The Rebellion of Instinct - Part 2: The Search for the Legends

Chapter 4: The Pokemon Santuary

"I need to go pee!" Quinci complained, as the flew over the clouds, and fell down back again on gyarados. They had been riding ever since that morning; now it was around three. That last night, Shell and Quinci had sorta figured out the elements. But mostly not.

"Come on! The sanctuary is right over there!" Shelly argued. She pointed in the direction of a jungle. "Plus, will you please stop using 'pee'? Can you just say, 'use the bathroom' or something?"

"FINE!" Quinci relented. "But I'm still using 'pee!'"

In 15 more minutes they were there.

After Quinci went pee/use the bathroom, they lept down from gyarados (who now was back in its pokeball) and trekked through the forest. Vines covered their view, but they used the direction of their shadows to tell where they were.

When at last they reached the sanctuary, Shelly gasped. It was an amazing structure, especially considering the age it had been built in.

The front was a huge jade archway, and walls that stretched for hundreds of feet in a circle surrounded them once they went in. There were steaming waterfalls for healing pokemon and a huge temple-like building in the middle of the ring. Overhead, beautiful vines and greenery were like a roof of a greenhouse, casting a emerald light onto the ground. And hanging from the vines were glass bottles, all filled with a sweet aroma that hadn't rotted in all these years. Next to the temple, there was a mango tree.

"The healing stones must be in there," Ravisu said, pointing to the temple.

The friends pushed the massive doors, which were filled with a single image of a giant flying pokemon. It mostly was white, but the flaps on its back, the area around its eyes, and stomach were deep blue. It had a long graceful neck and tail. Its wings were giant, and looked like they could blow down buildings. Shelly stared at the carving, intrigued. But then, the doors completely opened, and she tore her eyes away from the carving, pushing it to the back of her mind. It looked familiar, but Shelly couldn't place her finger on it. (Literally. The door was was very splintery.)

Inside, thousands of bottles, vessels, and containers lined the walls. In the center of the room stood a table with parchment, ink, and a quill. Light spilled in through colored glass, so the room was engulfed in a rainbow. Despite the fact that vines covered much of the walls, and the ground was dirt, the air was mystical.

"Wow," Shell marveled, "This is amazing!"

"Come here guys!" Bell called. "Look at this."

Bell brushed away at some greenery, and was pointed at three statues carved of gemstones of a Moltres, an Articuno, and a Zapdos.

"It's the Team Leader symbols!" Ravisu gasped.

"Oh," Quinci stated. "I was gonna say it was the three legendaries."

She stepped closer to the symbols, examining them. She traced Moltres's wings with her finger. It started to glow like fire and hummed with energy. Shelly gasped and raced over to the Articuno and traced the elegant feathers. The two were wrapped in swirling light, Quinci in flames of red, and Shelly in winds of snow. And then, they, and the light, disappeared.

"WHAT THE HECK?" Ravisu cried, "HOW DID THAT HAPPEN IN LIKE FIVE MINUTES??"

"IDK," Bell said. She walked over to the desk they saw earlier and sat down. "Now we just wait."

"Uh, NO!" Ravisu said, "Like, Shelly and Quinci BOTH left their stuff! I bet they have some goodies like sour patches."

"WHY DID YOU ABANDON ME WITH HER!" Bell cried, "Who likes sour patches anyway?"

What the friends didn't notice, was that some invisible finger was tracing the sign of Zapdos.

***

"W-what's going on..." Shelly stuttered. She was floating in a black space. Beside her, Quinci was also looking both surprised and scared.

"You must work together to regain balance of the pokemon..." a mysterious voice hissed. Or maybe it was more of a whisper... It circled around them, both welcoming and foreboding. "You must embrace the powers that lie within you..."

"What powers?" Quinci asked. "I'm just an ordinary pokemon player that happened to be the Valor heir! I didn't even like Pokemon!"

"What?" Shelly asked, "Seriously?!" Quinci shrugged, and the voice went on.

"You must choose between powerful... and safe... Choose powerful and great dangers would befall you... but choose safe and lose this battle... choose none and you shall continue with this struggle..."

Quinci held hands with Shelly. "Whatever we choose, we will choose this together." Quinci's voice was not commanding, but still firm.

"Ok," Shell agreed.

Shelly thought about it. Being the daughter of Team Valor, Quinci would probably choose power. They were supposed to make this decision together. But being the daughter of Team Mystic, Shelly had a harder time. Risk her life for power? Or let Mystic fall?

"I, Quinci Laciasal, heir of Team Valor, choose to be powerful despite the danger!"

Red light swirled around Quinci and wrapping around her. Soon, the light binded with her body, and she tumbled backward through the void.

"I thought we were choosing together!" Shelly hissed, annoyed. Quinci, again, shrugged.

She then shook her head, and slid her hands against each other instantly, like she was lighting a match. Sparks flew in the darkness, and when she held her hands open, flames flew from them, gold and red, dancing in a figure of Moltres. Quinci looked over and Shell. Now it was just up to her.

"I, Shelly Yangtze, heir of Team Mystic... ch-choose..." Shelly stuttered, before taking a deep breath. "Choose to be powerful despite the danger for the people of this world. (Mostly just the Mystics, though...)"

Blue and white winds swirled around Shelly, just like Quinci. She felt a cold sensation touch her skin, and she felt a fluttering of wings in her. Perhaps it was just her emotions, or perhaps Articuno was waking at last. She blew a gust of air, which became a whirlwind of ice and snow in the shape of Articuno.

"Good luck," the voice whispered again, "The world must be in balance, and now you are next to the scales of the world." The two friends nodded, and the darkness of the void became a flashing white, and the two felt themselves returning to the temple. And even though it happened quickly, both realized two things:

First, the choice was made.

Second, Ravisu had stolen their sour patches.