ã€ŠPok&#xE9;mon: ICE COLD [Beta]ã€‹


 PROLOGUE: ICE COLD

    When he really thought about it, Lucas wasn''t so bad off.

    It was always strange for him...he had his mother, of course...but it always felt like something was missing.

    Was that part of why he did it? Why he joined him?

    He''d often make dumb choices¨Cjumping into the town pond in the middle of the night because an older kid dared him, when he was 10 and he got caught trying to steal the delivery man''s package just for the thrill of "living in the morment"¨Cstupid things.

    But this time, he''d done something really stupid.

    Lucas had done something really stupid.

    For what felt like hundreds of nights he sat in his cold, stale concrete cell thinking of just how absurd everything about this situation was.

    The words echoed through the painfully vacant space in his head with his tyrannical master now gone: ''Maybe in another timeline, this world isn''t infested by the writhing parasites called emotions.''

    Each time it would loop around his shattered psyche, he could feel his veins about to burst with steaming blood.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    "Maybe in another timeline, you didn''t exist. Maybe in another timeline, you died before you were born. Maybe in another timeline!"

    Lucas''s voice looped around the room like the time he did something stupid.

    When he thought about it, Lucas Gray wasn''t so well off. He didn''t have his mother anymore, of course...and something was missing.

    Why did he do it? Why did he do everything he told him to? Why didn''t he think like he taught him to?

    He''d often make dumb choices. He''d often make dumb choices. He''d often make dumb choices.

    But this time, he''d done something really stupid. Lucas Gray had done something really stupid.

    When he really thought about it, when he really thought about it, when he thought about what he couldn''t think about, when he thought about who he couldn''t think about¨Csomething was missing.

    He joined because something was missing.

    He puffed frigid fog as he sat on his cold bed, gripping his rugged bush of black hair.

    Other kids jolted awake to the sound of the crazy one screaming "I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!" So loud it shook the whole compound.

    "I hate you so much, I wish you''d died earlier¨CI wish you''d died before you were born, I wish you''d never been born!" Lucas Gray''s verbal vomit poisoned the air with its toxicity.

    When he really thought about it, Lucas Gray was horrible. What wasn''t missing?

    He did it. He joined him.

    He''d often make dumb choices, like most people.

    But that time, he''d done something really stupid.

    Lucas Gray had done something really stupid.

 Chapter 1: Nothing changed.

    ¡°I choose this one!¡±

    Lucas''s gloved finger pointed at the shiny red pok¨¦ball sitting in the far right side of the brown briefcase.

    ¡°Ahh¡­the penguin pok¨¦mon, piplup. Extraordinarily defiant, I have to say. But¡­for those that can distil it stubbornness: an excellent partner in any area. Marvellous choice,¡±

    Lucas''s heart almost blew up.

    His cool blue eyes sparkled like a pale lake on a sunny day or something.

    ¡°Thank you so much, Professor Rowan! You have no idea what this means to me¨CI can finally head out on my own adventures, just like my dad!¡± Lucas said. His voice was so saturated with excitement you''d probably smile like an idiot just hearing how happy he was.

    The four of them stood there in the middle of a frosty field of grass lightly coated in snow like those sugar-frosted jelly sweets his mother brought him every time she returned from a big contest.

    ¡°It''s awesome that you chose piplup, now we have the same partners,¡± Dawn said, her cheeks rosy from the cold. She had a warm smile as gentle as the falling snow.

    ¡°I couldn''t choose anything else, that''d ruin everything¡­¡±

    ¡°That''s awesome, you already have everything planned out?¡± Dawn asked, her pink boots crunching the snow beneath her as she moved closer to Lucas. Her ears and nose were a tinge red, matching her rosey-red trench coat.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Lucas shook his head.

    ¡°No, that''s not it. I feel like I''m literally not allowed to choose any other pok¨¦mon. Yeah, like everything''s planned out, but something just wouldn''t feel right if¨C"

    ¡°Okay, okay, enough waiting!¡±

    That was Barry. He didn''t like waiting. Not at all.

    With his bright blonde bangs and tangerine eyes, he was like a yellow bolt of lightning. Never able to sit still, that one. Always buzzing like a beedrill. He swiped one of the pok¨¦balls out of the case with a blurry hand.

    Professor Rowan watched, remembering when he witnessed children just like these in this exact scene once before. Nothing changed.

    This was good.

    ¡°I choose you, turtwig! Together, we''ll take over the entire region¨Cwe''ll have our fight with dad in no time!¡± Barry held the sleek orb in his hand to the sky with a grin.

    This was a delicate time. A very important moment. The Professor fixed his tie and cleared his throat. Dawn immediately knew what that meant.

    ¡°Well, gentlemen¡­I''ll leave those two in your care. Go out and see the world, and don''t forget to open yourselves up to new experiences. Dawn¡­¡±

    ¡°Coming, Professor!¡± She said, shutting the briefcase and locking eyes with Lucas, ¡°You should stop by the lab in Sandgem, it''d be great to see you again¨Cyou too Barry. Bye!¡±

    ¡°Bye! Thanks again, Professor Rowan! I''ll definitely come visit you guys!¡± Lucas waved, his cold misty breath dancing in the noon air. His heart was still swollen with excitement, about to burst from being overloaded with glee!

    The Professor stopped and looked back at the boy dead in his eyes. "I look forward to seeing how you''ll turn out at the end of all this, Lucas Grey..." he said.

    Lucas smiled, overwhelmed by emotions!

    Professor Rowan was such a kind person, so wise too¨Cdefinitely someone to look up to. He set such a good example and¨C

    ¡°Lucas, I challenge you to a battle right now!¡±

 Chapter 2: First Blood.

    ¡°Turtwig, tackle!¡±

    The small turtle rammed through the pale green grass of Route 201 with surprising speed.

    Lucas''s heart pounded in his chest. That tiny turtle was much faster than it looked!

    ¡°Piplup, use Pound!¡± he ordered, his gloved hands shaking with excitement. He still couldn''t believe he finally had a partner¡ªfrom Professor Rowan at that! It was hard to conceal his smile. ¡°P-Piplup? PIPLUP!¡±

    Turtwig bashed its solid little head into the penguin''s ribcage, sending it CRRASHING into the frozen ground!

    ¡°YES TURTWIG! You beautiful thing! See that, Lucas? We''re already a better team than you!¡± Barry shouted.

    Lucas grit his teeth.

    ¡°Piplup, come on! Are you gonna let them do us like this? Pound that Turtwig!¡± Lucas screamed across the field.

    Piplup stood on its webbed yellow feet, its blue feathers, once as clear as the sky, now ruffled and covered in cold dirt. It shook its little head and tweeted defiantly.

    ¡°Great, now go Pound Turtwig!¡± Lucas pointed at the little green turtle with the sapling sprouting from its head.

    But Piplup shook its head. What?

    Barry burst out laughing. ¡°The Professor wasn''t lying; that thing really is stubborn! Turtwig, tackle!¡±

    As if it already knew Barry''s command, Turtwig charged and SLAMMED its body into the defiant little blue bird.

    ¡°PIPLUP!¡±Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    Lucas watched helplessly as his partner was sent flying into a solid dirt ledge, face-planting into the grass.

    ¡°Don''t stop¡ªtackle, one more time!¡±

    Again, the green tortoise, looking more and more like a ravenous beast, charged at the battered Piplup. Even as it struggled to lift its head from the ground, Turtwig showed no mercy.

    ¡°Barry, STOP!¡± Lucas cried, urgency surging in his voice.

    But it was too late.

    A flaming red aura, like burning blood vapor, covered the shelled beast. Turtwig''s solid scalp collided with Piplup''s soft, fluffy body, lifting it up into the air and BULLDOZING it into the ledge again and again!

    The bird shrieked in horror, coughing scarlet droplets from its yellow beak before dropping to the floor, unconscious.

    Lucas''s eyes went pail, a horrified expression freezing onto his face. This was the reality of a pok¨¦mon battle. A TV could never capture the raw unfiltered pain of watching a pok¨¦mon batter another half to death.

    That was something you''d have to experience yourself.

    ¡°We win!¡± Barry declared triumphantly, jumping into the air; his pale blonde hair bouncing lively on his head. "What the heck was that? No way was that an ordinary tackle, right? You saw that red aura¨Cthat MUST''VE been a fighting type move¨Cmaybe turtwig knows an egg move! I''ve gotta ask the professor¨Cthat was so sick, Turtwig, you legend! Return!"

    A bright ray of light blue energy shrouded the savage turtle before sucking it back into the pok¨¦ball in Barry''s hand.

    Lucas was...petrified. The image of a bird beaten black and blue, bloody and bruised was searing itself into his mind. Why did it feel so familiar?

    His head felt like it had been bashed by a hammer or something...

    ...and yet...

    ...why did it feel like this was nothing new? Like he''d experienced worse?

    "There''s more to a battle than pummeling your opponent''s Pok¨¦mon. There''s a psychology behind it. The environment you''re fighting in, your opponent''s expression, his synergy with his partner¡ªall of it can be exploited. Knowing that is what makes you¡ª"

    "Better than your rival..." Lucas cut in, wide-eyed. A horrified expression on his face.

    Barry''s face creased in sheer shock, "What?! How did you know that? Did Dad tell you too? DAMN! And I thought I sounded super wise."

    "No, your dad never taught me that..." Lucas said, his black eyebrows digging into his face as he held his head. "I think I''ve heard that somewhere before¡­¡±

 Chapter 3: Frosty.

    What a loser.

    Up in the cerulean sky, flocks of cotton-winged Swablu sang heavenly songs as they flapped by with their majestic melodies.

    Down on the ground, heart swollen with sadness and ego bruised, Lucas trudged through the thick snow covering the grass. The sound of slush crunching underfoot rang in his ears...like the sound of Piplup''s bones crunching.

    He was dressed in his usual navy blue jacket, black snow pants, and red cap. His white scarf was wrapped securely around his neck. That was for sure.

    You know what else was for sure?

    How much of a loser he was.

    Yes, Lucas was in fact a loser. He''d lost his first battle, and to top it all off: his mom was nowhere to be found when he returned home after his pathetic obliteration at the hands of a small green tortoise.

    As he marched through the narrow path lined by rows of pine trees like titans covered in viridian needles, kicking pinecones across the white floor, he asked himself:

    "Did she go to another contest without telling me? Wouldn''t be the first time...or maybe she just flew to Hearthome..."Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    He gripped his scarf and sighed a cloud of frigid fog.

    A lot can happen to us when our mothers aren''t watching. You could wander into a massive pitch-black cave, and a vicious Tyranitar could try turn you into a human popsicle, attempting to RAM its entire arm through your body!

    You could fall into a raging river and almost get incinerated by a hyper beam from a feral Gyarados.

    But those were all just imaginary scenarios Lucas cooked up, a stew of fear and anxiety simmering in his head.

    You could find yourself in another region, all alone, doing who knows what with foreign chicks even though she told you to stay away from girls!

    Or...

    "Hey! Loser!"

    Lucas''s head, which had been hanging low like a wilted flower the entire time, lifted to see his friend jumping up and down with no chill on the snowy grass of Route 201.

    "Hurry up! We''re going to the Professor''s lab! Oh¡ªbut first, we''re going to the lake!" Barry''s loud voice blared in Lucas''s ears like an Exploud on full volume.

    Lucas rolled his eyes, wondering why Barry had to be so loud at 9 AM?

    "Cool, but why are we going to the lake? We can just go straight to Sandgem, you know...see the professor and his pretty assistant..." He stopped in front of the jittery blonde boy after his long walk.

    "You really are slow to the punch. That''s okay, not everyone can keep up with my lightning-fast thinking," Barry said, shrugging with pride. "Lucas, we''re going to catch the legendary Pok¨¦mon!"

    ...you could end up running into horrible people with horrible visions for you...and the rest of the world.

 Chapter 4: I feel...

    "Who knew this is where we''d catch our first Pok¨¦mon?"

    Lucas and Barry stood in front of a dense horde of pine trees, their thousands of evergreen needles coated in ice and frost. A large gap between the trees looked like a mouth ready to swallow them or a portal to another world.

    "Verity Lakefront..." Lucas murmured, his voice tinged with nostalgia. This was where all the kids from Twinleaf used to play. He recalled their laughter as they tumbled and rolled in the vibrant grass, chasing each other until the sun set. "Well, I certainly wouldn¡¯t have guessed we¡¯d be catching a legendary Pok¨¦mon here, especially not as our first Pok¨¦mon."

    Barry flashed him a smirk, a playful glint in his orange eyes. "You mean my first Pok¨¦mon! First come, first served!¡± he shouted, sprinting into the forest¡¯s opening.

    ¡°Hey!¡±

    Lucas¡¯s laughter echoed through the trees as he followed his eager friend. They ran through a tunnel of frozen foliage, the towering trees blocking out the sunlight.

    They dashed toward the glowing light at the end of the tunnel, snow and pine needles crackling beneath their boots. When they burst into the open, the bright light hit their eyes like a white flame.

    And when it cleared...Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°Lucas, look! The lake!¡± Barry exclaimed, laughing in awe.

    Before them lay a vast, flat expanse of silvery water that sparkled with light. Surrounded by heaps of evergreen trees, Lake Verity was as beautiful and serene as Lucas remembered.

    ¡°I¡¯ll never forget the last time we came here¡­¡± Lucas said with a smile.

    Barry raised his eyebrows.

    ¡°Last...time? Have we ever been here together?¡± he asked, tilting his head in confusion. When had they ever visited the lake together?

    Lucas¡¯s mind spun, as if struck by a truck. ¡°What? You don¡¯t remember the last time we came here and met that strange man with blue¡ª¡±

    Something was very wrong. Very, very wrong.

    ¡°Lucas!¡± Barry cried, his voice tinged with panic. Lucas was on the ground, clutching his head and whimpering. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? What happened? Are you okay?¡±

    Barry pulled off Lucas¡¯s red cap, revealing his rugged black hair.

    ¡°I feel like we shouldn¡¯t be here¡­??I shouldn''t be here, Barry...¡± Lucas groaned, gripping his hair in pain. ¡°My head! I feel like I¡¯m about to pass out¡­¡±

    It felt like a drill was boring into his skull, like lightning was tearing through his brain. Barry¡¯s eyes twitched in distress, his hands shaking as he tried to help his friend. What could he do? Who could he call? What¨C

    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this screaming and anguish?¡±

    Barry looked up and froze.

    Standing before them was a man with blue hair.

 Chapter 5: Him.

    "Anguish and pain¡­what''s the meaning of it, I asked you¡­"

    A tide of fear washed over Barry''s fourteen-year-old mind. The man had appeared from nowhere, a pale wraith materializing from thin air.

    Lucas picked himself up, knees trembling, still clutching his head. The feeling of a hatchet splitting his skull was dissipating.

    "Hey, easy! Are you okay?" Barry asked, with concern still burning in his voice.

    "I''m fine¡­who are you?" Lucas''s flushed blue eyes scanned the mysterious man. His hair was a faded icy blue, like a crown of icicles. He was draped in a sleeveless lifeless grey trench coat with a bright golden G embroided by his heart.

    Lucas bet that even if it wasn''t so bone-chillingly cold, frosty fog would still come out his mouth when he spoke just because he was so...ice cold.

    The man''s face was gaunt, his cheekbones jutting beneath his skin as if he''d forgotten how to eat or sleep. Or like a black hole in his chest was sucking out all his life.

    "Cyrus is my name¡­remember it. The flowing space, the expanding time¡­I will make it all mine one day¡­"You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    And there it was.

    His voice sounded like literal death. It made Lucas feel like he was alone in a black void...dying. And it sounded all too familiar.

    And then he vanished, swallowed by the darkness of the viridian forest as he walked away disinterested in a young boy''s sudden fit.

    The two boys stood frozen, staring at each other. The sparkle in their eyes was snuffed out by frigid fear as the wintry wind wet their faces with freezing droplets.

    "Lucas¡­what''s going on with you?" Barry asked, his cold gold hair tossing in the wind.

    Lucas stared at the snowy grass, his mind frozen, numb. "I don''t know¡­but that was the worst headache I''ve ever had."

    "That''s not what I mean¡ªyou finished my sentence, fine. That''s a coincidence. But we''ve never been here together, Lucas. Never. Both our parents banned us from coming here before we had our pok¨¦mon. But what scares me the most¡­you knew we''d meet him¡ªwhoever he said he was! How?"

    Lucas shook his head, giving Barry a bewildered glare, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Dude¡­what are you talking about? I''ve never seen that guy in my life. I''ve never heard of any Cyrus guy, and I''ve never seen a guy with spiky blue hair before¡ªhey, he kinda looked like an Alolan Sandslash, right? Haha! He¡ª"

    "HEY!" Barry''s voice thundered, his fiery orange eyes booming with worry and anger. "This isn''t a joke! I was scared there was something seriously wrong with you, and I had no idea what to do! That''s not funny!"

    He gripped Lucas by the collar of his navy jacket, looking right into his eyes. "There''s something wrong with you, Lucas. We need to figure this out before something worse happens.

 Chapter 6: Me.

    "Okay. I''m sorry. It''s not funny¡­¡±

    Lucas put his hand on Barry''s shoulder and smiled. ¡°Where¡¯d I find such a good friend? If I could go back in time, I wouldn¡¯t change anything.¡±

    Barry¡¯s face creased, turning a bit red. ¡°Bro, why¡¯d you have to make it weird? You fumbled your chance to flirt with that Dawn girl and now you¡¯re trying to flirt with ME? Maybe you¡¯re a girl too!¡±

    Lucas¡¯s laughter echoed around the foggy forest. ¡°That¡¯s how I really feel, though! Mom says expressing my emotions is healthy and I shouldn¡¯t try to hide or suppress them. And i didnt fumble anything, idiot! It just wasn''t the right time...¡±

    Barry rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. ¡°That all sounds like a bunch of sissy talk to me, Lucas. I bet my dad would agree.¡±

    ¡°You said you were scared just a minute ago!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s different. You were dying.¡±

    ¡°Well, I mean it...thanks. Now let¡¯s catch the legendary Pok¨¦mon. I won¡¯t have another headache like that again. I don¡¯t know what you meant by me knowing we were gonna meet that guy, but I¡¯ll take it more seriously¡­¡±

    Barry smiled and nodded his head. But¡­

    ¡°Uh¡­yeah¡­I just realized we don¡¯t have Pok¨¦balls. ¡± He kicked the snow sheepishly, his hands hiding in the pockets of his orange winter jacket.Stolen novel; please report.

    Lucas¡¯s shoulders dropped, and he sighed a breath of freezing mist. ¡°That¡¯s pretty lame...what do we do now?¡±

    ¡°Wait! That girl said we should stop by the lab, right? I bet they have infinite pok¨¦balls!" Barry¡¯s eyes lit up like two orange light bulbs.

    ¡°Yeah! They probably have millilns to spare if we ask nicely¨CHEY!¡±

    Barry cackled like an evil villain, sprinting into the forest without a second thought. ¡°Race you to Sandgem! Loser pays a billion bucks!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not fair, why do you always cheat?¡±

    Lucas dashed after him, his short black hair rustling in the wind like a furry patch of grass.

    But as he raced across the snow, his eyes caught a glimpse of something magnificent that forced him to stop.

    A trail of glittering pink stars skiing on the cerulean lake.

    ¡°No way¡­Barry! Barry! Come back! You have to see this¨Cit¡¯s real!¡± Lucas¡¯s eyes looked like they were about to burst, his voice crackling and roaring like lightning, as if he were a fierce Luxray.

    Suddenly, a bright magenta light flashed in his face like a sparkling flare that tore apart the thin veil of snow and sent him stumbling back into the snowy grass.

    Lucas was paralyzed. His face was painted by a divine rosy aura that permeated all around the air in a swirling vortex of psychic energy.

    He gripped his scarf. Fear crashed around his mind like an ocean in a bottle.

    No...Everything. Excitement, rage, sorrow, pain, joy, curiosity¨Chis heart swelled with the most intense cocktail of feelings he¡¯d ever felt. Everything he''d try to hold down...

    The anger and sorrow of his mother never being around...the anxiety and self-doubt swirling in the deepest depths of his soul...everything.

    Floating in front of him, a perfectly lustrous red jewel encrusted in his head and beaming into his very soul with its brilliant golden eyes¡­

    ¡°¡­Mesprit!¡±

 Chapter 7: Help!

    ¡°You¡¯re r-real¡­I can''t¡­feel my¡­¡±

    Lucas collapsed.

    His eyes fluttered open to the sound of a TOWERING waterfall crashing behind him with a meteoric ROAR.

    ¡°Ahh! What? What happened? What''s happening?¡± he gripped his scarf, his legs trembling as if being buzzed by electricity.

    Around him was nothing.

    The sky was gone. The clouds were gone. The beautiful glittering lake and verdant snow-capped trees:

    Erased.

    It was just a void.

    A swirling, dark blue space with strange floating islands drifting aimlessly.

    There was no smell. His skin was covered in goosebumps like a rash of cold fear.

    Yet he didn''t feel cold at all. Actually, he didn''t feel anything.

    Lucas got up on his feet, the sandy crimson soil of the alien world crunching under his running shoes as he marched around a floating island. Each step he took caused red dust to float in the air like smoke, unbound by gravity, just like the floating island itself.

    He turned around and looked up, his heart engulfed in flames of fear.

    ¡°That waterfall¡­it''s flowing upwards! I can''t feel my¡­everything,¡± he uttered. ¡°What is this place? Why is it so¡­dead? Am I dead?¡±

    His shaking blue eyes jittered from corner to corner, irrational thoughts poured into his head like a heavy waterfall.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    He ran to the edge of the floating island, hesitantly peeping over the edge but jolting back when he saw what was down there.

    A humongous vortex, peering into his heart like a huge eye that threatened to pull him in to meet death, spiralled at the bottom of the bottomless void.

    ¡°THIS IS INSANE! Is this still Earth? I think I''m gonna lose my¨C¡±

    Suddenly, the boy shot into the air as if someone had yanked up by a rope attached to him, crashing into another floating island; A cloud of red dust bursting into the air upon impact.

    But for some reason, he was okay? No red dust clinging to his clothes, not a single scratch.

    Not physically, at least.

    His head spiralled like the world he was in, another crushing headache squeezing his brain.

    ¡°AGH! Why does this keep happening to me? AGHHHH!! ¡± He collapsed on the ground in agony.

    Nothing made sense.

    Trees with branches made of leaves and leaves made of wood phased in and out of existence like shadows.

    Waterfalls that came from nowhere and endlessly streamed upwards into the infinite sky.

    Plus: he was sitting on an upside down island. Without falling.

    But as he writhed in pain, his eyes flickering as if he was having a seizure, his blurred vision caught sprinkles of the same pink stardust sparkling around him.

    ¡°Mesprit? MESPRIT! What is this? What are you doing to me? Did I make you angry? If so, I''m sorrt! I won''t come to the lake ever, please let me out of here¨C¡±

    Thats when he saw it.

    A leviathan shadow black as ink materialised out of nowhere, soaring all around the upside down world.

    ¡°What is that thing? MESPRIT! Please, HELP! Someone, please help me! I''m scared! I''m¡­¡±

    Lucas''s heart pummelled his ribcage, galloping like a burning rapidash. He felt like he was breathing through the eye of a needle¡­

    It was coming straight for him.

    He tried to run, but his legs were moving like he was in a pool of honey. It let out a disgusting roar from the depths of its black soul.

    A cry that was drenched in death.

    As Lucas screamed for his life, it rocketed through the air, crashed into the island, and swallowed him whole.

 Chapter 8: Sorry.

    His eyelids fluttered opened.

    Cold wind smothered his face, the floor, a crunchy snow bed, permeated a cool feeling through his whole body.

    The lake glistened. The thin veil of fog still dancing around as frost-coated pine trees rustled in the calm wind.

    Lucas''s vision blurred, his eyes clouded by clusters of tears.

    He gripped his scarf.

    ¡°What¡­what''s wrong with me? What did I do?¡± He sobbed, his fingers curling the snow into his gloved palms as tears fell down his reddish face.

    That was hell. A nightmare beyond anything he''d imagined.

    He was powerless against that thing. That...thing. What on Earth was that demon? The way it cried, like blood was gurgling in its throat. A black shadowy leviathan that swallowed him whole.

    He thought he''d died.

    He was powerless.

    As usual.

    Not only was he a loser who couldn''t win his first battle, but for some reason things kept unravelling into the worst case scenario.

    Lucss was too much of a weakling to do anything about it. Too much of a weakling to fight, too soft control anything around him.

    He was powerless.

    As usual.

    Lucas didn''t deserve any of this¡­right?

    Wrong.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    He got up on his feet, sniffling. His furry batch of black hair was now coated in frost like the trees, so too were his pants and jacket.

    He glanced over at the cave sitting in the middle of the silvery cerulean waters.

    He''d made a grave mistake.

    ¡°Mesprit¡­I''m sorry¡­I won''t come back. I won''t disturb you again, I swear.¡± he said, his heart still battering his chest from that nightmare.

    Whatever that¡­thing was, a pok¨¦mon, or whatever¨Che would¡¯ve preferred dying than ever seeing that thing again.

    Again. Again...?

    With that, Lucas Gray left Lake Verity without a second thought.

    Now, there were a lot of things Lucas could''ve done that day. By the time he''d encountered Mesprit, it was only about 2pm in the afternoon.

    He could''ve rushed to the Professor''s lab and gotten some pok¨¦balls or something.

    But no.

    He was done.

    Lucas marched back, dead set on going back home through the frosty forest and icy grass. Slush crushing under his boots. Head hanging low like a vine.

    Maybe this wild life really wasn''t for him. He wasn''t strong like Barry...not at all.

    He was just a weak boy with no direction. No guidance. At least Barry had an entire frontier brain to build him up.

    Who did Lucas have?

    What father did he have? What guidance did he have?

    Perhaps it was time to let go and find other things to do.

    Though¡­

    When he arrived at the grassy landscape of Route 203, he remembered the disgusting excuse for a battle he had.

    ¡°Man, am I really just useless?¡± He asked aloud. He dug into his pocket and grabbed a shrunken pok¨¦ball. ¡°Is this just how it is starting out? Or am I just horrible? I''m sorry¡­for letting you down, I was too stupid to see how pathetic I am as a trainer. But¡­¡±

    Lucas squeezed the orb, thinking of the piplup inside it.

    No...

    ¡°Let''s keep trying, you and me. Besides, going straight home would be the ultimate symbol of defeat, right? Let''s go see the professor and see if he''ll have any ideas what''s wrong with me¡­¡±

    Giving up was way too easy.

    He wasn''t allowed to give up.

    This was still only the begin.

 Chapter 9: Her.

    Can you feel that?

    The air fizzing with warmth, the salty sea smell washing over you? Enough to make you want to take off your jacket.

    Our guy was marching past rustling viridian trees, pinecones decorating the humid grass, wet from melted snow; lukewarm air splashed his face, bringing him back from the dead.

    "Lucas! You''re here!"

    There she was. As if she knew he¡¯d be coming, standing outside a large cottage-like building with a bright blue roof.

    But in his eyes, the world was black and grey¡ªshe was the only thing in full, high-definition color.

    Fine and fashionable, she was decked out in a rose-red trench coat ending just at her hips. Her boots, a mellow blush pink, were paired with soft, snow-white socks climbing up her bare legs.

    "I''m so happy to see you! Welcome to Sandgem!" Dawn¡¯s excitement spilled into a trail of giggles. "Come on, the Professor''s waiting for you! He sent me to come fetch you..."

    "What...?" Lucas¡¯s face hardened in confusion. What did she mean, ¡®he sent me¡¯?

    "Come on! Don¡¯t keep us waiting...there¡¯s a lot to be done..." she urged with excited impatience.

    Her voice filled his body with...ease. Softer than snow and warmer than sand. And her eyes...goodness, her eyes...

    Bright and blue and starry.

    "Hi, Dawn..." Lucas smiled, his heart fluttering just a bit. He didn¡¯t expect her to be the first person he saw.

    Sandgem.

    Sandy gravel crunched under Lucas¡¯s sneakers, a stark contrast to the icy snow from before. All around, children ran up and down the dusty street, laughing and shouting. Houses¡ªmore like brick cottages¡ªwere scattered around with dark navy roofs.

    He¡¯d never seen anything like this before. Now this was a town.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Lucas found himself being led through a blue door, Dawn¡¯s hand wrapped around his like a sweet bow.

    But something was wrong.

    Lucas couldn¡¯t shake the eerie feeling that everything was moving too fast¡ª

    "WATCH OUT! WATCH OUT! WATCH OUT!"

    The pair crashed into the wet grass right outside the door, a sudden forceful shove pushing them back!

    "HEY! Can¡¯t you look...LUCAS?!" Barry¡¯s voice banged like a bomb! Yes, that jittery, frilly-haired blonde kid who left a blazing fire behind him whenever he ran. "Wow, uhhh...You¡¯re really slow, man¡ªI got here a billion years ago, and now you owe me a billion...Lucas?"

    All the jolting excitement in Barry¡¯s fiery orange eyes died when he took a long, hard look into Lucas¡¯s cold blue eyes. The frigid pain in them seemed to extinguish the embers of vigor in him.

    Barry¡¯s legs still buzzed with energy, itching to dash to Jubilife City right now...but there was a problem.

    "Barry...something¡¯s wrong with me," Lucas said in a voice void of any warmth.

    Dawn, still processing why this rocketing, yellow-haired idiot had just bashed heads with her, now looked worried.

    She could feel it.

    Could you?

    All of a sudden, it felt like she was in a graveyard. Maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but something about Lucas¡¯s pale face and haunted eyes made her want to cry.

    It almost felt like she was about to...or someone was...or someone had already...

    "Lucas!" Barry shook his friend awake with a firm grip on his shoulders. "What happened to you? Why do you look so...dead? Explain!"

    Lucas¡¯s heart jolted.

    He looked down at his hand. Dawn was still clasping his hand in hers. But now those beautiful eyes he couldn¡¯t get over were rippling with urgency.

    "Hey...let¡¯s go inside. You can explain everything in there," Dawn suggested, and Barry nodded in agreement as the trio walked into the lab.

    A cool blast of minty air washed over Lucas as he entered a large room full of people dressed in snow-white lab coats, moving around like drones. All of them seemed to be holding clipboards.

    Bookshelves and tables full of papers covered in ink crowded the space, and strange machines whirred as clinical aides observed them intently.

    "Take a seat..." Dawn¡¯s sweet voice rang in his ears like a precious bell as she guided him to a soft blue sofa.

    Barry stood nearby, his feet tapping the shiny granite floor as if he were playing bongos with his shoes, his mind swirling with a whirlwind of thoughts.

    "P-Professor!"

 Chapter 10: Us.

    Lucas''s body jolted, straightening like a ruler at the sight of him. It was still so surreal, even though it was the second time meeting him in person.

    But at this point, was it really?

    You couldn''t miss him.

    A stern-looking man with a thick silver mustache that quietly shone with centuries of wisdom, and, of course, the big brown coat that set him apart from all his subordinates.

    "Easy, Lucas, you''re not fully..."

    "Right..." Lucas sank back onto the sofa, heeding Dawn''s advice. She was treating him with so much grace...and yet they weren''t even friends like that.

    The Professor looked down at the children with his piercing gaze that reminded them just how young they were¡ªa gaze that spanned across centuries and timelines¡ª

    Decades. Sorry. He wasn''t THAT old.

    "What''s the matter, Lucas? Your eyes, your face: it''s as if you''ve seen...something. Something dark...something evil..."

    Lucas''s head slowly gravitated upwards at his accurate guess. Seriously, frickin'' bullseye. Maybe old people really did know everything.

    "Please tell us, Lucas¡ªthe Professor¡ªhe can help with anything; he probably knows exactly what''s wrong and what to do..."

    Lucas watched the concern twinkle in her eyes. She was so...kind...and beautiful. Every time she opened her soft pink lips, he wanted to¡ª

    "YEAH! Tell us EVERYTHING, Lucas¡ªI''m sick of waiting; let''s get to the bottom of whatever''s making you say these weird things!"

    All the white-coated lab guys flinched, a bit frightened by the sudden boom burst coming from the young boy with blonde hair, who for some reason had decided to remain standing while even the Professor had taken a seat among the children.

    Did he have no respect?

    "Weird things?" Professor Rowan turned to Barry, his ice-cold blue eyes quelling the boy''s bright hot frustration.

    "Yeah...we went to the lake, and Lucas was rambling about the last time we''d been there¡ªwhen we''d never been there at all! And to top it all off, he mentioned a guy with blue hair being there on our last trip, RIGHT BEFORE THE BLUE-HAIRED GUY APPEARED!"

    His electric voice crackled and rippled around the lab like he was speaking into a mic in an auditorium.

    All the anxiety and...fear¡ªnot a lot of fear, though, just a bit¡ªcame spewing out of his mouth. But...when he looked into the Professor''s eyes...

    "I see. A blue-haired man."Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    It was like he was...bored.

    As if he''d already heard it all and seen it all before. Barry couldn''t stand it. His cool-guy act.

    Rowan turned to Lucas, who was seated on the two-seater in front of him next to Dawn.

    "What happened to you, Lucas? I want to hear exactly what''s going on..."

    Lucas''s heart jolted upright, stiffening like a ruler...he looked at Dawn, who was so close their knees were even touching.

    She nodded.

    "Tell us..."

    Lucas sighed.

    "Mesprit attacked me."

    ...

    "WHAT??!!"

    "Barry! Please, just let Lucas talk..."

    Barry scoffed, crossing his arms with his sour face projecting the phrase "Who do you think you are?"

    "But...it wasn''t any regular attack. It just appeared. Right in front of me, and I could feel it invading my mind, like I was in a trance. Then I passed out."

    Professor Rowan had a steely expression on his face, listening to every single syllable down to the last breath...to make sure.

    "That''s not really an attack, Lucas," Barry chimed in, shaking his head. "I thought you meant it blasted you with psychic energy or something. Passing out¡ª"

    "I''m not done," Lucas cut him off, his voice shaking as his hands curled into his pants. "When I woke up...I wasn''t on Earth anymore. I was in a void. A massive void. There was no air, no gravity¡ªnothing! Just an empty blue void with weird floating islands and an upside-down waterfall! And then..."

    He gulped, every inch of his body rattling. He caught a glimpse of Professor Rowan¡ª

    "AGHH!"

    Lucas held his head, which throbbed in skull-crushing pain as if someone was stepping on it! Everything around him flickered black and white in a matrix.

    "LUCAS!" Dawn screamed, horrified by the sight of his eyes spazzing out, white and covered in pink veins.

    Images poured into his head, flashing by in an epileptic collage. A smirking woman with dark scarlet hair. A grim-faced woman with magenta hair...stone pillars and two swirling white vortexes.

    Cold wind swirled mightily, particles of snow and ice mixed into it.

    Standing in between the twisting white galaxies...a man with pale blue hair. Like a crown of ice.

    That''s when he heard it. Again. That voice.

    "I''ve waited for this for so long. Dialga and Palkia...shaping this world as a double spiral of space and time. Yes...the very powers you hold mastery over. You WILL do my bidding..."

    His words became distorted and drowned. The echoes of phantoms whispering in his ears.

    "Ugly...incomplete world...disappear...thank you...Mercury...Mercury...Lucas...Lucas..."

    "LUCAS!"

    Lucas jolted awake, his eyes rolling back into place. For some reason, he was on...the floor?

    Barry was squeezing his shoulders, a mortified expression on his face.

    "What the hell...? Why am I on the floor?"

    "It''s okay...you''re okay," Dawn softly spoke in a trembling voice in between panicked panting.

    Lucas looked around, confusion on his face. Why was everyone freaking out?

    "Barry, HEY! Why are you freaking out? Seriously, why''s everyone...?" Lucas looked at his friends, Dawn''s eyes starting to drop tears of fright.

    "Lucas."

    Everyone''s heads turned in the direction of an unshaken, calm voice.

    "That''s not all you saw, is it? Tell us more. More about your time in the world''s shadow. The distortion world. " Professor Rowan said.

 Chapter 11: Blame.

    "Oh my gosh..."

    Dawn hid her mouth with her hand in horror. Did he really just say that? By pure instinct, her hand grabbed and squeezed his like a lemon.

    His eyes were so pale... pale, icy blue, bleached with fear.

    "Wait, wait, wait!" Barry barged in, breaking the temporary silence.

    "Don''t you think that was all a dream? I mean, how else were you in some weird dimension while still being at the lake? Mesprit must''ve messed with your head and knocked you out!"

    "No."

    Barry''s rambling came to a winding halt. A single word from the professor stopped all the sparks and fire he was spewing while his teenage mind flipped out in fear and awe.

    "Much more than a dream. The being of emotions... Lucas, you said it invaded your mind?"

    The boy slowly nodded. "Y-yes, Professor!"

    "If that''s the case. Not a dream. Rather... this could very well be a conglomerate of negative emotions stewing up to create a brutal and dark nightmare, with Mesprit perhaps planting visions of other dimensions into your psyche. Lingering residuals. You said you''ve been experiencing headaches?"

    "THAT''S RIGHT! Even when we had our battle, Professor! I was telling Lucas something my dad told me a while back about training¡ªthen he finished my sentence WORD FOR WORD!"

    The glass tubes and test equipment in the room rattled at the RRUCKUS of Barry''s thunderous voice, as if complaining about how unbelievably loud he was.

    Lucas watched the professor with laser-focused eyes.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    The professor¡¯s aged, wrinkling face was so... still. Even with all the crinkled skin, his face looked steadier and straighter than a lake on a windless day. Far more serene than any of the three kids.

    It was like nothing¡ªnot Mesprit, not the scary soul-sucking black void, not even the gigantic monster that swallowed Lucas¡ªnothing seemed to unnerve him in the least.

    Dawn was still mortified by Lucas''s fit; she''d never seen anything like it. It was horrible.

    "Lucas... I''m sorry for everything you''ve been through. A child like you shouldn''t have to experience such horrors... that said¡ªthis certainly isn''t out of the blue. And this may very well be... your own doing."

    Lucas''s eyebrows knitted together, straining as if pressed down. "Pardon¡ª?"

    "What do you mean, ''isn''t out of the blue''?" Barry chimed in for the umpteenth time, folding his arms with fire starting to glow in his eyes like a heater warming up. "And just what the hell do you mean, ''your own doing''? Are you NUTS? You think his violent fit five minutes ago was ''his own doing''? Are you even THINKING, old man?"

    "Hey, don''t talk to the Professor like that!" Dawn suddenly burst out, causing Lucas to flinch. "I get that you''re scared, Barry, but you need to show some respect¡ª"

    "I''ll talk however I want! Lucas hasn''t done anything to deserve this. He''s the nicest guy I know¡ªyou should''ve seen him in our battle, he even begged me to stop Turtwig!"

    Lucas¡¯s head dropped to the floor upon hearing that.

    "What does that even have to do with¡ª"

    "It has A LOT to do with the nonsense your boss is spewing, DAWN!" Barry snapped her words in half like toothpicks. "Lucas isn''t the type to go around making people angry, he''s not the type to pick a fight with ANYONE. He hasn¡¯t done anything to deserve these headaches, and certainly not a random attack from a damn DEMON! Even if it was just a vision and not your premonition or whatever!"

    "Barry, c-calm down," Lucas sheepishly suggested, looking down at the floor. "Professor Rowan''s probably right; it probably is my fault. Mesprit attacked me because I disrespected and disrupted its peace..."

    Barry glared down into Lucas¡¯s eyes, disappointment shining in his orange gaze as he marched away.

    "You can stay and keep blaming yourself for everything like you always do, Lucas. I¡¯m done waiting around, listening to people who think they know what¡¯s going on, like they¡¯ve gone through it already¡ªlike they orchestrated the entire thing. I¡¯ve got things to do."

    The bright blue door SLAMMED shut as the bold blonde disappeared in a flash, like an angry bolt of lightning.

 Chapter 12: You.

    "I HATE rude boys!" Dawn exploded. "They make my blood boil! Lucas, I get he''s your friend and all, but that guy could do with a slap¡ªand I''d be MORE than happy to be the one."

    Across from them, still seated on the opposite sofa, his face looking as bored as ever, Professor Rowan shook his head.

    "If that young man could''ve waited just a second... Lucas, I need to apologise."

    Lucas looked up at Rowan.

    "I''m sorry if I sounded a bit insensitive, but I don''t want to mince words. You''re likely correct in saying that you disturbed Mesprit, but the being of emotions is known to be quite a prankster, so don''t hog all the blame, child."

    "Prank...?" The word fell from Lucas''s mouth in sheer shock. "You think... Mesprit tried to prank me?"

    He glanced at Dawn, his pupils tiny and twitchy. Man, his head was spiralling. Maybe Barry was right... old people always say the wackiest things¡ªwasn''t this guy 60 or something?

    And the lab was COLD! Stupid COLD! He''d tried to downplay it, but now he wanted to go¡ª

    "You can go outside if you want. Your rowdy friend could be right... perhaps my old age is clouding my judgement, and it¡¯s better for you to leave the lab and dig deeper on your own outside. However, I do think it would have been in his best interest to have stayed a while longer..."

    Suddenly, the old man stood up, straightening his coat and fixing his black tie before walking away from the lounge.

    Lucas followed him with his eyes... what? What was he doing?

    "Do I follow him...? Am I supposed to follow him?" He glanced at Dawn, who stared back.

    Boy, did it feel like he was staring straight into a mirror, because the only thing he found on her face was confusion.

    "I don''t know if we should..." she said, watching Professor Rowan mumble with the other scientists by a bookshelf. He browsed through a drawer for a few seconds, then stopped, looked back, and shut it.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Professor Rowan then stood there, holding out a paper parcel in his hands, staring at the boy and the girl.

    Looking at the parcel, Dawn knew exactly what was going on. It was an all-too-familiar sight. It may have been a while since she got hers, but she remembered it like it was yesterday.

    "Lucas Gray. I need you to do something for me."

    "I HATE rude boys!" Dawn exploded. "They make my blood boil! Lucas, I get he''s your friend and all, but that guy could do with a slap¡ªand I''d be MORE than happy to be the one."

    Across from them, still seated on the opposite sofa, his face looking as bored as ever, Professor Rowan shook his head.

    "If that young man could''ve waited just a second... Lucas, I need to apologise."

    Lucas looked up at Rowan.

    "I''m sorry if I sounded a bit insensitive, but I don''t want to mince words. You''re likely correct in saying that you disturbed Mesprit, but the being of emotions is known to be quite a prankster, so don''t hog all the blame, child."

    "Prank...?" The word fell from Lucas''s mouth in sheer shock. "You think... Mesprit tried to prank me?"

    He glanced at Dawn, his pupils tiny and twitchy. Man, his head was spiralling. Maybe Barry was right... old people always say the wackiest things¡ªwasn''t this guy 60 or something?

    And the lab was COLD! Stupid COLD! He''d tried to downplay it, but now he wanted to go¡ª

    "You can go outside if you want. Your rowdy friend could be right... perhaps my old age is clouding my judgement, and it¡¯s better for you to leave the lab and dig deeper on your own outside. However, I do think it would have been in his best interest to have stayed a while longer..."

    Suddenly, the old man stood up, straightening his coat and fixing his black tie before walking away from the lounge.

    Lucas followed him with his eyes... what? What was he doing?

    "Do I follow him...? Am I supposed to follow him?" He glanced at Dawn, who stared back.

    Boy, did it feel like he was staring straight into a mirror, because the only thing he found on her face was confusion.

    "I don''t know if we should..." she said, watching Professor Rowan mumble with the other scientists by a bookshelf. He browsed through a drawer for a few seconds, then stopped, looked back, and shut it.

    Professor Rowan then stood there, holding out a paper parcel in his hands, staring at the boy and the girl.

    Looking at the parcel, Dawn knew exactly what was going on. It was an all-too-familiar sight. It may have been a while since she got hers, but she remembered it like it was yesterday.

    "Lucas Gray. I need you to do something for me."

 Chapter 13: A job.

    Lucas stared at the parcel in confusion. "You need ME? Are you sure you need ME?"

    Rowan smiled.

    "In fact, Lucas, you''re the only one with the expertise to do this job. Shall I say you have the most experience? Yes. You do. You''re perfect for it. Now, boy, this is a very important job that must be carried out proficiently and with zero to no faults..."

    "Okaaaaay? If that''s the case, don''t you think someone else should do it? I''m a goof, and I suck most of the time-"

    Lucas felt a hand on his shoulder. It was her, her and her rosy cheeks with those perfect blue eyes.

    "If Professor Rowan''s trusting you in particular, it means you''re the best person for the job, Lucas. Even if you don''t trust yourself, trust him. He knows everything!" Dawn smiled, a smile that melted Lucas''s icy anxiety.

    He nodded, hesitantly taking the parcel.

    "Lucas Gray, I find myself fascinated by a myriad of Pok¨¦mon even in my old age. So many secrets and unknowns to be...deciphered. Past, present, and future. They''re all connected. Your past determines your future, in most cases. Your present and the path you''re running toward are a direct result of how you''ve lived in the past..."

    Lucas was confused, his eyes darting back and forth between Dawn and the grey-haired man preaching to his face.

    What on Earth was he on about?This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "But I''ll spare you the ramblings of an old man such as myself," the Professor joked. "Inside that parcel is a very special machine you''ll need during your mission. Lucas Gray, I need you to do something on my behalf. Not that I can''t do it-rather, I believe it will be most...interesting to see you carry it out instead, and it would help you...shall I say, reconcile with a few things. You harbor heaps of self-doubt, but I know you won''t disappoint. You can''t disappoint. I''ve seen it before."

    ...

    "Uhh. Sure, but what do you need me to...do...?"

    Lucas stopped, silenced by the Professor suddenly staring deep into his soul with a hard gaze.

    It felt...wrong to stare back, like he wasn''t worthy to. But that was just his head. Come to think of it, he really did carry around too much doubt.

    Professor Rowan fixed his black tie and cleared his throat.

    "This world is governed by elements beyond your understanding. I apologise for being deceptive in making it appear as if there were no strings attached, but in return for that Piplup I gifted you, I need you to research the myths of this region for me. The legendary pok¨¦mon. All of them, yes. But I want you to acutely focus on the three lake guardians, and the the paragons of time and space. I understand you wish to embark on a journey to conquer the Pok¨¦mon League?

    "Well...yeah. I wanna be a strong trainer like my father was," Lucas nodded

    "Ahh, I see. Don''t worry, if anything, your research will help bolster your capabilities in battle. Besides, you won''t be able to carry out this job without challenging the gyms. But, yes. I need you to dig around, from caves and ruins to cities and lakes. You must know more about these legendary pok¨¦mon, what they are...I feel you''ll find it quite useful somewhere down the line. That''s what I''ll say you need to do for me. Is that alright?"

    Lucas looked at the shiny white tile floor, nervous. This sounded like a big responsibility...what did the Professor see in him?

    Still...

    "Okay...I''ll do it," he said.

    No wasn''t an option.

 Chapter 14: Outside.

    That''s exactly where Lucas was.

    The sun had already started melting down the sky, which had been painted a mix of hot violet and blazing orange. The waves still washed against the shore in the distance...

    But it wasn''t like he could focus on anything after all THAT.

    "So...I don''t understand. When he says he needs something from me, whatever this machine is, it''s supposed to help out with...what exactly?"

    "That''s a Pok¨¦dex," Dawn said, standing right beside him in the sandy city. "You can''t research Pok¨¦mon without a Pok¨¦dex, Lucas. That''s a no-brainer."

    "Right..." Lucas smiled sheepishly. She was pretty sassy, now that he thought about it.

    "But don''t worry, I''ll be with you every step of the way to make sure you learn all the ropes...for the most part. I''ll try to help when I''m free, then it''ll just be you and me," she said, nudging him on the shoulder with a cheeky smile.

    Nervous chuckles spilled out of his mouth as he tried to piece together what the ropes entailed.

    "Lucas..."

    "Yeah?"

    "We''ll get to the bottom of this. Your problem. We''ll figure it out together. You shouldn''t have to go through this alone," Dawn said, staring into his soul.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    But something felt...

    "What''s wrong?" she asked, tilting her head.

    "Dawn...thanks. I know you mean well, but you don''t have to help me with this. I''ve been thinking, we only met yesterday, we don''t know anything about each other, so it''s not like you have any obligation towards me. You''d probably be better off...leaving me alone¡ªnot in a rude way."

    The girl simply stared at him with a blank expression as the lukewarm wind tossed her glistening midnight-blue hair around like salad.

    "Lucas, my mum''s dead."

    ...

    "What?" The word flew out of Lucas''s mouth.

    All the maturity he''d mustered up to tell her how he felt weird about her being so nice to him did nothing to stop his raw confusion from showing. "S-sorry..."

    "It''s okay; it was a while ago," Dawn said, doing nothing to remove the elephant of confusion standing between them.

    Lucas''s face twitched and twisted as he tried to figure out exactly what to say...why the hell did she bring that up?

    "Chill out, dude. Listen, my mum died when I was eight. She was cursed by a Gengar, and there was nothing I could do to help her. I was useless. I''ll spare you the extra details because I''ll probably start crying, but ever since then, I''ve made it my mission to help as many people as possible when I can."

    The mist in Lucas''s head finally began to clear. Now it made sense to him¡ªwhy she was so nice and close.

    Of course, those love-at-first-sight relationships only happen in anime, not real life.

    "So you helping me is just part of..."

    "My own mission, yeah. I don''t know if that makes you feel better, but just think of it like this: I''m helping you help yourself for myself."

 Chapter 15: Ms Get-to-the-bag

    Lucas stood there, staring at a giant, modern-looking building with a bright orange roof, people bustling in and out of the automatic glass sliding doors.

    "And that''s the pok¨¦center. Heal your pok¨¦mon here, blah blah blah. And that..." Dawn pointed at another building, a smaller one with a sleek dark blue roof. "The pok¨¦mart."

    "Looks like you need no introductions. Usually, the other new kids Rowan assigns can''t even tell the difference between the two¡ªI mean, one''s orange and the other''s blue. How dumb do you have to be to... never mind..."

    Lucas laughed, seeing Dawn''s fists curl up, all that tension stirring up on her face. She smiled at him, shaking her head as she punched his shoulder.

    "Just ''cause I like helping people doesn''t mean I don''t get frustrated, Lucas..."

    But Lucas didn¡¯t stop laughing. "You punch like a marshmallow."

    "Shut up..." Dawn''s cheeks glowed a subtle pink as she tried to hold back a smirk. "Anyway, you should probably go home and tell someone you''re gonna be helping Professor Rowan with research. It¡¯s not safe to continue without first letting someone know, in case you get hurt, and blah blah blah..."The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Lucas¡¯s face dropped to the floor like a magnet as soon as he heard the word "home." All the playfulness drained from his face like water wrung from a towel, and for the next ten seconds, the only answer Dawn got was the tweeting of starlies on the electricity lines and the roar of the shore.

    ...

    "Are you always this easy to read? Fine. If that¡¯s what you want. I¡¯m not gonna force you to do anything." She said, digging into the white cylindrical bag hanging by her hip.

    He watched her rummage through the marshmallow-looking bag, but his eyes nearly exploded out of their sockets when she pulled out the crispest, wrinkle-free, minty-fresh slab of cash!

    "WHAT?! Dawn, where''d you get all that¡ª"

    "Lucas, I¡¯m Professor Rowan''s top assistant. Anyway, this is all I have left from this month, sorry. But it should be enough for us to get all the stuff you''ll need starting out..." She told him, casually handing him the band.

    The boy¡¯s pale blue eyes widened, like a balloon, or when you pump air into a dying bike tyre. 100... 400... 900¡ª

    "It¡¯s 3500p." Dawn said, tracing her glossy rosy lips with a tube of Pecha lip therapy while Lucas''s mouth dropped open. "What?"

    "This is what you have LEFT?" His voice boomed so loudly that the small horde of people going up and down the street turned their heads.

    "Yes. Now, c''mon..." She tossed her air aside and shoved him aside, gravel crunching under her thick pink boots as she headed straight for the pok¨¦mart.

    "We have stuff to do."

 Chapter 16: Shopping.

    As if on cue, the sleek, polished glass doors slid apart, splashing Lucas with a minty-fresh cool breeze, like peppermint candy was licking his face.

    But nothing could''ve prepared him for the flood of eye candy that crashed into him! It almost brought him to his knees.

    "Dude, it''s just a store. Why do you look like you''re about to cry?" Dawn strolled into the gallery of shelves and aisles, casually grabbing a blue basket from a stack by the door.

    She stopped and turned back to the... shall we say, clueless and innocent boy standing by the entrance with swirling galaxies of disbelief in his eyes.

    "Are you coming? You''ll catch a flu standing under the door air-conditioning thingy, silly..." Dawn said.

    "Sure!" Lucas didn¡¯t hesitate, hopping after her, past the cashiers who wore amused smiles behind their tills¡ªstraight into DREAMLAND!

    Could he believe it? He certainly couldn¡¯t!You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    The floor was white and shiny, squeaking into his ears as he spun his head around like a UFO, taking in the shelves stocked with...everything.

    Bright pink spray bottles, bright green spray bottles, bright yellow spray bottles¡ªall lined up in the most flawless rows. The lights were pure and white, like stars installed into the ceiling!

    And what was that sound? Was that jazz? The smoothest, silkiest jazz filled his ears, completing the supermarket experience!

    "Let¡¯s start with the basics," Dawn''s voice pulled him out of la-la land for a second. "This is a potion. Lucas¡ªLucas! I need you to look for a second, okay?"

    "Yeah... s-sorry, it''s just¡ª"

    "I know. But seriously, it¡¯s just 3500p; it¡¯ll be gone before you even blink¡ª"

    "No, that¡¯s not it," Lucas said, shaking his head. "This is all new to me..."

    Dawn''s fluffy yet sharp blue brows spiked up like a heart monitor. He couldn¡¯t be serious. No way.

    "If you tell me you''ve never been to a pok¨¦mart once in your life, I''ll drop dead right here and give you 5000p next month because I know you''d be lying."

    But Lucas just stared at her. And there it was, swimming in his pale blue eyes: the truth.

    The words "Oh my gosh..." dropped right out of Dawn¡¯s mouth.

    "Actually, I¡¯ve never been to any store. We don¡¯t have those in Twinleaf. People usually just come here or go to Jubilife for that..." he explained, demystifying the whole situation.

    "Wha¡ªas if that makes it any better, Lucas!"

 Chapter 17: For Later.

    "Okay. Let''s come back down to Earth. This is a potion."

    Lucas ogled the simple purple spray bottle sitting in her hands.

    "Lucas, this is your best friend in the whole world as a trainer. Never go anywhere without it. I''ll show you how to use it later," she said, dropping it into the blue basket hanging on her arm like a handbag.

    "What about this one? ''For super-effective healing.'' That sounds way stronger. Why don''t we just buy this one?" Lucas pulled a beautiful cream-coloured bottle that looked like chiseled marble, filled with a bright peridot fluid.

    So... deluxe.

    But Dawn merely pointed at the laminated tag sitting on the shelf as she casually strolled away.

    Full-restore: 3000p.

    Ouch.

    Lucas grit his teeth and followed behind her.

    "This is your other best friend."

    Lucas ogled a small dark green can sitting in Dawn''s hand. It had a little Pokeball printed on it. "A classic repel. When you''re tired of being jumpscared by random nonsense in the grass, two quick sprays on your body, and voil¨¤! Tu es libre!"

    "What?" Lucas''s face twisted in confusion.

    "Sorry, that was my inner Fantina. Just apply this to avoid harassment from angry Pok¨¦mon while you trespass through their territory without a warrant."

    In no time flat, the basket was full of a rainbow party of items. All for... him.

    It was heavy.

    All the sprays and cans.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    No wonder Dawn handed him the basket midway through their spree. Regardless, they reached the till after about twenty minutes of hardcore mentoring, where Dawn explained that he was too broke to buy any other type of potions.

    "Would you like a plastic bag?" the lady behind the till asked Lucas with a sweet smile.

    "No thanks, he''ll just carry it in his bag," Dawn said. "Besides, plastic bags are for losers. Right, Lucas?"

    "Definitely. You''d rather use a reusable bag." Lucas nodded as they walked toward the door, his bag now holding extra weight.

    "Mission complete," Dawn said, letting out a light sigh and retracing her lips with more gloss. "That should last you about a week."

    Lucas smiled. "Thanks, Dawn... I¡ª"

    "Excuse me, Lucas Gray?"

    Both Dawn''s and Lucas''s heads snapped in the direction of a jolly yet professional voice.

    It was a man. He wore a straight, clean green suit with black streaks and shiny golden buttons. Black gloves covered his hands, spotless as if he wanted to leave no mark of his presence on whatever he touched.

    "Y-yes?" Lucas scraped the words out of his mouth. He hadn''t stolen anything! He swore! His eyes squinted, trying to recognize the man, but the man''s cap fit so perfectly that it almost completely covered his eyes.

    "Good evening. I''ve been assigned to deliver a very special package to you," the man said, holding out a polished black parcel like a flawless onyx gem.

    Lucas¡¯s head slowly turned to Dawn, whose eyes were feasting on the parcel. "Wow... that looks so beautiful, Lucas," she said.

    Beautiful, yes. But...

    "From who?" Lucas asked, staring at the man''s half-covered face.

    "I''m sorry, but the sender would like to remain anonymous. They said it was absolutely imperative that you received it," the man explained.

    Well, that didn¡¯t help anyone with anything. And now a funny feeling stirred in Lucas''s heart, until he felt a nudge on his shoulder.

    "Are you gonna take it or¡­? I hate to constantly nag you, Lucas, but we kinda have things to do..." Dawn said, her head tilted toward the door.

    ...

    "I mean... it''s a free gift. Thank you, sir." Lucas gently took the black parcel from the man''s hands, then followed Dawn, who was already out the door.

    "Lucas."

    The boy froze upon hearing the man''s silent voice echo in his ears.

    "It''s for later."

 Chapter 18: Green.

    Obviously, something was strange about the situation. When the two exited, Lucas gave Dawn a look she could only decipher as anxiety.

    Inside the bag was a black box coated in soft, cushiony velvet that only amplified the premium feel radiating from the parcel. But the more he stared at it, the more he felt he shouldn¡¯t.

    ¡°Are you going to check what¡¯s inside?¡± Dawn asked, trying to hide her curiosity.

    ¡°I thought there was no time for that...¡± Lucas laughed nervously.

    ¡°A little peek won¡¯t kill anyone, dude.¡±

    Lucas gulped, pulling out the black box, making Dawn¡¯s eyes light up like gems in the sun. What could be inside? Jewellery? A watch, maybe? Most of all, who would give Lucas such a nice gift with such beautiful packaging?

    Dawn¡¯s mind raced with questions, but she waited and waited... until nothing happened.

    ¡°Uhh... is something wrong, Lucas? You¡¯re not having a seizure again, are you?¡± she asked.

    Lucas shook his head. That wasn¡¯t the problem.

    ¡°I can¡¯t open it,¡± he said, putting the box back in the gift bag. No matter what he told himself, he couldn¡¯t shake the feeling.

    He wasn¡¯t allowed to. Not until later. Now wasn¡¯t the right time.

    ¡°I can¡¯t take this,¡± Lucas muttered, making a sharp U-turn back into the store¡­ only to find the man was nowhere to be seen.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Lucas¡¯s eyes darted around, convincing themselves that the strange man might reappear if he just looked away and looked back.

    ¡°Excuse me,¡± Lucas walked up to one of the clerks behind the till. ¡°Where¡¯s the security guard?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, who?¡±

    ¡°The security guard¡ªthe man dressed in a fancy green suit who was standing right by the door.¡±

    The clerk glanced at her colleague, as if telepathically sharing the thought that this kid might be crazy.

    ¡°Sorry, but we don¡¯t have a security guard. It¡¯s just us. There¡¯s no one else who works here,¡± she said with a polite, half-concerned smile.

    Lucas exited the store again, parcel still in hand, now spiralling. Dawn glared at him with icy eyes, her hands on her hips as she pointed at the shiny silver watch on her wrist.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to punch you, Lucas. You could¡¯ve at least told me if you forgot something before you went back in,¡± she hissed.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, no big deal. Let¡¯s just get on with things. The professor sent me to pick up some papers in Jubilife, and I can¡¯t afford to be late.¡±

    ¡°Wait, Dawn, I was trying to return this box to that guy in the green suit. What do you mean¡ª¡±

    ¡°What guy in a green suit? There¡¯s never anyone other than Lana and Lola in there, and I never saw a guy in a suit. A green suit at that¡ªwho wears a green suit? That¡¯s just... ugh!¡± Dawn scoffed, shivering in disgust as she adjusted her white beanie. It needed to look perfect.

    The two marched out of the small, sandy town and into the greenery of Route 202. Pine trees, shrubs, and chirping birds filled the scene. The sky had a bit of glitter in it, stars twinkling as the sun¡¯s dying orange flame was consumed by the violet darkness of night.

    Wasting no time, Dawn pulled a shiny Pok¨¦ball out of her marshmallow bag and threw it in the air.

    A bright blue flare burst like a firework, and out came a fluffy, feathered little penguin chirping with excitement.

    ¡°Hi, sweetie!¡± Dawn squealed in a high pitch as she smothered her Piplup with hugs and kisses. She dug into the pocket of her rosy red trenchcoat and pulled out a handful of small Pok¨¦balls. ¡°Okay, Lucas. Time to learn how to catch a Pok¨¦mon!"

 Chapter 19: Bye.

    Under the stars, the chirping of Starlies had been replaced by the even more incessant chimes and rings of Kricketots singing in the dark shrubs and weeds in the distance. It was getting dark out and the sun was like a dying candle surrounded by a lake of dark blue and a handful of Shiny specs.

    Lucas stared at Dawn, whose hands were on her hips as she gave him a satisfied smirk.

    A Pok¨¦ Ball lay on the grass in front of them, swaying side to side. 1... 2... 3...

    It pulsed a bright, victorious blue.

    ¡°There! Simple, right? Though I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen that a million times during your own playthroughs¡­¡±

    ¡°Playthrough? What the hell are you talking about?¡±

    Dawn laughed, smiling and winking at those who would get it.

    She walked over to the ball sitting on the grass and picked it up. When she came back, she pulled a white rectangular box with a Pok¨¦ Ball printed on it out of her marshmallow bag and gave it to Lucas¡ªthe same type he¡¯d seen in the store earlier.

    ¡°Are these all for me?¡± he asked, shaking the box as the sound of hundreds of balls rattling inside showered his ears.

    ¡°No, I just want you to look at my box of Pok¨¦ Balls,¡± Dawn said, shaking her head in disappointment.

    ¡°Are you being... sarcastic?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you idiot. Those are all yours. Why else would I give them to you?¡± she scoffed. Lucas folded his arms.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know...¡±

    ¡°''Course you don''t, thats why I''m here," Dawn smiled, rolling her blue eyes. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ve shown you most of the basics. All of them, actually. Which means I have to get going now, Lucas. Heh, looks like I won''t be here..." The girl twirled her hair, readjusting her beanie.

    Lucas nodded, looking to the side. ¡°We could go together. To Jubilife. I¡¯m an assistant too now, right? I could help you...¡±

    ¡°Thanks... but no. You need to start your own work, Lucas. I¡¯m gonna be meeting with the Professor in town later anyway, and if he sees you¡¯ve made absolutely no progress following me around, he¡¯ll be pretty upset.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°I know. I just thought... we could go together is all...¡± Lucas sheepishly confessed, gripping his scarf. He¡¯d already gotten used to having her around, and something felt wrong about her leaving.

    Besides, who knew what shocking things could happen in the forest? Better to be in a pack.

    But as the moon waved its hand in the dark blue sky, and the echoes of not-so-distant howls and growls of the wild densely populated the air, so did their time together end.

    For now, at least.

    ¡°I¨C¡± Dawn cut herself off, her cheeks turning even redder than they were in the cold. Maybe she was just getting a bit colder because of the night. All business. She had a job to do. ¡°I... have a job to do, Lucas. I can¡¯t be late, and I can¡¯t let the hours go by. It¡¯s not just the Professor I have to see. There¡¯s someone else. He¡¯s my partner and¨C¡±

    ¡°Who? You have a partner?"

    ¡°Paul. You don¡¯t know him, he''s older than us and he goes to the Pok¨¦mon School. I might as well tell you the whole deal: I have some super important research documents in my bag that the Professor told me to deliver to Paul before I meet up with him later.¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I know about this too? Hold on, it¡¯s better if we go through Route 203 together! It¡¯s dark and dangerous¨C¡±

    But the moment he said that, another bright blue flash flickered in his face. Emerging from the fading light, letting out a beautiful heart-melting melody, was a large angelic creature covered in cottony clouds.

    ¡°That¡¯s the thing... I¡¯m flying there.¡±

    ¡°You have an Altaria? WHAT?¡± Lucas¡¯s mouth was agape, like he was trying to swallow a basketball whole in his pie hole.

    Wait...

    Like he was trying to swallow a pie WHOLE in his pie HOLE. (OOOOOOHHHH!)

    ¡°That was pretty funny,¡± Dawn said. ¡°She¡¯s not mine. She belongs to the Pok¨¦mon School. If you make yourself useful, maybe you can climb the ranks, and they¡¯ll trust you enough to lend you a Pok¨¦mon.¡±

    ¡°Wait, if you¡¯re fourteen, that means you got your license this year too! How on Earth can you fly? Don¡¯t you need the Cobble Badge for that?¡±

    ¡°Well, yeah. Or...¡±

    Dawn pulled out a sleek plastic card from her coat pocket and handed it to the boy.

    ¡°Provisional license... your middle name is¨C¡±

    ¡°NO!¡± She snatched the card viciously as Lucas laughed his head off. Red-faced and irritated, she hopped on the big blue heavenly bird, which mightily flapped its nimbus wings and effortlessly hung in the air.

    ¡°It¡¯s been fun, Lucas, but we both have work to do. Maybe I¡¯ll see you in town, but for now... bye.¡±

    And with that, the Altaria took off into the dark navy sky, leaving behind a trail of sweet harmonious whistles.

 Chapter 20: Alone...?

    And just like that, Lucas was alone.

    Alone again.

    Right back where he''d started. His only friend.

    Cold wind licked his face in a gust. The sound of rustling grass and trees whispered in his ears as he trekked through the gravel route at night.

    In his hand, a single, small Pok¨¦ball, squeezed tightly in his palm. This was his first time in the wild. At night.

    The chiming and ringing of Kricketune calls filled the air as the crescent moon hung in the sky like a silver banana.

    He gripped his scarf.

    "What would Ma think of this? Me, out here in the wild by myself?" he muttered, strolling past a wall of shadowy trees¡ªinky black towers with gnarled arms and fingers reaching out like claws. "If she was home, I bet none of this would be happening. Why isn''t she ever home? I mean, I get the contests are super important and she''s super busy... but maybe, just once, she could stop by her own house and see how her only son is doing. What if I''m dead and she doesn''t know? What if she''s dead and I don''t know?"

    Those were Lucas''s true thoughts. Thoughts that only surfaced when he was alone.

    No Barry. No Dawn. Just a gravel path surrounded by trees and grass. Alone again. Right back where he''d started. He was his only friend. His fingers fidgeted with the hard sphere in his hand. Maybe he wasn¡¯t really alone.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    He pressed the small white button between the red and white.

    Deep in the dark of night, an eruption of white light flooded a small area.

    Lucas looked down at his Piplup. Its royal blue feathers shimmered with a silver sheen under the moonlight, and those stubborn sapphire eyes stared back at him, staunch as ever.

    He remembered how much affection Dawn showed hers and thought maybe he could try the same. So, he crouched down.

    "Hey... I''m so happy to see you, my sweetie dear," Lucas said, his voice tinged with an awkward sweetness as he stretched his arms wide for a warm reunion.

    He was met with a sharp peck to the face that sent him stumbling back onto the gravel trail with a groan.

    "OWW! What''s WRONG with you?" Lucas rubbed his throbbing nose, feeling a damp drop on his fingers.

    Blood.

    "No. It¡¯s my bad," he muttered. "I thought I could do something I¡¯ve never done before. Sorry. I must''ve freaked you out."

    Piplup let out an angry chirp, leaping onto Lucas and mauling him out of the blue. It poked and nipped him relentlessly until he managed to grab hold of the feisty Pok¨¦mon.

    "Just chill out, okay? We can''t be fighting. We''ve got a long journey ahead of us, and we need to get along! You wanna get stronger, right? Let¡¯s do it together¡ªno need to be so rough."

    But no. The rowdy little bird seemed uninterested in peace. Its only goal was to prove it couldn¡¯t be stopped.

    For the next few minutes, Lucas was battered, nipped, and pecked by his Piplup without mercy¡ªhis hair, his jacket, nothing was spared.

    Meanwhile, rustling claws moved through the tall grass under the cover of night. The creeping presence of unseen danger was underscored by malevolent howls, the chilling cries of unseen predators, and the not-so-soothing chimes of Kricketune in the distance.

 Chapter 21: Azure.

    Lucas''s body was covered in scratches and fluffy, feathery pompoms.

    "Hey! Stop!" He grabbed the bird-like beast and pinned it to the ground. It was so warm. Its feathers felt rich and soft, a heavenly sensation melting into his palms.

    Beneath all that fluff, he could feel a tiny heartbeat. A tiny, stubborn heartbeat pounding in its chest.

    He looked Piplup in the eyes and realised¡ªthe answer was no. He wasn''t alone.

    "Hehe, I didn''t give you a name, did I?" Lucas asked with a smile, peering into those defiant blue eyes. He had the perfect name. "Azure. Your name''s Azure from now on. Listen, Azure: we may have lost to Barry, but that''s in the past now. I know you''re angry. I am too. So let''s take that energy and use it to build each other up, okay?"

    The bird chirped, still with an angry look on its fluffy white face. But it seemed more like determination than anything else.

    Hesitantly, Lucas loosened his hold on the bird. Azure immediately sprang up and ran towards him, pecking his legs with his hard yellow beak.

    "Ow! What''s your problem? Are you hungry or something? Why do you keep¡ª"

    A faint SNAP cracked in Lucas''s ears, and before he could even turn around¡ª

    A feral roar paralysed him as a shining beast cloaked in polished yellow light BURST out of the blackness of the trees!

    Lucas screamed, shocked by the sudden ambush. Literally. A furball shrouded in crackling electricity tackled him to the ground and let out a vicious feline hiss.

    It was a Shinx. A wild, wild Shinx baring its pointy demonic fangs at him. Its crazed, glowing yellow eyes, with knife-slit pupils, beamed into the very depths of his soul.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Lucas shrieked as the savage cat dug its claws into his arm¡ªbefore being sent CRASHING into the ground as Azure tackled it into the grass!

    The boy''s heart drummed like never before, his mind flipping out as if he were falling from the sky.

    "AZURE!"

    The two Pok¨¦mon growled violently, rolling around in the grass with murderous intent. Azure screeched as the Shinx''s devilish fangs sank into his fur before he delivered a horrible peck to its eye. The resulting blood-curdling SHRIEK shook the forest!

    Lucas was paralysed.

    This was insane. This was... cruel! Such a raw display of animosity; too pure to be hatred¡ªjust kill or be killed.

    The most undiluted form of violence. And people made their Pok¨¦mon battle like this deliberately? This was sick!

    This was nothing like the sorry battle he''d had with Barry. This was horrifying. In fact, it made Lucas want to vomit just thinking about making Azure fight mercilessly in that trainer match.

    And yet...

    This was what it meant to venture out into the tall grass.

    All those times he''d whined about being denied the chance to explore by the adults in his town...

    Was this what they were shielding him from? Something as gory and ruthless as this? This was just wrong.

    And yet...

    Soaked in the hazardous yellow light the Shinx radiated, fierceness etched onto his avian face as he struggled, covered in bloody scratches and bruises...

    Azure looked like he was enjoying every second of it.

    That¡¯s when Lucas realised¡ªan epiphany.

    The cruelty, the rawness, the carnage... was exactly why trainers and Pok¨¦mon alike did this.

    But that knowledge was useless.

    A powerful surge of electricity entangled Azure like searing ropes before EXPLODING in a wild flash of golden light.

    "AZURE!!"

 Chapter 22: #403

    Azure lay lifeless on the black grass. It was over.

    "Azure, return!" Lucas cried, holding out the Piplup''s Pok¨¦ball as bright light spilled out of it.

    But the penguin rolled away from the light, getting up and limping out of its way.

    Lucas gritted his teeth.

    "You LOST! You can''t fight anymore, that thing''ll kill you! I get not wanting to give up, but this is too much, Azure, RETURN¡ª"

    A horribly explosive screech zinged in Lucas''s ears. Azure stared at him, utterly rejecting any notion of losing.

    Lucas''s eyebrows crunched his face in twisting rage.

    "ARE YOU STUPID?! Azure¡ª"

    But before he could even finish that thought, another streak of searing lightning fired, lighting the inky black with vicious yellow as it entangled Azure and fried him in a stuttering burst!

    The bird collapsed to the ground once again.

    "NO!!", he turned his head at the Shinx, which wagged its spark-tipped tail that looked like a string of electric wire.

    Lucas gritted his teeth, his heart pounding as he pictured it playing out in his head before he charged the charged-up feline, lunging at it to pin it to the ground. But the baby-blue electric devil sidestepped his advance effortlessly, hissing aggressively at him as it scratched his back.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    The sharp pain of its savage claws slicing through his jacket and digging into his skin made him scream out.

    The first of many.

    Lucas jolted and cried, being ravaged by the Pok¨¦mon''s static scratches. His jacket was torn and ripped by its carnage-causing claws, blood leaking out of his body from the slits it scratched into his skin.

    But right as he thought he was about to be mauled to death, light thumps drummed on the grassy ground, the sound of furious stomps¨C

    Azure BASHED his head into the wild Shinx, taking it down once again!

    The two little beasts tumbled in the black grass once again, sparks flying from the Shinx''s now-glowing body that looked like a star.

    Its fur was smothered in a gleaming coat as it clawed and clawed away at Azure, who tweeted furiously, pounding it over and over again in a bloody mess.

    Lucas sat up, paralysed again, the burning sting of sores squeezing tears out of his eyes.

    He was such an idiot, so enraged that he''d completely lost his mind and gone berserk.

    What was he thinking? He was so stupid! Charging at a WILD Shinx as if he had any hope of catching something as agile as that with his bare hands to beat it up!

    Catch it in his...wait!

    Something sparked in Lucas''s brain, blood running down his face from an open scratch. Why hadn''t he just done this from the start?

    He frantically took off his backpack and rummaged through it, throwing everything out¡ªpotions, repels, boxes, parcels¡ªsnatching a white box that rattled with millions of balls.

    He tore it open with no thoughts behind his actions, causing tons of shiny orbs to spill out onto the grass, licked by the moon''s faint bluish-silver glow.

    He grabbed hold of one, feeling it inflate in his palm before FLINGING it like a rock at the Shinx, THWACKING it dead on its head and enveloping it in a bright blue light.

    1...2...3.

 Chapter 23: The Woods

    The Pok¨¦ball pulsed a bright, victorious blue.

    Lucas dropped to his knees.

    "YYEEEEEEESSS!!"

    He punched the air over and over again in furious triumph.

    "I... I caught one! I caught a Pok¨¦mon! I..." His eyes fell on the body of a battered, unmoving Piplup, which looked like a lump of black and blue under the moonlight.

    "Azure!" Lucas cried in distress, grabbing his bag¡ªthankfully lighter now, after he''d removed most of its contents¡ªand sprinted towards the Pok¨¦mon.

    "Azure! We won! Hey!" He shook the Piplup, rolling it over to see its eyes flickering white, rolling back into its head.

    Fainted.

    Lucas felt his heart pounding in his chest. Without a second thought, he grabbed the Pok¨¦ball sitting next to the unconscious Pok¨¦mon, pulling another from his pocket. A beam of blue light enveloped the blacked-out Piplup, drawing it into the safety of its capsule.

    He needed to get to a Pok¨¦mon Center. Fast.

    Shouldering his bag, Lucas dashed through the forest, the grass groaning with rustling complaints as he kicked through it in a frantic hurry.

    His breath, jagged and stressed, escaped in foggy clouds, chilled by the night''s cold.

    Sandgem was far behind him now. The only thing surrounding him was blackness swaying in the wind, leaves like inky clouds rustling in eerie whispers.

    He squeezed the Pok¨¦ball in his hand, looking down at it with perilous eyes, its shiny red coating bathed in a silver sheen of moonlight.

    "I''ll get you healed up, Azure! Straight to the Pok¨¦mon Center. Jubilife isn''t far¡ªAAGGGGHHH!"If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Lucas stumbled and collapsed onto the ground, his body twitching uncontrollably in a violent fit.

    Visions flooded his head. Wintry air swirled with specks of bitter snow, biting his cheeks and reddening his ears.

    Voices slithered into his mind. A horrifyingly familiar voice this time.

    "This isn''t real... WAKE UP! Please... Please... Azure..." Lucas murmured.

    Suddenly, a horrible shriek of grief echoed through the evening air, accompanied by the sound of desperate sobs and weak moans trembling all around... the... what?

    He couldn''t tell where he was. The ground beneath him was covered in ancient tiles.

    Then he heard it again. That voice. His voice.

    "In a perfect world, such meaningless emotions won''t hinder us anymore..."

    Suddenly, the icy background vanished, replaced by the orange rays of the evening sun washing over a field of grass.

    His heart skipped.

    A white-furred creature with blood-red eyes and a sickle-like horn growing from the side of its head stared at him from a distance, perched on a tree branch.

    Something was horribly wrong. Staring into its eyes, Lucas couldn''t shake the feeling that something was coming.

    Something horrible.

    A disaster was looming. Right around the corner.

    Lucas gasped, coughing from the force of the breath he''d sucked in. A strand of drool clung to the humid grass, some dirt sticking to his face.

    "What the...? Why am I...?" He muttered, holding his head, which throbbed like a pulsing drum of pain.

    What the hell was going on?

    One moment, he was running. The next, his face was planted into the grass like a flower...

    It had happened again. He''d blacked out. This time, he had no idea how long.

    But the worst was yet to come.

    Howling. Harmonious howling rippled through the air, followed by the stuttering crackle of electricity. The sound made his heart drop to its knees.

    Lucas began to shake, his body trembling as though he''d been electrocuted. Frantically, he looked around, scanning the deep darkness between the trees until¡ª

    He stopped.

    A pair of yellow dots beamed at him from the shadows of the trees. A pair of gleaming eyes.

    He wasn''t out of the woods yet.

 Chapter 24: Lights.

    Lucas ran.

    Sprinted.

    Faster than he ever had in his life. The sound of vicious growls and crackling electricity grew ever closer behind him. He panted, huffing and puffing as the predatory galloping thrashing against the moonlit grass reminded him of just how unprepared he was.

    "Why? What did I do to deserve any of this?!" he cried, his voice choked with repressed sobs.

    His white scarf streaked behind him, and his black, grassy hair was tossed about in the cold wind as he ran for his life.

    He glanced behind him¡ª

    "AAAAAGGHHH!!"

    His heart seized, nearly exploding when he saw it.

    When he saw them.

    Shrouded in strings of jittering electricity and growling with bloodlust:

    An enormous Pok¨¦mon with a thick black mane around its snarling, furry blue face charged powerfully towards him from afar. Its deathly golden eyes pierced the darkness with a laser-like stare that made Lucas want to collapse and die.

    What had he done to come face to face with a Luxray?

    But it wasn''t alone.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    At its sides, more volatile electrical amber eyes gleamed at him. The ferocious feline hisses streaked into his ears as an entire Lux pride chased him down a hilly slope of grass surrounded by pine trees. Furious Luxio bared their terrifying fangs at him, their glares draining him of the will to fight. Even the little Shinxes, fluffy baby-blue balls of static death, growled and streaked across the dark grass like bolts of lightning.

    He had veered off the main gravel route and was now struggling not to stumble through tall strands of treacherous grass as he ran, and ran, and ran.

    Lucas''s lips trembled, quivering hopelessly as he cried internally over his inability to take control of any situation he was thrown into.

    Why was it that he was always being tossed around by everything and everyone? Always clueless about what to do, always finding himself in the worst possible scenarios.

    Always crying and crying, with no power to change anything.

    Always taking the back seat in his own life while his environment dictated his fate.

    He couldn''t control Azure. He couldn''t control anything. Powerless¡ª

    He lost his balance, stumbling into a tree and slamming his head against the rough bark as the sound of vicious panting and crackling filled his ears.

    He was screwed.

    No Pok¨¦mon he had could fight a pride of bloodthirsty Luxio and Shinx.

    Definitely not an alpha Luxray either.

    Suddenly, as if heaven itself was calling to him, telling him it was time to give up:

    Bells.

    Chiming and jingling rang in his ears loudly. Really loudly, in fact¡ª

    Emerging from the grass all around him, their wings vibrating with urgency, a fleet of large red insects singing loudly in ringing tunes flew towards the charging pride.

    Kricketune after Kricketune, enraged by the chaotic electric outburst, let out wrathful cries, swinging their knife-like appendages at the wild cats like scythes.

    The alpha Luxray roared, enveloped in blinding light, and an all-out war erupted.

 Chapter 25: Enviroment.

    Flashes of violent yellow hazardously sprayed the shadowy black forest as roars and chimes of wrath screamed all around the forest of Route 203.

    Lucas was merely an onlooker. Paralysed by fright and shock at the events unfolding. The fleet of kricketots, led by one giant kricketune with ligaments like literal longswords made of red iron, cleaved and sang a melodious warcry. A tune of battle as they charged the lux pride, which was shockingly ferocious, baring their electrically charged fangs and claws, with the baby shinxes of the pride covered in a lustrous golden light; a telltale sign of battle.

    But the bugs were dominating. Catching the cats in webs of sticky strings that slowed them down and clung to them, the alpha kricketune slashed away at the ferocious luxray, which roared in agony as blood sprayed from the deep cuts it carved into its fur. The kricketots as well, like soldiers in a harmonious army, cried with deafening songs that paralysed the fierce luxio in waves of rippling ear that knocked them right out.

    Asleep.

    Lucas''s heart still raced, but relief was washing over him. He''d never taken any interest in the bug type, always seeing them as disgusting and weak, but this was a shocker! To think that all they had to do was sing xylophone-like tunes and the bloodlusted cats dropped to the floor, completely asleep, was insane. Not only that, but they used their environment too, hiding in the grass before pouncing and catching them in sticky webs to bind them.

    They were in complete control.

    This was madness.

    Too mad to be true. A clan of tuneful bugs defeating a hazardous pride like this?

    Stolen story; please report.

    Never.

    A loud roar shook the forest, causing starlies and other winged creatures to explode out of the trees in fear of... something. Lucas''s gaze locked onto the alpha Luxray. It was shrouded in a veil of crackling electricity, roaring ferociously as it discharged an enormous wave of yellow energy that sent ropes and sparks of squiggling electricity rumbling up the surrounding trees.

    The grass crackled with static, like a carpet charged with volatile energy.

    Like zombies back from the dead, the luxios and shinxes which had been incapacitated, began slowly getting up, eyes wide and jittery with their black strands of fluffy fur spiked up and sharp.

    ¡°Agh!¡± Lucas jumped up from the grass, his legs stinging from the sharp pain of electricity suddenly climbing up his body from the grass and chewing through his pants.

    A murderous howl of unity blared like a war horn of death.

    A bolt of lightning BURST through the air, striking a guardless, unsuspecting kricketot down.

    Dead. Instantly.

    The pride charged, fully charged with their fur uncontrollably covered in lightning, ripping apart the bugs. Severed wings and limbs covered in sticky internal fluids scattered ravenously across the grass. With snarling muzzles and vicious amber eyes, the imbued with volts tore through the useless exoskeletons of the once singing pok¨¦mon as nightmarish screeches rang in Lucas''s ears.

    His heart sank, fright clasping his body in a binding hold.

    This was pure control. Pure mastery. This was what it looked like to grab a situation by the neck and completely change the rules, making everything to your own advantage. Blood dripped from the mouths of the alpha Luxray as it ripped a slimy chunk of bug flesh from the fallen alpha Kricketune''s body.

    Its wings were still vibrating hopelessly as it let out a final ghastly tune.

    This fight had gone to the predators.

 Chapter 26: Preliminary Conclusion.

    He was next.

    He would be if he didn¡¯t get the hell out of there, so he sprang up, heart still doing backflips in his chest, and dashed out of the charged scene of carnage and lightning.

    Back in the dark, grassy forest, he ran for his life, not looking back even once. Are you nuts? Why would anyone look back after that?

    That was a lie. Lucas glanced back once, shocked to see a thick veil of yellow lightning engulfing the area of the forest he¡¯d just fled.

    To think that a single Luxray had electrified the terrain after being sliced by a Kricketune¡¯s scythes.

    The wild was truly no place for an amateur. With his sneakers¡ªnow stained with droplets of brownish-red¡ªcrunching the gravel of the original route, Lucas pondered.

    If this was how horrifying a mere forest got at night¡­ what other nightmares awaited during his journey? What if he had to face feral things like these to carry out Professor Rowan¡¯s mission?

    Was this the beginning of madness? Or was this barely the beginning of catastrophe?

    Imagine a cave! All those ravenous, ruthless rock types¡ªhe¡¯d probably get crushed by a legion of Geodudes!Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    Or maybe something far more overwhelming and terrifying, something that could shake the Earth and crumble mountains!

    But those were just crazy thoughts fuelled by nightmare.

    Thoughts that were immediately eclipsed by glimmering hope as Lucas¡¯s eyes widened in relief and awe.

    Lights like stars on the ground glowed prosperously in the night, delightful and inviting.

    Like a galaxy on the ground it was.

    Jubilife City.

    ¡°I¡­ actually made it! I made it, Azure¡ªthere¡¯s the city right there!¡± Lucas cheerfully cried.

    He could finally slow down, catch his breath as he marched down a slope of gravel, the unholy forest stalking him from behind.

    He¡¯d escaped the wild with his Pok¨¦mon intact. This time. His body still stung from all the slits and cuts that stupid wild Shinx he caught had given him. Not to mention his jacket was torn, and there was an open wound on his cheek.

    He¡¯d barely made it out alive, and that was the first ever route he¡¯d been on.

    Still...

    There was hope. If he¡¯d made it out of Route 203 at night, there was hope.

    ¡°Whatever Professor Rowan saw in me must¡¯ve just been some delusional old man BS¡­ but there¡¯s no time to waste. I¡¯ve gotta get Azure healed up. I¡¯ve got a long way to go¡­¡±

    Yes. He was right.

    But he had no idea just how right he was. For Lucas Gray, this marked the end of his first time in the wild. The end of his naivety. The end of the beginning.

 Chapter 27: Arrival.

    Jubilife City.

    18:24 PM, Thursday, 15 January 2044.

    _________________________________________________________________________

    ¡°Hurry up, man, the commander''s waiting!¡±

    ¡°Shut up! I''m so sick of hearing you say it. Are you stuck looping the same lines of dialogue like an NPC?¡±

    ¡°What the hell are you talking about, Alex? If this was a video game, I''d be the main character while you''d be stuck as a no-name grunt. Now hurry the hell up!¡±

    In the back alleyway of a street, two strange men, no more than nineteen years old by the looks of their faces, weren''t doing anything suspicious at all. Well, save for rushing through a dark alley with a metal briefcase. They were dressed in funny gray suits with a golden G embroided where their hearts were, in the padestrian-filled lightshow of Jubilife City at night.

    Rush Hour.

    ¡°Get out of the damn way! Jeez, you people think because you have desks and computers you''re so important, huh?¡± Alex shouted as they rammed through crowds of rushing knocked-off workers on their way to the tunnel leading down to the subway.

    Ding-dong!

    ¡°A train is now approaching Jubilife Station. Please wait at the edge of the platform. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Hear that? Look what you''ve done! We''re supposed to be right there to meet her, and we''re gonna be late because you don''t know how to run!¡± Alex snapped in panicked frustration as they nearly stumbled down a flight of stairs. Handfuls of people double-backed in a mix of irritation and confusion at the duo with funny hair and somewhat wacky costumes.

    They had no respect. No empathy.

    ¡°You always do this! Stop acting like you''re not the one who nearly got us lost at that wayfinder thing! If you weren''t so stupid, we could''ve found the way to the subway in no time¡ª¡±

    ¡°Stop right there!¡±

    The pair turned around to see a man dressed in a neon vest, holding a thick baton in his hands, marching up to them with frustrated steps.

    ¡°You two are causing a ruckus, bashing and pushing people¨Cwhere are your manners? I¡¯m in charge of security, and you two seem to be causing problems¡­those ''G''s on your jerseys...you''re part of that weird new energy company, Team Galaxy!" the officer pulled out a Pok¨¦ Ball and pointing it at them.

    The duo flashed glances at each other before Alex ROCKED him in the face with a mean fist that knocked him right to the floor.

    ¡°Haha! How about you suck my balls, fatty?¡± Darren snickered, "Don''t ever disrespect Team Galactic like that again! We''re here to change the world and there''s nothing ''weird'' about that!"

    ¡°Yeah, you can be in charge of these nuts since you wanna ride us so bad!¡± Alex swiped the officer''s Pok¨¦ Ball off the ground. ¡°Thanks for the generous contribution! Everyone, listen up! If any of you have a problem with us, come and say hi like Baldilocks over here,¡±

    ¡°Don''t be shy to show us your Pok¨¦mon too! Team Galactic is always grateful for the donations! We''re here to change the world! No, we''re here to create a new world entirely!¡±

    After causing a chaotic ruckus, pair dashed off in the opposite direction, past startled people as a long metal snake smoothly slid into the station. They stood firm by the train''s entrance as people poured out.

    Carefully guarding the metal briefcase.

    ¡°What an idiot! He should''ve just used his electric baton thing instead of trying to be cool and popping out his Pok¨¦mon! Did he think we were gonna join him or something? Pok¨¦mon aren''t even allowed outside their balls in the Metro!¡± Alex said.

    ¡°You''re complaining? He gave us a free donation. It''s probably not half bad since he''s a security officer,¡± Darren replied, shaking his head.

    ¡°That''s not the point! That guy undermined our intelligence by thinking we were gonna engage in a useless battle instead of just beating him up. Adults always think the youth is too stupid to think for themselves¨C"

    But he''d have to hold that thought.

    She was here, and she wasn''t alone.

    Strutting out the doors was a young woman with predatory, sharp scarlet eyes that suffocated the pair of grunts. Behind her was a fleet of cleanly cut men and women dressed in the same outlandish uniform, with the same alien cyan bowl cuts.

    ¡°Get the hell out of our way! Do you know who the commander is? Show some respect!¡± a male grunt snapped, shoving a man onto the platform edge.

    The pair stiffened up, straight backs and all, as they mechanically saluted on cue when they saw her. Blood-red hair curled by her cheeks like horns, and she was fashionably decked out in a khaki trench coat.

    All business.

    ¡°Wow, I have a welcome party here to see my arrival. I''m flattered. Good evening, gentlemen¡­¡± Her heels stabbed the ground with firm clicks!

    ¡°Commander Mars! It''s a pleasure!¡± Darren immediately shifted gears like a Klink.

    ¡°Yes, Ma''am! Welcome to Jubilife City, Ma''am! Commander Jupiter appointed us as your personal security guards. She also said to deliver this briefcase to you¡ªMa''am!¡±

    Mars stared at the briefcase. Solid steal sealed shut with a brass padlock. As if anyone would even dare to look inside¡­ Jupiter always did too much.

    ¡°Alright, girls and boys... I don''t need Pluto crying like a baby because we''re two seconds off schedule. Let''s head out. Remember: quick and easy.¡±

    ¡°YES, MA''AM!¡±

    _________________________________________________________________________

    19:27 PM

    _________________________________________________________________________

    Dawn stood in the class, empty chairs and desks all around her.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    The papers were stuffed in a big brown envelope held close to her chest.

    ¡°You understand, yes?¡±

    ¡°Of course, sir,¡± she nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure they reach him safely, no casualties.¡±

    The professor nodded, staring at the little brown rabbit standing at her side. It observed every gesture he made, it''s soft brown ears sharply perked up like blades of brown wool as if something was wrong.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure Professor Birch will be pleased with the results. When you see Paul later, make sure to tell him how much I appreciate his aid in this project, and inform him that I have decided to push his assignment forward. Tell him¡­it¡¯s time.¡±

    Dawn stared in confusion at the cryptic wording.

    ¡°What assignment, Professor¡ª¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s none of your concern, young lady." He cut her off, shaking his head as if disappointed she''d even think of asking. "Dawn, Your sole priority is making sure these papers land safely in Professor Birch¡¯s hands and no one else¡¯s. Paul is dealing with more¡­ shall I say, complex tasks. That is all. Do you understand?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°No, sir.¡±

    ¡°Good. You¡¯re dismissed.¡±

    ¡°Have a pleasant evening, sir,¡± she said, cut and dry, burying a stew of toxicity under her mask as she exited the room. ¡°Toffee, let''s go,"

    Wasting no time, the Buneary hopped to it, strutting behind her.

    Then Stopped.

    Professor Rowan¡¯s thick silver brows furrowed in curious anticipation as the Buneary stomped its feet on the ground and grunted, a sound soaked in¡­disgust. Contempt. Aimed at him.

    But there was more.

    What was more, the buneary wouldn''t stop sniffing the air. It was like its little nose couldn''t believe iitself. Its little black eyes seemed to be staring more behind and inside him than at him. As if there was an incongruity in the bizzareness of what she was seeing and the oddity of what she was smelling.

    Rowan...smiled.

    "Yes. It''s confusing. It doesn''t align. It doesn''t make sense. Soon, it will. Your inability to speak on the truth is perhaps one of my greatest decisions." He said, staring into the buneary''s naked sould, "Yours is a simple role. A tiny catalyst. Nothing you''re not used to. Now...disappear."

    As if possessed by a ghost, the buneary immediately sprinted out the empty classroom.

    Walking down the now-empty hallway, her pink boots lightly echoed past lockers. Dawn harbored a hard, strained mask on her face.

    She couldn¡¯t get rid of it. It was too powerful¡ªthe rage and resentment stirring and churning in her stomach. It was never enough. There was never enough, no matter what she did or how she did it. Always rejection in one way or another, always forgone for¡­him.

    ¡°It¡¯s not fair! We¡¯re always helping, always doing the most, always volunteering. We¡¯re his top assistants, and still, he takes us for granted, always opting for Paul and¡­you-know-who.¡± Dawn faced Toffee, who had an unshakeable grimace on her furry chocolate face as she imagined Paul and his stupid partner¡¯s ever-blas¨¦ face and dull long gray ears.

    Pests! That¡¯s what they were!

    Toffee stomped on the hall¡¯s tiles, growling with animosity. They angrily stormed past rooms barely filled with people in lab coats urgently discussing matters of science on their way to the door at the end of the hallway.

    ¡°It¡¯s just so¡­UGH!¡± The pair simultaneously kicked the air. ¡°Is it so hard to show some appreciation? Who takes care of every single new kid he hires? Did he forget what we did for him two weeks ago, that whole mess with the freakin¡¯ Stunkies¡ªthe SMELL? Yet somehow, somehow! We don¡¯t even deserve to know what¡¯s going on¡ªnot even what¡¯s on these stupid papers?¡±

    Toffee kicked the door open, making it rattle as they sassily strutted through into the minty outside, stomping down a large flight of stone stairs lightly frosted with frost. Outside, the dark navy sky was also lightly frosted with stars and little spics of snow fell from above. The Buneary¡¯s ears immediately perked up as the ominous echoes of distant hoots rippled through the cold air.

    Her ears instinctively turned and twisted, capturing each noise. She couldn''t shake the feeling. The feeling of being...

    Dawn turned around, sticking her tongue out at the giant estate. Well¡­ more so at the white-haired, rude, selfish grouch inside the estate.

    ¡°It¡¯ll come back,¡± she snickered, tossing her midnight hair over her shoulder and fixing her beanie. ¡°Oh, it¡¯ll come back. It always does, you ungrateful ancient fossil. Damn bastiodon." Dawn marched away, hollering at the security guard at his post as she and Toffee marched through the gate.

    The school was always open until late.

    There was always much to be done. Research never sleeps, especially in the land of myths and legends. No, there was always something to uncover, something to discover. Which is why Dawn stayed past normal working hours, helping Professor Rowan (that ungrateful, wrinkle-faced, shriveled sack of sand) with his research.

    Two years she''d been doing this.

    Helping.

    For most kids, you''d only become illegible to carry around a pok¨¦mon if you were fourteen or above. But for Dawn things were different. Being an assistant meant special privileges. One of which was having your own pok¨¦mon, all courtesy of the Provisional License.

    So many privileges, tools at her disposal. All to help the Professor¡¯s research...all to help herself.

    But that didn''t mean she could bypass the Law, which was why¡­

    ¡°Well, Toffee, I¡¯ll see you in a bit, ¡®kay? I¡¯ll miss you!¡±

    But Toffee¡¯s body didn''t move. Rigid. Her ears still turning and turning like satellites.

    "Toffee, seriously, you know the rules..." Dawn said, but something on her furry friend''s face, something she felt said no..."What''s wrong?"

    Nonetheless, she had to follow the rules. She pulled her pokeball out and in a flash, Toffee disappeared. Troubled squeaking trailing behind her.

    The road outside the school was lined with solar-powered streetlamps, some flickering faultily.

    It was dark.

    Uncharacteristically empty. Especially for rush hour.

    As Dawn strolled down the street, away from the school, something felt¡­ off. The feeling she got when she stared into the mirror¡­

    Eyes.

    She screamed, feeling a hand grabbing her shoulder. Dawn immediately jerked away, running from the man but tripped and stumbled onto the cold concrete, the marching of multiple footsteps showering her ears.

    ¡°Who are you? Get away from me!¡± she cried, backing away as two more shadowy figures appeared, another man and a woman spawning from the black of the surrounding alleyways, their faces covered by black balaclavas.

    ¡°I got them.¡± The man said in a cold, groggy voice.

    Her heart shriveled up as one of the masked men waved the brown envelope at her.

    ¡°Are these the ones?¡± one of them asked, a lady.

    ¡°Of course. She¡¯s the Professor¡¯s assistant. G8 and G9 said to look out for a little girl who always leaves the school at half-past seven. Took longer than usual, but I¡¯m positive it¡¯s her¡ª¡±

    ¡°Drain Punch!¡±

    In a burning flash of light, Toffee charged at the robbers and sunk a horrible punch into the man''s guts, collapsing him onto the pavement! Dawn stood up, fog fuming out of her mouth in panicked cold pants with her hands shaking as the pok¨¦ball she''d drown in a panic dropped to the ground.

    ¡°Again!¡± she cried in a voice of determined fear. Toffee nodded, lunging forward with springy steps with a raging explosive golden aura around her little furry fist.

    She knew she was well within her rights to do that. License or otherwise, all was fair when it came to self defense.

    That wasn''t to say her victory wasn''t anything but a pipe dream.

    ¡°Golbat, Air Cutter!¡±

    Suddenly, Toffee shrieked in agony, blood trickling onto the pavement as a blinding blade of air sliced her little furry body. Up in the air, winged and malicious with devilish knives hanging out of its jaws, a Golbat flapped its wings before perching on one of the robbers¡¯ shoulders.

    ¡°Toffee!¡± Dawn rushed to the squirming bunny only to trip on nothing again and find her legs flailing in the air. Levitating.

    ¡°G13!¡± the other masked man called, hoping to get a response, but no dice. ¡°He¡¯s out cold; that Buneary¡¯s Drain Punch took everything out of him.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter!¡± The lady yelled. ¡°We have the papers. Commander Mars gave direct orders; we have no time to waste. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    ¡°Hold on, G16. That Buneary just used drain punch,¡±

    ¡°And what, G14? I mean I was right here when it happened, I saw it with my eyes. So what?¡±

    G14 shook his head.

    ¡°So, G16, Buneary¡¯s don¡¯t know Drain Punch! It''s strong and so, G16¨CTake It! Then, check her bag and make sure she doesn¡¯t have any more useful Pok¨¦mon with her.¡±

    The masked lady scoffed, grabbing Dawn¡¯s white marshmallow bag off the floor and scrambling through it before tossing it back onto the ground. ¡°Nothing,¡± she said in an annoyed voice, swiping Toffee¡¯s Pok¨¦ball off the ground. ¡°Chimecho, use Extrasensory on G13 and wake him up!¡±

    Out of nowhere, rings and chimes jingled in Dawn¡¯s ears as a sinister chimecho floated by and let out a rippling wave of pink energy onto the unconscious masked man holding the envelope.

    ¡°No! Stop it! Give her back! Give me back those papers; I need them!¡± Dawn screamed, helplessly struggling in the air, bound by invisible nothingness. But no matter how much she tried to force her muscles to move, all she had to show for it were stagnant twitches and tears on her face.

    ¡°Sorry, sweetie. We need them more. Besides, in a few months, you won¡¯t even be here to stress about such petty things. Why worry now when none of it will matter by the end of the year?¡± the masked woman said in a brief cold breath, ¡°G13! Get up, we have no time to sleep, we¡¯re leaving now! Commander Mars said eight o¡¯clock, so we need to move, quick!¡±

    The unconscious coughed and coughed, now awake. More awake than before, actually. Psychic energy was a hell of a drug. ¡°R-right¡­ow¡­let¡¯s move,¡± G13 groaned, whining and wincing as he held his stomach, almost tripping as he stumbled to get up.

    ¡°Alright, Golbat, return!¡± G14 cried, ¡°G16, you too. We can''t be caught with¨C¡±

    ¡°I know the Law, dammit!¡± she yelled, annoyed by the underestimation of her abilities (she was very capable).

    Light splashed the street as the Pok¨¦mon returned to their balls, and when the blinding flash dissipated¡­ they were nowhere to be found.

    All the while, another pair of eyes looked on, contemplating on whether or not he should''ve done something.

    No.

    He had a feeling that this was exactly what was supposed to happen. In fact, something told him there was no other way but to be quiet and look.

 Chapter 28: Lights Out.

    Jubilife City

    19:52 PM, Thursday, 15 January 2044

    <hr>

    "Here you go, your little ones are all better now. We look forward to seeing you again..."

    The nurse said in a voice sweet enough to give Lucas a toothache, with a sugary smile, holding out a tray with two polished Pok¨¦balls sitting on it. She radiated a welcoming energy, and her rosy, cotton-candy hair really brought out her sky-blue eyes... or something else corny like that. Anyway:

    "Thank you very much, Miss!" he said, plucking the two cherry-red orbs and shoving them into his pocket.

    "As for you¡­ are you okay? You look tired and beat up. We have a few rooms left if you''d like to settle down. How does that sound, sweetie? A nice warm bed for the night?"

    "Yeah! That sounds awesome, Miss, I''d appreciate it!" Lucas''s face lit up, something like a Lanturn.

    "Great. Single bedrooms go for an easy twenty thousand. Double beds are a bit bumped up at forty. Are you traveling with anyone else?"

    "...Wait, what? I thought it was free!"

    "Oh! My apologies, sir. If you can show me your League ID card, I''ll be happy to show you to your room¡ª"

    "League ID? I''m not part of any Leagues! Since when do I need one of those?"

    "All members of the Pok¨¦mon League Association have free access to our facilities twenty-four-seven. I''m guessing, since you didn¡¯t know that, you''re not a League associate?"

    Lucas shook his head sheepishly.

    Why didn¡¯t anyone tell him he needed to be a League associate¡ªwhat the hell was a League associate? He knew there were the Elite Four members and the Champions, but they had special IDs for that sort of thing? Were there other members¡ªno, "associates"¡ªhe''d never heard of?

    "Well, we still have empty rooms if you''re interested, dear. It is getting late out; I''d hate for you to sleep out on the streets," the sweet nurse said.

    "I don¡¯t have enough money¡­ no, thanks," the boy said, scratching the clotting red cut on his cheek. His body still stung and felt heavier than usual, like someone had put an anvil in his pocket.

    "Well, if it''s any consolation..." The nurse opened a pink metal box behind the counter and handed Lucas a plaster. "Please take care, sweetie."

    Lucas nodded, turning around and walking towards the door. The room was quite large and spacious. It smelled like love and kindness, a lovely jazzy jingle warming up the rosy atmosphere. People were relaxing on sofas, waiting for their Pok¨¦mon to be tended to in the back. Some people even had their Pok¨¦mon out. One man was passed out on a sofa, a little brown swinub soundly snoozing on his lap. Another guy, leaning against the wall with his nose in his phone, had a cool blue lucario beside him, arms crossed and eyes closed.

    Talk about aura-maxxing. Well, you wouldn¡¯t expect any less from a nonchalant, dread-headed Aura Pok¨¦mon.

    It was Lucas''s first time being inside a Pok¨¦centre. You know what they say about first impressions. He could pass out on one of the couches and not have a single worry in the world¡ªhe felt that safe. The floor was a warm peach, polished to sanitary perfection.

    And the nurse...

    She reminded him of his mother. Something about her. He didn¡¯t know what. Maybe her calming blue eyes. Maybe her soft, lulling voice. Who knew? Maybe if his mother was a nurse working at a Pok¨¦centre, she''d have more time for him. But that was a dream. Though, it didn¡¯t hurt to think about it.

    Yeah, a nurse mum would definitely beat his real one if that was the benefit that came with her.

    Still a dream, though. And reality demanded his attention. He needed to find a place to sleep and fast. His eyes froze on the clock hanging above the sliding door.

    "It¡¯s not that late, right? Just a bit to eight. I wonder if Dawn''s still out in the city. Maybe I can find her. She probably knows a place I can stay for the night. Maybe I¡¯ll even run into Barry¡ªAAAAGHH!"Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    "Hey, what¡¯s wrong?!" The nurse ran out from behind the counter, the agonized scream of a young boy shaking the entire room and shattering the air of ease.

    Nobody looked drowsy anymore. All eyes were on the teenage kid gripping his head with both hands as he had what looked like a¡ª

    "Seizure! I think he''s having a seizure!" the man holding a newspaper shouted.

    "Everybody, please stay calm!" the nurse said in a gentle yet urgent voice. Seeing the poor boy''s flickering eyes filled her heart with sadness. She removed his backpack and flipped him onto his side, feeling him spasm and twitch as if possessed until he eventually calmed down, his eyelids shutting and his body relaxing.

    "Fast asleep..."

    The thought of him not traveling with anyone, all alone with no one to help, nor care. It hurt her heart. She couldn¡¯t leave him.

    <hr>

    Lucas opened his eyes, unable to stop the sun''s rays from forcing his eyelids open. The wind''s warm gust blew against his black shirt and ruffled his hair. He was knee-deep in a field of tall grass, the weeds tickling his arms, and the sounds of the glistening blue river gently trickling into his ears.

    "Where am I¡ª"

    Suddenly, a heavy wet force splashed him on the back and sent him tumbling into the grass, dripping wet.

    "What the frick, dude? Why... are... you..."

    Lucas couldn¡¯t believe his eyes when he turned around. In front of him was a towering, sleek black penguin with huge wings like surfboards at its side. "No way... is that an empoleon¡ª"

    "You two always seem to be picking on each other. It''s kinda cute..." a girl''s voice rang in his ear. It was her. No doubt. In frantic shock, Lucas peeked behind the giant bird and met eyes with her.

    "Dawn...?"

    "Hmm? What, you''re finally taking a break from calling me Deedee? Whatever, it''s way better than you calling me... what¡¯s wrong? You look like you¡¯ve seen a gengar."

    His face looked like a gargoyle''s, stuck in motion. His head may as well have been knocked off his shoulders and spinning in the air like a UFO. Plus, the empoleon wasn¡¯t even the only crazy thing going on: behind Dawn, a gigantic woolly mammoth was there. Just there! Standing there menacingly, like the enormous ancient titan it was.

    Lucas shook his head, disagreeing with the entire situation and how insanely serene everyone else was being about it.

    "Dawn, where are we? What¡¯s going on?" Lucas asked in an increasingly panicked voice.

    "What are you talking about? We''re still in¡ª"

    But just as he motioned to pick himself up, and right when Dawn was about to answer him, the grass flickered and vanished, replaced spontaneously by the crude coarseness of gravelly ground. The words "We''re still in¡ª" bounced off the jagged, dank walls of a cave, with the occasional echoes of droplets rippling into his ears.

    Lucas stumbled back onto the floor, his breathing picking up pace as his heart began to sprint. High-horsepower Agility Zebstrika-Style!

    "Hey!"

    An urgent voice snapped Lucas back into momentary focus.

    "Y-yeah...?"

    "You¡¯re drifting away there. Take a look. I was asking if you recognize what kind of stone this is..."

    Lucas shook his head, trying to check if he¡¯d really lost it and was hallucinating.

    "No? C''mon, kid, no way you can¡¯t tell. Look at that gorgeous dark violet sheen¡ªit¡¯s almost like obsidian. This is a dusk Stone. I thought it was obvious; this couldn¡¯t be anything else! I thought you were committed to being a hardcore trainer, but you can¡¯t even identify one!"

    Though they were saturated with furious passion, his words didn¡¯t even dent Lucas¡¯s mind as he stared mindlessly at the gemstone, still covered in a rough casing of hard dirt.

    No.

    He was still trying to figure out who the hell this glasses-wearing red-haired guy was and why the hell he was in a cave. Lucas shook his head again, trying to get rid of the snow-globe effect in his mind. He must¡¯ve been dreaming. There was no other explanation. What was worse was the snowstorm in his head was lightly salted with d¨¦j¨¤ vu, yet even so, he still didn¡¯t know what was going on at all.

    "Wait, sorry¡­ where are we?" he asked.

    "What do you mean, sweetie? We''re still here at headquarters¡­"

    Lucas physically flipped out, his body jolting and turning, fully in panic mode now.

    Something was horribly wrong.

    The coarse, condescending voice from before wasn¡¯t the one responding to his question. The echoes of water droplets had been tuned out by a smooth humming noise¡ªthe sound of an air-conditioning unit pouring cool air into the room. A dimly lit office. But his panic was brought to a momentary halt as someone¡¯s soft palm caressed his cheek.

    A pair of sharp red eyes beamed into him from right in front of his face.

    No, seriously. Right in front of him. In fact, her face was so close to him that he could feel the warmth emanating from it.

    "Uhhh¡­"

    "Shh¡­ it¡¯s just you and me, baby. You did such a good job today, you deserve a little award..." The weirdly foxy lady tugged his chin, reeling his face in before¡ª

    "MERCURY!"

 Chapter 29: Become.

    Jubilife City.

    8:06 AM, Friday, 16 January 2044.

    <hr>

    Lucas shot up in a cold sweat.

    He had a slight headache gnawing on his skull, and his hands were trembling. He smacked his cheeks with both hands, shaking his head to jostle his brain in case he was still hallucinating and the room was about to be replaced by another cavern.

    In case something crazy, like being warped to a place with a raging waterfall or some other nonsense, was about to happen.

    He looked around the little room. It wasn''t anything special, just a bed, a mirror on the wall, and a little shower in the corner.

    ¡°Not even a TV¡­¡± Lucas said, his eyes wandering around the new environment before coming to a halt as if they''d hit a wall.

    Next to his bed was a little wooden dresser with a lamp on top¡ªand a sleek black parcel. The gift bag from the mart.

    Next to it lay a black envelope.

    He reached out and slid it off the dresser, cautiously opening it up in case it blew up in his face.

    It was a card.

    ¡°You forgot this, Lucas Gray.¡±

    Lucas''s eyes widened. He¡¯d tossed everything out of his bag in a frantic panic the night prior. This didn¡¯t help alleviate any stress he¡¯d been feeling; in fact, his gnawing headache seemed to be biting down harder on his skull.

    Why was he so stupid and careless? So useless? He couldn¡¯t even take care of himself, much less his Pok¨¦mon¡ªAzure had almost died! He had almost died at least six times in those woods, only to make it to the Capital and blackout with no money.

    Forget being a trainer; he wasn¡¯t even a normally functioning person.

    Knock knock knock!

    The door slowly opened, a pink-haired woman peeking her face inside, which lit up with a gentle smile.

    ¡°You¡¯re awake, good¡­¡± the nurse said, slowly walking up to the bedside.

    ¡°Yeah¡­ I¡¯m sorry, what happened?¡±

    ¡°You had a seizure. But there¡¯s no need to apologise, sweetie. It was out of your control, nothing you could do about it.¡±

    Lucas grimaced at her words. That was exactly the problem. She wasn¡¯t doing anything to make it better in any way. Anyway¡­

    ¡°Whose room is this?¡± he asked.

    The nurse smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°Yours, dear.¡±

    ¡°What? How? I don¡¯t have¡ª¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s okay, I paid for it.¡±

    ¡°With your money?¡± Lucas almost jumped out of his bed.

    She nodded lightly.

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t just leave a helpless boy out in the street like that. It¡¯s dangerous out at night. This is the Capital.¡±

    ¡°You¡­ really shouldn¡¯t have. I¡¯m so sorry, Miss!¡±

    ¡°Aww, sweetie, you don¡¯t have to apologise. It¡¯s my job to help those in need. If someone¡¯s sick or hurting, what kind of nurse would I be if I didn¡¯t help?¡±

    Lucas hung his head down, unable to look her in the eyes. This had to stop. First Dawn, now the nurse¡ªthis had to stop. He couldn¡¯t keep leaning on other people like this.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Miss. Thank you¡­¡±

    ¡°My name¡¯s Glee. Nurse Glee. What¡¯s your name, dear?¡±

    ¡°Damn it¡ªI¡¯m so sorry, you don¡¯t even know my name. I¡¯m Lucas Gray from Twinleaf.¡±

    ¡°Twinleaf? I hear that the town¡¯s not that developed¡ªdon¡¯t tell me you walked here through Route 202 at night, Lucas¡ªI hear there¡¯s a horrible Lux pride prowling around that The Rangers are still yet to get under control¡­¡±

    Lucas sheepishly stared back down into his blankets, the plaster on his face carrying more weight than before as Nurse Glee did the math in her head, adding a dash of ¡°worst-case scenario¡± to draw a conclusion.

    He knew all about the Lux pride.

    ¡°Sorry, Miss¡ªI mean, Nurse Glee¡ªdo you know how I can get a League ID?¡±

    Her brows briefly furrowed in confusion before she answered.

    ¡°From what I know, League IDs are only given to super important members of the PLA. Those are your Elite Four members, the Champions, the League President, and their various personnel. I heard Unova even gives PLA IDs to Gym Leaders, although they¡¯re only auxiliary members at best¡­¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t know what auxiliary means¡­¡±

    ¡°They don¡¯t see them as ¡®that important¡¯ for the most part. For most regions, Gym Leaders have regular trainer IDs like everyone else before and after they become Leaders. So¡­¡± Glee hugged his hand with her own, ¡°If you want all those neat privileges like free rooms and complimentary supplements for your babies, train hard and become a League member! Okay?¡±

    Oh, he heard her loud and clear. If he wanted to stop pleading for his life and being at the mercy of random strangers, he needed to become someone important.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Did you get that?

    If he wanted to stop being powerless, if he wanted to control situations, he needed to become somebody. Someone no one could ignore.

    But first, his mission.

    ¡°Okay, Lucas. Your bag is at the front, though it¡¯s quite empty¡ªOH!¡± The nurse turned to the black parcel sitting on the dresser. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen this already, a man came in late at night and said to give this to you¡­¡±

    Lucas¡¯s heart sprang into a mini frenzy as memories of the faceless man in a green suit from the market came flooding back.

    ¡°Sorry, what was he wearing?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Pardon?¡±

    ¡°The man who gave you this parcel¡ªwas he wearing a green suit? What was he wearing?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I follow, sweetie¡­ What man?¡±

    Lucas¡¯s breath was sucked out of his body when her words reached his ears. All the while, she stared at him with a confused, empathetic expression like he was out of his mind before getting up and leaving him with the words:

    ¡°Come by to the front when you¡¯re ready.¡±

    <hr>

    About five minutes later, Lucas was walking down a corridor lined with doors, wearing his black shirt with the black parcel in hand.

    20, 19, 18, 17¡ªthe doors were labelled until he got all the way down to 1 and turned the corner to¡ª

    ¡°WATCH OUT! WATCH OUT! WATCH OUT!¡±

    ¡°Sorry!¡±

    Following a blurry collision, he stumbled onto the polished peachy floor, rubbing his head.

    ¡°Use your frickin¡¯ eyes and look¡ªLUCAS?!¡± Barry shouted in his usual missile-loud voice.

    ¡°Barry? What are you¡ª¡±

    ¡°What the hell are you doing here, Lucas? I thought you¡¯d hang back and cry with that old man, I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d be out here¡ªyou¡¯re in Jubilife City!¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Lucas licked the floor with his eyes, his head drooping down like frozen snot from a cubchoo¡¯s nose. ¡°The Professor gave me a job to¡ª¡±

    ¡°Anyway, I was just about to leave. I had no idea you were sleeping here too. Where¡¯d you get the money? Get this: my mum was freaking out, bro. Straight tweaking! She called Dad and told him I didn¡¯t come back home last night¡ªshe was so pissed, but Dad was super proud and flew all the way out here from the Frontier to see me. Bro, check this!¡± Barry pulled out a wad of crisp dollars. ¡°Fifty thousand, bro! That¡¯s after I paid for my double room. You should¡¯ve said something; we could¡¯ve slept together¡ªnot in a gay way or anything, of course. Though, I¡¯m sure you¡¯d be into that with how sensitive you get!

    o(*£þ¨Œ£þ*)o

    "Anyway, I¡¯m heading out to the School. I bet they have a bunch of cool techniques I can teach Leonardo (that¡¯s Turtwig¡¯s new name, by the way) before I go get what¡¯s mine in Oreburgh. That Roark guy¡¯s so screwed; he has no idea!

    "Anyway, later, Lucas. Let¡¯s see how far you can get out in the real world!¡±

    Like the yellow flash of lightning he was, Barry zipped out of there with no warning, just like he¡¯d appeared.

    Lucas barely even got a word in.

    New town, but nothing new. He was used to it. But on the bright side, he had a sense of direction. A vague one, but still.

    The Pok¨¦mon School. That was definitely his best bet. With any luck, he¡¯d find Dawn or the Professor¡ªno. No. He was going to go there to learn more and get stronger so he could finally get a hold of himself.

    Finally get some semblance of strength. Of power.

    He turned the corner and found himself back in the main lobby. A few voices were echoing around. People had already filled up the waiting chairs and sofas, although it was only about eight in the morning when he looked at the clock.

    ¡°Lucas, you¡¯re not leaving without your stuff, are you?¡± Nurse Glee¡¯s voice sweetly rang in his ears.

    ¡°No, sorry¡ªI mean¡­ I was just checking out the time,¡± Lucas made his way to the counter. ¡°Here I am¡­¡±

    ¡°Good. Your stuff should be here right around¡­¡±

    Suddenly, Lucas felt a soft nudge against his shoulder and turned around to see¡ª

    ¡°A Blissey?! Woah!¡±

    Nurse Glee gleefully giggled.

    ¡î: .?. o(¨R¨Œ¨Q)o .?.:¡î

    At Lucas¡¯s childish awe, his bright blue eyes widened in amazement as he fully ate up the eye candy that was the giant pink marshmallow blob holding his bag and clothes in a neat pile.

    ¡°You¡¯re so big! Much bigger in person,¡± he said, taking his stuff back. They smelled different. Better. ¡°Thank you, Nurse Glee! You¡¯re awesome! I was starting to get worried about my scarf since I didn¡¯t see it in the room¡­¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s my pleasure, sweetie. That scarf must mean a lot to you.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, my mum¡­ gave it to me two years ago. It was Christmas¡­¡± his voice was semi-muffled.

    ¡°Aww, she must be a nice lady. By the way, that blond boy¡ªwas he your friend? I thought I heard him talking to someone before I saw you walk in here.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, Barry and I grew up together. It¡¯s our first time here¡ªmy first time at least. He travels around with his family during the holidays. His dad takes him to all sorts of cool places; he visited his uncle in Alola last year¡ªapparently, he owns Aether Paradise! That¡¯s so unfair! Why don¡¯t I¡­ what?¡±

    Nurse Glee¡¯s eyes were glued to his face, an intrigued expression on her face.

    ¡°Sounds like you¡¯d very much like to¡ª¡±

    ¡°No way! I¡¯m fine. I¡¯d never want to be like Barry. I¡¯m fine with what I have!¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°I was gonna say you¡¯d like to go on trips and see the world too¡­¡±

    She noticed Lucas¡¯s face turn a tinge pink, as if he¡¯d shown her something he wasn¡¯t supposed to.

    ¡°Right¡­ Anyway, sorry for the trouble, Nurse Glee¡ªand thank you so much for everything!¡±

    Embarrassed, Lucas ran out through the automatic sliding door and left the Pok¨¦center.

    It was fine. Besides, he couldn¡¯t hang back while Barry was out there. Ahead of him. But it wasn¡¯t like Barry had worked for anything, with his dad funding him and all. He was the real girly one for getting funded by Daddy. That sort of stuff was for sissies, Lucas bet his dad would agree.

    If...he was still around.

    That didn¡¯t matter though. Lucas was gonna do it. Oh, he was gonna do it all right. All by himself, he¡¯d become powerful. He¡¯d become strong and respected. Yes, strong and in control of everything around him.

    He was gonna DO IT! (¨p¨‰Ãó¨‰)¨s

    The morning winter wind ran through his face, blowing his hair like a whistle. Trees planted by the pavement had their lightly snowed leaves tossed to and fro and all that stuff. If you looked closely, you¡¯d see the sneaky silent green burmies and wormadams chilling in the trees, perfectly camouflaged. Flocks of starlies and chatots flapped their wings in the early blue sky as they passed by each other and chirped incessantly.

    The sunlight¡¯s yellow rays were bleeding over the metropolis¡¯s tall buildings, with some early morning runners doing what early morning runners did.

    Lucas wrapped his scarf around his neck, straightening his jacket.

    Time to head out.

 Chapter 30: Nothing Changed II.

    Caitlin shot up in a cold sweat.

    Plushies, sofas, books, and drawers, which had all been suspended in the air, floating in veils of shimmering pink energy, came CrAsHiNg down onto the floor as soon as she opened her eyes. Moonlight bled through the sliding door leading outside, and for some inexplicable reason, the curtains were dancing and flapping without any windows being open.

    Something was gravely wrong.

    Sweat had swamped everything from the neck up¡ªsomething that rarely ever happened. She sat up in her bed, which was like an ocean covered in a duvet with how huge it was. A strange tingling sensation filled her head, like that feeling you get when your legs fall asleep, only this was in her brain.

    But that wasn¡¯t all.

    ¡°Priscila¡­¡± she uttered, holding her head as a small bright red light glittered in her eyes. Snoozing in the centre of the bed, a mystique Espeon awoke from its slumber, its pearly violet eyes shimmering with a lustrous sheen. ¡°Your jewel... it''s glowing.¡±

    The Espeon suddenly sprang from the bed, the jewel in her forehead throbbing intensely, leaving a trail of rosy red light. Skipping over fallen furniture, Priscila made her way to the sliding door and walked straight through it as if it were a sheet of rippling water.

    Caitlin wasted no time, throwing off her duvet and chasing after her. She slid the door open, a gush of the resort¡¯s warm breeze billowing her nightgown. Stepping onto the balcony barefoot, she looked around frantically for the little Espeon, but what she found instead made her fall to her knees.

    ¡°Oh my goodness¡­¡± Her breathing suddenly became laggy.

    The air was heavy, swirling with strange energy. But it wasn¡¯t just energy¡ªit was presence itself.

    It was... feeling.

    Caitlin could feel everything. The vigour of the palm trees flapping in the unusually powerful wind. The tranquillity of the stars in the sky. The exhaustion of nearby neighbours slumbering in their own villas. Her own stress, curiosity, fear, anger, sadness, and excitement stewed in the densely energised air. It was too much. She struggled to lift her head as it stared down at her, a little smirk on its face. Three perfect red jewels shone with otherworldly brilliance, divine magenta energy serenely swirling around its levitating body.

    The young girl couldn¡¯t think¡ªnot at all.

    Her mind was being scrambled by the overwhelming force of her own emotions crashing in and out of her body like a tsunami exploding out of a bottle before being forced right back in.

    ¡°Why¡­?¡± she asked, ¡°Why are you here¡­mesprit?¡±

    The legendary Pok¨¦mon floated in the air, its alien topaz eyes beaming into her. Caitlin¡¯s eyes suddenly glowed hot pink, a series of pictures crashing into her mind over and over again on repeat. Things she¡¯d never seen yet seemed all too familiar. Things so close and yet so out of reach, divided by an uncrossable chasm.

    ¡°I died.¡±

    Her head throbbed, the images still scrambling her mind. A dark blue void, a demonic shadowy beast... a man with a crown of pale blue hair. She couldn¡¯t have been imagining any of it¡ªnot at all. It was all too specific.

    A blonde woman screaming her lungs out. A glowing chain of what looked like red jewels. A boy with arctic blue eyes and a dead, ice-cold stare. All before a horrible explosion consumed everything: the stars, the moon, the entire planet. People, Pok¨¦mon¡ªall gone.

    All tied together by one final image. A lone Pok¨¦mon sitting atop a glass staircase.

    Caitlin shot up in a cold sweat.

    Plushies, sofas, books, and drawers, which had all been suspended in the air, floating in veils of shimmering pink energy, came CrAsHiNg down onto the floor as soon as she opened her eyes.

    She''d died. She''d died?

    The whole world¡ªno, the universe¡ªhad been completely and utterly destroyed, and yet... here Caitlin was. Alive. Or maybe she was looking into it too much...

    No. A vision as viscerally real as that...what was going on?

    At her side, wearing his usual calm-natured expression, his knightly figure watching over her so serenely, was Julius.

    ¡°Julius!¡± She sprang out of her duvet. ¡°You saw that, right? You felt it too? We''ve been here before!¡±

    The Gallade calmly nodded, assuring her he¡¯d seen every bit of her mythical vision, before turning his gaze to the little Espeon yawning awake in the centre of the bed, the light from her jewel dissipating.

    Knock knock knock!

    ¡°My lady, it¡¯s a quarter past seven; your bath is ready. We should be going soon,¡± Darach said, his voice muffled by the shut door. ¡°I¡¯m preparing¡ª¡±

    ¡°My breakfast...¡± Caitlin froze, mortified by the fractured thoughts in her head. ¡°Darach, are you by any chance preparing Nanab Berry pancakes and a glass of warm Moomoo Milk?¡±

    ...

    ¡°Why, yes, young mistress. Is the scent leaking into your quarters?¡± the butler asked in a voice of surprise.

    Caitlin exchanged worried glances with Julius. This was a repeat. A mirror of a past day. She usually paid no attention to what she ate on a day-to-day basis... but this day was different.

    She couldn''t remember the exact details, but there was someone she met on this day...someone very strange.

    ¡°Make sure my milk is warm by the time I¡¯ve finished bathing, Darach... I hate cold milk, (£» ?`¦Ø?¡ä)¡± she spat.

    She specifically remembered starting this day on a flat note with a glass of putridly cold milk. Something had told her to say that... a feeling of past grievances.

    She splashed herself with warm water, rinsing off the foamy soap bubbles in the hot bath, and dried herself off with a soft Wooloo wool towel.

    She had truly died.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, Henry.¡± Her voice echoed in the steaming bathroom.

    Henry simply stared at her with his permanent derpy face, wagging his big pink tail, (^o^)£¯~~. Not that the Slowpoke didn¡¯t understand what she was saying¡ªno. In fact, he¡¯d seen her vision just like Julius and Priscila during their time in the bath. It¡¯s just that the little rubber Psyduckies bobbing in the water were far more captivating than the temporal shenanigans.

    ¡°Why would the world be obliterated? How? Say we give the obscenely powerful night-deities out in the wild the benefit of the doubt and say they wouldn¡¯t do anything of that sort, the question still stands. Wouldn¡¯t the League do something about it beforehand? And who was that boy in my dreams? He bore such a grim stare I was almost scared to see him, and that ghastly man with the blue hair as well...¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    She took her seat at the table, Darach pushing her in. The sweet scent of Nanab melting in her nostrils was nothing short of delicious. She took one of the finely polished forks and knives on the table and began indulging in her breakfast, while her little Espeon dug into a bowl of berries a little distance away from her.

    With Darach flocking up and down the dining room, she had to hold her conversations with her partners in the confines of their minds. Priscila was too busy snacking to engage, but Julius was always ready at her side for anything she had to say.

    ¡°We died. That¡¯s not anything that needs further questioning, I believe. No. Rather, it is our mysterious reappearance. Most importantly, the circumstances...¡± Her eyes glowed a faint pink, Julius nodding as they conversed internally. She reached for the glass of Moomoo Milk next to her plate. What a puzzle this was indeed¡ªfor all of them. To relive the same day once again... ¡°There¡¯s something else, other than that boy and that strange man, that I cannot avert my attention from. Just what on Earth was that creature atop that staircase? Such a strange figure, and I couldn¡¯t make out what it was...¡±

    ¡°PTOOEY!¡± Caitlin spat out the milk, her face creasing and crunching in disgust. ¡°DARACH! (*£à§¥¡ä)¥Î£¡£¡£¡I INSTRUCTED YOU TO¡­ warm the¡­ milk...¡±

    Realisation dawned on her.

    Nothing had changed.

    <hr>

    Jubilife City.

    <hr>

    Lucas Gray marched with the hordes of commuting workers dressed in their ¡°serious business¡± clothes. Women clip-clopping in heels and men moving with so much Purpose it made Lucas reflect on his own goals.

    It was dizzying. Seeing so many people in one place¡ªit looked way calmer on TV whenever the news was on. But nothing about this city was calm.

    Not the capital of Sinnoh.

    Jubilife was a busy metropolis, with electric billboards popping with bright colours and cyclists striding by on the asphalt roads, which lacked the vehicular hoots and exhaust fumes you''d expect for a huge city. Of course, you''d only expect that if you were a foreigner and didn''t know the strict regulations around cars and other gas-emitting vehicles.

    No, sir, the only thing filling the road were legions of pedestrians parading around on their ways into the towering, skyscraping office buildings armoured with lustrous glass panels from head to toe.

    As he wandered around, the smell of sizzling meats invaded his nose¡ª

    ¡°Grilled karp! Nobody does it better¡ªyou! You''re on your way to school, right? Bet you haven''t even had breakfast, I can tell by your walk, buy some grilled karp!¡± said a man standing by a little wheeled stall with a cool red umbrella and vibrant starry-eyed Magikarp logo on it.

    ¡°I don''t have a lot of money, sorry,¡± Lucas said, putting up his hands as if to defend from the backlash of what he''d said.

    ¡°Then get some! Then get some! (¡£?`§Ù?)? Grilled Karp! New barbecue Sitrus glaze, start your day in a grade-a way! You! Lady! Nice heels, ever tried some Cheri Karp...¡±

    The man''s voice was drowned out as Lucas continued his march downtown, catching an entire swarm of people emerging from a tunnel underground with a sign written JCM on it.

    Jubilife City Metro. The biggest station in the region, and just like the capital: the most developed. People from all over the place travelled to the capital for work using the metro.

    She was no different.

    Lucas had noticed a happy-looking girl wearing nothing but a light white shirt.

    ¡°Is she insane?¡± Lucas said in a breath of morning fog. ¡°She''s WAY underdressed. No ways she isn''t feeling this cold!¡±

    She was crazy.

    To Lucas, at least. Something about walking around Jubilife City in the freezing 8am air with your jacket wrapped around your waist instead of on your body screamed ¡®Hi, I''m insane!¡¯ to good old Lucas here. It was mid Winter¨CSinnohan Winter!

    Truthfully, however, he wasn''t complaining.

    It saved him the effort of finding his way to the school. She was probably headed there, right? Plus, he''d probably get lost. Not that he wasn''t already, but Lucas didn''t expect anything from a na?ve kid with no real skills in the big city like himself. He was half-expecting to get kidnapped or something. What if he was groomed and initiated into a gang?

    He''d just follow her instead. Was that creepy? Maybe. It was the fastest solution, sorry. Or maybe not. Also, he was starting to get super hungry.

    It didn''t help that the alluring earthy smell of coffee wormed its way into his nostrils. He was right outside a caf¨¦, and it smelled great! But his eyes almost blew out of his head when he saw the sticker of a Spidops spinning a web stuck to the window.

    ¡°No way¡­Patisserie Soapberry! Am I dreaming?¡± His eyes sparkled like geodes next to a campfire. All the times he''d watched Food Network with his mum and Katy would pop up to bake the most wonderful treats...all those times¡­

    Now he was at a crossroads.

    Either he followed the girl to school and starved, OR (really big ¡®or¡¯, by the way), he went into the caf¨¦ and used his pitiful pockets to pay¡ª

    He was already in the caf¨¦.

    The air was deliciously sweet, with people murmuring and mumbling.

    He walked up to the counter and almost fell to his knees. It was far too beautiful. Behind a glossy glass encasing, a dreamy gallery of the most delicious sugary morning baked goods you could imagine sat in perfect rows, just begging to be eaten!

    A legion of sugar-frosted donuts rubbing shoulders with a delightful squad of chocolate brownies drenched in dripping melted chocolate¡ª

    ¡°Hi! Three brownies and an Eevee muffin, please!¡± Lucas couldn''t contain himself, salivating with rainbows in his eyes as he ate up all the eye candies behind the glass.

    The lady in an apron behind the counter smiled, getting the trademark pink box with a shiny Spidops sticker on it and filling the box with tongs.

    ¡°You certainly aren''t holding anything back. Got a bit of a sweet tooth, do you?¡± A slick, deep voice smoothly slid into Lucas''s ears.

    ¡°Sorry, am I taking too much¡­?¡± He hadn''t even noticed the guy until he started talking.

    ¡°No, no¡­nothing like that. You take as much as you like. I''m just¡­observing. Your bag¡¯s open, by the way¡­¡±

    ¡°Wha¡ª¡± Lucas snapped his head around like a Hoothoot. He was right. The zip was wide open, hanging like a broken jaw. ¡°Thank you, sorry, I didn''t even see¡ª¡±

    ¡°That''s okay.¡± The man smirked. ¡°Now you know for next time, right?¡±

    ¡°Right¡­sorry¡­¡±

    ¡°Three.¡±

    ¡°Sorry?¡±

    ¡°Four. That''s the amount of times you''ve said sorry since we started talking. Call it a bad habit of mine. Everyone I know says I look into things too much. But that''s just how I am. I also noticed how you don''t look into people''s eyes much¡ªfirst the server, now me. Or maybe I''m looking into things too much¡­¡±

    For some reason, Lucas began to pay more attention to the guy when he started talking about looking into things. He felt like they were boring into his heart. Aloof yet sharp. He couldn''t maintain eye contact.

    He looked tired. His face was cleanly shaven and¡­aged. Finely. Like wine. Plus, the trench coat gave him extra mysterious points¡­and nostalgia. Was it the detective show he used to watch where that one guy and his Linoone went all around town busting bad guys or¡­

    No.

    There was something about him¡ªhis voice. That ¡®Hi, I''m an adult and I drink coffee¡¯ voice. Easy on the ears¡­familiar on the ears.

    ¡°Here you are. That''ll be 2700¡­¡± The server lady said. ¡°We take E-wallet¡­¡±

    ¡°Wha¡ªhow? Sorry, how?¡± Lucas said in a softer tone.

    ¡°Well, your brownies are 800 and you got three of those, plus one Eevee muffin¡ªalthough I prefer coffee muffins¡ªis 300, so that''s 2700¡­¡± the mysterious man said in his finely aged voice.

    Lucas pulled out his remaining cash from his pocket. 100¡­300¡­1200¡­

    ¡°I''ve only got 2100,¡± he shook his head. ¡°Please take out¡ª¡±

    ¡°I mean, it is an inter-regional store. It''s okay. I can pay the rest. You said you take E-wallet, yes?¡± the trench coat guy said to the server lady, pulling out a sleek brown Bidoof bank card¡ª

    ¡°No!¡± Lucas blurted out. ¡°Sorry¡­but please, you don''t have to pay, mister.¡±

    ¡°You don''t want me to?¡±

    ¡­

    Lucas shook his head with such little power you''d barely notice. The trench coat guy smirked, shrugging his shoulders and taking the cup of coffee sitting on the counter.

    ¡°That''s okay too,¡± he said. ¡°You be careful, kid¡ªoh! And be on the lookout for any weirdos with crazy costumes and funny hair, ¡®kay?¡±

    Just like that, the mystery man was out of sight the moment the door closed behind him.

    ¡­

    ¡°So¡­am I still removing anything?¡± the server lady asked, snapping the tongs at Lucas, her hand on her hip.

    There was something about that noise, that snap! snap! It irritated him.

    ¡°Yes. Sorry¡­¡± he said. ¡°Please take out two brownies¡­¡±

    The lady watched his eyes zigzag onto everything but her eyes. That trench coat guy was right. It was a shame. He wasn''t a regular, of course¡ªnot many kids were, most were at the school by this time. Anyway, he was just one of billions of customers. As long as she got paid for feeding them all that sugar¡ªwho cared? Eventually, she rang him up, and he was out of her life like all the rest.

    Back outside, Lucas scarfed down his breakfast, the noise of people''s marching and the air blowing into his ears still showering his ears.

    But something was still bothering him. Two things: that trench coat guy. Specifically, the last thing he said. Weirdos with funny hair and crazy costumes? What kind of funny hair? What kind of costumes? The aftertaste of their conversation lingered in his mouth, regardless of the sweet, gooey caramel Eevee muffin he was chewing.

    Speaking of which¡ªthe second thing! The brownies were MUCH bigger on TV! Way more chocolate too! He''d completely embarrassed himself in there too, not looking at the price tags and planning ahead. Such an idiot! It would''ve been even more embarrassing if the trench coat guy paid for it all¡ªthen he''d really be a helpless loser.

    If he''d known it''d be so expensive, maybe Lucas wouldn''t have even gone in there instead of following the girl. Maybe he''d be at the school too!

    Side note: he didn''t even know where it was. It¡¯s not like he didn''t already know that; he was just too stupid to take the chance given to him and follow the schoolgirl!

    He continued battering himself internally, verbally kicking himself up and down the street as he marched down the street with no aim. A red flag for anyone new to the busy city¡ªan easy way to get your stuff robbed blind.

    Ironically, Lucas''s eyes were stolen at that moment. Robbed blind. A red flag. Literally. But not a bad one. He''d seen it before. That red coat.

    Hold on!

    Yes! In the middle of a crowd of pedestrians! He couldn''t mistake that for anything else. Any ONE else. His heart filled with hope the moment he saw her.

    The moment he saw¡ª

    ¡°Dawn!¡±

 Chapter 31: Assistants.

    ¡°Dawn!¡±

    The girl turned around, startled at the approach of a wide-eyed Lucas.

    ¡°Lucas? You made it here already? Wow, I''m surprised. When did you get here?¡± Her eyes locked onto the plaster pasted on his cheek. She couldn''t help but notice the stressed look in his eyes. He''d been through something¡­

    ¡°Me? Let me tell you!¡± he spat, averting his gaze. ¡°I got here last night. It wasn''t easy, but I managed. Learned a lot too¡ªI even caught a Shinx!¡±

    ¡°You did? That''s good to hear, Lucas. Professor''s gonna be happy to hear you''re filling up your Pok¨¦dex. I knew it''d be better if we parted ways; you''re getting stronger already.¡± Dawn¡¯s eyebrows were stiff, her voice filled with hushed urgency and subtle reluctance. Her eyes shifted toward the phone in her hand upon feeling a little vibration. ¡°No, no, no¡­¡± Her fingers tap-danced on her screen in a flurried blur before she pressed send, the tip of her thumb barely in her mouth as she gnawed on her nail.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°What? Oh!¡± Embarrassed, she quickly put her thumb away. ¡°Nothing. You said you caught a Shinx? Lemme see it.¡±

    Lucas lit up, pulling out a Pok¨¦ball from his jacket¡ª

    ¡°No!¡±

    People walking by turned their heads, the volume of Dawn¡¯s voice pulling their ears.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Sorry¡­¡± Lucas said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t take out your Pok¨¦mon here. You¡¯re not allowed to have your Pok¨¦mon out of their balls in town, Lucas. I meant show me on your Pok¨¦dex, silly.¡±

    ¡°Oh¡­I don¡¯t know how to record the Pok¨¦mon I¡¯ve caught in my Dex, so it won¡¯t show up on the¡­¡±

    Lucas¡¯s words fizzled out in Dawn¡¯s ears. She couldn''t focus. Not with what was on her screen. It was far too important, far more important than this baby she had to take care of. She didn¡¯t need him giving her more stress, not then. Not with the headache, the absolute mess she was in.

    ¡­

    ¡°What? No, you don''t need to record anything, Lucas, come on. That was years ago...¡± Dawn dug into her pocket and pulled out another phone-like device. ¡°See?¡±

    Lucas scanned the screen. There was a picture of a Swinub with a bunch of descriptions on the species.

    ¡°You have a Swinub?¡±

    ¡°That''s not the point. Can you focus?¡±

    ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°It''s alright. I was trying to show you all the data. I didn''t record that. With all the research and stuff all over the internet, there¡¯s no need to record stuff unless you¡¯re an actual legit researcher or you¡¯re studying rare specimens¡­¡± she said, her gaze returning to her screen.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that mean I have to enter data into this thing when I come across legendary Pok¨¦mon? That sounds like something I need to do with the whole mission Professor gave me¡­¡±

    The more he spoke, the more tense she felt her eyebrows becoming. Every word that came out of his mouth bolstered her irritation tenfold, and she felt all the stress about to burst out her mouth until¡ª

    Ding!

    Her phone buzzed in her hand.

    It was him.

    ¡°Meet me at the library right now. If you don¡¯t show up in the next twenty minutes, I¡¯m not helping you. I¡¯ve got things to do. Hurry up.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Dawn burst out, her heart pumping boldly in her chest.

    ¡°So I¡¯m right?¡±

    ¡°What? Look, Lucas, I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t help you right now. Something seriously wrong is happening, and I need to leave right now. I don¡¯t have time to help now, okay? Bye!¡± Dawn was already jogging away on the street.

    Lucas hopped into action, chasing after her in a panic. This was his chance, a second chance he couldn¡¯t afford to miss no matter what. He needed to get to the Pok¨¦mon school.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    He needed her. He needed her help. He couldn¡¯t do it himself, he couldn¡¯t do anything himself. But this was the last time. After he got to the school, he¡¯d do everything himself. He wouldn¡¯t need anyone else.

    Never again.

    The boy dashed past parked bikes and galleries of stores, after the girl in a red coat running like there was no tomorrow.

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir. It¡¯s Jupiter.¡±

    ¡°I know. I have you saved as ¡®Jupiter.¡¯¡±

    ¡°My apologies, sir. I was just making sure. I¡¯m calling to give you a report on the mission so far. We have them, sir. The research papers. Our units retrieved them with no casualties last night.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Sir?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Jupiter.¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir?¡±

    ¡°Why am I not speaking to Mars on this matter?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Well, sir, I¡ª¡±

    ¡°I put her in charge of retrieving the papers from the school before she meets with Pluto to collect energy at Valley Windworks. I ask again: why am I speaking to you?¡±

    ¡°You see, sir¡ª¡±

    ¡°Where is she?¡±

    ¡°Excuse me, sir¡ª¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t waste my time, Jupiter. This mission is beyond you and your petty ego. Where is Mars? Put her on the line. I want to speak with her, not you.¡±

    ¡°Sir, are you sure you want to leave it in her hands? You know how reckless¡ª¡±

    ¡°Jupiter!¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°My apologies, sir. Please hold.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Good morning, Master Cyrus¡­¡±

    ¡°Commander Mars. Where are you right now?¡±

    ¡°Right now? Oh, we''re just about to leave for Floaroma, sir. I insisted that we leave the minute we retrieved the papers, but Jupiter said we need to be ¡®thorough¡¯ and make sure that poor little girl didn¡¯t follow us or bring reinforcements¡­¡±

    ¡°What little girl?¡±

    ¡°She didn¡¯t tell you? So much for being thorough¡ªthere was a poor little girl making her way out of the school around seven last night. One of the Professor¡¯s assistants. She was carrying a little parcel, so I told two of my units to go after her. Luckily for us, she had the research papers, so we didn¡¯t even have to raid the school.¡±

    ¡°I see. Excellent work, Mars.¡±

    ¡°Why, thank you, Master Cyrus, but the job is far from finished. We still have quite a way to go until we''re in any position to celebrate¡­¡±

    ¡°Ever the practical one. I made no mistake picking you to carry out the mission. I trust you¡¯ll be able to carry out the mission in Valley Windworks alongside Pluto with no casualties.¡±

    ¡°Of course, sir. I¡¯ll make sure everything goes exactly as it should.¡±

    ¡°Brilliant. Put Jupiter back on the line. We¡¯re done here.¡±

    ¡°By any means, Master Cyrus, but¡­¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°The briefcase¡­what''s inside it?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Are there others around you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m alone now. I just left the room.¡±

    ¡°Right. You are aware that Steven Stone is currently in the region?¡±

    ¡°Of course, sir. I hear he¡¯s researching the tunnels in Oreburgh for possible diamond deposits¡­why?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s half the story. He supplied us with an assortment of¡­stones.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s incredible, sir! But what¡¯s in it for him?¡±

    ¡°A place in our new world. He also seems fixated on a certain anomaly striding across the stars.¡±

    ¡°A Pok¨¦mon?¡±

    ¡°An alien, more than anything. He''d like to use our research facilities to observe it further. We''ve struck a deal. He will continue to sponsor us so long as we assist his own research. A deposit of P8,000,000. For now. That should be more than enough funding for this stage of the plan.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­so that''s what''s in the box.¡±

    ¡°No. To finally answer your question: inside that briefcase is a legendary Pok¨¦mon. Registeel.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Mars? Does that satisfy your curiosity, Commander Mars?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Yes, Master Cyrus. Thank you for your patience and your tolerance. I¡¯ll pass the line to Jupiter now¡­¡±

    ¡°Mars.¡±

    ¡°Sir?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s in the briefcase?¡±

    ¡°Absolutely nothing, sir.¡±

 Chapter 32: Whatever you want.

    Veilstone City.

    <hr>

    ¡°Hello and good morning from Jubilife City. As always, I am Ada Larix, and you are watching CCB Sinnoh.

    "Sinnoh League Champion Cynthia makes preparations for the World Coronation Series in November by challenging both the Elite Four¡¯s Psychic-type specialist, Lucian, and Hoenn League Champion Steven Stone to high-octane exhibition matches. The games are scheduled to be held next week Saturday at the Battle Resort Fight Area, and the Pok¨¦mon League Association President and President of the Macro Cosmos conglomerate, Myers Rose, will be present to oversee the games¡­¡±

    ¡°Did you get that?¡±

    ¡°Loud and clear, sir.¡± A sly guy with a sharp and crooked voice said, his eyes staring up at the TV screen, observing the beautiful blonde woman being interviewed.

    ¡°...No reason other than to stir things up, warm up the competition. I grew up watching legends like Lady Agatha, Lady Bertha, and Sir Drayden go toe to toe in the most intense battles, but we¡¯ve still never had anything like the World Coronation Series. It¡¯s going to change everything, and I¡¯d love to give everyone a taste of just how wild things are about to get all around the world.¡±

    ¡°That was the Queen of Legends when asked why she issued such a daunting challenge. President Rose also hinted at some additional matches being held on the day.¡±

    The screen cut to a pristine man wearing a sleek grey suit, cameras flickering and flashing his face in floods of light; several mics were held up to his tan, neatly bearded face.

    ¡°She¡¯s right. I feel we can all see Cynthia¡¯s perspective. In fact, I had been thinking of organising a few matches in preparation for the debut in November. I also feel we can do much, much more. I think many of us will agree that there is definitely room for more. I think we can throw in a few more Elite Four members, a champion or two. But that¡¯s just from the top of my head. You, at the back.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Mr President, Marcus Nantes from CCB Galar¡ª¡±

    ¡°Oh, one of our own!¡± The president grew a delighted smirk, even his rich jade eyes smiling with pride.

    ¡°Yes, sir. My question to you is: You said you feel there¡¯s room for more. Did you have anyone specific in mind? Who would you like to see in the stadium?¡±

    Rose placed a hand on his chin and made a thoughtful expression, as though he wasn¡¯t expecting this question.

    ¡°Personally? I¡¯d love to see Kalos¡¯s First Lady step into the field. I don¡¯t know, I just love her battle style. So gracious, so elegant, so powerful; there¡¯s just something about young, beautiful talent¡ªI was watching her last week, and I¡¯m loving the additions of Sylveon and Goodra over Aurorus and¡­¡±

    ¡°Do you have any idea what this means for us¡­ Saturn?¡± the boss asked him.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    The sly young man slicked his hair, a horned smirk on his face. Oh, he had a few ideas what it meant. None of which were the type you¡¯d want to be caught up in as collateral damage. The type of ideas that ended with a bunch of nameless faces being thrown onto the front page of a newspaper as an exponentially tragic number sparked by an event that may or may not involve gunpowder.

    ¡°I understand, sir. We cannot miss such a marvellous opportunity. I¡¯ll get to work.¡± Unable to pull off his crafty smile, Saturn left the room to get to work.

    Now, he was all alone. The Boss was all alone. Just like when he was born into this world and just like how he would depart from it.

    He was alone, save for the smooth humming of an air conditioner pouring cool air into the room. It was pitch black in there. Green specs of flickering light twinkled in the room; lights from the servers. In front of him was the big TV screen, his almost skeletal face flooded by blue light as he watched Friday morning news. But it didn¡¯t bother his eyes. Nothing did. His grim, sunken eyes were full of nothing.

    He just stood there in the dark, his hands behind his back.

    Listening.

    Scheming.

    ¡°Who else? I¡¯ve always wanted to see Drake and Lance clash. It has to happen¡ªthe strongest Dragon trainer of today up against the strongest Dragon trainer in history. That¡¯d be wonderful. You know, this is exactly why we¡¯re doing this. So many fantasy matches are about to become reality, so many dreams. More importantly, average trainers have a chance to steal the spotlight¡ªto show the world who they are and step into the arena with the very best. Last question. You, young lady in the front¡­¡±

    ¡°Thank you for your time, Mr President. Alana Beet with UBC...¡±

    ¡°I see, All the way from Unova? Good morning to you, Miss."

    ¡°Good morning to you too, sir. This is concerning the rampant rise in crime all across the regions. We''re still getting reports of Team Rocket distributing illegal Pok¨¦mon and enhancement drugs across Kanto, but now we''re hearing rumours of two new gangs in Hoenn, Team Aqua and Magma¡ª¡±

    ¡°I understand your concern, and I''m here to tell you all right now: we''ve got it under control¡­¡±

    All lies.

    He could never fool him. No. It took a very special type of person to go in front of a large conglomerate of people and confidently lie without a drop of remorse or care. Only a handful of people born on this twisted, irreparable world had that voice. The type of voice capable of throwing vigour into people¡¯s hearts just by selling them¡­

    Dreams.

    It was just like Rose said. Fantasy. Dreams. The hearts of humans revolved around those two. People love to hear the best possible thing, being fed the best possible outcome. If he could sell these people these fantasies and sound like he believed they¡¯d come true as much as people wanted them to be true: He¡¯d won.

    No, no. He could never fool him. Rose was a manipulator.

    How could he tell?

    Because it takes one to know one.

    When it came to Cyrus, well¡­ let¡¯s just say he knew a thing or two about using charisma to get people drunk on their fantasies enough to make them do whatever you say. Whatever you want. Even the smartest of people, like Saturn, were not immune to this sort of¡­ mental conditioning.

    All it took was a promise. You can get whatever you want.

    Freedom. Money. Acceptance. Family.

    Power and control.

    Unfortunately¡­ for them, not him, the youth was always the most suitable candidate. The insecure, the hopeless, the¡­ powerless. All he had to do was find them and give them what they thought they needed. What they really wanted. In their darkest hour, he''d show. He''d be the light. Their guide.

    Their god. Kind of.

    ¡°This Coronation Series¡­¡± he spoke, stretching an arm out. ¡°It presents the perfect opportunity. Imagine: they''ll all be too busy on the launch day to pay attention to their own cataclysm. By then¡­ I would''ve made sure the damage would be irreversible. No do-overs.

    ¡°Now, 8B¡­¡± Out of the darkness, a bird flapped its murderous midnight wings and perched on his arm. ¡°Let''s hear what Hoenn''s Champion has to say to us. Time to head out.¡±

    The Honchkrow nodded her head. Make no mistake, Cyrus may have been alone, but he wasn''t alone. Something you''d come to understand soon enough. There was always something else, someone else.

    Willing to do the worst¡­

 ANNOUNCEMENT

    Hello there.

    I regret to you inform you all that this story is done. I no longer have the passion or motivation to continue this story.

    Sorry to disappoint you, but I''ll be moving on to better things.Stolen novel; please report.

    Chill out bro, I''m just joking. I''ve decided to end this version, the beta version, and replace it with a remastered version. As of right now, there are 4 chapters remaining that will be posted. After that, this story will be deleted in place of the Platinum version.

    This story has barely even begun and I would seriously love to thank you all for tuning in, especially those of you who''ve commented and rated the story.

    That''s all.