My debut card for the set is Snorunt. Despite being tiny Ice types, these two Runts found themselves in the thrall of the deep desert. The odds of survival are definitely against them, but they seem to be toughing it out. They have to know what drew them here!
My next entry is Ogerpon! She seems to be lost here in the vast dunes. Who can blame her! Navigating isn’t easy here, but maybe she will get some help?
It seems our snorunt friend from earlier evolved on its journey through the harsh wastes. Even though Glalie has been through much and has persevered, it seems to have lost its companion on the way. Glalie takes a rest at sunset. Not sure if it wants to keep going towards its goal or whether to grieve its friend. Too hot to think anymore…
Aron, curious to find his way into the desert after receiving a tugging at his heart earlier that day to do so. This is that pivotal moment, the leap of faith into a vast and uncharted territory for the little steel type. Deciding to make the trek at night was strategic. High temps aren’t great for this Armor clad creature!
Lairon. Our pal here is wandering the beautiful painted canyon in the Southern portion of the desert. Admiring its orange and purple hues as he travels leisurely on to who knows what.
Chikorita basks in the dusty desert sunrise. There’s something so beautiful about this time of day and in this place specifically. The beginning of a new day, the genesis of new opportunities and adventures. Chikorita may be too busy to notice, but only in the blazing sunrise can the ancient messages etched into the deep dark canyon be seen by anyone. What could it mean?
Sandstorms envelop a large area of desert all at once. On top of this, they give the surrounding area an eerie orange hue. While visibility for most Pokemon is down to almost zero, others that are used to digging and tunneling, like Steelix here, can use the obfuscation of the harsh desert sun as cover to make long journeys while remaining cool.
Best to not get in its way when it’s barreling through the storm like this! It seems we are in its path…. Well it was nice knowing yal- gets trampled by steelix
Natu gazes upon the giddy wanderer Ogerpon as she gleefully sprints through the desert. While her sense of direction is questionable to say the least, Natu can sense she is lost and in need of assistance. She knows just the friend that could help!
Natu brought Ogerpon to her friend Xatu, since he’s so good with directions (also can see the future and past which helps). Xatu points the right way to get to where she wants to go. Hopefully Ogerpon can take it from here…
The Master Ball, the ultimate catching device. Capable of taming any Pokemon, no matter how small or mythic. Truly an artifact of incredible power! Why is there one here in the middle of the desert though? Did someone drop it on accident? How did it get here? Curious….
The Unown seem to have left their marks everywhere in this desert, they have been here for millennia it feels, and here we find them in a super rare encounter! They paused to give me a message which I’ve captured here.
They seem to spell out “S E C R E T O A S I S”
Could there be one such place in this vast sand trap? After showing me this they floated off to the Northeast, should I follow them?
Here we find a Relic Hunter, an homage to Himeno’s incredible card from Skyridge, amidst some ruins in the desert. What will she find here? What civilization used to live here? Rumors of these ruins have spread throughout the region about the mysterious runes and strange happenings that have occurred here.
Some local natives have reported lost items, trainers’ pokemon getting lost here and then returning looking different, and a faint humming noise that can be heard at certain times of day and night. No one has been courageous enough to go explore the deep parts of the desert to figure out the source of these phenomena. Until now…
Our friend Cyndaquil here is pooped! Even fire types need to rest in the heat, especially when water is so scarce. It seems the western part of the desert here used to be a lake but has since turned into a salt flat. As much as it makes for a stunning vista, it can be very dangerous to cross if you aren’t well equipped. Rooting for you Cyndaquil!
Life, man. Beautiful moments in nature like this scream at us to stare. To take it all in. To realize how incredible life is on this planet, to be alive. There is wonder and awe to be had and shown. Our boy Quilava here is taking a moment to take in this stunning sunset on the salt flats, maybe its this beauty that has kept him here, from continuing on to the safety of the dunes and towards the thrall of the oasis. Is there actually a place like that deep in this sand covered wasteland? Quilava ponders his choices, his options, what he truly believes is calling him further. He is of a stubborn sort, so he won’t decide until he convinces himself of the truth. He really needs some water though. Like, real bad. These salty puddles aren’t gonna last him long. Bro needs to wake up.
But for now?
Sunset 
Quilava seems to have made his choice. Incredibly, we have found one Pokemon of the bunch with enough stubbornness and strong will to resist the thrall of the Oasis. After evolving at a time of great need and distress, Typhlosion gazed upon the salt flats and in the distance spotted a volcano. Intrigued by its power and seemingly infinite heat source, it decided to check it out and hang here for a bit. Luckily, he stumbled upon some pooled rainwater amongst the obsidian foothills leading to the caldera to quench his thirst. A strange phenomenon like the call of the oasis that seems to pull in so many others was not victorious when up against the steeled volition and conviction of this mighty Pokemon! This Typhlosion has got moxie!
Slowpoke has been relaxing in the shade of the palms on an island in the oasis for a while now, without a care in the world. Here we get our first look at the oasis! Although we only see a sliver of it, the oasis itself is quite vast. Ironic that one of the slowest Pokemon made it here first.
……where am i?……
sctoasis.exe; (start)? {Y/N}
Cmd: BootUP /.sctoasis.exe = [successful]
….loadsubject = {porygon.pkmn}
………load? ={Y/N}
…………
{porygon.pkmn} load command = [successful]
While Slowpoke was resting, a shellder latched on to his tail. Slowbro awakens to find he’s evolved, but he is not particularly pleased to be woken up this way. You know, sometimes life gives us a jolt; a wake up call to get up off our butt and get going. Slowpoke was forced to grow up. Maybe it’s just what Slowpoke needed?
Slowking ponders the cosmos on a cool desert night. He has been at the oasis for a while, and though his time here has been all he could ask for and wonderful beyond belief, his heart still feels an ache. An ache that whispers, is there more? My life is only so long, how long can I stay in this blissful slice of heaven? As he stares deep into the heavens, he feels an existential quiver; a hasty tug at his heart. He thinks to himself…..
“It’s been nice, but I’ve gotta get out of here”
Amongst this beautiful Oasis we stumble upon what looks like the remains of an old Pokemon battle arena. Could this be from long ago? Did people used to live and train here with Pokemon? Was this man-made or carved from the earth by the elements? What an intriguing discovery…
Lairon, now Aggron, has reached the oasis at last. All the perilous journeying through the scorching desert has left him with a relaxing reward: a nice cool bath to soothe his hot armor. Take it easy Aggron, you deserve this rest. And to think, he started this journey only recently as a curious baby Aron! What is going on with this desert?
Remember Chikorita? Well she’s grown up a bit since we last saw her, and on top of that, she’s found her way to the Oasis! Thanks to help of the Unown paintings she found in the canyon, she was tipped off to their presence in the area. With some clever stealth and reconnaissance, she spotted some Unown hovering their way through the desert. She made herself known and they took kindly to her. Bayleef mentioned the symbols from the canyon and they obliged her with directions to the oasis. They sensed her curiosity and fulfilled her wish to seek and know the truth of the desert’s call! How amazing is that. Now she is having some fun exploring the lush forest of the oasis. What will she find?
Meganium basks in the high sun of the Oasis. Serenity engulfs her in the tranquil warmth, the warm breeze flutters her flowery mane. Finding this place has given her peace, healing from a trainer that released her into the wild for not being as good as she hoped in battle. Imagine that, a starter pokemon that was chosen, given time and care and creating an attachment to their trainer; only to be discarded because they found another pokemon that was better in battles. Poor thing deserves this R&R. I think she will stay here a while
The legendary Mew was been rumored to have been seen here in the desert for centuries. Spotty eyewitness accounts made for juicy stories to tell amongst the locals over tea in neighboring towns, but nothing tangible had ever been captured showing the mythical ancestor Pokemon existence for years and years. Until today.
I had my camera shooting some B roll of this beautiful oasis landscape above the palm canopy. To tell you the truth I hadn’t seen a thing or noticed anything in person, but upon reviewing the video footage, I noticed a blur quickly dart across the screen for the briefest of moments. I was curious as to what it was, so I slowed down the footage and took a closer look. When I tell y’all my stomach almost leapt out of my throat when I paused on this frame.
Without even being aware I had captured evidence of THE MEW. Even though it was for a split second, I had unintentionally obtained concrete evidence of the legend that’s only been spoken of for thousands of years. I am overjoyed!
A curious and disturbing sight was caught on my trail cam as I slept in my tent for the night after a long day of photographing the oasis. I remember being stirred from my sleep by a noise around 3am, but was too sleepy to register what it was before the noise had stopped. I figured I should check the trail cam to see if anything happened during the night and lo and behold: this Froslass came across the FOV around 3am. Right around the time of the noise.
Needless to say I was spooked. But also amazed. Given the myth surrounding Froslass and her freezing handsome men she finds and displaying them in their dwellings like trophies, feels like it was a close call.
Wait, am I ugly? Is that why she went on her way? Oh no…
At long last.
All of a sudden, something like an otherworldly trumpet booms in the distance. Every Pokemon in the desert stands at attention, their gaze fixed on the heavens, hearts trembling. With fearful anticipation, the trumpets swell. The searing sunlight barrels down as the clouds burst and separate. Revealing utter glory.
The guardian of all, creator of all Pokemon, the source behind all the strange happenings we have witnessed, and the voice behind the Call of The Desert and keeper of the Secret Oasis: Arceus, descends.
Bathed in sunlight, Arceus reveals itself to all who have heard its call. It sends out a telepathic message to those who can hear, thanking them for listening and for coming to the oasis. Arceus calls them all to the middle of the oasis to eat together and fellowship.
The Pokemon recounted their journeys through the wilds of the desert and about what all they overcame to get here. They also mentioned how they quickly evolved and adapted along the way, much to their amazement. While Arceus did not provide answers as to why all these phenomena took place, they gave thanks in hearing their stories and conceded that they wanted to meet those dedicated to seeking out the source behind the call. Arceus took much joy in listening to their stories and taking it all in. Arceus was glad, as were all the Pokemon gathered there that day.
Special Art - Typhlosion
Arceus Special Art
The Final Artwork
NEED 
