"Wake up you two! It is already 10 in the morning!" said guild master Caesar.
"Uh...wait...what happened?..." asked Renard as he opened his eyes.
"We overslept, Renard. We spent the whole night in the guild sleeping..." said Brendan.
"What have you been doing the whole night?! I did not assign you two to guard the guild during night shift!" asked guild master Caesar.
"We were trying to capture the black riding hood, sir. The last time I met him I almost caught him; he was way too agile and fast. So, I brought Brendan to assist me. But he did not come last night... " Said Renard.
"Oh, the mirage warrior? I see. So, the rumours are indeed true. Well, it would be great if you can capture and persuade the black riding hood to join the knight's guild. The guild needs warriors like him." Said guild master Caesar.
"The black riding hood is an eeveelution, and he knows the move ice beam." Said Renard.
"Then the black riding hood must be either a vaporeon or a glaceon." Said guild master Caesar.
"I think it is a glaceon." said Brendan.
"Are you sure?" asked Renard.
"Yeah. You said that you pursued the black riding hood until you two reached a river bank, right? Well, if the black riding hood is a Vaporeon, then logically, the warrior could have just swum away instead of freezing the water to walk on it and flee." Said Brendan.
"You are right, Brendan!" said Renard.
"Hmmm, a glaceon eh? There are not so many glaceons is Arcadius. The only one I know is the daughter of the famous sir Nicolas van Deventer. But that is far-fetched. A pampered princess of a rich aristocrat is very unlikely to be a well-trained warrior..." said guild master Caesar.
"Well...it may sound inconceivable, but the black riding hood could be her...Since we don't even know which gender the black riding hood is..." said Brendan.
"Impossible! I'm sure the black riding hood is a guy!" said Renard
"Have you heard the black riding hood's voice?" asked Brendan.
"Well, no... but..." said Renard.
"Then my hypothesis could be true, no matter how absurd it is..." said Brendan.
"Alright, enough talking. How about I give you two a mission to persuade the black riding hood to join the knight's guild?" asked guild master Caesar.
"Yes sir." Said Brendan.
"Good. Now I must go. I have something important to do." said guild master Caesar as he left the two pokemon. Renard did not seem to like the idea of recruiting the black riding hood because he did not want another eeveelution to be a guild member. Why? Because he hated having rivals. Akira was already frustrating enough for Renard since he eclipsed all of Renard's hard work to become the best. Things would only get worse if the black riding hood agreed to join the knight's guild. For Renard, being bested by a Lucario was still much better than being bested by his own kind.
"So, Renard. How will we capture the black riding hood? Any idea other than waiting for the black riding hood the whole night?" Asked Brendan.
"Actually, I hate having him as a guildmate, but since the guild master's decision is an order then I have no choice." Said Renard.
"So, what is the plan?" asked Brendan.
"Simple. We put a fake S rank mission on the job bulletin board that will lead him to an abandoned fortress. I know some, since I have a map. Once he is inside the fortress, you block the exist while I capture him. Then, we persuade him." Said Renard.
"Sounds good. But there is one problem. How do you make sure that only the black riding hood will take the fake mission instead of other warriors or mercenaries? And we also don't know when the black riding hood will come to the abandoned fortress." asked Brendan.
"Well....ummm...That is a really good question, Brendan. I have no idea." Said Renard.
"We can't capture the black riding hood unless we solve this problem." Said Brendan.
Suddenly, William, David and Ryo came. Seeing the two pokemon, William greeted them.
"Hi. How is it going guys? I heard from Rowley that you two fell asleep in the guild." Said William.
"Yeah, we were waiting to ambush the black riding hood but he did not come." Said Renard.
"Well, if you want to capture the black riding hood, you can't use the same trick twice. The black riding hood already knows that you are waiting for him." Said Ryo.
"Ah, Ryo. Perfect timing. We have already devised a plan. We will post a fake S rank mission to lure the black riding hood into a fortress. We just don't know how to make sure that the black riding hood will take the mission." Said Brendan.
"Easy. Just write on the mission paper that there is a criminal gang leader who wants to challenge the black riding hood to a fight at 10 in the morning. That way, other mercenaries and warriors will not take the mission, and you two know exactly when the black riding hood will come." Said Ryo.
"Oh my, why didn't I think of that? By the way, thank you for your suggestion." said Brendan.
"You're welcome. Now if you'll excuse me, me and David are going to do a mission." Said Ryo.
And thus, Brendan and Renard posted a fake S rank mission on the job bulletin board. The two waited until Saturday, but predictably, the black riding hood did not take the mission because the warrior already knew that the mission was fake. The black riding hood was not stupid.
"Brendan, I think the black riding hood knows the mission is fake. He is smarter than I thought..." said Renard, on a Saturday afternoon.
"You're right. I will ask Ryo for another solution to this problem." Said Brendan.
"Where is that Riolu?!" asked Renard.
Ryo was nowhere near the guild; he was at Alicia's house. Because there was no school on Saturday, Alicia was free the whole day. Lucky for Alicia, her parents were not at home on Saturday, so every Saturday, Ryo went to Alicia's house and occupied himself with Alicia's alchemy set. Coming from a family of scholars and scientists, Alicia had a private alchemy lab in his house. Despite being a beginner, Ryo could skilfully do some basic techniques of alchemy such as distillation, and even crafting potions and poisons. This Saturday, Ryo was trying to craft a paralysis poison, and his attempt seemed to be successful.
"Ryo, how come you are already this good at alchemy? You can't possibly be a beginner!" said Alicia.
"I don't know. Maybe it is just talent. Dad said my mom, who is a Gradevoir, is really good at alchemy, so I guess I got it from my mother." Explained Ryo.
"Did you perhaps receive basic training in alchemy from your mother?" asked Alicia.
"Nope. My mom died three days after giving birth to me." Said Ryo.
"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that Ryo..." said Alicia.
"Aaand I'm done! Oh boy, I'm curious to see if the poison will work. Maybe I should try using this poison on criminals when I'm doing a mission. And by the way, I'm hungry...." Said Ryo.
"Don't worry Ryo, I'll cook some food for you. In the meantime, how about I give you some cinnamon bread for appetizer?" said Alicia.
"You are being so nice Alicia...thank you." Said Ryo.
"You're welcome" said Alicia with a smile.
It didn't take long for Alicia to prepare a grilled remoraid for the hungry riolu. As the riolu was waiting in the dining room, Alicia's little brother, Kyle the Fennekin, came across the hungry Riolu. Seeing the Riolu, the surprised Fennekin yelled at his big sister.
"Alicia! Who is this Riolu?! Why are you bringing a stranger into this house?!" asked Kyle.
"He is a friend of mine. Is there a problem with that?!" said Alicia.
"No...not at all...I understand...hehehe..." said Kyle with a smile.
"Why are smiling like that?...wait....no...No! It is not what you think!" said Alicia.
"HAHA! So, he is the little brother of your crush! Don't worry Alicia. I'm a good little brother, so I'm not telling mom or dad about this, I promise." Said Kyle.
"STOP READING MY DIARY ALREADY!" shouted Alicia.
"AHAHAHAHA! I Love to see you get angry like this. I'll see ya later!" said Kyle as he left.
"He knows that you love my big brother, doesn't he?" said Ryo
"Annoyingly yes. But forget about it. He won't tell my parents that you're here anyway. Let's eat." Said Alicia.
The two pokemon then began to eat. Being a quick eater, Ryo finished his meal way faster than Alicia. As soon as his belly was filled, the Riolu started to get bored. To get rid of the boredom, Ryo then decided to start an intellectually stimulating discussion with Alicia.
"Alicia, how long have you been studying in the university of Aeterna?" asked Ryo.
"Since I was 11. Now I'm 14 years old. Why do you ask?" asked Alicia back.
"4 years already? You must know a lot then." Said Ryo.
"Well, my parents force me to study excessively and read a lot of books because they want me to become a polymath. But the more I learn, the more I realize that I know nothing. However, if you have any question, I'll try my best to answer it." said Alicia.
"I have many questions to ask. The first one is about philosophy. There is this philosopher form Ethurielle called Rene Descartes the shiny Sylveon. I still don't quite understand his famous quote 'I think therefore I am'. How did he arrive to that conclusion?" asked Ryo.
"Well, this quote is basically about doubt. Descartes believed that in order to seek the truth, one must doubt everything. What we see, hear, touch and feel could be just be a hallucination or an illusion conjured by a zoroark. So, the existence of everything that we perceive using our senses can be doubted and more importantly, even our own existence can be doubted. But there is one thing that we cannot doubt. Can you guess what it is?" asked Alicia.
"The very fact that we doubt?" answered the Riolu.
"Bingo! That's it! We can doubt the existence of everything except doubt itself! The only thing that is sure to exist is our own doubt. And since doubt is a thought, every time we think, we exist!" explained Alicia.
"But isn't doubt more of a feeling than a thought?" asked Ryo.
"Well, yes, I think so..." said Alicia.
"Then shouldn't the quote be 'I feel therefore I am' instead of 'I think therefore I am' since doubt is a feeling?" asked Ryo.
"Good question, but I can answer it. You see, while doubt is a feeling, the process of questioning reality itself, which comes from doubt, is a thought." Said Alicia.
"Okay. Now I understand. But there is still much more that I want to ask you." Said Ryo.
"Just ask. I'll gladly answer your questions"
"I have some questions about pokemon type matchup. The first one is about electric type. Why is water type weak to electric type moves?" asked Ryo.
"Because water is a conductor of electricity. Well, not if the water is pure, but since there is no pure water naturally, we can say that water type is weak to electric because naturally occurring water conducts electricity quite well." Explained Alicia.
"If that is the case, why isn't steel type weak to electric type? Steel is also an excellent conductor of electricity." Asked Ryo.
"Ummm, well, that is because...welp. Honestly, I don't know..." said Alicia.
"The same goes for water type. I have read that water causes steel to rust. If water causes rust, then why isn't steel type weak to water? Some pokemon type matchups don't make sense to me!" said Ryo.
"You know, questioning pokemon type matchups means questioning Arceus, because Arceus was the one who decided who is super effective against who during the creation of pokemon. We should not question God's decision..." Said Alicia.
"This inconsistency with the laws of nature is a proof that Arceus is not perfect. And since Arceus is not perfect, he cannot be a God! I know you are smart Alicia, you should have realized this the moment you start thinking rationally!" said Ryo.
"Are you saying that you are an atheist?" asked Alicia.
"No, I still believe in God, but what I'm trying to say is that Arceus is not the real God. The real God must be all powerful and all perfect, free from any mistakes and inconsistencies." Said Ryo.
"You sound like my grandfather Ryo. You know, my grandfather has been questioning the church and Arcean faith for decades, if it wasn't for Lord mewtwo backing him, he would have been thrown to the dungeon by the inquisition." Said Alicia.
"There are more inconsistencies that I would like to address. Why is the ability of magnemite not levitate even though magnemites literally float in the air? And why is the move rest restores hp while pokemon who fall asleep because of sleep powder or hypnosis don't have their hp restored? It is still the same sleep! Also, why do some pokemon evolve while some others don't evolve?" asked Ryo.
"Your questions are too good. I can't answer them. Maybe I should discuss these questions with the scholars at the university." Said Alicia.
"Wait there is still more! Why do dragons don't hate ice type pokemon as much as the fairies?" asked Ryo.
"I know the answer to that one. To understand dragons, we have to know the basic principle held by them. Simply put, dragons are immoral. Why? Because they think that morality is just a tool used by the weak to restrain the strong. Surprisingly, ice type pokemon also share the same trait as the dragons. Both dragons and ice type pokemon tend to be immoral, that is why the dragons still respect the ice type pokemon even though they are weak to ice. Fairies, on the other hand, are selfless and highly moral. The dragons hate fairies with a burning passion because while the dragons view fairies are weak due to their selflessness and morality, fairy type moves are super effective against dragons." Explained Alicia.
"Why are ice type pokemon immoral?" asked Ryo.
"Because ice type pokemon tend to be cold hearted. Cold hearted means they lack compassion. Since the basis of morality is compassion, being uncompassionate leads to immorality." Explained Alicia.
"But I know one ice type pokemon who isn't cold hearted. How do you explain that?" asked Ryo.
"Cross breeding. In the beginning, all types have their own distinct traits. For example, fire type pokemon tend to have a fiery temper, psychic type pokemon tend to be smart, and fighting type tend to be stupid. However, as the time progresses, some pokemon began cross breeding between different types, so the traits got mixed up. For example, even though you are a fighting type, you have the intellect of a psychic type since your mother is a Gardevoir. Understand?" asked Alicia.
"Yes! Now I understand! You are so knowledgeable Alicia..." said Ryo.
"Oh, stop, you are flattering me. Thanks anyway. Anymore questions?" asked Alicia.
"Okay, this is the last question I'm going to ask you today. I've saved the most interesting question for the last. So, what do you know about the origin of rings of power?" asked Ryo.
"Aha! I was expecting you to ask that question! The origin of the rings of power is my favourite bed time story! It all began with a rivalry between the two greatest philosophers in Dahara...."
"I'm listening...please continue..." said Ryo.
"About 350 years ago, during the sixth era, Dahara was the centre of learning and knowledge. Many pokemon from all around the world went to Dahara to study, including professor Magnus. Dahara was initially a kingdom dominated by normal and ground type pokemon but the kingdom was very open to immigrants, so Dahara was full of diversity. At that time, there were two legendary philosophers who had many students and followers, Leon the Typhlosion and Demetrios the Electivire. These two philosophers were bitter rivals, as the two had opposing views about literally everything."
"For example?" asked Ryo.
"Leon believed that all matters are not infinitely divisible; they consist of indivisible particle called atom, while Demetrios believed that matters are infinitely divisible. Leon was a rationalist who believed that truth can be known through reasoning, while Demetrios was an empiricist who believed that true knowledge can only be achieved through experience. Leon believed in God and soul-body dualism, while Demetrios didn't. The two rivals and their followers argued endlessly until one day, Demetrios decided to do something diabolical, just to prove his argument... The story is as follows..." said Alicia.
*Insert flashback sound*
It was a hot day in Dahara and a sandstorm was raging. Professor Leon was inside the Baitul Hikmah, Daharan language for 'house of wisdom', having a discussion with his student. His student was asking about ethics and morality.
"Professor, is it true that good or bad is relative? Is it true that moral rightness is just a matter of personal taste? I mean, something is good when we like it and something is bad when we dislike it?" asked the student.
"No, absolutely no. Do you remember the teachings of prophet Muhammad? It is written in the Quran: Perhaps you dislike something which is good for you and like something which is bad for you. Allah knows and you do not know. Therefore, your personal taste does not determine what is right or what is wrong. There is no such thing as moral relativity, because right or wrong is absolute and can be determined through reason. And if you use your reason correctly, you will arrive at the conclusion that the Quran is indeed the book of truth and guidance. Reason and faith are not incompatible..." said Leon the Typhlosion.
"How naïve...." Said Professor Demetrios.
"Ah, Demetrios, I didn't see you there. Assalamualaikum." Greeted the Typhlosion.
"Your sad devotion to that religion never ceases to amuse me." Said Demetrios.
"My faith is none of your business..." said Leon.
"Do you honestly think that the Quran is certain to be true? To me, the word 'faith' simply means not wanting to know what the truth is." Said Demetrios.
"What is the point of seeking truth when true knowledge is knowing that you know nothing? Faith is a from humility, which is the realization that our intelligence is limited. By accepting the fact that my brain capacity is limited, I embrace the religion of Islam. Truth is not sought but accepted, my friend..."
"Shut your mouth! I know that deep inside, you know that morality is relative, and no religion is able to dictate our perceptions!" said Demetrios angrily.
"How do you defend your argument that morality is relative?" asked Leon.
"All individuals are born empty of any built-in mental content, like a white canvas or tabula rasa. As they grow up, their ideas of what is right and what is wrong is shaped by their experience. And since the experience is unique for each individual, their perceptions of what is right and wrong are also unique. Hence, what is good and what is bad is relative." Said Demetrios.
"But you know deep down that every individual has a conscience, which dictates them to do what is absolutely good and avoid doing what is absolutely bad, don't you?" replied the Typhlosion.
"I don't believe in conscience." said Demetrios.
"Why?" asked Leon.
"Because pokemon are born evil. There is no good pokemon, only weak ones! If pokemon were born with conscience, then no one would commit evil." said Demetrios.
"How do you prove that pokemon are born evil?" asked Leon.
"Because we are all corrupted by power. Just look at the dragons. They become tyrants because they are powerful! If we were born good, none of us would get corrupted by power!" explained Demetrios.
"Then how about psychic type pokemon? The kingdom of Arcadius?! They did not become corrupted even though they are powerful. How do you explain that?" Countered Leon.
"The answer is clear. Because the power is not strong enough. Once they have the power of a god, they will become as corrupted as the dragons, or worse! This is because we are all evil by nature, that is why we get corrupted by power" said Demetrios.
"That is just your assumption. An empty and unproven assumption!" said Leon.
"We shall see about that!" said Demetrios.
Not long after that conversation, Demetrios decided to do the unthinkable. In order to prove that all pokemon are born evil, he harnessed the power of the sacred Arceus plates to corrupt other pokemon. How? By crafting rings of power from the fragments of Arceus Plates using forbidden knowledge.
Demetrios was a citizen of the republic of Lightningale, the electric type pokemon nation. Since Lightningale is an ally of Drachenberg, Demetrios was given free access to conduct research on the sacred Arceus plates. Using the power of magic, Demetrios managed to break the Arceus plates and obtain their fragments, from which the rings of power were made. Being highly skilled in the art of forbidden knowledge (magic), Demetrios somehow managed to use magic to amplify the power of the Arceus plates fragments. Ergo, the rings of power were even more powerful than the plates.
Demetrios created 5 rings: the ring of fire, water, grass, thunder, and the master ring, which contained fragments from all plates.
"With these rings, I shall demonstrate that divine power shall corrupt even the most seemingly benevolent pokemon, because we are all evil by nature...." Said Demetrios to Leon.
"Demetrios! Are you out of your mind?! You know that magic is forbidden! What were you thinking?! The high council will not sit still for this!" said Leon.
"Silence! I have convinced the scholars that today's magic is tomorrow's science! The high council of the house of wisdom has given me permission to use magic!" said Demetrios.
"What?! You know that science is the study of the laws of nature and magic is something that goes against the laws of nature! You can't mix up science with magic!" said Leon.
"It's too late. I have successfully created the rings, and I already have given the master ring to Imam Ibrahim Abdurrasyid, the leader of the high council. Now, I will give the remaining rings to rulers, and you will see them becoming corrupted!" said Demetrios.
"Astaghfirullah! What have you done?! All because of a stupid debate! Now I will do everything in my power to stop you!" said Leon.
Leon tried to stop Demetrios, but he was no match for him, because Demetrios possessed the ring of thunder. Ultimately, Leon died in a duel against Demetrios when he was trying to stop him. After the death of Leon, Demetrios gave the ring of grass to the king of Calen and the ring caused so much blood shed in the royal family and eventually, the ring fell into the hands of the leader of the grass mafia, Nathaniel the Servine. The same goes for the ring of water and fire. Everybody was fighting to gain possession of the ring, and so much blood was shed. Did Demetrios regret his actions? No. He was happy because he was right: Pokemon are indeed born evil. He did not care about the corruption that he had spread until one day; he got the taste of his own medicine. The closest student of Demetrios, prince Raphael the Zeraora, betrayed his own mentor by stealing the ring of thunder and killing Demetrios while he was asleep. Using the ring of thunder, Raphael eliminated his competitors and became a dictator of the republic of Lightningale.
How about the master ring? Well, it was still in the hands of Imam Ibrahim Abdurrasyid the Gallade, and by the will of Allah, the ring did not corrupt him. However, Drachenberg saw the ring as a threat and decided to finally invade Dahara to gain possession of the ring. Sadly, during the invasion, Arcadius decided not to aid Dahara. Why? Because the people of Arcadius worshipped Arceus while the people of Dahara worshipped a different God. Arcadius saw Dahara as a heretic and considered the invasion as a 'divine punishment'. And thus, the fall of Dahara was inevitable. Hundreds of scholars were slaughtered, millions of books were burned and thrown into the river, and the house of wisdom was destroyed. Dahara was no more the centre of learning and knowledge. So, the final question is: what happened to the leader of the high council of Dahara?
Imam Ibrahim Abdurrasyid, the current owner of the master ring, fled and vanished. Nobody knows his whereabout until now.
*end of flash back*
"And so, the story of the rings of power ends." Said Alicia.
"Wow. Such an epic story, Alicia..." said Ryo.
"I know right? Now I think you should go home now, it is already getting dark." said Alicia.
"Yeah, I probably should or my brother will come looking for me." Said Ryo.
Suddenly, someone was at the door. Alicia opened the door and guess what? It was Akira.
"Oh no, speak of the devil!" said Ryo.