The echoeing sounds of footsteps in a cave. A tunnel that stretched endlessly. Then stars. So many of them, twinkling in the darkness. Many different colors, all holding a story, all knowing what is to come.

An old man was on his knees, hands held in prayer. His dark head was bald and a white beard adorned his face. His eyes were closed, his face soft as if he were asleep.

"So you've come to visit."

His lips had barely moved, his posture never waning.

"You seek the Forbidden Light, do you not?"

I opened my own lips to speak, but no sound came out. It was only then I came to realize I was there, but not. I vaguely my surroundings, but everything felt so distant.

"You walk a dangerous path," he turned his head slightly in my direction, his eyes never opening. "Many have sought the light, but none have ever truly attained it. The knowledge that comes with it, it must never be spoken. Some secrets are best kept buried."

His eyes opened, revealing a startling blue. "I await your arrival, one who upset the balance of nature."

...

I awoke, gazing at the red sky. Morning had come and the sun was rising.

"Hurry and get up," a quick kick to the side of my stomach told me Xera was the one to come and wake me, not that she cared that I was awake before the kick. "We don't have all day. Luna wants us to start as early as possible, since we'll be going straight to night."

I groaned, rolling onto my stomach so I could pick myself up. "Of course we are. I'm still sore from running away from that giant Serperior."

A bone bounced off my head and tumbled into the grass. I rubbed the spot that had been struck, wincing in pain. I looked up to see Z in human form, picking a bone clean.

"I don't want to hear that from you, human," she growled, baring her fangs. "You're not the one who fought it. It was similar to fighting that accursed Sceptile."

A buzzing sound was above my head and I looked to see Yanmega there, holding a red fruit in his claws. He dropped it into my hands, settling down near me. 

I smiled. "Thanks."

I crossed my legs and ate. As I chewed, I saw Luna come back into the small clearing, a pile of vines in her arms. She dumped them to the ground and straightened. 

"When you're done eating," she turned her golden gaze onto me. "Help me with this."

I swallowed. "With what exactly?"

"We're tying these together," she explained, sitting as she tugged some vines closer to herself. "We're going to wrap them around us so we can be linked together. If one of us falls, we'll all fall together."

I bit into my fruit, then spat it out quickly. "Wait, what!?"

She remained serious. "You'll be our biggest liability."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," I grumbled. 

"All I'm saying," Z tossed the bone behind her as she stood. "Is don't make me have to save you all."

She morphed back into a Zoroark and padded into the forest.

I finished my fruit and went to help Luna. It took us a while, but once we were done, Xera and Z had returned, a sac in Xera's arms. She sat it down, several colorful fruits poking out.

"Let's get going," Xera said, gazing at the plateau before us. Just last night we had reached the edge of the forest and just feet away was the huge plateau. It was as if the very crust of the earth had risen above the rest, creating a massive wall for hundreds of feet. It wasn't totally vertical, more slanted. There was even a path leading up the side, but Luna said it stopped at a certain point. 

We began hiking up it, Leavanny by my side and Yanmega flying ahead of the group a little. Luna and Zoroark were in the lead with Xera taking up the rear, alongside Grovyle. Dewpider clung to her shoulder, staring up the plateau. I looked back down at the jungle below. First I had shipwrecked in a cove, then I ended up in the jungle, rescued by the Jungle Tribe.

I couldn't help but feel a pain of longing. Despite everything, I had spent quite a while surrounded by trees and thick foliage. For some strange, twisted reason, it felt like I was leaving home. Again.

I remembered when I had first left home. We were in Western Galar, in one of the coastal cities, helping load onto the ship. We were going to set course for the Unovan Colony, and if nothing checked out, we would head down South.

I breathed in. If I concentrated hard enough, I could still taste the salty breeze and the rank of fish. The sound of the waves and the rocking of the boat as I stepped onto it, careful not to drop the box of rations. But I had managed to catch myself on a stray rope and I was falling...

...

"Woah there," a gruff voice said and something big and blue caught my fall. I was helped back to stability and I turned to see a Swampert in front of me, nodding at me. Behind him was a middle-aged man with a white beard and cap. The Captain.

"Thank you Swampert," I smiled.

"Hah!" the Captain patted his Pokemon on the shoulder as the two passed each other. "Swampert is always there to lend a hand. Here kid, let me."

He held out his hands and I passed over the crate. "Thanks, sir."

He chuckled. "No need to thank me. We still have more boxes to load. Hurry it up."

I nodded and hurried off the boat via the ramp, my feet landing on firm wood. I strode across the pier where Ryan was checking the boxes. 

"Limes," I heard him say. "Lots of limes."

He must've heard me coming up behind him because he turned his head to look back at me. "Hope you like limes little bro. Cause we got plenty of 'em."

I grabbed a crate. "I don't want scurvy out there. Doesn't matter if I like them or not."

"Good answer Lee," he grinned. "Help me with all this will ya? These should be the last ones, then we can set sail for the New World."

I nodded and shooed away Ryan's Wooper who was on a box, sniffing the limes. I hefted it up and made my way back to the ship. Once all the boxes were loaded, the Captain announced, "Alright men, we're heading out to the New World! The thrill of adventure awaits!"

The sailors cheered, Ryan and I among them, cheering as well. As the boat began sailing away from Galar, I looked to the open sea. Clutching the chest Ryan had brought back from his deployment, I whispered out to the horizon.

"We're going to find it, Dad. The place in your stories."

I opened the faded emerald chest and unfolded the map inside. The map of our destination. "We're going to find the Mysterious Region."

...

"Liam!"

 Xera had jabbed me in the stomach, bringing me back to the present. "Stop daydreaming. It's time to climb."

We had stopped and I looked up to see the wall of rock. There looked to be plenty of handholds, but that didn't mean it still wouldn't be difficult. 

"Here," Luna handed the rope to Xera after she was done tying it tightly around her waist. Xera took it and did the same, handing it off to me.

"Um," I felt embarrassed. "I don't know if I would tie this well..."

"Outsider," Xera muttered under her breath, taking back the rope and tying it around me. She finished tying roughly and turned back to the wall of rock. "Let's get climbing."

"Yanmega," Luna looked at the bug. "Take up Dewpider. There should be another sort of path somewhere up there. Z, take Leavanny and Grovyle."

Zoroark nodded and transformed into a Dragonite, which seemed to be one of her preferred forms. She grabbed both Leavanny and Grovyle and shot upwards. Yanmega followed once Dewpider climbed onto his back.

"C'mon," Luna began climbing, Xera following close behind. When it was my turn, I didn't allow myself to hesitate. If I did, I probably would never climb. 

...

"This is insane," I hugged the rock face as a gust of wind swirled past. "Truly insane."

"Hurry it up down there," Xera shouted from above. "We don't want to have to carry your weight!"

I grimaced and reached up my hand. I gripped a handhold, small pieces of rock grinding beneath my fingertips as I pulled myself up. I moved my foot around to feel for a foothold, and once finding one, pulled myself up higher.

"C'mon Liam. You can do it."

"Ryan," I breathed, his name lost in the wind. 

I risked a glance upwards. The sheer amount of distance we still had to climb was nauseating and Xera and Luna were nearing the limits of the vine. Remembering all the encouraging words Ryan has ever given me, I tried to go faster. 

"Don't lose your holding now."

With those words, my foot slipped and dangled in the empty air. I gripped my hands tighter on the rock surface, clenching my teeth. 

"Shut up," I didn't want to look. I found the foothold again and resumed climbing, my muscles aching. I couldn't go on for long. 

"Do you really want to be the one to kill your friends."

I looked behind me to see Eric standing in the air, the span of the jungle behind him. I could even see the ocean from here.

He grinned. "I never needed to try and kill you all. You were going to do it for me, right here."

"Shut up," my eyes were wide, teeth clenched harder. "SHUT UP!"

Wind blew past me, fiercer than before, causing me to close my eyes as I hugged the rock face for fear of falling. When I reopened them, Eric had disappeared.

"LIAM!" Xera yelled down angrily. "Hurry up! We don't want to be here till nightfall!"

Gritting my teeth, I ignored my fatiguing muscles and climbed.

...

I was on all fours, panting as sweat dropped onto the rocky surface. We were on a ledge, big enough to hold us all. Well, Z had to transform back into a human so we could all fit, but we did.

"At least that was the last section of climbing," Luna was by an entrance to a dark entrance. "This tunnel will lead up to the top of the plateau. Then it's all downhill from there until we reach the mountains."

She looked on edge. "However, I have to warn you. What lies above could kill us. Exercise caution. And don't breathe in too much."

"Too much of what?" Xera asked the question I was unable to.

"Poison," Luna grimaced. "You'll see once we get up there."

"This will be interesting," Z bared her fangs. "I wanna see how much it's deteriorated."

"You know," I said, taking another deep gulp of air, which was somewhat thinned. "You guys could try to exercise some optimism from time to time."

"This isn't the time for joke," Luna said, walking into the tunnel first. "Now come on. It's nearly nightfall. We'll make camp in here. We don't want you falling off the plateau in your sleep."

"Hah hah hah," I breathed, looking out at the horizon. I could see the moon rising slowly over the ocean more in the East, dusk coming to an end. In that same direction I saw the huge flower that marked the position of the Jungle Tribe's home. The distance was great, but I knew I still had longer ways to go.

A voice on the cold night wind. Ignoring the words, I muttered, "Shut up, Eric."

I'm still not feeling the best, still trying to get over the loss of my pet as you could see from my profile and announcement. I'll try and get a chapter of LDOC out sometime today or tomorrow. I wanted to take a hiatus, but I need to keep myself busy. Till next time. Toodles