. The valley in heavily wooded in a few areas, so I don't see us using snowmobiles the whole way there which means someone will need to stay with them.”

 

“Your quite smart thinking ahead like that.” Alex stated.

 

“I figure that since you're paid for an week of vacation, I could at least help out a little.” She responded.

 

“She's been heading out there once every other day just to look at the place.” Putanna informed the group.

 

“Well, since we can't head out today, let's start unpacking and see if we can head out tomorrow.” Cheryl stated.

 

“I agree. Let's all get settled down and see what we be doin afta da sun come up.” Bryan stated.

 

Everyone agreed. For that matter, the crew from the plane was already heading to their cabins to start their vacation.

 

As the crew went to go unpack their gear and bags, the sun had started to drift below the mountains. There were still a few hours of light left, but not that many. Alex, Aelita, and Erika pulled up with one of the HUMMERs next to their five-room cabin. They walked into the central room. There were two large fireplaces that heated the whole cabin. The room not only served as the center of the cabin, but also as the dining and living areas.

 

On the far wall were the doorways to the two bedrooms, the smaller one was for Erika, a single bed with a dresser, a lamp, a nightstand and moderate floor space. The second was almost three times larger with a queen-sized bed, a full sized wardrobe, two nightstands, and mini fridge.

 

One of the two remaining was the kitchen area, with a complete a full set of counters, a full sized fridge which was stocked before they arrived with a selection of good food and there was also a small wine cabinet, not that they were going to use it. The last room was the full sized bathroom.

 

“Wow!” Erika exclaimed as she looked around.

 

“They really went all out with these cabins.” Alex stated surprised as how much they had.

 

“Did Johnson say how much this was gonna cost?” Aelita asked.

 

“No, but I'm suddenly guess a mid to high five digit number for the lot of us.” Alex replied. “I think this is going to be a good vacation.” He smiled.

 

“I'm suddenly very glad Johnson made that call asking for you help on this site. I foresee a long enjoyable vacation for all of us.” Aelita stated wrapping her arm around Alex's waist.