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<Authors Note>

Ok, most recent four chapters of Shifters coming back your way in a new set of four- Please Enjoy, comment etc.

Shifters: Chapter 9; A New Rivalry

The sun was shining bright, and the trees swayed gently in the morning breeze as Kai and Hope strolled down route 202 on their way to Jubilife City. Their departure had been quiet, they had left early enough that no-one but Kai's parents had seen them go, passing through Sandgem as the first rays of sunshine had begun to peek through the trees on the horizon.

Now, at last, they were on the road- embarking on their very own adventure, and boy did it feel good, Kai reflected, to finally feel like they were making progress. It was just him, Hope and the long open road before them. His peaceful thoughts were shattered though, by a commotion up ahead. He could hear voices, yelling and the sounds of a battle. Shrugging at Hope, the pair of them ran forward to see what was happening.

They arrived just in time to see the final blow of the battle. A Sneasel, urged on by it's trainer, jumped forward and delivered a terrible Slash attack, throwing its opponent, a small Whooper, covered in pre-existing bruises, to the ground. Blood sprayed from the now limp form, and the Whooper's trainer, little more than a boy, cried out and took several steps forward, toward the injured pokémon, before being stopped by the other trainer.

The Sneasel's trainer strode forward, a sneer on his face as he looked down at the tiny Whooper, now crying out faintly, as it struggled on the ground. His foot moved back to deliver a brutal kick, and swung forward- before the callous man was sent flying as Kai leapt into the fight. The young man sprawled across the ground several metres away, already rising, a split lip and a look of insane fury on his face as Kai, now in Ninetales form, growled another warning.

"If you so much as touch that pokémon again" Kai's voice spat venom at the man- who now looked in shock at the Ninetales that had attacked him, and now spoke to him- backed up a few paces at the ferocious expression on Kai's face; red eyes flaring, his muzzle twisted into a snarl as he advanced on the man "I will rip you limb from limb".

The man's Sneasel stepped in front of it's master, claws slicing through the air as it growled back at Kai. "You don't know who you're dealing with" it said, eyes rolling madly in their sockets as it started forward, clicking it's razor teeth together as a sign of its bloodlust. "You and your little friend over there" it said, gesturing over to Hope, who stood, growling in open opposition next to Kai "will be dead before this day is out." Its eyes grew wider as it looked over at Hope, whose growls grew louder as it added "I'm sure I could find some other use for her".

The trainer had stepped forward, having regained some confidence after his pokémon's composure, but was sent flying again as Kai gave out a roar that sent every bird within a mile's radius into the air. This roar was a physical force, and it pushed the Sneasel back several metres, flooring the dark pokémon as effectively as any physical blow. Kai sprung forward, flames erupting from his jaws as the Sneasel screeched in terror, engulfed in flames as it flailed about, moaning piteously as Kai finally stopped his attack. The dark-type slumped to the ground, fresh blisters appearing all over its body as it fell into blissful unconsciousness. The brutish trainer was rising as Kai and Hope advanced on him, both growling their threats as he backed up against a tree, his face skewed in terror.

Kai walked forwards slowly, until he was standing directly in front of the man who, judging from the smell, had just defecated all over himself. Stopping for a moment, he glared into the man's eyes, his rage clear, before Shifting back to human form.

If the man had been terrified before now his eyes displayed only anger, rage boiled beneath the surface as he watched Kai's transformation. When Kai had finally resumed human form he reached forward and grabbed the man's jacket, making sure to keep him at arms length to avoid what was now causing the air around them to reek. Speaking slowly, in barely contained fury, he asked; "What's your name" his voice came out as a growl, so he repeated the question. The young man looked at him now, in what looked like disgust, an interesting reaction from one who had effectively just crapped his pants more than 5 hours walk from civilisation, Kai thought to himself.

The man wasn't saying anything, so Kai steeled himself, reaching into the man's jacket pocket, hoping fervently that his trainer card wasn't in his jeans pocket. Fortunately, it was in the jacket, and Kai soon had a name; Vernon Mills. The red-headed teenager was originally from Snowpoint City, and had evidently decided that a change of climate and weaker trainers to prey on would suit him better than his home-town.

A flurry of movement caught his eye as he looked up from the card to see Vernon leaping onto a collapsible bike he had apparently managed to fit into the small backpack that was the only thing the man was carrying. The red-headed young man gave a final sneer that was the last they saw of him, pulling out a pokéball and retrieving his fallen Sneasel as he rode away as fast as his legs would take him.

Kai sighed, it didn't matter, he was sure they would be seeing more of the man in the future, but for now, there was an injured pokémon that required immediate medical attention. He turned around and walked over to where the young boy was trying, without success, to feed the badly injured Whooper a potion. When he saw Kai approaching, the young boy flinched, but allowed him to check over the small water pokémon. After making sure that it was in no immediate risk of dying, Kai rooted around in his bag, retrieving a Revive, one of many he kept for emergencies.

Crushing the small golden crystal and mixing it with some water, Kai poured a trickle of the resulting liquid down the Whooper's throat and stood back as the Revive began to take effect, the Whooper's wounds slowly closing, its eyes fluttering open. The young trainer exclaimed his delight, thanking Kai and Hope repetitively as he gave the Whooper the potion. When things seemed to be looking up for the young pokémon, Kai and Hope made their farewells, leaving the young lad in the company of his now completely healed Whooper, as they trudged along the path to Jubilife.

Looking back on the way the young boy had looked at him, a mixture of admiration and hero-worship, Kai couldn't help but feel good. His abilities had allowed him to help that young boy, a feeling that warmed him. Maybe there was more to being a Shifter than just being able to change into a pokémon. Helping that kid had given him a completely new perspective on things, on his abilities. For now though, it was enough to walk the winding forest path with the wind in his hair and Hope by his side. For now, it was enough to be free.

Shifters: Chapter 10; A Team Effort

Jubilife city was still a fair way away as Kai and Hope set up camp that night on the side of the trail, the sun sinking below the horizon as the duo sat by the fire on the first night of their adventure. The tent had proven relatively easy to erect, which relieved Kai to no end and before long, a pot of stew was merrily bubbling over their camp fire.

That night at least was uneventful, spent watching the sun go down, not many words spoken between the two as they sat by their fire, chowing down on good food and the feeling of camaraderie that they felt toward each other. That night Kai slept as a Ninetales, curled up next to Hope as the pair slept through the first night of their great adventure together.

The next morning was an early one for Kai and Hope. Packing up their camp the moment it was light enough to see outside, they set out, keen to arrive in Jubilife. They had barely been walking for ten minutes though, when they were brought to an abrupt stop when a teenage boy came bursting out of a small clearing to the right of the path, still pulling on a shirt and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, pulling a pokéball out as he approached them. Kai looked over at Hope "I think he's trying to challenge us"

The boy grinned as he faced down Kai "Too right I am!" he said "I challenge you to a double battle!" This surprised Kai, what to do now? With a grin he made his decision- if the kid wanted a double battle he would get it. "Alright then" Kai said, already Shifting, his tails erupting out from behind him as he grinned at the expression on the other teens face. He finished the Shift and took up a battle stance as he called out to his opponent "Bring it on!"

The other trainer finally snapped out of his reverie and gave a small grin in response "This should be interesting" he said as he held up two pokéballs and brought out his team "Mightyena!, Magnectric! Come on out!"

Two flashes of red light engulfed the clearing and the two pokémon appeared, baying their challenge at Kai and Hope before launching straight at them with fearsome growls. Surprised at the sudden onslaught- the trainer hadn't spoken a word- Kai and Hope gave way to the attack, falling back and letting loose their own attacks. Hope's ember attack joined with Kai's own flamethrower forming a huge whirlwind of fire that engulfed the two dogs. Wasting no time, the duo sprang forward with dual quick attacks that easily knocked the two dogs down. The Mightyena went down hard, but the Magnectric wasn't felled so easily.

A huge bolt of lightning streaked from its body shot out, striking the ground between Kai and Hope, blowing the pair to opposite sides of the clearing. Fortunately both were mostly unharmed and sprang up again, Kai thinking fast, what could he do? The electric canine was strong, and wasn't easily brought down. It was also unpredictable, he reflected- the trainer was calling out orders but it simply ignored them and sat in the middle of the field, eyes on Kai and a growl splitting its muzzle.

Kais thoughts were interrupted though, by a bright flash of light at the opposite end of the field. With a shock, he realized that it was coming from Hope, who had risen after being tossed away by the thunderbolt, a snarl on her face and was now glowing a bright red, flames erupting from her fur as she growled her own challenge to the Magnectric, which turned around in shock.

With a great bound, Hope started forward, flames trailing from her as she ran incredibly quickly towards the electric pokémon. In seconds she reached the canine and barrelled forward, an explosion of flames bursting from her as she struck with unbelievable force, sending the Magnectric flying past Kai's head on the opposite side of the field and into a tree, where it fell limp and unconscious.

Hope staggered, the Flare Blitz had taken a lot out of her, and slumped, trying to stay upright as Kai hurried over to her to check on her injuries. They were not severe, so Kai, Shifting back to human form, walked over to his pack and retrieved a potion, which she drank down, restoring much of her energy and healing some of the minor scratches and bruising she had endured. Once he was sure she would be fine, Kai turned to the young man, who was tending to his own pokémon.

"How long have you had these pokémon?" Kai asked as he joined the other trainer, who returned his pokémon and faced Kai with a sigh. "They're my father's" the teenager replied "He gave them to me for my own adventure but..." his voice trailed off "They don't trust me yet".

Kai gave a small snort of amusement at the young man's predicament "Just keep working with them" he said eventually "train with them and earn their respect for you as a trainer. Take on the gyms, win their trust for you, because otherwise they won't bother with you, and a team not built on trust and respect will never go far" he smiled as he added; "and your shirt is on backwards by the way".

After bidding their hapless opponent farewell, Kai and Hope set off again, fortunately not encountering any other trainers, they were bruised and battered enough already as they made their slow way up the trail towards Jubilife, the trail became more and more crowded as they neared the city.

The city itself was huge, and as Kai found himself surrounded by huge crowds of people, he felt slightly claustrophobic, so many people in one place made him quite uneasy. Nevertheless, the two made it to the pokémon centre without incident, and in time for lunch- the cafeteria served trainers for free. Kai booked a room upstairs and the rest of the day was spent lounging around and tending to bruises and minor scrapes. The next day they would need all the energy they could for the next leg of the journey- on to Orebourgh and the first Gym.

Shifters: Chapter 11; Where am I?

The pokémon centre was dead silent, the pokémon below in the infirmary were sleeping, and the trainers in their rooms upstairs had long since laid down their heads in sleep. So it was hardly a challenge for the team of men to simply walk through the front door and make their way leisurely upstairs, past the snoozing Nurse Joy keeping vigil at the front desk.

Pausing outside one of the upstairs rooms, the leader pulled a small, stubby multi-tool from his belt, working his magic as he quickly and quietly slipped the lock on the door. With deathly silence and skill, the men slipped into the room. Within minutes they had what they had come for, stealing out of the centre and off into the night with their prey.

---

Kai woke with a splitting headache. His entire body hurt like anything he had felt before, and it took him a while to make sense of his surroundings. It was very dark, except for a solitary ray of sunlight streaming from a narrow slot high on the stone wall behind him. He was in a small room; bars lining the walls, a small stack of straw the only furnishings and he was completely alone.

Trying to make sense of the situation, he thought back to the night before, in the pokémon centre, but his memory was fuzzy and he slipped in and out of consciousness for several hours before being snapped out of his reverie by movement.

A small gust of wind told him that somewhere, a door had been opened, and he struggled to sit up, constantly fighting his body's protests as he fought to remain upright. His vision was blurred, but he could make out the silhouette of a man before him, on the other side of the bars before he finally lost consciousness again and the world around him fell away.

"... too high a dosage... he wakes up we'll... fine addition to my..." drifting in and out of consciousness was beginning to lose the novelty for Kai, fragments of conversation were all his mind could process as he hung there, in limbo as he lay on the straw in his cell.

Eventually, his mind rejoined his body and he woke, sharp minded, but still with a splitting headache from the drugs they had evidently administered to him. A quick glance around the room told him that there was no way out, the bars were thick and solid steel, he could perhaps be able to melt them, but it would take time and energy, two things he couldn't afford.

The door opened on the other side of the room, and Kai quickly lay his head back down, catching a glimpse of a gargantuan human figure before he closed his eyes, feigning sleep. A burst of inspiration struck him, and he opened his eyes again, staring emptily, slowing his breathing down almost to a halt, hoping fervently that his plan would work.

The huge man walked into the cell and made his way closer to the pile of hay on which Kai lay. A low groan escaped the man's mouth as he looked down at Kai. "Shit, don't be dead, don't be dead, the boss will kill me if he's dead, shit" he muttered, leaning over to check for a pulse.

That was when Kai struck. It was his fastest Shift ever, in the space of a heartbeat he had transformed, leaping from the ground at the man, claws outstretched, his jaws instinctively going for the throat.

His muzzle closed around the man's neck and it was over. His jailor lay on the floor of the cell, blood streaming from the deep puncture wounds in his throat, a low wheeze the only sound as he became still... and died.

Kai stood where he was, frozen in equal parts horror and fascination. He had killed a man. It was a feeling that was unexplainable, and one which he would never, for the life of him be able to describe. The knowledge that as a direct result of his actions someone had died, that he had killed him, revolted him but also, scarily excited him, and he was forced to quickly clamp down on his emotions, replacing them with steely resolve. These people had taken him prisoner and Hope might still be in danger. He had done what was necessary, nothing more.

The jailor's keys were at his belt, so Kai Shifted back into human form, shuddering at the taste of blood on his human tastebuds and took the key ring from the man's body. A quick search of the man yielded a sandwich, which was quickly eaten- he was after all, very hungry, a pocket knife, a healing potion and...

With a sinking feeling, Kai gripped the handle of the small, black handgun, turning it over as he took a closer look at the weapon. Firearms had been banned in Sinnoh since the last regional conflict with Hoenn. So many had died in those years of violence that in modern society, the manufacture, sale, ownership or use of a firearm by anyone outside of the police force or army was punishable with life imprisonment without parole. Whoever had captured him was either enormously powerful or enormously stupid to purchase firearms.

For now though, having a gun gave Kai a small measure of satisfaction, it evened the playing field, and he would do anything to find Hope and keep her safe. Fortunately, his captor hadn't been the brightest star in the sky, and had written down on a scrap of paper exactly how to use the gun. Disengaging the safety, Kai started down the corridor, carrying the handgun tightly in both hands as he jogged past endless empty cells, checking each thoroughly before progressing to the next, he would find Hope no matter what.

It was after about fifty metres that Kai stopped at the door of one cell, the largest by far that he had seen so far. This cell was more brightly lit than the others, with torches lining the walls and a series of cages up against the back wall, each one occupied by... a pokémon.

Kai quickly unlocked the door into the cell, and rushed inside. There were a total of five cages, each holding a different pokémon, each unconscious. From the right to left Kai could make out the limp forms of an Umbreon, an Espeon, an Absol, a Pigeot, its wings clamped to its sides, and... Hope.

She lay in the centre of her cage, eyes closed, her limp body covered in cuts and bruises, but she was alive and Kai rushed to her cage tucking the gun into his belt and fumbling for a moment with the keys before finding the correct one and opening the door to her small cage. He stepped over to her and gathered her up in his arms, gently so as not to hurt her. After a moment she opened her eyes and gave a small sound, somewhere between a cry and a laugh, and said "I knew you'd come and get me".

Gently, Kai carried her out of the cage and, sitting down against the stone wall, gave her the potion he had taken from the dead guard. The potion acted instantly, cleaning and healing the scratches and bruising until she was almost back to normal. Kai turned to the pokémon in the other cages, some of whom were beginning to stir.

"Do you know why these other pokémon are locked up?" he asked Hope, who looked sadly over at the other cages, then back to Kai. She sighed before she said "They're like you." "Whoever it is that captured us captured them for the same reason."

"They're Shifters too".

Shifters: Chapter 12; Purifying Flames

Kai's brain was working overtime as he stood, shocked, in the centre of the cell. His body felt numb and dead, senses overloaded by the huge rush of emotion he felt at that moment. For the past two years, Kai had been alone, bitterly so, no-one around him, even his parents, understood what it was to go through what he had. Different to everyone he knew, he had walled himself off from his peers and lived a life of isolation. But now, he had finally discovered members of his own God-damned species and they were slaves, kept in metal cages against their will, simply because of whom and what they were. Hands clenched into fists, he approached the first cage, the one holding an Umbreon, which had finally awoken out of its drug-induced sleep.

The Umbreon gave a low snarl as he approached, and he stopped. She struggled to her feet and, visibly straining, stood upright and glared, her blood-red eyes glaring, her muzzle pulled back in a vicious snarl. "What now, human?" she spat out, shaking in the exertion needed to remain on her feet "You've had your fun, are you finally going to end this?"

Kai's concern for the young Shifter grew as he finally got a good look at her wounds. Deep furrows of gore along her sides had barely scabbed over, and he was almost certain they were infected. He had to act quickly. Raising his hands in a non-threatening gesture he began to Shift. The Umbreons gasped in surprise, finally sagging to the ground as her energy vanished. Reversing the Shift mid-way, Kai stood, once again fully human at the door. Taking the jailor's keys out of his pocket, he quickly unlocked the door, rushing inside with another potion.

Around a minute later, the Umbreon was once again conscious, her energy beginning to return. She looked up weakly at Kai, and then over to Hope standing behind him, her wounds almost fully healed who nodded in encouragement. She returned her attention to Kai. "Who... are you?" Kai thought about it for a moment before answering "A friend. My name is Kai, and I'm assuming you've met Hope?" "Briefly" replied the Umbreon, sitting up "You are her trainer? She spoke highly of you".

"That's me" Kai replied "Can you stand?" The Umbreon nodded, and once again brought herself to her feet, swaying a little before standing strong. "My name is Ebony" she said, walking out of the cell, almost healed by the potion. "My brother Ray" she gestured to the next cage where the Espeon lay "and I were the first to be captured. Apart from the two of us, there's Jet, the Pidgeot in the next cage and then there's Luna, the Absol at the far end". She looked up at him with her heart in her eyes "They are, each of them good people who don't deserve this, can you help us?"

When Kai nodded, she sighed in relief and walked out of the cage, padding over to wake her brother and the other two Shifters. Ray was the first to wake, groggy but ecstatic that he and his sister were being freed. After explaining everything to her brother, Ebony went over to the other two cages while Kai unlocked Ray's. Five minutes later, all four Shifters stood free outside the cages that had held them captive for so long. Introductions had been made, and the group was trying to decide what to do next.

Eventually the group decided that it was better if they travelled as pokémon, if only for the additional firepower it would allow if they came across enemies. Kai remained in human form though, the handgun he had taken from the body of the guard clutched tightly in one hand, all hesitation he had previously felt about using it was gone. These people had hurt Hope, had imprisoned unfairly his people, even though he had only just met them. They deserved whatever came to them.

The group moved silently down the seemingly endless corridors. More than once, Ray's psychic powers saved them when he detected people, allowing them a chance to hide as armed guards walked past, openly displaying their firearms- assault rifles and handguns that gleamed in the artificial light from the globes on the ceiling. There were many close calls, the guards were everywhere, and it wasn't long before things really went to shit.

The alarm blared from speakers mounted over every door it the facility, a long screech that set Kai's teeth on edge. Abandoning caution, the group hurtled down the next corridor, almost directly into the path of a group of armed guards. Reacting quickly, Kai opened fire with the stolen gun, red splotches of blood erupting from the chests of three out of the four guards, the last one dealt with as Ebony's Shadow Ball flung him into the wall, dropping to the floor with a sickening crunch.

Yelling could be heard all around as the guards reacted to the gunfire, footsteps approaching as teams of professional killers ran toward them through the maze of corridors. Kai seized a second handgun from one of the dead guards and sprinted down the corridor with the rest of the group following close behind. Bullets whizzed through the air beside him, and so he turned and returned fire, covering his companions as they ran through the next door into a huge reception room. Kai followed, letting off one last shot, killing another guard before closing and bolting the door behind them.

The reception area was massive, but completely unpopulated, huge doors marked with a helpful exit sign marked the way out. The group had hardly made their first steps though before a platoon of men wearing camouflage outfits and leather armour entered, led by a larger man who was accompanied by... "No way" Kai muttered under his breath. Vernon leered at him as he went to stand behind a well armoured guard, safe from any attack before he started talking "I bet you thought you were hell smart before" he said, his voice every bit as snivelly as Kai remembered it to be. "I bet you thought you were tough, well who's tough now?!"

Kai laughed, which caught the teen by surprise "I like the new duds Vern" he said nonchalantly "The last lot you were wearing were a little... shitty" Several of the guards chuckled; evidently Vernon wasn't very popular among the ranks. The older, larger man stepped forward "Sometimes I don't understand how I could father a son with such a cowardly streak" he sighed, "Ah well, he got us to you, and I suppose that's all that matters. I don't suppose you'd be willing to go back to your cells quietly?" he said hopefully, looking Kai in the eye as he added; "We can do it the hard way if you'd prefer".

Now Kai stood a little straighter, here was the man in charge, not a snivelling whelp like Victor, but someone to be feared. Kai readied himself for the battle; there was no way they were going back to their cages without a fight. Before they did fight though, there was one question to be asked. "Why?" Kai asked calmly as he steadied himself, gripping the guns in each hand tightly as he stared at the man with hate and disgust.

"Perfectly simple" was the reply "My name is Brian Mills and I am, you see, a collector of sorts. Unlike many hobbyists out there who make do with collecting rocks or pokémon, I crave more. For most of my life I collected people, all different sorts from all different regions." His voice rose fanatically as he spoke, eyes widening and his nostrils dilating "Eventually though I became bored. Humans were no longer enough, the ultimate prey dissatisfying. So I began my search for... you, and your kind. I emptied my cells, the hundreds of people I collected for so many years were... taken care of, and I began a new collection... of Shifters".

By now, Kai was ready to explode with the hatred that coursed through his veins. His anger paralysed his body, his vision glazed over and all he was aware of was the thumping of his heartbeat and the knowledge, the terrible knowledge of what this man was doing, what he had done already. A collector? The man was a psychopath who caged innocent people and then got rid of them at a whim. The previous prisoners had been "taken care of", wasn't that what he had said? How many people had died at the hands of this maniac?

Hope was the first to notice that something was wrong with Kai. He stood there, in front of them, pistols held loosely in his hands, head down. He was shaking, but not in fear. She started towards him, but as she did so something caught her eye and she stopped. Small ribbons of smoke were rising from Kai's body, curling lazily in the air and Hope took several steps back at the sight. Shifters were unable to use the abilities of their pokémon form as humans, so why was Kai smoking? She was also becoming aware of a heat, pulsating from his body, it was becoming uncomfortable, even for her as a fire type, and had already forced the other Shifters back several steps.

Brian Mills was also aware that something was wrong. He was standing a fair distance from Kai, but had also noticed the sudden raw heat that permeated the room. It was confusing, all information on Shifters to date indicated that they were unable to use their pokémon abilities in human form, but here clearly something was happening. Brian took several steps back towards the open doorway, pushing his son back with him as his guards rushed forwards, staggering in the heat to cover him.

Brian and Vernon had reached the door and, shoving his son through, Brian glanced back at Kai standing in the centre of the room. The soldiers had their weapons up and aiming at him, but had not fired yet, while the other Shifters and the Vulpix had taken shelter behind a marble staircase in the far corner, which sheltered them from most of the heat.

Kai's head snapped up, the temperature in the room escalated, and Brian felt true fear as he looked into the face of the young man. Kai snarled, flames flickering at his lips and a cascade of flames erupted from him. Brian hurled himself out of the door, but took the brunt of the flames as he did so. The guards, who had been standing directly in front of Kai were vaporised almost instantly, a single bullet fired, which melted in mid-air.

The eruption finally ended, and Kai stood, swaying on his feet, ashes billowing around him before the ground rushed up to meet him and he sank into darkness.