I woke to the sound of screeching. Not the cute, chirpy kind, more like a hundred nails dragged over slate, amplified by a megaphone.
"What the?"
I bolted upright, throwing off Skitty, who'd been using my chest as a pillow. She hissed, ears flattening, as the noise crescendoed into what could only be described as a demonic lullaby.
Mew was already gone. Of course.
I scrambled out of the tent, still half-asleep, and squinted into the pale dawn light. The sky was moving. A swirling, chittering mass of purple bodies and jagged wings - Zubats, a dozen at least - dive-bombing the campsite like it owed them money.
One peeled off from the swarm and zipped straight at my face.
"OH COME ON!"
I ducked, feeling the rush of air as it missed my head by inches. Another lunged for my backpack, fangs glinting. I yanked it away, but two more replaced it, their ultrasonic cries drilling into my skull.
"Skitty, Vulpix - HELP!"
No response. I couldn't turn to see what was up.
I sprinted for the smoldering campfire, waving a charred stick like a torch. The Zubats recoiled momentarily, then doubled down, their teeth gleaming with the unholy fervor of sleep-deprived gremlins.
One latched onto my sleeve. Another went for my hair.
Panic surged, hot and electric, and something snapped inside me - a pressure in my chest, like a rubber band pulled too tight.
THUMP.
A pulse of invisible force exploded outward, rippling the air. The Zubats were blasted back mid-dive, tumbling end over end like deflated balloons.
I stared at my hands. Did I just...?
The swarm recovered faster than my dignity. They regrouped with a synchronized shriek, wings buzzing louder, fangs bared for round two -
FWOOOSH.
A fireball screamed past my ear, so close I felt the heat curl my hair. It struck the lead Zubat dead-center, sending it spinning into a bush.
I turned.
Vulpix stood at the tent entrance, her fur bristling, all six tails flared like a vengeful torch. Embers dripped from her muzzle as she unleashed a barrage of tiny fireballs, each one hissing through the air like a firework.
The Zubats scattered, their bravery evaporating faster than morning dew. Within seconds, the sky was clear, save for a few stray feathers drifting down like defeated flags.
Silence.
Vulpix trotted over, sniffed my bitten sleeve, and gave me a look that said, "You're lucky I like you."
Skitty finally poked her head out looking a little dazed, took one glance at the chaos, then looked at me. "You good?" she asked.
Mew chose that moment to reappear, floating down from a tree branch with an apple in hand. "Aww, you guys started the party without me?"
I pointed at her, still breathless. "You. Knew."
She grinned, tossing the apple in the air. "Knew what? That Zubats hate dawn as much as you do? Or that panic's great for aura breakthroughs?"
I groaned, collapsing onto a log. Vulpix hopped into my lap, smug as a champion, while Skitty batted at the fallen Zubat wings like they'd personally offended her.
Mew plopped beside me, nudging my shoulder. "Look on the bright side! Now you know you can yeet things with your mind. That's, like, top-tier survival skill."
I buried my face in my hands. "I hate this forest."
Vulpix licked my elbow, as if to say, "But you love me."
...which was true at this point.
I looked down at the two, purposefully ignoring Mew. I was slightly annoyed at her.
"So, what was that? You didn't respond when I called you."
Skitty's ears flattened. "We got hit with a supersonic. We were too confused to really help. Vulpix snapped out of it before me. Sorry," she said with a remorseful tone, i could feel their sadness through our link.
I let out a sigh. "C'mon, I'm not mad at you. It wasn't your fault." I gently reached for her head and started petting her.
We all eventually calmed down from the adrenaline high.
■■■SAVING■■■
We quickly packed up our stuff. I didn't want to be here when those bats came back.
We continued our trek through the woods. According to the map, it would take about five days to walk all the way to Cerulean, mainly due to the path curving to avoid Pokémon territory.
The walk was not as pleasant as I had hoped. Like the book said, the wild Pokémon of this forest commonly called the Moon Forest were extremely battle hungry. Those Oddish we met were apparently a minority, and today proved that.
Our walk was repeatedly interrupted by attacks from random Pokémon. It was mainly because Skitty and Vulpix were out. I got the feeling the wild Pokémon could sense their strength, mainly because all the Pokémon that had fought us so far had been within Skitty's or Vulpix's strength range.
This wasn't all bad though. My aura control had increased since the attack this morning. Mew was right about danger helping my growth, and while not by much, I could feel my aura acting less like thick molasses and more like honey. That thing I had done at camp where I pushed the Zubat was apparently a very rudimentary use of aura to push stuff. It was what usually became the move Force Palm among Fighting-type Pokémon.
Speaking of Mew, she had been talking about random stuff this whole time. I'm pretty sure it contributed to Pokémon attacking us just to shut her up.
Mew walked alongside me, skipping as she chattered. "Did you know Zubats navigate by sound? That's why they're so loud. They're basically screaming maps at each other. Oh! And Rattata teeth never stop growing, which is why they chew everything. Imagine if humans had that problem. Wait, some do, but they just call it stress eating and..."
"Shh!" I held up a hand, cutting her off mid-sentence. The forest had gone eerily quiet. Even Skitty and Vulpix paused, ears twitching.
Then I heard it: a slow, grating scrape, like rocks being dragged over dirt.
Mew opened her mouth, and I shot her a glare. She mimed zipping her lips, though her eyes sparkled with mischief.
The sound came again, closer this time. Something was moving in the underbrush ahead, something big. Vulpix's tails flared, embers sparking at her muzzle, while Skitty crouched low, her claws unsheathing.
I barely had time to whisper "Get ready" before the bushes erupted in a shower of leaves.
The bushes rustled violently then parted to reveal a hulking Nosepass, its broad, magnetized nose twitching as it scanned the area. It barely glanced at us before lumbering across the path, its stone body scraping against the dirt with that same grating sound. Each heavy step sent tiny tremors through the ground.
Mew gasped. "Ohhh, it's a Nosepass! They always point north, you know. Except when they don't. Which is, like, never. Unless they're lost. Is it lost? Hey, buddy, you need directions?"
I clamped a hand over her mouth. The Nosepass paused mid-step, its nose creaking as it slowly turned toward us.
A beat of silence.
Then it snorted, a sound like two rocks colliding, and trudged onward, vanishing into the foliage on the other side.
Skitty relaxed first, flicking her tail. "Drama queen."
Vulpix huffed, extinguishing her embers. "I could've taken it." I could feel her doubt, she didn't believe that.
Mew peeled my fingers off her face. "Rude! Also, false. That thing could've bench-pressed a Snorlax." She marched after it, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Nice nose! Very aerodynamic!"
I dragged her back by the hood of her disguise. "Stop antagonizing the boulders."
She gave me an amused look, but said nothing.
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AN: Something feels off about the recent three latest chapters, please tell me if you find any mistakes. Ren would learn how to control his aura soon enough, but he's still far from the real crazy stuff.