[X] My Assistant

[Kamaitachi]

Here they are! The long awaited entries for the Fanfiction Contest!

Everyone with an active PANE profile is encouraged to vote for their three favourites. I will be weighting the scores based on people's order of preference. Your first choice gets 3 points, the second choice gets 2, and third gets 1. As with the previous contest, I will be the tiebreaker should one be needed. Feel free to explain why you voted one way or the other.

If you have an entry in the contest, you may not vote for yourself.

Voting will close on May 2nd at 11:59 pm (I extended the entry period by a day, it's only fitting to do the same with voting.)

Without further ado, here are the entries for this contest!

"We Rock This Stage!" - Seiccan Serroc (Douken Sota)

It all ended with one final strum, the chord from the guitar ringing loudly through the speaker until it soon died out. “Alright, I’d say it’s time we call it a day,” said the drummer of the band, spinning his sticks in his hands before setting them on his drums. “If we play any further, the store will close and we won’t be able to celebrate our last night together like this.”

“Don’t say it like that, Dredge,” said their female bassist. “I am sure we will see Fred here soon after he gets big over in Furoh.”

“HEY!” Seican protested, “Didn’t I say to call me by my stage name, Brittney? Or would you rather stop me calling you Katt?” Her cheeks got puffed up from that remark, but in the end, the three soon laughed it off. “Now c’mon before they stop serving. I’m starving. Last one to the car pays!” With Katt and Seican running off, this left Dredge the duty to lock up his garage before they headed out. Of course, he was also in charge of the bill.


“Order up!”

The large meat lovers was placed in front of the band and immediately they began to dig in. “So, Sei,” Dredge said, shaking red peppers onto his slice, “Knowing you, you aren’t just going to go with a simple performance.”

“You kidding me? And be like every other coordinator out there? No way!” Taking a large bite from his, he said (with his mouth full), “It has to be flashy! Hard to stand out if it’s not flashy.” Swallowing the bite, he continued, “I’m a rocker, not some business man running a street show. When I go on stage, people will be expecting concerts from me. Encores. Fan base. I will have it all!”

“But you are missing one thing,” Katt interrupted, takinga sip of her soda.

“Oh, and what would that be?”

“A catchphrase. Something people can tie to you. Sure, it may be a simple sentence now, but when you get bigger…”

“People will be able to tag it along to me! Perfect! Alright guys, time to brainstorm. Short, sweet, and epic. Something I can scream when I get those ribbons!” While eating, the group had gone through so many ideas and shorts, such as, “A claim to metal,” to “Head-banging victory.” Nothing was sounding good. Until…

“We rock this stage,” Dredge muttered to himself. It didn’t seem crazy, so it wasn’t as pushed, but Seican still pulled.

“Say that again.”

“We rock this stage…”

“No, no. More oomph!”

“We rock this stage!”

“Yeah, yeah! Tonight, we rock this stage! It’s perfect! And you know what, whenever I call it out, it will be a shout out to you guys! And when the time comes, I will need you guys for the biggest performance Furoh will ever hear!”

“Well, make sure you can get to the Ribbon Cup then,” Katt complimented, “Otherwise we will be waiting forever.”

"Ego Sum Extraho" - Darius Dovakin (Toogee)

In the northern portion of Unova, Opelucid City was divided into two. One, the Black District displayed the bright future of the community through advanced technology. Skyscrapers towered over the streets, which themselves were bordered with bright neon lights. Just a few blocks down, the city transformed into a community of stone houses, large manicured bonsai trees, and cobblestone streets. This was the White District, a place steeped in the traditions of the past. Though complete opposites in nearly every way, they represented the balance of two times. The people of Opelucid used the experiences of the past to build upon their future.

It was here that Darius Dovakin resided. Even in this city, the dragon trainer’s style was rather exotic: the leather armor and cape were more of a Johto tradition. He headed to the temple within the White District, home of a council of elders that guide dragon trainers on their journeys. Though his pride had only risen to greater heights during his training in Blackthorn, Darius still had great respect for his mentors.

Darius walked through the main hall, lined with dragon statues. The path ended in a central room, in which five men sat at podiums that surrounded the visitor. They were triplets, identical in physical appearance, each wearing either black or white robes to form an alternating pattern along the room. Together, they formed the Eee Clan, which legends have told that their adventures have taken them as far as the moon itself. Darius kneeled to the sages in respect as he asked for their guidance.

“Oracles of Opelucid, hear my plea!” Darius began. “For my entire life, I have been training in the art of the sword. I have made allies with pokemon, both those on my side and across Unova and Johto. I come to seek your blessing: I wish to begin my journey to become dragon master like my ancestors before me.”

Two of the elders looked to their central brother, who was rubbing his long white beard in contemplation. After examining their subject, he responded, his accent drawing out certain syllables.

“Daaaaaarius Dovakin,” the first said. “It seems Blackthorn’s armor suits you well.”

“Thanks, Lord Hoo,” Darius replied, bowing his head in respect as he stood back on his feet. “They do look kind of snazzy, don’t they? I can get you some if you’re-”

“The journey to become dragon master requires you to seek The Dragon.” Darius turned to the elder to his left, Lord Doo, and listened intently. “If you ever hope to find The Dragon, you must replicate his journey.”

“Wait wait wait. The Dragon? As in some ultimate creature that’s peerless in battle? Hell yeah! I seek him out for you!”

“Fool! The Dragon does not take any form, nor is he a creature!” Darius quickly turned around to face Lord Loo, the third brother of the clan. He was not pleased with the youth’s attitude to ancient tradition, but he was soon calmed by the eldest brother.

“Peace, Brother Loo” Hoo said as he raised a hand towards his brother to calm him. “Perhaps a recount of The Dragon’s journey will enlighten young Darius of what lies ahead.”

“Indeed,” Lord Doo obliged as he pulled out an old looking scroll. Reading it over, he repeated the tale, as the elders have done so many times before.

“The Dragon began his journey armed with only his claws and the armored scales on his back. Using only them, he was faced with his first challenge: entering the new world. Using the only tools he had, he burst out of the egg holding him. With his eyes wide open, the Dragon introduced himself to the world: Ego Sum Extraho. From there, he had his fellow hatchlings as allies to face the world. His journey was full of discovery, adventure and danger. Along the way, he would develop into a full-fledged dragon. Though he would gain many powers over his long life, the Dragon’s ultimate power was the ability to know when to restrain his might and when to unleash it. He would become a legend that the people would love and fear. And that, Darius Dovakin, is the journey of The Dragon.”

“Wait, that’s it? What about the grand battles? How about evil fiends he had to ward off? Hell, what about the ending?” Darius was clearly disappointed, but the ever calm Lord Hoo attempted to alleviate his complaints.

“Ah, the story hasn’t ended yet. As for the details, you will find those out in due time, Daaaaarius Dovakin.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Two weeks later…

Darius opened his eyes and saw only faint light. He was in a crate, with sunlight creeping through the top panel. The sound of waves crashing against the box indicated that he was on a beach. That would most certainly explain why the bottom panel felt wet.

“This is what I get for choosing the cheap travel option,” Darius said to himself, rubbing his head after bumping it against the crate for the entire trip. Still lying on his back, the dragon trainer unsheathed his sword and got to work.

The Dragon began his journey armed with only his claws and the armored scales on his back. Using only them, he was faced with his first challenge: entering the new world.

Darius stabbed into a space between the top and side panel. He used the broadsword as a lever, pushing it downward to force the top upward. Once it was sufficiently loose, Darius used his armored shoulder to ram the top off. It took several attempts but the crate was finally open, allowing Darius to see the world around him.

From there, he had his fellow hatchlings as allies to face the world…

Darius took one of the pokeballs strapped to his belt and summoned his charmander. The fire lizard looked around with wide eyes: a sandy beach stretched into the horizon. Beyond that, endless grassy fields invited visitors to walk barefoot over the plains. Bindy looked up to her master, eager to figure out what this place was all about.

“That’s right Bindy. We’re in Furoh. Somewhere here, a legendary dragon resides, waiting to be discovered by a worthy trainer. I bet the rest of his story is going to be full of awesome, just like my story will be…wait a minute.”

The pieces were coming together. Darius was only given a sword, his armor, and his pokemon to start the journey. He thought this was to replicate the Dragon’s journey, but what if it was something more? What if the Dragon was much closer than some isolated cave deep in the mountains? What if…oh those clever elders…

With his eyes wide open, the Dragon introduced himself to the world.

“Ego Sum Extraho,” Darius repeated, only now realizing its true meaning. “I am the Dragon.”

The Dragon wasn’t very far at all: it was within Darius all along. This wouldn’t be a quest to find a mythical creature but a journey to find himself. The reason the story of the Dragon was sparse was because it hadn’t happened yet. It would be up to Darius to create those legends in this brand new land.

“Come Bindy, let’s go make us legends! FUS RO DAH!”

The charmander gleefully followed as the dragon trainer rushed over the grassy plains. It was time to write Darius into Furoh’s history.

Unlimited Bread Pudding"Light the Road" - Dr. Adelaide Robinson aka The Demented Doctor Spatula (colourcodedchaos)

Light The Road

In a convalescent home in Cerulean City, there lay a young woman in a grubby black T-shirt and not much else. Currently, she was writing in numbers and speaking in tongues - at least, that was what the baffled-looking Nurse Joy and her friend Kevin, the local chaplain, assumed was going on. Arceus worked in mysterious ways, but neither she nor her friend had ever known him to use what sounded like the maths of the damned.

Joy cleared her throat nervously. “Um, Miss Robinson?”

“... using Woodin cardinals to form the base loci for the transfinite aleph-steps...”

“Adelaide?”

“... work through the non-Harrison-compliant chronospatial base dimensions...”

“Adelaide, we’ve told you about scribbling on the sheets! Stop it this instant-”

“Are you a post-doctoral researcher in advanced transdimensional theory?”

“Uh... what?”

“Didn’t think so. Kindly shut up and let me work, or if you can’t bring yourself to do that, fetch me some more notebooks or a palmtop. Chop chop. Now then, about the Haldeman number for this phasing state... oh, if only I had a proper university maths lab to work with! No offence, cybereye.”

Nurse Joy turned away as Adelaide went back to... whatever it was she was doing. “You see what I mean, Kevin? She’s delirious. I... I think she needs Arceus’ guiding hand. Paw. Hoof. Thingy.”

“Well, He does work in strange ways. I shall see what may be done. Does she have a companion?”

“We tried a few out - a Machop, a Cincchino, even an Aron from the sanctuary in Pewter when we worked out it was power she wanted - but there were... incidents. Especially when Misty’s new protégé came on a visit. Such a nice girl, and her poor Horsea...”

“I did wonder why they were so skittish these days. Alicia-”

“Please, Kevin, don’t call me that. I stopped being her the day I joined the Health Service.”

“... Joy, I will do whatever I can to help her. Arceus willing, she will recover her sanity.”

“Fine. I, um... I’ll leave you to get acquainted with her. I’ve got a lot of, um, filing! Yes! I need to catch up on that!”

“But you always hated-”

“Bye!” Alici- JOY scampered off while Kevin berated himself for clinging to the past. He could see why she was scared. Then again, he already knew.

Everyone had known.

People crashing out of the sky might be a common or garden occurrence for someone living near the roosts of Dialga or Palkia, but in the comparatively sleepy city of Cerulean it was entirely unheard of. And yet here she was, the madwoman herself, a ward of the city until she was healed, living in the attic of the Pokémon Centre where her nightmares wouldn’t disturb the other patients. Kevin understood their concerns; the last thing a ten-year-old child wanted to hear after having their prized Rattata or whatever beaten up by a passing trainer was that scream. He’d stayed up with the dying before, but it hadn’t prepared him for that. Usually they were quieter, now he thought about it.

The priest was a short, dainty little man, dressed in starched vestments that smelled unspecifically but pervasively of cat. He coughed as politely as one can when trying to get the attention of the completely disinterested, then sat down on her bed. “Miss Robinson?”

“Are you a theoretical physicist too? Must be a convention somewhere.”

Kevin smiled to hide his confusion and laughed a little. “No, I’m afraid this is my parish. I’m a priest of the Holy Arceus-”

“A priest?”

“Yes.”

“Er... not to be rude, but if I remember my history lessons correctly you’re everything I despise in human nature. Blind belief over observable proof, faith over knowledge, fantasy over reality. Please go somewhere else, I’m sure that you can find something to do. Maybe find a woman who knows more than you do and burn her as a witch? Shouldn’t be too hard. This place does have gendered wards, after all.”

“I, um, I’m afraid I’ll have to take offence at that.”

“Good. You’re supposed to. Have a nice day.”

“I’m not leaving, Adelaide-”

“You will address me as the Demented Doctor Spatula, thank you. They won’t do it here. I have to keep scribbling out the names on the bloody charts.”

“I... see. Well then, um, Doctor, I have something of an advantage over other priests you may have met. You see, I have spoken with Arceus. It was in the back bar of the Dog and Weasel out in Slateport, a few doors down from a shrine to Him. We talked about the nature of the universe. It’s on film.”

“On the internet?”

“Yes-”

Adelaide tilted his face up and stared intensely at it, though her right eye seemed to flicker from side to side. After a while, she slumped back. “Arceus. Big black dragon thingy, right? Loads of teeth, stompy-looking character. Not the sort of cove you’d want to meet in a dark alley, if you could find one he could actually fit inside.”

“What? No! Arceus is white and gold - well, most of the time. When He bears certain artifacts the colour of His neckpiece changes.”

She sat up again. “Well done. You passed the test. You believe you saw what you saw.”

“What? But, how did - oh, that’s just horrid!”

“I’m sorry if my disability causes you some offence, but you deserved an explanation. This eye is a small, moderately powerful computer and media hub. It is able to perform facial recognition scans, though this does mean it derps out a bit. Also, databases in this world could be hacked by a three-year-old with half a potato where I come from. You people really need to tighten up your general net security. What if there’s a Quadunnon invasion?”

“I... you... you really aren’t from this world, are you?” Kevin finished weakly.

“Was falling from the sky not, you know, something of a clue?”

“I... alright. Arceus has brought you here for a reason-”

“Yes, yes, can we dispense with the magic space deer for a bit? It rather gets in the way of the discussion.”

“... Fine. You are here for a reason. I only wish to help you return to sanity-”

“You think me mad, then.”

“Well, I wouldn’t put it quite like that-”

“You should, because it’s true. I mean, I’m the Demented Doctor Spatula, headed for greatness in the Mad Scientists’ Union and Building Society. We were founded to give superheroes something to do...”

After a two-hour potted history of Adelaide’s home dimension, Kevin was certain he could feel dribble on the sides of his mouth. He tried to wipe it off, but his brain was currently refusing to do brain things.

“I... well, that is quite the story, Adel - Doctor. And it certainly explains why one of your eyes is hovering three feet away from your head.”

“Why do you think they put me in the attic in the first place?”

“To be honest with you, Doctor, I had assumed it was the thing with Misty’s pet swimmer.”

“... I am not sure if you mean that example of the local fauna or the exercise in skin-crawling vapidity with the bathing costume.”

“Now now, it doesn’t do to be unkind-”

“Which is why I’m being charitable. Honestly, why is everyone so nice here? I feel like I’m in a children’s television show. Is there going to be Iggle Piggle dropping by soon?”

“I assume this is a reference pool you are deliberately playing up to soothe your feelings of loneliness and culture shock.”

“I-” Adelaide was taken aback. “Wow. You’re good.”

“I trained as a psychiatrist before joining the clergy. I found that I could do a lot more good for certain patients if Arceus got Himself involved.”

“I see. You light the road too, you just use a different lantern.”

“Or Lanturn, haha.”

“... That’ll be a joke about the local wildlife, I presume.”

“Yes. I’d have thought you’d have a Pokédex by now. A smart person like you should never be without it if they want to learn more about a new world...”

“I suppose they didn’t trust me with additional computing power. They took my palmtop, you know. Which is why I’m reduced to, well...” She spread her hands wide, indicated the diagram- and equation-covered sheets, then seemed to sag. “Scrawling on the furniture like a child learning how to draw.”

“I’m sure you understand a lot more about them than I ever could, but... could I get back to something?”

“Of course. It’s nice to have a conversation with someone who isn’t telling me I’m stupid. Would you mind telling Joy that stupid and mad aren’t the same thing?”

“I’ll be sure to. Now, what I wanted to talk about is when you said I ‘lit the road’. It’s a nicely-turned phrase.”

“Thank you. It’s the Union motto. Nos Iter Illuminabit. We Light The Road.”

Kevin was impressed. He’d never heard someone actually intone something before. He could hear the capital letters. Indeed, if he got his mind right, he could almost smell the incense and hear the clanging of monastic bells. “Is that like Ancient?”

“Yes, after a fashion, if Ancient is like Latin.”

“Let’s agree that it is for now. What do you mean by that?”

Adelaide smiled warmly. “It’s a reminder.”

“Of what?” Kevin leaned forward slightly.

“My responsibilities. Light the road, show the way. Be smarter than everyone else in the room, at least at something. Be intelligent, be curious, be rational, be logical. It’s as much a personal philosophy as everything else. The Tao of Mad Science, if you will.”

“Indeed?”

“Indeed. To say you light the road is to make everyone’s life better with your mind and your talents. Everyone can do it. No matter what it is you do best, and how good you are at it, there is a place for it. You show the way to a better future, because the future is always better, always brighter, and you know it is because you’re the one making sure that it is. You use your gifts to make life better and show other people how to make the most of their own talents. Everyone builds off of everyone else. Everyone means something.”

“... Are you some kind of communist?”

“A better political term would be centre-left liberal progressive, a better actual term would be rational human being. The way we do things has worked for seventy years, during which time we’ve colonised space, terraformed bits of the Moon, finally had a proper look at the oceans, halted post-Industrial Revolution global warming trends, cured most known diseases with gene therapy and countervirals, and created a diverse and culturally rich post-scarcity society. But, you know, however you guys want to do things is fine as well.”

“So that’s a yes.”

“No, I - I’m not going to get you to budge, am I?”

“You see, you’ve described a dictatorship. A benevolent one, but a dictatorship nonetheless. What about the people who don’t subscribe to this hippy stuff? What about the business people? What about the people who want to make money?”

“What part of post-scarcity did you not understand? There’s no money. There’s no need for money. We don’t even really trade with each other, because whatever you want to get you can replicate. Eudaimonic Earth. Welcome to the future.”

“But what about greed? What about just wanting more for yourself than what the government gives you?”

“Simple. You get it yourself. Everyone has a replicator, which is like a 3D printer but more so. It uses a Haradal to - oh, yeah, jargon. Hawking radiation accelerator and locus. It attracts electrons and protons from Hawking radiation and uses them to make more complex atoms and molecules. It prints out everything you want, made of 100% all-natural quantum phenomena. The Doctor who designed them, Erupting Doctor Smee, sat on it for years while he refined it into a design that could be put into every house on the planet for cheap as free. We mobilised, we gave them out, and we remade the world, bright and prosperous for the lifespan of the universe itself. Free from the burden of conventional finance, actual growth accelerated at an impossible rate. Scientists were able to achieve marvels. No more poverty. No more people dying of treatable diseases. No more hunger. And over time, we got better at it. We build orbital stations, we have FTL travel via spacewarp envelopes... we’re making the future brighter because we want to. Those who want to kill and destroy, well, we have psychoanalysis for that. We light the road, Kevin, and we light it for everyone.”

“A pretty speech.”

“Really? Thanks.”

“I enjoyed this little chat. Oh, and one more thing... are those circuit diagrams?”

“No, they - actually, you’re right. Yes, they are. Just for... very complicated, very strange circuits. But your place doesn’t really have the power source for them-”

“Have you considered Electric-type Pokémon for the job?”

“... Electric-type?”

Kevin stood up. “Demented Doctor Spatula, I swear upon His name that I will get you a Pokédex by the end of today and find you what you need. I will get your computer back, and I will see to it that you have as much memory as it takes. The Church has a discretionary fund for cases like yourself, so don’t worry about that. You’re a scientist; you should know about the world in which you live, however long you stay.”

“I... thank you, Kevin. Truly.”

“Think of it as... lighting your road, Doctor.” With that, Kevin swept out of the attic to see a man about a computer.

And Adelaide leant back in her bed and smiled like a cat in a sunbeam, feeling the slow turn of a world not her own, and waited for the future.

She knew it would be bright.

"Coincidence Alters All" - Jill Ariana Cortoma (Aura Dynasty)

Coincidence alters all;
When a rose is not enough!

A small garden of roses, filled top notch with bright red roses. The place just breathed serenity, a peaceful place to ease the mind, to make it come to rest while smelling the sweet scent of the thousand flowers blooming there. This place, it was enchanting. And amongst all this red and serenity there was one who stood out, a rose so purely white that it could only be a dream, yet it wasn't... What did it resemble? She did not know.

The girl watched at the side, slowly inspecting the field with her gaze alone, enjoying the scenery to the fullest. As she still wondered what it could be, this purely tainted white rose, she decided to get a closer look and in her mind she had already taken a step towards it as a voice kept her from moving any further.

"Do not cross the border of the temple, nor do you get off the marble path cut out through this vast sea of silence."

Jill turned to see a man cloaked in rags approaching. He seemed odd yet familiar, as if his being was already known by her for ages, Jill did not seem to reject his warning and kept on the temple ground. Without even looking at the man she started speaking; "The vast white... what does it mean?"

"It's meaning you ask? It stands for truth and the secret that guides most."

While saying this the man went down the few stairs that lead to the path cut through the garden. When arriving near the white rose he stopped and turned towards it, Jill watched his every move. "This secret you speak of... what does it hold?" she asked in a silent voice.

The man went of the path and kneeled before the rose, gently plucking it and holding it between his fingers, beholding it's grace in silence. "It holds that one thing one needs to find, down the path of Virtue..."
As the man answered everything began to blur and fade into a bright light. Jill kept staring at the garden, before the rays swallowed her in their shining light.

~*~

"And thus I got to- Your not listening are you?"

A male voice asked as Jill looked at her left. Startled a little by this sudden question she turned back at Maiho, who looked skeptically at her. "I- uh..." She tried to come up with a good excuse but couldn't find one, her thoughts were still in that garden.

"Yeah yeah,the fact you were just randomly gazing at that plant over there already made it clear you were wondering off in thoughts again... Geez Jill, you really need to focus more!"

Maiho grinned as he firmly nudged her in the side. Jill gasped and faked an indignant face, then found nothing better then to hit him on the head with her bag. Maiho was caught by surprise and tumbled off the pink bench while making a surprised scream. All people present at the hall of the pokémoncenter ceased their business to have a look at the brown-haired young man lying on the tiled floor. He looked at her in a sheepish way.

"What the heck was that for?! Oh. Yeah. Right..." he muttered as he got back up and acted as if nothing had taken place. Maiho then took his bag while extending his hand towards Jill.

"Let's go outside, before the nurses hire some guys to do it for them."

Jill's face split in a giant smile as she gladly accepted the extended hand and stood up, then playfully pushing Maiho again and dashing though the door while shouting "Last one's out is a rotten egg!". Jill couldn't let the chance go by to embarrass Maiho, what are the odds she got this chance again? Startled, Maiho got back up from the ground again and ran off after her. The damn girl didn't know when to stop did she?

~*~

Jill had been running around like crazy, at this point she had no idea where she was exactly, even though she was quite familiar with this part of the region. She stopped to see if Maiho was still following, which he apparently wasn't, since only trees stood behind her. She sighed, at least she could now reflect that dream again...and that...that virtue-riddle. She decided to take a stroll through the woods she was in, perhaps she'd find something that might remind her of her location. In doing so she closed her eyes for a second and walked down a small dirt-path, enjoying the scent of nature when something soft blew in her face. She grabbed it and saw it to be a petal, one as crimson as red could be. Looking up she saw that the entire path was now filled with swirling red petals and a sweet scent filled her nose-thrills.

Jill followed the petals in the opposite direction, hoping to see where this quantity of petals came from. She pushed away a few bushes and gasped as she saw the scenery unfold before her. "No way..." she whispered as a field filled with roses stretched in front of her, as far as the eye could see. How was this even possible? Roses did not grow in these parts... Jill stepped forward, into the field of roses, searching for that one specific one. And she did find it, a white rose surrounded by red. Simplicity in it's full glory. Now she understood what that odd daydream meant... she kneeled down as the old man did in her dream and gently plucked the rose, holding it between her fingers as a fragile glass creature. A voice resonated in the distance.

"JIIIIIIILL...Where are you..."

She shrug her head and walked back to the direction she came from and of which the shouting was coming, the rose held tight yet gently in her hand. She went through the bushes and somehow got back on the sandy road, her gaze shifted from her left to her right, where was that guy? The shouting was getting near and all of the sudden a hand appeared on her shoulder.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?! You could at least respond instead of ignoring me!" Maiho said indignant as Jill turned at him.

"What do you mean 'ignore you'? I was searching for you!"

"You were looking yes, straight at me, but you did not seem to see me. Seriously, do something about that focus Jilley!" he said as he poked her forehead. Jill muttered something as she moved her hand, which still held the rose. She held it higher to take a closer look, Maiho got interested as well.

"Where did you get that one? I don't recall roses growing here."

"Me neither, but their's this field... wait I'll show you!" She grabbed his arm with the free hand and pulled him towards the bushes. She got all exited and happy that she could show him something special like this. Jill kept on walking while dragging Maiho along.

"Almost there, it's right behind these-"

She stopped and seemed confused. The field was gone, all the roses, the petals, the beautiful and fascinating scent. Gone. In front of her a plain hill emerged which gave a nice view of the area.

"Right behind what? Can't see anything..." Maiho faked a searching look as he mimed to gaze over the area with one hand above his eyes to block the sun. "Nope, nothing." He said as he gave her a teasing smile. "Now tell me, where did you get it?"

"I-I don't...how did they vanish?" Jill closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She held the rose near her face and smelled the scent of it, which seem to soothe her freaked-out mind. "So THAT's what he meant"

"What? You're making me scared now Jill..." Maiho replied.

"Can you not see Maiho? What's in a name? It's all altered..."

"Okaaayy..."

Jill held the rose crossed in front of her chest as she turned at Maiho. it all became clear, her search, her odd daydreams... they had one goal, one purpose. And she had achieved it right now.

"The rose revealed it, Maiho. It revealed the virtue it held, my virtue!" She smiled at him and Maiho, against all odds, smiled back.

"Glad you straightened that out!" Whatever THAT may be... he added in thoughts.

"As the saying goes my friend... Coincidence alters all! And so it was revealed to me too." she said as she took out a pokéball and threw it up in the air. Maiho backed away and took out his own partner, Houndoom.

"Then let me see it Jill, what that rose of yours has revealed!"

"What it revealed. My virtue, Maiho... This is my virtue!"

"Farms are for Profit" - Amelia Himan (Jonahman10)


The sun shone upon the fields as the winds caressed the natural landscape above the city of Gigarte. While there was a farm nearby, this particular field was only occupied by a young woman enjoying the warm summer sun and planning out her business aspirations in private. Above her soared her two comrades, two of the flying Pokemon for which the inhabitants of Gigarte originally created Lenoilia. In the distance a marching band practicing on a road could be heard playing a soaring melody that was reaching a climax as suddenly as the young woman began singing.

"The fields are robust, with the potent for profit,
with the potent they have had for a million months.
The fields consume my soul with the potent for profit;
my soul wants to capitalize on all the potent I feel.

My soul wants to work, like the flamed Ponyta,
who tills the land from the pond to that tree.
My soul wants to sell like the graceful plants,
that are picked and planted by me!
To giggle like the birds struggle when
they fly away.
To make money like the man who pays his workers everyday!

I go to the fields when my pockets are empty,
and I'll see what my soul knows well.
My souls will be comforted with the potent for profit,
and I'll plan once more."

Finishing the last line of the song, the young woman's watch went into an alarming frenzy as she realized she was late for dinner back at her family's ranch. As she called for Hope, her Vespiquin, and Austin, her Pidgeotto, she began running towards her home, not wanting to miss her Aunt Jamima's fresh cooking.
---
As the young woman began heading back towards, the marching band transitioned to a much more playful mood, which could be heard back at the family ranch. Two young boys who lived in the complex family complex were washing their hands playfully as they got ready for dinner. Reflecting this new mood the younger of the two boys, known as lil' Sammy amongst the family. began singing a small tune.

"I climb'd a tree and scrap'd m'knee,
my pants gotta tear.
And when ago'in to work I did,
I tough' I saw a bear!
But 'Melia with her strict old ways,
knew what I could wear,
and hidin' my bad ol' clothes, and scairt the bear away."

The other young boy, called Seth, pondering little Sammy's ditty and embracing the elegant, ethereal melody even though it did come across a bit elvish, he allowed it to act as an emollient to soften his hardened demeanor following the energetic encounter with his sword sparring partner.

"She's never late to work,
and work ethic is real.
She's never late for anything,
except for every meal.
I hate t'haveta say it
But I really feel
that 'Melia's needed on the farm."

The boys then looked at each other and began to sing in a rousing chorus.

"How d'ya solve a problem without 'Melia?
How d'ya tie a bow to the rain?
How d'ya find 'word that's 'Melia?
Grumpy? Proper? Comrade?"

As the Marching Band retired for the night, the boys went laughing to the Himan dinner table where the majority of the family was preparing for dinner. Aunt Jamima had prepared some wholesome chowder for the large family. Uncle Joe placed the bowls around the table with a good deal of facility despite his lumbering size. Various other relatives on the compound also did their time honored parts. Everybody in the family had a task to keep the household in shape. Cousin Jed was the manager of the family, Aunt Jamima the Chef, Uncle Joe was the mechanical expert, likewise the various other family members did their task.

Amelia was probably the largest visionary of the family, as well as being its salesperson and public affairs department but she had no place in preparing for meals; she was always seemed to miss the first portion of the meal. The family was finally all there and they gave tanks before digging into Aunt Jamima's steaming chowder.

Amelia cam in late as usual, and quickly begged for forgiveness again, which was practically instantaneous according to the time-told traditions of the Himans. Uncle Joe remarked about how she was such a dreamer, and chuckles were heard among the Himan's around the dinner table. Conversation was generally amiable at the table, and tonight was no exception.

After dinner was finished, Uncle Joe, who was usually Amelia's favorite Uncle, started up another conversation with her, this time detailing with some more work with the community. Yet again, it was a job with Mr. Darsay, a rich entrepreneur and botanist who often needed extra help with his rare and exotic flora. Amelia had been assigned to thousands of such jobs, usually "volunteering" for good publicity for the farm.

Amelia was initially dead-set against the idea of working for Mr. Darsay, after all the farm had already received more than enough publicity recently. However, this task seemed to offer a decent wage, unlike the last encounter , which was fairly low key until they discovered another part of a conspiracy against the Gigartian tunnel system. Quite frankly, running a farm was expensive, and no matter how hard business went, Amelia did not have enough money for comfort. Farms are for profit after all!

Maybe this could be the move that allowed them to get an automatic jarring system, replacing much of the time spent manually jarring the honey with the time it takes to till a new field of tea. From what Jed said, it seemed like they had saved up a bit of money. Besides, it was unlikely she would run into that conspiracy more than once by doing a job for the same guy, who despite posh attitude, was a loyal Gigartian. With this in mind, Amelia accepted Uncle Joe's bequest and set off on yet another adventure, hopefully this time more tame.

The long summer days meant there were several more hours of work left in the day. Amelia's confidence seemed to wane as much as the days were long. Perhaps she should spend the time selling honey. But she smothered her doubts with a song. She merrily sang in her boisterous alto all along the road towards the nearest elevator down into the city of Gigarte. Her song crescendoed as her doubts faded and she skipped merrily into the elevator, which became eerily awkward as four other people joined in behind her. She quickly turned her song into a quiet sing-a-long with the elevator music as her fellow elevator fellows began giving her strange looks.
---
The doors of the burst open, and much to the chagrin of commuters waiting to come out of Gigarte, five total strangers were singing a massive 5 part musical chorus in the elevator. Four older people came out jubilantly dancing before Amelia came out cartwheeling through the bemused crowd. She quickly bid farewell to her elevator fellows and began down the road.

On a bench on the side of the granite road there was a man on a laptop complaining loudly about something he was looking at. Though Amelia really didn't care what he was moping about she did hear quite a bit of what he was saying,

"Bahh! The internet these day! It used to be that there was original writing on the internet, now all anybody can find are cheap spinoffs and fanfictions that are just bad adaptations of musicals from fifty years ago. I mean, look at this one; the rhyming is bad, the alliteration in paragraph eight could count as somewhat out of place purple patch. The prose is uninspired and the plot is lackadaisical and clearly poorly thought out altogether! Besides, it references itself pretty terribly. Reusing that character who was an allusion to a real literary work made it lose some of its original meaning and most of the song lyrics are heavily based off of what they are alluding to. How did this author even win that earlier prize he goes on so many garrulous tangents..."

No heed was paid to the man as Amelia giddily made her way to the Agricultural District, which seemed to be about an hour above the surface world. The large environmental controls of the city often astonished visitors, but Amelia was used to the high tech of the Gigartian dome. There was probably slight cloud cover, causing it to seem darker up there than down here. Anyways, Amelia made her way to Mr. Darsay's botanical gardens.

Instead of the typical attendant who usually greeted Mr. Darsay's visitors, the sesquipedalianist himself greeted Amelia. Although Amelia's speech mannerisms were better than the rest of her household, she was nothing compared to Mr. Darsay.

"Oh, Ms. Himan. How amiable of you to come! When I called your homestead I was greeted by that facetious relative of yours. That matters not, of course, for the matter at hand is that I need someone to guard my Gemma that I'm planing to grow for the Gigartian Garden Greeting, one of the most prominent events of the year for a botanist like myself. The flora are very, shall I say, fussy, so I sent a behest for you because you seemed to be well trained in such things. Do you understand?"

Amelia understood. Normally such a job with such rare plants would take a team of amateur botanists to complete the task. But because she was well trained he could maximize profit by paying only one person.

"Yes sir, Farms are for profit afterall!"

"Superb! Now I have errands to attend to. The specifications are on the vermillion shelf. I will return in a few hours."

With that Mr. Darsay took his hat and ran off. Amelia sighed. It was going to be a long night caring for these plants, yet she knew that this event was where Darsay made the majority of his annual sales. She walked out of the waiting area to the main sector of the exotic plants. She grabbed the book and began reading the endless limitations and needs of all the plants. Maybe this was a bad idea afterall...
---
After Amelia accomplished almost all the work written in the manual, a task which took several hours, she remembered that she had heard somewhere that plants grew better when they were sang to. She looked down at her watch and produced a radio app, which she promptly activated. Though the music was orchestral in nature, Amelia could feel a song coming on in her head and began to sing with the music.

"Dough: Money, hardcore cash!
Ray: A line that is a vector!
Me: Where the ray of dough does end!
Far: The distance of the Ray of Dough to me
So: I can buy more things
La(ike); all the goods we need for
Tea: A plant that sells for a lot which brings us back to
Dough!"

Amelia went around watering the plants and getting into her mojo while she continued to sing a counter melody as the raised seventh of the scale started appearing in the music.

"Me La(ike) Tea, and Tea makes Dough. I'll grow Tea So the Ray of Dough is To Me!

When you know the way to sell. You can make profit off of any old shell."

Unbeknownst to Amelia, Mr. Darsay had just walked in on her tomfoolery. Dumbfounded by the youthful expressions of Amelia regarding the desire of money that he could not find any words at all. Luckily Amelia only embarrassed herself for two minutes and forty five and a half seconds more before she noticed that he had come back. Somewhat flabbergasted, he dismissed her for the night reminding her to come tomorrow at the same time. Amelia, now quite embarrassed slowly made her way home, after receiving her pay of course.
---
For several weeks Amelia did much the same, though she was careful not to embarrass herself in front of Mr. Darsay. The laborious work of looking after the plants soon became easier, and eventually Amelia did not need the book on the red shelf at all. Her methods became more efficient, especially after Hope, Amelia's Vespiquien, and Austin, her Pidgeotto, began to help her with the work. This left her with more time to lament over the fate of the farm. Jed had said that it wouldn't be long at all until they could afford the jarring machine, and Amelia began to look into the prices of tea seeds.

The night before the Gigartian Garden Greeting, Amelia was shocked when Mr. Darsay admitted his dependence on her labor and invited her to the highly exclusive event. She accepted immediately, though she admittedly felt weird afterwards going with someone like Mr. Darsay, but quickly got over that fact as well. She was outrageously happy for one night, but that changed at the greeting...

Coming upon the building where the regalia of flora was being held, normally joyous this time of year, there were angry protests. At first bewildered, Amelia and Mr. Darsay soon were witness to the horror that was as they approached the flora center that not only had the alliteration so proudly hailed by the people of Gigarte was ruined, but the heinous tendrils of Petropolis had once again found their way into the glorious Gigartian globe; Gigartian Garden Greeting had been bought by Petro Corp. Inc. and renamed the super awesome happy shiny people's Plant Commemoration of Furoh.

It had been known that the festival had been anonymously bought, but no one expected that it would be bought by the devil himself. Amelia felt sick to her stomach; not only had she been raised by her family to hate all things Petropolitan, corporations from Petropolis were notorious for there bad business practices and large trusts, opposed to the Gigartian system of small businesses making up an industry.

"I am a Gigartian! Turn this truck around this instant!" Demanded Mr. Darsay, however his vain attempt at escape was extinguished as the gates closed behind them. A hateful man in an evil, conformist business suit came to the truck and spoke with a putrid Petropolitan accent telling Mr. Darsay had to sell his flora to the flora because of his contract. Mr. Darsay nearly pummeled the man in the face when he was told this, but Amelia, who was became more sullen that infuriated by the startling revelation, whispered something in his ears which seemed to soothe him.
---
At awards ceremony, the orchestra played dramatically as the awards were announced with their auspicious accolades in ascending order. The corporate slaves bent on destroying the Gigartian way of life were all forcibly attentive as they announced the grand prize. The announcer, a proud Gigartian who was stuck in similar circumstances tried to be as enthusiastic and use as much alliteration as possible without being attacked of by the malevolent agents of the Petropolitans.

"And our winner. Let me say or our Gigartian experts had no ambivalence with this entry; with an amazing, ambrosia of ancient, flora its Mr. Darsay."

The orchestra made as emotional fanfare as possible without being fired for supporting rebellion against the corporation. But when Amelia and Mr. Darsay did not appear, the announcer nervously tried again,

"Mr. Darsay?"

The fanfare went on again, but it soon became clear that they had fled with all of Darsay's flora. The corporate agents immediately sprung into action. Luckily, the crowd was sympathetic to Darsay and had let him through the massive protests outside the facility. The agents, on the other hand were not.

Amelia and Darsay were finally safe, and Darsay was so thankful that he wrote Amelia that large check she was looking for. Amelia smiled but then asked,

"Farms are for profit, so how are you going to make a profit this year with out the GGG?"

"I have a feeling that the GGG will be back soon. Afterall, the GGG didn't know who they were selling out to, and it doesn't look like greedy Petropolitans would make much profit in the grand city of Gigarte anyways."
---
The sun shone upon the fields as the winds caressed the natural landscape above the city of Gigarte. While there was a farm nearby, this particular field was only occupied by a young woman enjoying the warm summer sun and the newly growing tea leaves. Above her soared her two comrades, two of the flying Pokemon for which the inhabitants of Gigarte originally created Lenoilia...

"Dignity Stands, Honour Protects" - Taggarty Lee (Kamaitachi)

"Always remember our motto, Taggarty. "Dignity Stands." We meet all of our challenges head on, we do not shirk. That is not to say that we sacrifice ourselves at the drop of a pin." His mother's face creased into a concerned frown as she dabbed at her son's face with a swab of cotton and some disinfectant. Her son, Taggarty Lee, winced in pain as she swathed over a sore spot. "We Lees are known for our prudence and wisdom, a tradition that I'm sure you'll carry on someday in the future."

Her hands clasped over her boy's, smiling as he looked tearfully up at her. "You stood and faced your bullies, and for that I'm very proud of you. But if you get hurt again, I'll only be sad. Know when to fight, know when to run. "Dignity Stands", but don't go needlessly getting yourself in trouble."

* * *

Between my forefinger and thumb, I gently rub a small nub on the chain around mu neck. It had once been a beautiful, ornate, silver dragon pendant; a symbol of my birthright, an image of all of my ideals. No creatures are more noble, powerful, and beautiful than the dragons. But now, it had been torn off. In one swift grasp, it had been stripped from my neck, and effectively ripped from my being, taking with it, my life.

Playing that line in my head over again, it sounds so dramatic. I suppose that my time in Blackthorn has given me that penchant for flair, even if it is a less than poetic one.

Over and over again, I place my finger on the little nub; I can still picture my old talisman so very clearly. With each roll between my fingers, I imagine the words that my mother had carved into the back: "Dignity Stands." Inwardly, I laugh bitterly for a moment, enjoying the fact that in the solitude of my mind, I wouldn't scare anyone, at least. Dignity Stands. Words I'd so callously spat on when I earned the name "Bane of Blackthorn". It had not been dignity that had driven me forward that day. Quite the opposite. It had been righteous rage, indignance, and childish aggression. I did not fight with honour, I had not fought for pride...I had killed wantonly in the name of vanity.

And in the face of my exile, dignity had not stood. Instead, I had turned my heart to stone, letting it sink me into what I had hoped to be a watery grave. Dignity indeed. I had chosen the path of a coward, and prepared for myself an ignominious death. Nothing stood for me that day, least of all the lofty notion carried by a family that disowned me.

But I did not die. Even in choosing to die, I had not been allowed to die. I, the infamous Taggarty Lee, have received a Mach Punch to the stomach. I have been shot in the side by a gun. I have stared death in the face when a giant meteor plummeted towards the earth. I have faced the stuff of nightmares, trapped in the realm of Darkrai's creation. I have known fear, and I have stood. (In the case of the meteor, I fell to my knees and wept. Can you blame me? Who can fight a meteor?) All this, and I have not died. To this day, I'm still standing.

* * *

"I concede"

* * *

I wince as I hear my own words slash through my head. My latest gym match in Gigarte begins to play itself out in my mind. I fought valiantly against Chloe of Gigarte, only to result in my first loss. Dignity stood, but I still see the look on Bachi's face. As a Nidoran, he had been so sweet, and as a Nidorino, he'd been almost a lazy, lumbering sort of dope. But now, as a Nidoking, he has become arrogant, proud, fool-hardy and vainglorious.

He reminds me of myself.

As evidenced in his match against Otis of Arasam's Charizard, he resorted to every tactic to attain victory. In this case, against another superior opponent, I'm sure he would've done the same, resulting in our loss, and his injury. I couldn't bear to see my dear companion hurt, let alone throwing himself into battle against someone we could easily challenge again. Bachi has been with me since Johto, and been with me on every single one of my new adventures to date; I could not bear the thought of him walking down that same destructive path as I did.

So I threw the match. I yielded. It seemed the only reasonable thing to do. But his face...the anger, the disdain, the disgust that were etched in his eyes as he glared at me. The disbelief in his posture as he was returned to his Pokeball while his opponent smirked smugly at him from afar. I can only imagine how indignant he is now, fuming in his pokeball, clipped to my belt.

It is as my mother said to me long ago. All too late, I wish I had taken that lesson to heart then. It perhaps would have saved me from a world of grief. But, philosophically, I would not be where I am today had I not forgotten her sage advice back then.

Perhaps it was never my destiny to be a Dragon Master. Perhaps the path to restoring my honour has given me cause to make sure that my friends do not walk down the same, dark path that I once did. Dignity stands, but honour protects.

Perhaps I should take that to mind with my human friends as well. I look over my shoulder to young Liz sitting at the breakfast table, then down at little Kana, seated comfortably next to me, despite not being able to reach up to the food with her little Spinda arms. As I take food from the table and gently feed it to her, my thoughts race to Justin and Nate, my friends in Furoh, fighting a terrifying criminal organization. They wander briefly to Raven, wherever she is. The faces of the people I've met in Furoh float through my mind's eye. I'm a bit alarmed at how easily I can recall their faces; it alone is proof that I've changed. I deserve the title "Bane of Blackthorn", but I will not let its stigma hold sovereignty over me forever. None of the people whom I've met deserve what I went through. Upon the tattered remains of my honour, I swear to myself that I will keep them safe.

When I get back to a city, I'll have it engraved somewhere on my body. Two words from my family, and two words all my own. A pas-de-deux of my old life and my new one.

"Dignity Stands, Honour Protects."