Trying not to ruin the Ruins

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After a little time spent searching in the meadow like area held within the dark Shadowhue Forest, Brian and Ares had finally found the ruins that they were looking for. As he did with all other new areas, Brian began to look around and analyze his surrounding. He could see strange inscriptions of the walls of the ruins, written in some weird language that he couldn't make out, though they still looked cool and added some flare to the fairly normal looking walls of the ruins. While there wasn't really much else to look at, Brian was still becoming very interested in these ruins. They seemed to give off a mysterious vibe about them for some reason. Maybe it was the inscriptions on the walls of the seeming emptiness of the ruins, who knows.

"Hmm, this place definitely looks mysterious. Wonder what else is inside here." Brian said, interested to see what lied with the ruins.

"Hehe, alright then. Let the "toying" begin!" Brian said as he took a deep breath in before letting it out and sending out an Ember attack at the Zubat. A flurry of small flames raced towards the bat pokemon quickly, but the Zubat was prepared. As the flames got closer, the Zubat began to fly around quickly to dodge the embers. Brian kept his eye of the bat pokemon as well as he could and was astonished to see the speed it had. Some of the embers hit it, but for the most part the Zubat avoided the barrage of flames that Brian had sent out.

"That thing is pretty fast. This is getting fun." Brian said, complimenting the Zubat and grinning at the fun of this battle so far."Oh Ares, it's heading your way. Watch out."Brian said as he saw the bat pokemon start racing toward Ares with it's fangs bared, ready to strike.

Ares was not one to remain a bystander during a fight. With a flick of his tail, he momentarily was tempted to spray a shower of fireballs upon his opponent in a dazzling Ember display; however, upon seeing his apprentice spew forth his own dangerous array, he allowed himself to opt for another method of attack. The Zubat was, as he had anticipated, quite agile and quick in its own element. In the air, it zipped to and fro with little awkward or cumbersome movements. Even if it had been bombarded some times and scorched occasionally, there was a way to its flight patterns that indicated that it was most likely its skills in the air that allowed it to be the premier option to guard the orbs.

Although momentarily hesitant to attack as he saw Brian adopt his attack pattern, he was quick to react when the creature zoomed towards him. Allowing his fist to draw back for a punch-like movement, he would instead opt to slam his curled, lethal claws directly into the Zubat's face as it streaked towards him. Ares attempted to use his Scratch-punch combo to eradicate this threat by bluntly smashing it directly in its maxilla/upper skull. It was a perfect opportunity, after all, with the bat flying directly at him.

As the Zubat dashed towards Ares, Brian knew what he was going to do. Ares wasn't moving at all, just simply standing there and keeping his eye on the bat pokemon. Brian knew all to well exactly what this strategy was. Ares was waiting for the Zubat to get close to him so that it couldn't escape his inevitable attack. He had done this during their battle as well, and it definily set up some punishing blows. Waiting for the right moment and then land a powerful attack. This type of battling style had Ares written all over and it once again proved to be an effective tactic.

Ares's Scratch Punch combination had made a direct hit on the Zubat, sending it flying even higher into the air as it made a screech of pain. Brian had no doubt that Area would be able to land a powerful attack like that. Also as he predicted, the attack seemed to do a ton of damage to the bat pokemon as it was now flailing in the air while trying to regain it's balance. Seeing an opportunity to strike, Brian dashed towards a wall near the Zubat and jumped towards it. Once he got near the wall, he used his feet to propel himself off of it and fly towards the Zubat thanks to the momentum. Brian's fist then ignited with powerful flames as he attempted to smash the bat pokemon with his Fire Punch while it was still recovering from Area's Scratch Punch. It was his beat chance if taking out this flying foe.

The moment his claws made contact with the Zubat's blue flesh, the Charmander swiftly followed through with a fluid swing in order to complete the attack combo and deal the most damage possible. As the bat slunk back into the air, writhing and beating its wings sporadically while attempting to curl inwards on itself, Ares allowed his body to straighten up and compose itself in a manner that would indicate the preparation for another attack should the unwise creature attempt to go after him again so boldly. A single puff of smoke was expelled from his slitted nostrils as he observed the adversary, and it seemed that he was quite satisfied with the damage he had done on the light-boned foe. Shifting his weight back onto the balls and toes of his feet, he propelled himself forwards in order to continue the battle. He was intent upon stealing the prize that this guardian protected so earnestly.

It was as he dashed to finish the battle that he noticed Brian begin to fluidly ricochet off of the wall he had launched himself at, and he was quite pleased with how the Chimchar was progressing. How intelligent of him to close the gap between their flying fiend when it was distracted by pain! It appeared as if Ares was beginning to rub off on his apprentice. The Charmander would opt to support his comrade by spewing forth a flurry of Ember attacks, hoping to distract and/or hurt the Zubat while Brian prepared to smash it with a Fire Punch.

As Brian flew ever closer to his target, a flurry of flames came out of nowhere and swarmed the bat pokemon. The Zubat tried it's best to avoid them in it's disoriented state, but failed to do so and got pelted with flame after flame. Brian realized that Ares must have summoned those flames with Ember in order to make sure his Firs Punch would hit. Brian hadn't planned for this and probably would've hit anyways, but it was still nice to see that the two of them could preform some nice team tactics.

"This should end it!" Brian shouted as he thrusted in a downward arching motion with the Zubat it's range. His smoldering fist collided with the bat Pokemon right in it's small chest, with the resulting force sending it plummeting down to the ground in seconds. When it smashed into the ground, a large smoke cloud formed from the force of the impact. After it cleared, Brian saw that the Zubat was down for the count. The battle had been one and Brian couldn't be happier.

As the Charmander's fiery breath peppered against the Zubat's fickle and petite body in an attempt to keep it locked into a single place, it appeared that Brian had maneuvered into an excellent position to strike. Although it appeared that the Chimchar could have easily done this on his own, it was always a boost to Ares's ego to successfully assist in any manner possible. Certainly it might be overdone, useless, or unnecessary, but it was something that he liked to do. Helping others was was always something he did because it meant that they would help him later on. It was just as he had learned over his years of learning the art and beauty of warfare: a poor warrior always tossed his best weapons.

As the Zubat flopped against the floor like a wet waffle, the Charmander was upon the flying specimen in an instant. His foot would firmly slam down upon the creature's throat and upper torso, and he twisted his heel so that it might pivot into its flesh. He suppressed the Zubat with a look of disinterest and nonchalantness, and ensured that it would squirm once or twice before he investigated the wall. A mild 'hmm' was given as he assessed the situation and, after meticulously searching with his eyes the base of the wall, would give his next set of instructions.

"This is our opportunity," he observed, his foot applying more pressure to the pinned enemy beneath it, "climb up there and get those orbs."

"Right. Got it." Brian said as he landed on the ground and started running to where the orbs they needed were. He climbed up the wall near them as easily as he would climb up a tree, his nature as a monkey coming into play. As he climbed the wall, the giant orbs became closer and closer with each passing second, as Brian's excitement continued to increase as well. Ares and himself had gotten past what seemed like all of the challenges that stood in their way and now they could claim their prize.

Thinking this, Brian jumped off the wall and onto one of the orbs. Looking at them from up close, he realized that they were almost twice as large as him and Ares which ment that they had to weigh a ton. "Hmm, these orbs must weigh a lot. I'm not sure if we can carry these things back. What should we do?" Brian said, asking Ares for an idea on what to do in this situation.

With the Zubat slowly fading into submission and its wiggling ceasing altogether, the Charmander was finally able to distract himself entirely with the situation of Brian clambering up the wall to procure the orb keys. When the Chimchar noted that they were too large and too heavy to carry, the gears inside of Ares's skull began to turn fervently. There was obviously some manner to this puzzle that they had not yet explored. The orbs they were after had to be no bigger than his outstretched fist if they were to activate the statues in the room preceding what could only be imagined to be the throne or trophy room, and yet these were much too obnoxious and bloated to fit that description. He gave a nonchalant flick of his tail as he observed his apprentice prior to suddenly realizing the solution. They should be in this room, so maybe they weren't as lost as they appeared?

"Brian," he would begin, his voice carrying towards his young ward in order to instruct him with great clarity, "I need you to look at what's up there and tell me if you notice anything that can be pushed like a button. Are the giant orbs something like that? You might also want to look and see if there's something inside of them, like a heavy, fist-sized sphere."

"Inside?" Brian said curiously, not having explored the possibility that something could be held within the orbs themselves. "Okay, I'll see if I can find anything up here." Brian said before he started to search around the orb to find something that stood out. He couldn't find anything of note at first; the orb was completely spherical and lustrous as he had seen it before. However after a big more analyzing and searching, Brian could see a part of the orb that seemed to pop outward. It looked like some kind of switch that was out of the orb, which is exactly what they were looking for.

Brian immediately pushed the switch and then the outward part of the orb seemed to come out even more afterward. Eventually, the switch like part popped out of the orb and fell to the ground, leaving a sizable hole in the orb. Brian then looked in the orb and suddenly saw something shining within the hole. He reached inside and felt a small spherical object with the same texture as the orb. Brian pulled out the object and saw that it was a much smaller orb that looked exactly like the larger one. "Ares, I think I found what we're looking for. Look here!" Brian said as he lifted his hand in the air with the mini orb in it to show Ares what he found.

The very moment he heard his apprentice begin to figure his way about the orb's puzzle, Ares's heart began to thunder within his chest. It pounded ferociously like a jackhammer upon concrete, and it seemd to threaten to explode forth from behind his ribcage in order to declare the sudden thrill and excitement that held him there. With his foot firmly clamped upon the Zubat's upper torso, he was rooted to his position solely by the obligation and desire to make the guardian observe its sacred treasure be acquired by foreigners. He gave a lizard-like hiss in the guise of a curt, excited exhale as it appeared that Brian had solved the orb's mystery, and his tail's fire began to burn brightly. This was what he had come here for: the puzzle was so tantalizingly close that he could hardly stand the wait.

Slowly, but surely, the Chimchar would dig up his quarry from the deep recesses of the large orb, and proudly presented it to his master. The Charmander would relinquish his oppressive step upon the downed guardian and meander towards the base of the wall, his eyes wide with reinvigorated motivation and excitement. He cared little for the bat that slipped back into the darkness, for his entire existence was now the object that glinted eeriely in the light of Brian's tail-flame. His voice seconded this emotion, for it seemed eager and itchy to acquire the other one from the opposing sphere and return to the treasure room. He spoke, "Excellent! Drop that one to me and get the other one."

"Alright then Ares, here it is." Brian said before he dropped the small orb in his hand to the ground, expecting Ares to catch it. He doubted that Ares would allow something this crucial and important to become damaged in any way. After dropping the small orb, Brian then jumped over to the other large orb and looked for a switch on that one. Having seen if on the other orb, it didn't take Brian long to find the switch on this one. He pressed it as soon as he saw it, resulting in the same thing as when he pressed the other switch. Part of the orb popped out and inside it was a smaller orb, identical to the other one. Brian then quickly grabbed the small orb and held it up in the air as if it was a trophy."Ares, I got the other orb!"

With the orb soon plummeting towards the ground, Ares sprung into action. He allowed himself to move with grace and fluid speed towards the location in which the orb might splinter and shatter against the ground and allowed his hands to cup so that the crucial key might plop softly into them. As soon as the sphere's smooth surface was palpable in his warm palms, his fingers would instinctively curl about it so that it might restrict and restrain the object's movement - after all, he would despise being the one that caused their journey to end so quickly thanks to a careless movement! The inner drake within him was chilled greatly as soon as he remembered the great potential that this object had, and his body would shiver as he peeked between his protective fingers to observe its surface. His eyes were wide with excitement, his heart hammering deep within the confines of his thoracic cavity: there was no greater thrill that he could experience upon the battlefield than right in that moment when treasure was seemingly a stone's throw away.

Oh yes, he was quite satisfied - more so, in fact.

With his young ward confirming his acquisition of the other precious orb, there swept over the Charmander a moment of nirvana. They had come so far, and victory was foreseeable. He was not going to let anything deter or stop them now. "Alright," called the lizard, his voice carrying towards his companion in order to beckon him towards him, "it's about time that we go and get this treasure. Hold on to that orb until we get to the previous area and I'll take care of the rest."

"Alright then Ares." Brian said as he gripped onto the mini orb as tight as he could before jumping down off of the large orb and onto the ground. "This is so exciting, I can't wait anymore! Let's go get that treasure right now!" Brian said before he dashed off in the direction of the area with the locked wall. With any luck, these two mini orbs that he had found were just what they needed to unlock that wall and lead them to treasure. Brian continued to fantasies about the possibilities about what the treasure was as he ran, his mind wandering in excitement. Despite this, he still looked ahead with determination to get the treasure with Ares, which would mark the end of their ruin adventure.

With Brian blazing the way back towards the room they had just recently vacated, Ares could not help but once more smile sweetly towards his apprentice's eagerness. There was something refreshing about his carefree and vigorous behavior, and the way that he approached such circumstances that had been presented to them thus far was something to be admired. Summoning his speed and resolve, the Charmander would hastily follow in the Chimchar's path, allowing his footfalls to echo through the dark hallways. He sprinted, but was forced to relax into a swift jog after sometime; he was not as quick or agile in this larva-like state as others might be. Soon, he hoped, he would be able to proceed on with his life cycle and evolve into a greater and stronger specimen. For the time being, the lizard would be content with sluggishly ambling after.

It was upon returning to the room that Ares's heart once more began to thunder within his chest. The excitement that he exuded and felt seemed to be palpable upon encroaching within a fair radius of his person, and it was evident that he was driven now by the anticipation of what lurked just beyond the stone wall. He swiftly trotted towards the serpent-like beast, and elevated his designated key to give it one final assessment. Certainly, the Charmander pondered, this would work: the dimensions and scale were what was desired. With a swift twist, he would face Brian and allow his hand to stretch out towards him with the palm facing up, "Alright, give me the key, and I'll take it from here. Be prepared to face whatever lies ahead."

Brian continued dashing ahead through the long and dark hallways of the ruins once again, knowing that Ares would be close behind. Holding onto the mini orb as tightly as possible, Brian continued running while fantasizing about the treasure that awaits behind the large wall. Maybe there was a million poke there, or tons of shiny gems, or maybe even a priceless ancient artifact. Brian was so focused on these thoughts that he didn't realize that he was already in the room. He guessed that his daydreaming made time go by faster or something like that. Ares soon appeared next to him in the large room with his mini orb.

"Alright then." Brian said as he tossed his mini orb to Ares, knowing that he would catch it easily."And there's no need to worry about anything Ares. We've taken on everything this ruins has thrown at us before, so we can take on whatever else it has in store for us." Brian said confidently as he stared at the gigantic wall, excited for whatever is behind it.