~Mawerk. I’m back again and this is waaay out there. Meh, I like to think even with pokemon fanfics you can be original. Plus I love fantasy fiction :P

So ya, if anyone reads this ’sides Topaz (I luv ya Topes) you can feel free to email me in regards to any questions/queries/comments/million dollar checks, rightio? K mates, read on and enjoy!~

***For Sophie, because I don’t have the guts to tell her how much I missed her***

Tyra’s Tirades

Prologue

The peaceful sleep of the forest was broken by the huddled group forcing their way through the brush. A woman, running as fast as she could, was flanked by two strong looking men, gripping swords tightly in their hands. Beside them were two muscled pokemon, also huffing to keep up.

And behind them the dogs ran. At least, they looked like dogs, but were more like wolves. Black as the night around them, they had forked tails and vicious fangs. They were gaining on the small group, their chops slavering at the anticipation of flesh.

The first muscled pokemon fell, stumbling on a tree root. He was torn apart by the wolf-dogs in a mist of red. Three stayed behind to eat, but the other seven continued the hunt, forcing their prey to run faster. The two men spoke to the woman, and she nodded. Then, they turned as one with the other muscled pokemon. They readied their swords, and as the dogs rushed towards them they charged.

But the wolf-dogs opened their mouths, and a spurt of fire came gushing out. The pokemon caught on fire; he ran around pedantically until one of the black dogs leaped upon him and tore his throat out. The men managed to kill two dogs before suffering a similar fate.

Four dogs stayed back to feast, but a solitary one kept up the chase. The woman was hysterical now, clothes torn and ragged and skin bleeding from multiple cuts. In her left hand she clutched a pokeball tightly, as if to lose it would mean death. No more than a few metres away, the wolf pounced at her back.

But the woman was prepared, and she ducked, leaving the dog to soar over her and land in a crumpled heap. After buying herself a few precious seconds she veered sharply left and continued to run. When she was exhausted and could run no more she collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily. As the sounds of the dog came closer she placed the pokeball underneath a mossy stone, where the earth was soft. Pressing the stone down tightly she mustered all of her strength and ran in the opposite direction.

Coming face to face with her death, the woman had an almost relieved look on her face as she was killed a few hundred meters away from where she had hidden the pokeball. The dog settled down to eat its kill, but a sharp kick from a black robed man sent it whimpering away. The man smiled. Houndooms were so easy to command. They were ruled by fear. He casually knelt down and searched the woman, but when he didn’t find what he was looking for became angry.

“Houndooms! Search for it now!”

Soon the pokemon were sniffing and digging all around her body, but could find no trace of the poke ball. Then, the hooded man realized he had been beaten, and let out a murderous roar. The Houndooms ran as fast as they could, fleeing to the south.

The man composed himself. Someone would find it. Eventually. The small settlement in the forest was already beginning to expand and grow rapidly in population. Sooner or later, one of them would stumble upon the pokeball. And he would be ready.

CHAPTER 1

Isn’t it funny how things get discovered by accident? The mages who created the pokeball were tinkering with magical uses of pokemon and mundane objects, and accidentally enchanted a ball. The fertile plains of Gare were only discovered when a merchant heading for Eclestia castle accidentally read his map upside down. And I only started the biggest adventure of my life because I accidentally found something.

But first you’d better learn a little more about me. My name is Tyra, and and I am the eldest princess of Eclestia. Eclestia is a small kingdom entirely swathed with forest, a forest teeming with pokemon. It’s one of the main reasons we have never been conquered by a stronger realm, like Rheged to the north.

People say I look just like my mother: wavy brown hair, forest green eyes, and a confident smile. All the castle boys say I’m the most beautiful woman they’ve ever seen. But my sisters say I’m big, fat and ugly. I guess it’s because I’m always teasing them about being so short, while I’m very tall. I dwarf my father, king Heri, and he says that when I’m queen the people will sleep safely, because I’ll be so tall I’ll be able to see across the tops of the trees in the forest, to the blighted lands beyond.

So you’d be thinking Eclestia would be pretty boring, right? Well you’d be…dead right. The biggest uproar this year was when Farmer Eliot’s Miltanks started giving sour milk. Yet somehow whatever happens, big or small, I always manage to get tied into it. And hey, it is kinda fun. Even more fun then chasing Farmer Eliot’s Miltanks in the fields. Definitely worth the sour milk that comes with it.

So, one fine, glorious, typical morning in Eclestia, (it was pouring down rain) I yawned and stretched lazily in my large, comfy bed as I awoke. A Pidgey over on my windowsill cooed in a friendly matter, and I rose to walk over to it.

“Get off, ya bloody bird!” I screamed, waving my hands wildly towards it. The Pidgey turned casually, deposited a nice, warm surprise on my windowsill, and flew off.

“Good bloody morning,” I muttered, heading into my private washroom.

I impatiently jerked on the bell rope and within minutes Ensie, the no-nonsense matron of the royal wing, approached through the door. Which was far too long for me.

“Morning your highness,” she said cheerfully, holding an armful of crisp linen towels.

I muttered something back inaudibly, and immediately Ensie dropped the towels and stepped closer. Her sharp black eyes locked onto mine.

“Alright, what’s the matter?” Ha! Nobody can fool Ensie, especially not me, the girl she nursed since I was a babe.

“Nothing,” I mumbled. Well? It didn’t mean I couldn’t still try!

She scanned my face, looking for some readable feature. At last she smiled, triumphant.

“Aha! Dishevelled hair, and blotches on your neck! You’ve been sneaking out late with Master Alexei, haven’t you?”

I cringed inwardly, having been discovered.

“Tyra, it’s one thing to be with a boy, but it’s quite another to be spending all hours of the night with him!” she scolded. “Have you forgotten already what today is?”

I sighed inwardly with relief at Ensie’s dismissal of my night with Alex. If my father ever found out…

But then something gnawed at me as I tried to remember what was so special about this particular day.

“Still can’t remember? Think, the forest…”

My jaw dropped in realisation. Aw shoot! The inspection!”

That’s right, my fair young princess,” continued the matron, noticing the look on my face. “You are scheduled, and have been for a long time, to ride with forest ranger Mathen, and the king’s honoured guest prince Lychen.”

I made a face. Lychen was two years younger than me, and barely reaching puberty. But if all went smoothly, he was to be my future husband. Marriage to the future heir of Donlach would mean an unshakeable bond between our nations, one that could prove greatly beneficial for both parties involved. I didn’t much care for Lychen, but as father always says, put the needs of the people before your own.

Well I wasn’t about to be married off a virgin, anyways. Lately I had gained and found reciprocated an interest with ranger Mathen’s dreamy son Alexei. We were both the same age, and got along really well. It was just a shame about my arranged marriage; he was beginning to get rather attached to me, and much as I hate to admit, I held a certain fondness for him too.

“Oh Ensie, do I really have to go?” I complained, knowing full well the answer.

“His majesty has been working too long and too hard in getting you and the prince Lychen together. This forest jaunt will be a wonderful opportunity for you two to get to know each other better.”

“Oh great, he can tell me all about his favourite toy in his nursery,” I muttered. She shot me an ugly look.

“Nonsense. I’m confident that you and the, er, young prince will find much in common. Besides, Marthen has put off his inspection long enough whilst waiting for Lychen to arrive.”

It was true. Though the ranger usually did a forest-wide check on the well-being of the pokemon within once every month, my father had insisted that he wait another two weeks until the prince of Donlach was due to arrive. It would be “educational” for us both, particularly Lychen, seeing as how the bleak moors of his homeland to the north weren’t exactly teeming with pokemon.

I sighed and smoothed back my dishevelled hair. Ensie began promptly organising my bath; she released her little Squirtle and bade it use water gun, filling the tub. Next she let out her Vulpix, which was instructed to ignite the wood underneath, thus creating a fire that would heat the water. I climbed in gratefully, ruffling Vulpix’s head as I passed him.

“Now, you wash yourself up good and proper, and make sure you do something about those love bites on your neck!” called Ensie, retreating out my apartment door.

I sighed again and began delicately scrubbing my skin. Even if I had to venture out in the rain, at least some good would come of this silly expedition. Alex was sure to be there. I started washing my hair, a sort of half smile playing on my face.

Chapter Two

Lychen’s oily smile quickly turned to a gape of surprise at my stony expression. I scowled harder, which was pretty hard to do considering I was already scowling so hard my forehead hurt.

It hadn’t taken long for my mood to slip after I had taken my lovely, warm bath, only to have to saddle up my Ponyta, Freya, and ride out into the freezing cold rain. At least Freya kept me warm, though my riding clothes were saturated.

“Uh, um, great day for a ride, isn’t it princess?” stammered Lychen, trying to bridge the mood gap that had formed between us. I shot him a withering look for that comment, and he blanched.

“Rightio you two love birds, we can’t stand here all day flappin’ our gums now, can we?” remarked Marthen cheerily, emerging from his small ranger’s cottage. “We got a forest to inspect, don’t we?”

I gave him an even blacker look then I had Lychen, but he seemed not to notice, and reached over to take Freya’s bridle.

“Oh come on, Miss Tyra! You’ll have plenty o’ fun, you’ll see!” He led my Ponyta over to the thin woodsmen track behind his cottage that led into the forest, and she obediently followed. I envied Marthen for that; he had a way with all pokemon, they just seemed to trust him. Even my Freya, who was very hot tempered and wouldn’t let anyone but me touch her, gave in to the wiry ranger’s soft spoken words and gentle pats.

“Tha’s a good gel Freya, here, you want a freshly picked apple?”

I glumly sat back and tried to change the topic.

“Marthen, where’s Alex today?”

Ok, so I kind of jumped right to my current thoughts. So what? It’s not as if poor old Marthen would have any idea about Alexei and I?”

“Oh, I’m afraid Alex can’t come with us today, Miss Tyra. He barely got any sleep last night, and is frightful tired. He claims can’t remember a thing , so I reckon he was bewitched by some enchantress.” He winked cunningly at me, and I froze, letting an uneasy smile spread across my face. Oookay then, perhaps from now on we should be a little more discreet. If only Alex wasn’t so damn noisy…

“Princess, I think the forest looks lovely in the rain, don’t you?” wheezed Lychen, riding next to me on a very old Rapidash named Myra. She rolled her eyes and kept plodding along, being careful not to let her mane burn the prince. The rain was keeping it pretty low anyway.

“Well, prince,” I said slowly, emphasising his title. Another thing about Lychen that irked me; he would never refer to me as Tyra. It was always “the princess”, as if he never pictured me as anything more than just a title, not an actual human being. I think that’s what disgusted me the most about him. Well that, and he was a little pervert.

“Well prince, I think so too, but it seems you find my chest a whole lot more lovely. At least, that’s what I assumed, you sneaking glances at it so often this morning,” I finished, saying it as sweetly as possible, but making sure the venom was well laced. Lychen blushed deeply and pushed Myra forward to ride alongside Marthen. Which suited me fine. I had things I wanted to reflect on privately anyway.

It was on bleak, dreary mornings like this that I missed my mother the most. She was always depressed on rainy days; she couldn’t stand them. She lived for the sunshine. In fact she never would’ve stayed if it wasn’t for father. The mild mannered, but surprisingly vigorous, courtier who was determined to woo the youngest princess of Eclestia. Thankfully they were able to wed in love, because mother had an older sister and a brother who were before her in line for the throne. But when the queen, the king, and their children all drowned in the tragic accident, and mother living a quiet life at home with her husband, she was suddenly thrust onto the royal seat, and the crown placed firmly upon her head. And so she became queen. She never cared for it though, she would much rather be flying free through the sky with her pokemon, like she did so much in her younger years. She left ruling the kingdom up to daddy, and when she was gone he just kept doing his job. I think it was the only thing that kept him going.

But now he was determined to keep the bloodline of Eclestia alive; he felt the heavy burden placed upon his shoulders, and so did I, being the last remaining heir. That was why I sympathised with him, and agreed to all the sacrifices I had to make, such as marrying Lychen.

It didn’t matter much to me anyway. Lychen’s parents were healthy and young, and they would rule for a long time. It was part of the arrangement that as a wedded couple we would live in Eclestia until such a time as either Lychen or I were required to ascend to the throne. Nothing would change inwardly with my life, except that I would have to attend pointless, boring ceremonies as the wife of the prince of Donlach. Never mind that I was a future queen! The only other thing I was required to do, that made me shudder inwardly, was bear Lychen an heir.

Our children would inherit both the crown of Donlach and Eclestia, but the thought of doing anything with that little creep made my skin crawl. I would just have to close my eyes, I supposed, and picture Alex. Or Eoin. Eoin was great.

In my musings I hadn’t noticed Marthen and my future hubby walking faster, far ahead of me. I urged Freya into a trot to catch up with them.

Marthen was telling an outwardly fascinated prince all about the pokemon in the forest, and pointing out to him signs of their occupancy.

“See that there? That’s the marks left when Spearow sharpen their beaks against a tree.”

“Over there, the hole underneath the shrub? Nidoran burrow.”

“Check out all the nibbled leaves on this tree, your ’ighness, clearly Wurmple have been here recently.”

I stifled a yawn. These weren’t exciting for anyone but young children and ignorant foreigners. Most people in Eclestia had ventured into the forest several times, and became very attuned to it. After all, it’s where many went for their first pokemon.

“Wow!” cooed Lychen enthusiastically. He did sound genuinely impressed. Well I suppose if you lived somewhere where it was buried in a metre of snow for three quarters of the year a forest teeming with pokemon did seem exciting. “I wish I had some of these great pokemon! All I have is my Swinub and Delibird!”

To emphasise his point he released the two pokemon from his ornately carved, gold-enlayed pokeballs. When they appeared I agreed with him wholeheartedly. They weren’t very impressive. If a short, red and white bird, clutching a hempen bag and blinking owlishly, and a small, hairy mound that made occasional snuffling noises were the best pokemon that Donlach had to offer, it was small wonder they were never invaded in the great blitz wars.

“Er, they look very, um, exotic,” struggled Marthen, scratching his head. The prince’s shoulders slumped.

“Oh, but ice pokemon are very strong y’know, Master Lychen!” he said hastily. “I once met a man who trained ice pokemon, and he was the general adviser for the queen of Mennar!”

Lychen’s eyes went round like saucers, as he lapped up the tale that Marthen most likely heard from a raving drunk down at the tavern. Just as he got to the part where the man used his pokemon to create a great wall of ice that shielded Mennar from the invading Rell, Freya shied and nervously back up, whinnying. I looked down and immediately saw what had caused her to panic; a large Arbok lay stretched across the path, its hood open wide and its long, sharp fangs dripping venom.

Marthen and Lychen turned to see what was the matter, and then stared wide eyed. Well, at least Marthen did, but Lychen had rolled his eyes back in his sockets and passed out in the saddle.

The ranger carefully snuck up behind the Arbok, but it suddenly turned and struck the ground within an inch of his foot. So he backed up cautiously, and we stood regarding the aggressive snake silently.

Freya couldn’t take it anymore; she let out a flamethrower attack, that made the Arbok sizzle and writhe, although it was quickly put out in the rain.

Quick as a flash I dismounted, and raising an ordinary wooden pokeball I had carried for emergencies I threw it square at the smoking snake.

It connected directly, and the ball glowed as the magic spell was activated. Shrinking the pokemon, it then transported it inside the ball, which was created with charms of strength and binding. The Arbok struggled weakly inside, but it was too weak to resist the spells, and soon the movement ceased.

“Nice catch, Miss Tyra,” nodded Marthen, wiping the sweat from his brow. I spun the ball casually on my finger and swung back into the saddle.

“Thank you, ranger,” I replied nonchalantly, secretly pleased with myself for giving such a perfect performance. If only Lychen had been conscious to see that his future wife was not some airhead pushover trophy queen! “I think you had best revive the poor prince, though. He seems to have seen something that rather disagreed with him.”