《Pokémon: ICE COLD [PLATINUM]》


 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-jumping 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"-stupid 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.''


    Stolen novel; please report.


    Each time it would loop around his shattered psyche, he could feel his veins about to burst with steaming blood.


    "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-something was missing.


    He joined because something was missing.


    His 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-I 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 pointed at the shiny red pok¨¦ball sitting in the far right side of the brown briefcase.


    ¡°Ahh¡­ the penguin pok¨¦mon, piplup. Extraordinarily competitive, I have to say. But¡­for those that can distil its stubbornness: an excellent partner in any area. Marvellous choice,¡±


    Lucas''s heart almost blew up. His pale gray eyes sparkled like a silver lake on a sunny day or something. Not only had The Professor just given him a pok¨¦mon, but he called it a marvellous choice! How many times has Professor Rowan called your pok¨¦mon a marvellous choice?


    ¡°Thank you so much, Professor Rowan! You have no idea what this means to me¡ªI¡¯ve been watching you since I was like eight! You¡¯re so cool!¡± 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 or powdered icing. He''d been to Route 201 so many times, but this time; this one in particular was something special.


    Once in a lifetime.


    ¡°It¡¯s awesome that you chose piplup; I can totally see the logic behind it (I have one too) (¡£?¦Ø?¡£)¡± said the girl accompanying the professor. Lucas had never seen her in his life, but the moment he had, he felt like he¡¯d been cured from¡­ from something.


    But then again¡­


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t choose anything else; that¡¯d ruin everything¡­¡± he said.


    ¡°That''s awesome, you already have everything planned out?¡± Dawn asked, her pink boots crunching the snow as she moved closer to Lucas.


    ¡°No, that¡¯s not it. I¡­ I feel like it¡¯d be wrong to choose any other pok¨¦mon. I don¡¯t know, but piplup feels like the right choice¡ª¡±


    ¡°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.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Professor Rowan watched, remembering when he witnessed children just like these in this exact scene. Nothing changed.


    This was good.


    ¡°I choose turtwig! Together, we''ll take over the entire region¡ªwe''ll have our fight with Dad in no time!¡± Barry held the sleek orb in his hand to the sky with a grin.


    ¡°What was that about your father, young man?¡± Rowan asked.


    ¡°Huh? Oh, I''m gonna challenge him and I''m gonna win is all. He''s a frontier brain, so he''s crazy strong, but I know I''ll beat him. First I''ve gotta become champion, which''ll be super easy. Cynthia won''t know what the hell hit her, you''ll see. The thing is with all these League guys is they think they''re invincible. Watch, in no time at all, I''ll crush the Elite Four, and just like that: I''ll be ready to beat my dad!¡±


    The silvery professor nodded his head, seemingly interested in the young boy''s ambition.


    ¡°How interesting,¡± he said, ¡°the son of a frontier brain; you''re certainly bursting with vigour. And what about you, Lucas? What are your ambitions?¡±


    Lucas paused for a second. ¡°Well¡­¡±


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t even know yet!¡± Barry''s voice buzzed in their ears like a combee''s wings. ¡°He says he wants to be a strong trainer and all that, but he doesn''t even have a clear goal in mind!¡±


    Professor Rowan noticed Lucas''s demeanor dampen. Whereas Barry was like a wild electrike, Lucas was more a¡­ a tynamo.


    ¡°Is that so, Lucas?¡± The professor glared at him with his refined blue eyes.


    ¡°Sorry? No¡­ Well, I don''t know.¡± He held the white scarf wrapped around his neck. ¡°I haven''t figured it out yet. I know it''s bad, but I still need time to think about it¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Rowan asked, ¡°You say you need time?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir¡­ I think. I-it''s not like I don''t have any ideas! Don''t get me wrong,¡± Lucas''s eyes briefly met with Dawn''s, ¡°I''m still trying to figure it out, I guess.¡±


    He understood. There was never a need to rush. This was a delicate time. A very important moment. The professor fixed his tie and cleared his throat. Dawn immediately knew what that meant. He''d had enough.


    ¡°Well, gentlemen¡­ I''ll leave those little ones in your care. Go out and see the world, and don''t forget to open yourselves up to new experiences. I''m quite busy at the moment, but be sure to stop by my lab tomorrow. Dawn¡­¡±


    ¡°Coming, Professor!¡± She said, shutting the briefcase and locking eyes with Lucas. ¡°It was nice to meet you guys; please take care of your pok¨¦mon.¡±


    ¡°Bye! Thanks again, Professor Rowan! I''ll definitely come by!¡± Lucas waved, his cold misty breath dancing in the noon air. His heart was still swollen with excitement, still on the verge of bursting.


    Professor Rowan was such a kind person, so wise too¡ªdefinitely someone to look up to. He set such a good example and¡ª


    ¡°Lucas, I challenge you to a battle right now!¡±

 Chapter 2: Blitz.

    ¡°Huh? Right now?¡±


    Barry threw his pok¨¦ball in the air with an almost furious look on his face. He pointed at Lucas.


    ¡°Right now.¡±


    Exploding from the ball in a blue burst of light was a little green tortoise, snapping its jaws with ready eagerness.


    ¡°Woah¡­ that''s awesome!¡± Lucas couldn''t help but yell in awe, ¡°It''s a real life turtwig! It''s way greener than I expected¡­ wait¨Cdo they usually look that green?¡±


    Now paired with his pseudo-furious expression was a blazing grin. This was really happening. The first steps of his journey to the top. ¡°Hey! Your name is Twinleaf now, they''re gonna know exactly where we''re from. You and me are gonna put our nameless town on the map! We''re gonna blitz everything and everyone that stands in our way, Twinleaf. Starting with him!¡±


    Barry sounded like an explosion, unleashing a literary flamethrower from his mouth something like a magmar. He meant every syllable too, and the newly named Twinleaf seemed to be feeding off his energy.


    Lucas stood there watching, the heatwave of Barry''s declaration soaking into his pores. He was always so passionate, always so dead set on winning like there was no room for anything else. It was almost¡­ intimidating.


    ¡°Alright¡­ since that''s what you want.¡± Lucas flung his own pok¨¦ball onto the ground, ¡°Let''s go, piplup!¡±


    ¡­


    They all stared at the lifeless ball sitting in the frosty grass.


    ¡°You idiot, you''re supposed to press the button before you throw it! That''s common sense, Lucas! (*£à§¥¡ä)¥Î£¡£¡!¡± Barry shook his head. This guy was such a novice. He stood absolutely no chance.


    ¡°Oh¡­ my bad. ( ¡ä-¦Ø-)¡±


    Lucas sheepishly fetched the now-moist ball, which was now covered in frost and wet dead grass. He really was an idiot if he didn''t know something as basic as that. What, did you really think you just throw it in the air and your partner just decides to come out?


    He pressed the little white button and watched it pulse bright blue for a few seconds before the same flare of light erupted from it and out came a little blue penguin.


    "Yes! It worked, Barry! Do you see my¨C¡±


    ¡°Twinleaf, tackle!¡±


    ¡°What the heck, that''s not fair! (££?§¥?)¡±


    Lucas''s heart pounded in his chest. That tiny green thing was much faster than it looked!If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    But screw all that!


    With no hesitation, Twinleaf bashed his solid little head into the penguin''s ribcage, sending it crashing into the frozen ground.


    ¡°Yes, Twinleaf, you beautiful thing!¡± Barry pumped a fist in the air. Twinleaf shook his head, blood pumping, his spirit amplified by the high voltage of his trainer¡¯s words.


    It was strange.


    The link between humans and pok¨¦mon. Not just trainers. Years and years and years of integration between humans and the creatures had birthed a complex union. One of¡­ strange understanding.


    From the immediate onset, this mossy green tortoise and this electrical blonde boy were somehow aligned. As if this wasn''t the first time they''d met.


    Such was the nature of their relationship of humans and pok¨¦mon. The link. Beyond words.


    Lucas''s 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 turned around to face the bold tortoise with a sapling sprouting out its head.


    Lucas held his scarf. ¡°Hey, are you okay? Sorry about that, he didn¡¯t even give us the chance to get ready¨C¡±


    But before Lucas could finish dropping a load of irrelevant verbal nothings, the blue bird shrieked with avian rage and darted straight for its foe!


    ¡°The professor wasn''t lying; that thing really is stubborn! Twinleaf, tackle!¡±


    As if it already knew Barry''s command, Twinleaf charged on!


    ¡°Watch out! Get out the way!¡±


    Lucas watched helplessly as his partner was sent flying into a solid dirt ledge, face-planting into the grass.


    ¡°Who said stop¡ªtackle, one more time!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Lucas cried.


    But there was no room for that.


    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, Twinleaf showed no mercy.


    ¡°Barry, STOP! That''s enough!¡±


    ¡°Hell no! Are you stupid? That''s not how it works, is it, Twinleaf?¡± Barry yelled. Twinleaf let out a gravelly cry surging with wild energy. Of course not! This is what he lived for! ¡°I didn''t think so, you little green monster! Now stop wasting time and tackle that useless bird¡ªend it now!¡±


    Suddenly, a furious blazing aura covered the shelled beast. The Turtwig''s solid scalp collided with piplup''s soft, fluffy body, lifting the penguin up and bulldozed 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.


    ¡­


    ¡°No way! £¡£¡(©b¥í©b¥Î)¥Î ¡± Barry sprinted at his partner and lifted him up into his arms. "What the heck was that? How do you know that move, are you crazy? No way! I''ve gotta tell Dad¡ªthat was so sick, Twinleaf! You''re a legend, you''re so¡­ damn heavy!"


    The two victors celebrated their first victory. The first of many.


    On the other hand¡­


    Lucas was... frozen. The image of a bird beaten black and blue, bloody and bruised was soaking into his mind.


    His head felt like it had been bashed by a hammer, or like he was the one who''d been pumelled by a tortoise¡­ and the longer he looked on, the angrier he got.


    ¡°Hey!¡± He picked the unconscious bird from the ground into his arms, ¡°You cheated! You didn''t tell me we were starting, Barry. That''s not fair!¡±


    Barry shot Lucas a bewildered glare that fizzled into a look of distaste, ¡°Cry more! You''re just upset that you lost and that''s all. It''s not my job to wait for you because you don''t know what you''re doing. Look now, your pok¨¦mon¡¯s out of commission. What a sorry excuse for a fight.¡±


    Unable to look at the beaten bird, Lucas returned it to its pok¨¦ball.


    Barry scoffed.


    ¡°You know, 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?¡±


    Barry''s face creased in confusion. ¡°Yeah... how did you know that? Nevermind, I bet Dad told you that too. Pff, why¡¯d he share that with a sissy like you¡ªDamn you''re heavy! That''s it, I''m putting you down!¡±


    Twinleaf snapped his jaws, complaining about the sudden change of arrangements.


    ¡°He didn''t, I think I''ve heard it before,¡± Lucas said. It was strange.


    ¡°Whatever, man.¡± Barry said, ¡°Anyway, you were destined to lose that fight. You weren''t even in it anyway, to be honest. I''ll see you tomorrow morning when we head out to the old man''s lab. Don''t waste my time again.¡±


    Lucas looked to the floor, remembering what happened earlier. ¡°Alright¡­ (©`_©`;)¡±

 Entry #01

    Wednesday, 14 January 2044


    Today was different. Yeah, today was unlike any other day; I''d never lived in a day like this. I''ll never forget the headache I had this morning. It was for two seconds, and I saw some really weird stuff. I think I was dreaming about being in space. I don''t know; that''s how it looked like.


    There were galaxies and those cool space clouds, but it was shattered and weird with little floating islands. That''s all I remember from the dream. And that it gave me a headache!


    Anyway, I woke up to a loud knock on the door. Banging, actually. It was him, of course. He always comes around that time. Usually, Nanny opens the door for him, and he barges into my room, so I was surprised not to be woken up by him.


    This time, though, for some reason, Nanny didn''t open for him, so I woke up to his loud banging.


    Surprisingly, when I got downstairs, it was empty. The kitchen, living room¡ªall empty. I found Nanny''s little Eevee on the sofa, curled up in a cozy ball, fast asleep. He''s always sleeping. Since I could remember, Nanny always called him her little brownie, but she never gave him an actual name.


    I opened the door. Just as I suspected, it was him. Still as jittery as ever, but today was different, remember? He was even more excited than usual.


    He was all like:


    ¡°Lucas! What the hell took you so long? Nevermind, nevermind, nevermind¡ªlisten! We need to go, right now! We''re gonna be late!¡±


    He was super excited. Sparks may as well have been flying out of his mouth with how fast he was talking. I couldn''t sleep anymore; he''d electrified everything around us. The air, the living room; everything. No one could sleep with him around to charge things up.


    I was confused at the time, so I asked him what we were late for, and he went off!


    ¡°Are you stupid? Stop screwing around, Lucas, let''s go! Get changed and let''s go; there''s no time for showering, we gotta go now!¡± He yelled, ¡°Unless you don''t want a Pok¨¦mon anymore!¡±


    Wanna know something crazy?


    I''d completely forgotten. Today was the day. The day we were going to go to Professor Rowan¡¯s Lab and ask for Pok¨¦mon. I was super tired, so somehow I thought I already had one. Can you believe it?


    I didn''t, though.


    But now, things have changed!


    Today was the day. We got our very first Pok¨¦mon! I''ve been super excited the whole day. I rushed upstairs and got dressed, making sure to take my scarf with me. I couldn''t leave without it.


    We were about to leave when I realized I left my bag. But when I told Barry, he said something like:


    ¡°Dude, hurry the hell up! And don''t forget your card; otherwise, we''ll have wasted even more time!¡±


    It was a good thing he''d said so because I definitely would''ve left it. You know, he may always be in a rush, but out of the two of us, I''m definitely more careless. I wouldn''t get far without any help or someone to remind me.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    I was this close to leaving my Poketch upstairs too. I don''t know; I feel like I''m always missing something.


    Not my scarf, though. Never that. Even if I was being swarmed by Combees, I wouldn''t leave it.


    Anyway, Barry was groaning, and he didn''t want to wait any longer, so he told me he''ll meet me by the road. I''m not paying him that ten million for being late, though.


    Thankfully, he wasn''t too mad the rest of the day. He''s scary when he''s angry; plus, it''s always better when we get along. We''re best friends after all.


    More importantly, I can''t believe I actually met Professor Rowan today! He was wearing his signature brown coat too, and his hair was totally gray¡ªway more than it looked on TV!


    He was so cool!


    And that girl he brought with him, Dawn¡ªshe''s so pretty! I think I might be in love. And the way she smiled at me! I can''t wait to see her tomorrow when Barry and I go visit the Professor in Sandgem.


    No one was home today.


    She was gone. She''s always gone. Again and again. Every day I wake up, and she''s gone. Not that she''s there when I go to sleep. Mom''s always busy, always out of town for work. Always too busy for me.


    I don''t know where Nanny went either; she''s been gone the whole day. I thought I''d find her when I got back, but no. Anyway, I hope Mom comes back soon. I haven''t seen her in a while, and I''m starting to miss her. She doesn''t pick up when I call either. She''s still helping Kiera get ready for her contest next week in Hearthome. I get she has to work and all, but¡­ is it too much for her to come back?


    It hurts more than losing.


    Side note: I lost my very first battle! Shucks. I thought it''d hurt more, but for some reason, I don''t feel too bad. I kinda expected it. I hope I don''t sound like too much of a loser, but I mean¡­ it was kinda destined to happen. Barry''s so much better than me; plus, he''s got an actual goal!


    Unlike me.


    I mean, I do wanna be strong and stuff and become champion, I guess. I mean, that''s basically every kid''s dream. Sounds like fun. But I don''t know if that''s all I wanna do. I mean, there''s so much to learn, the history of the world, what happened in the past, the myths, the legends¡ªso much I want to learn.


    Of course, I''ve got to become super strong. That''s definitely gonna happen. It''s not like a like losing (I hate it).


    Yeah, but there''s so much out there; I don''t wanna get stuck on one thing. What if I see something or meet someone and change my mind? It''s not like the Pok¨¦mon League''s all there is to life, right?


    Barry would probably hit me if I said that. He loves the League. It''s all he watches, especially when his dad is on. Must be nice seeing his dad in action. I bet that''s why he''s so good already; his dad''s probably giving him cool advice. I remember he said his dad sometimes let him battle before we even got our own.


    He''ll probably become champion just like he says.


    It''s all good, though. I''ll be fine, especially with my new partner! Piplup really was and always will be the only choice for me. Nothing could ever change that!


    ...


    I still miss him.


    I wonder what he''d say about me losing to Barry today. He was always so strong, so cool. He''d probably tell me to toughen up and get Barry back in blood. (I WILL).


    Nothing to worry about, though. Soon, I''ll be super strong. Just like him. Me and Azure against the world. Yes, that''s what I''m naming him. Azure! I like it; I think I''ll stick with the color scheme for all my partners'' names. It''ll make them stand out, plus Bulbapedia says Pok¨¦mon like affectionate names.


    Alright, alright, on to business.


    First stop after Professor¡¯s lab: Oreburgh mines. I bet I can toughen a whole bunch before I challenge Roark.


    Yeah, gotta go to the mines.


    Plus, I''ve always wanted to see what the mines are like on the inside. Maybe I should check out the school too; bet there''ll be a bunch of cool people I can learn from. Who knows? Maybe I''ll come across a Veteran or an Ace Trainer, and they can teach me a few things.


    Okay! Tomorrow we''ll go to the lab and then straight to Jubilife.


    That''s all for today.

 Interlude #01

    He always was such a pussy.


    A failure. I still can''t believe he let that happen. Barry was right, he really was just a scared little purrloin who always needed someone to tell him how it was.


    Always so unsure and on edge. Soft and squishy like a fucking marshmallow.


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    He wouldn''t have survived long. No, he definitely wouldn''t have gotten far.


    It''s a good thing he''s dead.


    Yeah.


    A good thing they''re dead.

 Chapter 3: Control.

    Up in the cerulean sky, flocks of cotton-winged Swablu sang heavenly songs as they flapped by with their majestic melodies graciously trailing a crested altaria; their leader, carrying their clouded flaps with the strong and wise gust provided by its powerful wings that were like a tempest of nimbus clouds.


    Their compass in their wondrous migration to the warmer regions of Sinnoh, past the dividing mountain range.


    Down on the ground, Lucas trudged through the thick snow covering the grass. The sound of slush crunching underfoot rang in his ears. It was still winter.


    "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.


    "Hurry up! We''re going to the Professor''s lab! Oh¡ªand 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.


    "I guess you really are slow. 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!"


    ¡°Are you crazy?¡± Lucas shook his head. ¡°Dude, I know you''re not into all that mythological stuff, but you''re smart enough to know you''re not about to catch a legendary Pok¨¦mon. I may have lost to you and all, and you''re better than me¡ªbut you can''t be serious. You probably have a higher chance of dying than doing that¡­¡±


    ¡°Okay, Mr. Historical, maybe not you¡ªbut we definitely can! Right, Twinleaf?¡± The Turtwig snapped its jaws in agreement. Of course they could. Of course they would. Who would stop them?


    ¡°We''re talking about a legendary Pok¨¦mon, Barry. Cynthia¡¯s not catching one of those things¡ªyour dad''s not catching one of those!¡±


    Barry shook his head in revolted disappointment. ¡°This is why you''re never gonna get anywhere, Lucas. You don''t have balls! Stop being such a bitch and dream.¡±


    ¡°Dude, I get that, but¡ª¡±


    ¡°Then let''s go now, you sissy!¡±


    The fire in Barry''s eyes was too much, bright and orange. Lucas was powerless in the face of it. It was ludicrous; the whole idea. A fantasy. But then again¡­


    ¡°Fine¡­ what''s wrong with trying?¡± The way he said it, the belief fueling his words made it somehow feasible. What if they did catch Mesprit? Imagine that!


    Lucas pulled out a Pok¨¦ Ball from his pocket and pressed the button to let out a tweeting bird covered in royal blue plumage. Unfortunately, Azure wasn''t in any sort of friendly mood. The second his webbed yellow feet touched down on the frosty floor and his blue eyes caught the stupid green turtle sitting at Barry''s feet, the only thing Azure''s blue eyes were seeing was red!


    ¡°Azure, stop! What are you doing?¡± Lucas cried. But who was Lucas to tell him what to do? Nobody! That''s why he charged on relentlessly, Pounding the turtle with his big bird''s head!


    ¡°What the hell! Lucas, get your stupid Piplup under control! (££?§¥?)?¡±


    ¡°I''m trying! Azure, come on! Stop this¡ª¡±


    ¡°Screw it! Twinleaf, Leafage!¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡±


    Faster than Lucas could think, a flurry of potent leaves furiously ravaged the raging Piplup and sent it crashing into the snowy grass! But that didn''t mean anything to the Piplup! Even battered and on the brink of passing out, the only thing on Azure''s mind was vengeance! Like a zombie, he picked himself up and charged on without thought!


    ¡°Twinleaf, Superpower¡ª¡±


    ¡°Azure, return!¡±


    Right then, in a flash of urgent blue light, the crazed penguin was sucked back into its Pok¨¦ Ball. Lucas''s hands trembled, the Pok¨¦ Ball clutched tightly in his hand as if the Piplup was gonna break out. His heart a drumming bank of adrenaline. What the heck was that?


    ¡°Pretty brave of your Piplup to charge straight in after it got its ass absolutely annihilated yesterday!¡± Barry scoffed in a breath of cold fog. ¡°Nah. Actually, that was plain stupid. Really stupid. Nothing but a suicide attempt. Looks like you''ve got yourself a sore loser on your hands, Lucas.¡±


    ¡°Sorry¡­ I¡ª¡±


    ¡°You gotta get your Pok¨¦mon under control. If you can''t control them, if you don''t get them to obey you, you''re not supposed to be a trainer at all!¡±


    Lucas felt a torrential wave of shame smack his entire body. How embarrassing. It was like his voice was on mute the entire time; Azure didn''t listen to a single thing he said! Plus, he looked crazy! Like he was out for blood. He was supposed to control that? How? Who the heck could get something like that under control? A virgin trainer like him?


    Don''t be stupid. That''s insane!


    How on Earth was Piplup the only choice? Why the hell did he choose something so¡­ rabid?


    ¡°Hey!¡±


    Barry''s voice struck his ears like lightning, zapping him right out of his trance.


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    ¡°Are you coming or not? Don''t waste my time. Unless you''re a scared little Purloin!¡±


    It was time to go. Not long after treading the grassy Route 201, full of annoying chirping Starlies, they arrived.


    There the boys were. An opening between a large cluster of evergreen trees.


    ¡°Lake Verity¡­¡± Lucas said in a voice tinged with nostalgia, ¡°To think this is where we''re gonna catch our first Pok¨¦mon¡­ other than Azure and Twinleaf, of course...¡±


    ¡°You mean where I''m gonna catch my first Pok¨¦mon, first come first served! Come on, Twinleaf!¡± Fast as thought, Barry bolted into the forest, his verdant partner trailing behind him.


    ¡°That''s not fair!¡± Lucas cried, chasing after him into a corridor lined with tall viridian trees that almost blocked out the sun with their webs of needle leaves.


    When he reached the other side, the sunlight engulfed his eyes like a white flame, revealing a silvery pan of water surrounded by perfect snow-tipped greenery.


    ¡°Twinleaf, you were supposed to block him off! (£££þ§©£þ)¡± Barry groaned.


    ¡°Hey, you cheated!¡± Lucas pointed at the blonde with a frustrated finger, only to be met with a simple shrug from Barry digging into his ear.


    ¡°Whatever, let''s just get to¡­ who''s that?¡±


    The two boys panned their gazes at a strange man standing in the middle of a patch of grass with his eyes hopelessly fixated on the lake.


    ¡°Hey! Who are you?¡± Barry burst, throwing an impatient stick of verbal dynamite at the stranger¡­ only to be met with a silent, desolate gaze from his dead eyes.


    ¡°Do not engage.¡±


    ¡°What the hell are you talking about?¡±


    ¡°Uhh¡­ Barry...?¡±


    Barry turned to see Lucas pointing a trembling finger at the trees behind them. All the blood in his body felt like it weighed a ton extra, sinking to the bottom of his soles.


    Sunken into the darkness of the trees, a pair of morbid blood eyes were frozen on the pair of helpless boys and the little Turtwig. Suddenly it felt like an unseen hand was gripping Lucas''s heart in its palm and another pair was holding his ankles in place.


    They¡¯d made a mistake.


    ¡°Do not be afraid¡­¡± fall foliage coldly crunched under his feet as he made his way toward them. ¡°I haven''t given her any commands to act. She is harmless. They both are..."


    Still and stiff, as if dead, its entire body remained frozen. It didn''t even look like it was breathing. Its canary beak pointed at them like a knife threatening to drill into their scalps. Its talons, razor claws, it could use to latch onto your skin and tear into your veins. Of all the Pok¨¦mon he could''ve run into that day, a Honchkrow was definitely not on Lucas''s wishlist. They were going to die.


    Barry struggled to turn his stiffening neck at the man. Where had all his strength gone? This wasn''t the time to be scared; he looked like an idiot!


    ¡°Who are you? I¡­ I won''t ask you again!¡± he yelled.


    ¡°Dude, chill out.¡± Lucas suggested in a quaky voice, unable to pull himself together.


    ¡°Shut up! I''m not scared like you! Do you hear me? I''m not¡­ scared¡­¡±


    Then he saw it. Fear sinking its fanged glare into his eyes from the corner of his eye. A horned four-legged devil burning the memory of mortality into his heart.


    ¡°Meaning is often the spirit pulled out of our words¡­¡± the man said.


    His voice¡­ his voice sounded clinically void yet accentuated by spiritless charisma.


    Of course, the sound of one''s voice is likely your least concern when a demonic Houndoom is eating away your spirit and all your strength by merely standing there.


    Twinleaf used the pathetic resin of his residual strength to shuffle his stumpy legs a meaningless inch backward. Away from the misery of this bipedal deliverer of infernal demise.


    ¡°But fear is merely just another sick joke integrated into our beings. Just like all emotions.¡±


    His hair was like a crown of pale blue icicles, with arctic eyes that sent frosted shivers up and down Lucas''s spine. It wasn''t that he was particularly tall, nor was it that he looked physically imposing. In fact, his skin latched tightly onto his cheekbones in a morbid way and he bore black crescents under his eyes, as if he was exhausted but spurred on by... something¡ªrather, everything about him filled Lucas''s spirit with an inexplicable dread. Dread that felt all too familiar. Dread that he was crying internally to escape from.


    ¡°My name is Cyrus.¡±


    Barry mouthlessly pointed at the gilded emblem sewn where his heart was. ¡°You''re¡­ you''re part of Team Galactic! You''re a criminal!¡±


    ¡°That I am. My ambition necessitates it. You see, there are some things in this world you cannot realize when constrained by the bindings of society''s warped ideals¡­¡± He squeezed his fist as if trying to strangle the air. ¡°Tell me, are either of you familiar with the legends surrounding the spirit of this lake?¡±


    ¡°No¡­ but who the hell cares about historical mumbo jumbo? Dad says that stuff''s a bunch of fairytales that people who wanna act like they know everything use to make people do what they want!¡±


    ¡°And you believe what your father says?¡±


    ¡°Of course!¡± Barry piped.


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Cyrus said. ¡°And you, young man?¡±


    Lucas''s eyes were full of uncertainty, the avian nightmare¡¯s eyes still drowning his mind in inky thoughts. ¡°Well¡­¡±


    ¡°His father''s dead!¡± Barry spouted in bloated words like a Wailord. ¡°Unless you meant all that other nonsense about legends, then Lucas knows all about that stuff!¡±


    Cyrus picked up the boy''s expression once his friend''s explosive words popped in the air. What an interesting dynamic they had. Of course, his interest lay in the silent one¡­


    ¡°Is that true?¡±


    Lucas''s fingers found their way to the scarf around his neck. ¡°Yes¡­ h-he was a ranger. He died on duty¡­¡±


    ¡°Forgive me, but that''s not what I meant by that question,¡± Cyrus said. ¡°Tell me what you know about the spirit of this lake. Your friend seems to be under the impression that you''re clued in on the matter.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ the legends say when Mesprit was born, humans began to feel emotions for the first time. It''s said that without it¡­ without Mesprit, the world would lose all its spirit. All traces of emotion.¡±


    Silence fell between the three of them, save for the faint whispers of frostbitten wind lacing the trees and grass, and the not-so-distant whirring chirping of Starlies.


    Perhaps it was then that he had made up his mind.


    ¡°Imagine such a world¡­ one void of strife and fear. A world free of stress and anguish. A paradise. Excuse me, I shall be on my way. Perhaps¡­ we will meet again. When the time is right. 8B, C5; Let us take our leave.¡±


    Like zombies, the Honchkrow and the Houndoom broke out of their deathly stillness and followed their master, disappearing into the trees.


    Swamped in denied yet still paralysing fear, Barry clapped his face between his hands, the sting would surely bring him back to his senses! No more of this lack of will, what was he doing? This wasn''t something his dad would he proud of, not this useless immobility!


    ¡°Quick, Twinleaf¡ªwe have to go after him, Lucas! That''s a criminal¡ªwe can''t let him¡­ Lucas? Hey! What are you¡­ HEY!¡±


    Nothing. Null. Void. Empty were Lucas''s eyes, the usual youthful and nervous glint of his eyes had been sapped away, his irises dead and gray. Stiller than a tree under stagnant wind was his body.


    He was gone.

 Chapter 4: I feel...

    Voices stirred and whispered around him.


    There he was again, floating in limbo in that fractured field full of nothing. That galactic void swirling endlessly, hopelessly empty and blue save for strange floating islands.


    He could hear it.


    It was ringing. No, not ringing. Whistling. In his ears, the noise was almost screeching. Almost, but not entirely. A windy melody, short and infinite, it whispered echoes across the void in an unrefined, uncontained, and unspeakable tune.


    ¡°Again. It will be done again. But this time, I have decided to use you¡­ yes, I will use you for my purpose. They are not aware. They cannot see. You, vaguely. That is¡­ until I decide to unfold what you have forgotten. In time.¡±


    In the blink of an eye, Lucas plummeted, heavy as a ball of iron, to the bottom of the void; the tumbling of his heart booming in his ears until it all came to a deathly halt when a leviathan''s distorted shadow swallowed him whole.


    ¡°What the hell is wrong with you?!¡±


    Barry gripped his collar with the strength of a raging Rillaboom and shook him so profusely you might think his bones would displace and disjoint; but this strangling remedy seemed to be the antidote to whatever poison had made his friend lose all sense of actuality.


    ¡°Look now, he got away!¡± came Barry''s outburst. ¡°We could''ve caught him and taken him to the police if you weren''t such a bitch standing there scared! Never mind, maybe I didn''t even need you¡ªI should have just gone myself, and I would''ve stopped him!¡±


    Lucas''s vision spun around him, his head ailed by a numbing headache, pins and needles all up in his brain. When normalcy fizzled back in, the sky, which hadn''t existed for the past few minuetes, had reappeared; as had the snow-capped pines and glistening lake. Frozen wind smothered his face¡ªbut was soon overwhelmed by the fiery words Barry was spewing from his mouth.


    ¡°I''m sorry, okay? I don''t know what happened, I spaced out¡ª¡±


    ¡°You were scared, that''s what happened¡ªsince you always need someone to help you figure things out.¡± Barry seethed. ¡°Shit! I can''t believe I let myself stand around doing nothing instead of acting. And what were you doing, you dumb little Turtwig? I saw you backing away; that was so pathetic! If we''re gonna win, you can''t be doing that, Twinleaf¡ªbe better!¡±


    The little tortoise lowered its head, a cryful stress on its face under the pressure of his trainer''s disappointed finger.


    ¡°Come on, Barry,¡± Lucas said, pleading almost. ¡°You''re being a bit harsh; he was just a bit scared. We were all scared. Those Pok¨¦mon¡­ they didn''t look sane¡ªthey looked like they were gonna kill us¡ª¡±


    ¡°Shut up! I wasn''t scared; that was all you! And has anyone ever told you how much you sound like a girl? ''Why don''t you be nicer, Barry, (¡ä§¥` )''¡ªtry not being such a pussy, Lucas! I''m trying to raise the strongest Pok¨¦mon, not a useless thing of on the verge of crying! That''s all, and Twinleaf doesn''t need you to baby him! You''re far too emotional. Your softness is why you''re such a loser. I''m out of here; once I see the professor, I''ll be long gone!"


    Stolen story; please report.


    ¡°What happened to catching Mesprit?¡±


    ¡°Oh my god, it''s like you''re glued to the past¡ªdo you like staying behind? I''m over that shit, I have real things to do. You can go home and cry; I''m done fiddling my fingers¡ªTwinleaf!¡±


    Twinleaf jolted, struck and stung by Barry''s thunderous voice, contrary to the norm for a Grass-type.


    ¡°Agh, forget it; you''ll probably slow me down too¡­¡±


    Spilling not a single drop of precious time, Barry recalled the slow turtle back into its Pok¨¦ Ball before dashing off back the way they came. In less than a second, it was like he was never there.


    But Lucas still was. Stuck behind.


    What had just happened? He''d had that dream again¡ªbut no, it wasn''t like a dream; it was real! At least, that''s how it felt. He could feel the void''s rippling empty air¡­ if he could even call it that. He hadn''t taken a single breath in his time there, but he didn''t need to? It was strange¡­


    But there were stranger things unfolding around him.


    For some reason, all the (unreasonably) annoying cries of nearby Starlies had stopped. Even the rustling of trees had slowed, quieted down. Obviously, you''d have to be the most nitpicking thing on the planet to notice something like that¡­ but that was exactly the point.


    You don''t notice details like that, which is why Lucas began to worry. Soon, all noises became drowned by some unspoken silence that grew louder and louder, muting everything around him, muting even his nerves. All Sinnohans were used to the biting cold even in winter¡­ but that wasn''t why he was beginning to feel numb.


    Then he heard it.


    Echoing in his heart, not his ears. He couldn''t hear, but he could hear it¡­ because ears cannot fathom pure emotion. A sweet, whimsical jingle glittered over his body. "Glittered" being the only way to describe such a beautiful noise.


    Lucas''s head was tugged in the direction of the noise¡­ And would you believe, swimming in the sky, twisting the air around in a warped mirage, a deific smile on its lips was none other than the being of emotions staring down at him.


    Mesprit.


    It looked unreal. The sort of thing you see in dreams. Its twin-tailed body was a mix of a pristine, washed-out gold and royal magenta. Strangely, Lucas had imagined it a different color; although he couldn''t say why, he imagined it to be a subtle silver. Nonetheless, it was gorgeous, his heart was racing, and his tongue uttered words of disbelief, though he couldn''t hear them.


    Soon, however, it had vanished; looking more like a little magenta shooting star skiing over the lake''s cold water, and Lucas¡¯s senses melted out of their numbing bind so he could hear his bewildered speech.


    ¡°It was just passing by¡­? If all that stuff I felt was just from it passing by, we really had no chance of catching that thing... not that that was gonna happen anyway."


    He held the scarf cuffed around his neck, the only thing that could give him even a whisper of comfort after all that had transpired. It couldn''t have been a coincidence for all those things to happen so closely together, could it?


    Maybe he was thinking too much. But he felt compelled to do¡­ something. To chase after the spirit. The mysteries of his homeland always seemed to resonate with something deep inside him; he felt the need to discover more.


    Perhaps that was when he made up his mind.


    Or maybe it was before that. Either way, he knew what he had to do. There was no avoiding it. It was time to pay the professor a visit.


    He''d found his way back through the pine trees, his mind latched onto the words he''d heard earlier.


    It would be done again? What would be done again, he mused. Who on earth was the one speaking in that void? Maybe the professor had answers; surely he would, right? He knew everything! Seriously, everything! If anyone knew, it would be him.

 Chapter 5: A job.

    Can you feel that?


    The air fizzing with warmth; enough to make you want to take off your jacket.


    Not your scarf though. Never that.


    Now, Lucas had just arrived in the beachy neighboring town with the sun beginning to drown in the noon sky.


    Ironically, during this nigh-dusk hour, he found Dawn perched right outside a building, her hands snugly tucked into the pockets of her rose-colored trench coat. Almost psychic-like, she turned her neck like a Hoothoot and locked eyes with the town foreigner.


    Lucas twiddled his hands, checking his pockets for nothing as she marched up to him. That was when his attention was sucked away by a furry fudge-colored Buneary hopping after the girl.


    ¡°Woah, you have a Buneary?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Huh? Oh, yep. This is Toffee. Oh! You didn''t drop that, did you?¡± she pointed a finger behind Lucas at the sandy road.


    ¡°Sorry, I don''t see anything¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh, maybe not. Usually, people greet each other before anything else, so I thought that pile of manners sitting over there belonged to you ( ?©`?).¡± She and Toffee both covered their mouths as they giggled.


    ¡°Oh! My bad. I''m sorry, Dawn.¡± Sheepishness had deeply seeped into his voice. ¡°Hi, how are you? It¡¯s been a while¡­¡±


    ¡°Shh, we''re just messing with you,¡± she said with a playfully vicious look in her dark blue eyes that made it too difficult for poor Lucas to recognise if she was serious or not, ¡°Come on, the Professor''s waiting¡­ and don''t worry, we¡¯re doing just fine,¡± she smiled.


    Lucas stood there in confusion, wondering what exactly she meant seeing as she¡¯d only met him once, and they hadn¡¯t discussed anything. What ¡®work to do¡¯ did he have to do?


    Nonetheless, he followed behind Dawn and her bouncing rabbit across a sea salt-scented town, past bunches of children cheerfully chasing a flock of Wingulls kiting through the air, before finally stopping at a large venerable wooden building tiled with fine teal shingles that swamped the air with an aura of wisdom.


    Dawn jauntily gestured at the door, pushing into a sterile room populated by men and women clinically dressed in white coats and working machinery that looked alien to Lucas. It smelled of mint and medicine, pills and potions. There were tables littered with stacks of papers, others with disassembled Pok¨¦ Balls and screws; graphs and charts of anatomical nature.


    ¡°Wow¡­ I''m really at the Professor''s Lab,¡± Lucas said, his eyes glued to one of the many incubators¡ªsome even had eggs inside! He couldn''t help but stop and stare; the glass permeated a soft warmth from the inside. ¡®BC#280: Ralts¡¯ it read on one of the tags stuck onto the incubator.


    ¡°Must be a dream come true for you,¡± Dawn said, fixing the soft beanie atop her head. ¡°You said you''ve been watching him since you were eight?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, all the time while I waited for my mom to come back; I''d be up watching him at night for as long as I can remember¡ªhe''s the reason I even want to research Pok¨¦mon.¡±


    ¡°Then I''m sure you''d be delighted to take my offer, Lucas¡­¡±


    Lucas turned from the big machine in the direction of that ever-familiar time-honoured voice. It was him, standing tall behind Dawn in his classic rustic brown coat that distinguished him from all his aides.


    ¡°Professor Rowan!¡± Lucas''s grey eyes sparkled silver. There was really no getting used to being around him¡­ He had an almost godlike presence.


    ¡°We brought Lucas just like you asked, Professor,¡± Dawn said.


    ¡°It''s good to see you again, my boy. I hope you''ve been well,¡± said the Professor.


    Lucas looked away, his eyes floating around. Like a Haunter, the memories of what had happened at the lake dug their ghastly claws into his spirit. ¡°About that¡­ There''s something I''d like to speak to you about. Oh, and Dawn said I have a lot of work to do?¡±


    ¡°Indeed,¡± the Professor said. ¡°You wish to research the legendary Pok¨¦mon and myths of Sinnoh, do you not?¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Lucas said¡­ but his excited exclamation was promptly swallowed by a brine of befuddlement. ¡°How did you know?¡±


    ¡°The Professor always has an eye for this sort of thing; I figure he almost knows everything. Although, there are some things he can¡¯t see¡­¡± Dawn scanned her perfect cuticles with a hidden distaste on her face, and the pinch of salt in her voice told Lucas it didn¡¯t have anything to do with the state of her polished nails.


    ¡°Things like what?¡±


    ¡°Ah! That reminds me: Dawn, there is a very important parcel on the top of my desk in the back that I need you to fetch for me while I speak to this curious young man with a bright future ahead of him,¡± the Professor promptly spoke out with calm urgency.


    ¡°Of course, sir¡­¡± Dawn motioned out of the picture, an almost grumpy(?) face plastered on the little Buneary¡¯s adorable face as she moved away, stomping on her fluffy feet; even coming to a halt and¡ª¡°Toffee! Stop that. Let¡¯s just go.¡±


    With her cloudy ears bold up like bouldery fists, Toffee let it go. It wasn¡¯t worth it.


    ¡°Now¡­¡±


    The boy refocused on the timeless man in front of him. ¡°Yes, sir?¡±


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°Come with me.¡±


    Lucas found himself following behind the footsteps of the man who¡¯d shaped his childhood, who¡¯d molded his past and, in a sense, because of his influence: his future. He passed by many more incubators, some filled with others, others populated by Pok¨¦ Balls, but that wasn''t the focal point; although it seemed the lab did have quite the stockpile, something like a Swalot.


    Yes, quite the impressive yield.


    The Professor led him into another room, and immediately the scent of aged paper flooded Lucas''s nostrils so much that you''d get paper cuts from breathing it in.


    All around the walls were files and pages stuffed into shelves, perfectly organized in what looked like thousands of lines; a polished Oak desk near the end of the room.


    ¡°Your friend has already stopped by,¡±


    ¡°You mean Barry?¡± Lucas asked.


    ¡°Yes. Although I''d hardly say he stopped, per se. Or maybe ¡®pit stop¡¯ is the proper way to describe what he did. I barely had time to speak to him like this, although I doubt there would be much need seeing as he already has his eyes set on a different ambition¡­¡±


    Metal screeched in Lucas''s ears as the old man pulled open one of the millions of shelves to reveal another lineup of files, singling one out with his finger.


    ¡°Your friend¡­ He told me about your encounter with the rather grim young man who leads Team Galactic. The man named Cyrus. Of course, it was but a mere blur of words.¡± He slid the drawer shut and approached Lucas, paper in hand, a steely look in his eyes that made Lucas step a leg back.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± the boy reached for his scarf, ¡°He wasn''t the only one I encountered at the lake. I saw something else. Something happened to me, and I don''t know what it was; I thought you might have some answers; it''s what I wanted to speak to you about.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Consider me intrigued. Please, what is it?¡±


    ¡°I don''t know¡­ a vision of sorts. I was in an empty void, there were floating islands and¡­ I heard a voice. It was loud but¡­ quiet? I don''t know why, but I recognized it. It said ¡®it would be done again, but this time I will use you,¡¯ or something like that. There was also this strange noise¡­ a blowing noise¡ªlike a whistle but it was heavier¡ªand also lighter? Then a giant black shadow swallowed me whole, and I woke up to find Mesprit flying over the lake going¡­ somewhere¡­¡±


    As the syllables left his lips, Lucas could feel the residual emotions from each experience bubbling within him. But they were all overshadowed by his rising bewilderment. Or was it concern? Maybe both.


    Why was that?


    The Professor''s face looked utterly unmoved. Even with all the wrinkles etched into his skin by the pen of time, his face was somehow still straight and creaseless.


    That was when the door pushed open. ¡°Here you go, Professor.¡±


    It was Dawn and Toffee.


    ¡°Lucas Gray, I need you to do something for me.¡± The Professor took hold of the parcel unbuffered by Dawn''s sudden arrival. The whole sequence was a twister of sorts that left him confused.


    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¡ª"


    Lucas felt a hand on his shoulder. It was her.


    "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," Dawn said.


    He nodded, hesitantly taking the parcel.


    "Lucas Grey, 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?


    ¡°I''ll spare you the ramblings of an old man such as myself," the Professor said, "Inside that parcel is a very special machine you''ll need during your mission. Your friend left before I could give him one, but I have a feeling he''ll be just fine without one. As I was saying, Mr Grey, I need you to do something on my behalf. Not that I can''t do it¡ªrather, 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 apologize 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 paragons of time and space. However, it is my understanding that you wish to embark on a journey to conquer the Pok¨¦mon League as well?¡±


    "Well¡­ yeah. I wanna be a strong trainer like my father was," Lucas nodded.


    "Ahh, I see. Not to worry¡ªif 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 is what I will say you need to do for me. Is that alright?"


    Lucas looked all around the room nervously. This sounded like a big responsibility¡­ what did the Professor see in him? A klutz like him? He hadn''t even told him how Azure was too stubborn to listen to him.


    Still¡­ the Professor had given him a Pok¨¦mon¡ªhe''d given him a chance to see the world for crying out loud! Now he could do what he''d always told him he''d do and become strong! No longer a crybaby Togepi. Not to mention, it wasn''t like he didn''t want to know about the region''s secrets; its rich past. He''d always wondered about the sea guardian Manaphy¡ªdid Shaymin even exist?


    More importantly¡­ what about the Legend of Arceus?


    With all that bombarding his mind¡­


    "Okay¡­ I''ll do it," he said.


    ¡­no wasn''t an option.


    No.


    It was never an option.

 Chapter 6: Zubats.

    It was settled then.


    Everything had been set into motion. Except¡­


    ¡°So¡­ what''s all this in the bag?¡± Lucas asked.


    ¡°Quite simple. That, Mr Grey, is your pok¨¦dex. I''m sure you already know what it does. You will find it useful to know that this latest version allows you to link it to that Pok¨¦tch you''re wearing on your wrist. On a related note, I''ve also placed a Technical Record or ¡®TR¡¯ as you youngsters call it that I thought you would appreciate.¡±


    Lucas pulled out a shiny jewel case from the paper bag and feasted his eyes upon the arctic blue CD.


    ¡°No way¡­ this is so cool, Professor. What is it?¡±


    ¡°That particular Disk contains a powerful ice type move. Blizzard.¡± the old man said, fixing his tie, ¡°One of your pok¨¦mon will find it quite useful. Be sure to use it wisely, Lucas; and remember: there is a time and place for everything. Now¡­ get going. I have given you a very important task and there is no time like the present.¡±


    Lucas nodded his head in a mix of nervousness and excitement. This was really the beginning of his very own adventure! How many adventures have you been on? He couldn''t wait to Get out there, all the mysteries of the past calling it to him in a sort of song!


    ¡°Excuse me, Professor Rowan, but now that you''ve sorted Lucas out, I wanted to ask about my task in¡ª¡±


    ¡°Right, I asked you to survey a hive of combees near Floaroma Town, and how did that go?¡±


    ¡°What? Sir, that was my last task; I left the report on your desk two weeks ago¡ªyou mean you didn''t see it?¡± Dawn''s voice began warming up, hitting the walls harder than before.


    "As you know I have been occupied with our joint research of Mount Coronet with Professor Oak, I have scarcely had the time to revise your report.¡±


    Lucas felt a sudden thud under the soles of his feet, soft and yet hefty like a rock solid pillow. He glanced at Dawn''s boots to see a buneary putting all its might into not crashing all the way out; its beady black eyes scared the hell out of him!


    ¡°It''s okay¡­ It''s okay¡­¡± Dawn sighed, although it was ambiguous whether the message was to herself, Toffee or the Professor,¡°I understand. But, yes, I''d like to discuss my next task.¡±


    The Professor nodded. ¡°Good to hear, I have another research assignment for you, a school of Magikarp near Route 208¡ª¡±


    ¡°Actually, I was thinking I could help you and Professor Oak on your research¡ªI''ve already started looking through a few books I borrowed from Canalave Library and I¡¯m even trying to decipher Unown¡ª¡±


    ¡°That''s quite alright, Dawn.¡± He put up a hand, ¡°Paul is already assisting us with that, as you already know¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes sir, it''s just I really think I can help with¡ª¡±


    ¡°I''m sure a smart little girl such as yourself does not need me to repeat myself.¡±


    Dawn''s curated brows trembled for a split-second before pulling her calm, finely-ironed mask back over her face. She fixed her beanie.


    It wasn''t worth it.


    ¡°Of course, sir.¡± She said.


    ¡°Good. Now, as for your next task: I would like you to show Lucas the ropes; be his guide and help him on his journey. Of course, you will still have your own tasks, but right now you must assist him to your best abilities. Is that all right, Ms Diamond?¡±


    A thunderous bang shook the floorboards, more violent than the last. Like a feverish animal Toffee jittered with uncontained rage, stomping forwards at the Professor; a heartbeat away from¡ª


    ¡°Stop it!¡±


    Toffee barely stopped in her tracks, her ears spiked up like spears; sharpened twin blades ready to swing; begging to swing. He deserved it, that stupid old man! Who did he think he was? Did he have any idea what they''d been through with those Combees?


    If it wasn''t for Dawn, Arceus himself wouldn''t be able to save that decaying old man from her kicks. Nope, not even Arceus.


    ¡°I told you to get yourself together, you can''t just blow up like that, how many times should I tell you it''s not a good look?¡± Dawn said as her partner begrudgingly (mercifully) made her way back to her side, ¡°I apologize, so does she¡ªand yes, Professor. I''ll help Lucas.¡±


    The Professor nodded his head.


    ¡°Very good. Be sure to get him fully equipped at the Pok¨¦ Mart, I am sure you still have something remaining from last month''s payment; make sure he has all he will need.¡±


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    ¡°Of course, sir.¡± Dawn nodded and turned towards the door, giving Lucas an frighteningly flawless smile as she and Toffee exited.


    Lucas could feel the molecules in the air quivering even without them around. It was a paradox; she was so calm and yet her eyes could''ve made your blood clot and freeze in your veins.


    ¡°Frankly¡­¡± The Professor placed a hand on Lucas''s shoulder, who almost sprung up as if he''d had a little heart attack, ¡°She''s quite capable, but her rashness; her temper¡­ I fear it could cloud her judgement. To put it bluntly: she is too emotional for bigger responsibilities.¡±


    Lucas swallowed the clot of tension in his throat and nodded at his comment, though he didn''t exactly think he had the right too. If she was too emotional, what about him? Barry always told him how ''soft-boiled'' he was.


    ¡°Professor Rowan¡­¡± he cleared his throat, tightening his scarf, ¡°Thank you again for this opportunity, sir. I won''t let you down, I hope¡ªno, I''ll try my best. I won''t let the pok¨¦mon you''ve given me go to waste, I promise; so don''t be surprised when you see me and an awesome Empoleon getting the job done!¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, Mr Gray, I have no doubt you will be quite formidable; yes, it will be quite interesting to see you come face-to-face with the legends you wish to understand¡­ in time.¡± He cleared his throat and fixed his tie, this time Lucas picked up an air of finality, ¡°Now, you must go. Your journey awaits for you.¡±


    Lucas smiled, his heart hot as iron.


    ¡°Yes sir¡ª¡±


    ¡°And remember: there is a time and place for everything, Lucas. You may find in your travels that now might not be the best, and do be sure to stop by the Pok¨¦mon School once you arrive in Jubilife. Go well.¡±


    With that (and an odd sense of confusion) Lucas left the room.


    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 and the loud squawks of wingulls synonymous with all things marine could still be heard; so too the laughs and cheers of children as they chased a lone drifloon coasting the slow evening wind of the purpling sky.


    Lucas dug in his pocket for his phone almost nervous to do what he was about to do.


    No missed calls.


    He pressed his finger on the name at the very top of his frequently contacted list and put the device by his ears.


    beep-beep¡­¡­..beep-beep¡­¡­¡­.beep-beep.


    An icy slush of anxious thoughts rushed into his mind, fear taking over. She wasn''t going to answer. She wasn''t. Why would she? Wishful thinking. Wishful¡ª


    ¡°Hi sweetie.¡±


    ¡°Mom!¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°Yes, sweetie, what''s wrong?¡±


    ¡°Nothing Mom, nothing¡­ I just didn''t think you''d answer,¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°What''s that?¡±


    ¡°I''m saying I didn''t think you''d¡ª¡±


    ¡°Did you say Casey cancelled? Tell Kiera¡ªKiera! We need to sort this out quick before it spirals out of hand¡ªKiera, come here!¡±


    ¡°Mom?¡±


    ¡°Sorry sweetie, you said everything''s okay? You''re okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡ªno, I''m great mom I just wanted to tell you I got my first pok¨¦mon¡ª¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! It''s so cool, right? I named him Azure, he''s a bit stubborn but he''ll come around!"


    ¡­


    ¡°No, no, tell Jordan. He''ll know what to do; and, Kiera¡­ Kiera! If you see Dexter tell him I''ll be right there just give me a few seconds, okay?¡±


    ¡°M-mom?¡±


    ¡°I hear you sweetie, I hear you and I think that''s great. Listen, I''ve got a meeting in ten minutes. Make sure you stay hydrated, Lucas, and don''t talk to any strange people¡ªsorry, one second, just one¡ªbe safe, I love you, bye! (^3^)/¡±


    ¡°Wait, Mom¡ªNanny''s been gone for a while so and¡ª¡±


    *Click*


    ¡°Mom? Mom!¡± He squeezed his phone in his hand, fighting the urge to fling it into a nearby tree. ¡°No¡­ No, at least she answered this time! I actually spoke to her and that''s enough. She knows what''s happening and that''s enough¡­¡±


    ¡°You okay?¡±


    Suddenly a voice pulled him out the mud. It was her. It was Dawn. He cleared his throat and tightened his scarf.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah¡ªI''m fine. I''m fine. It was¡­ just on the phone with my mom, she''s okay with me helping Professor Rowan.¡±


    Dawn stashed away curious-flavoured nosey thoughts to the back of her mind. There wasn''t anything fine about anything, but the same could be said for overstepping boundaries with someone you barely know. ¡°Oh, that''s good. It''s good that you told her, it''s Not good to leave home without telling someone first.¡± she nodded, her arms folded.


    ¡°That''s true, you told your mom too?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ no. No, actually, my mom''s not with us anymore. She died when I was eight¡­ she was cursed.¡± Her eyes went blank, staring into the grass.


    ¡°I''m¡­ so sorry, Dawn.¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ but it''s okay. Her memory is what''s important now. In a sense she''s not really dead.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Yeah, you''re right. My Dad''s still with me too. They''re both still here, they''ll always be.¡±


    ¡­


    Dawn smiled, wiping underneath her eye ¡°Well, let''s get on with it then, as the Professor said, you''ve got a lot to do.¡±


    Lucas nodded, gripping the straps of his snow-white backpack.


    ¡°Yeah! Speaking of ¡®still with us¡¯; what happened to Toffee?¡±


    ¡°Oh, her? Yeah¡­ she needed to cool off a bit. She can get a bit rowdy sometimes so I decided to give her a bit of a break, y''know? It''s just¡­ nevermind.¡±


    ¡°I get it. Azure''s the same way,¡± Lucas laughed a bit.


    ¡°Looks like we''ve got a bit too much in common huh, Lucas?¡± she said, ¡°But seriously, let''s get a move on before the sky fully blacks out.¡±


    With that, the pair of assistants got to work.

 Chapter 7: Ms Get-to-the-bag.

    As if on cue, the sleek polished glass door slid apart and splashed Lucas with a minty-fresh cool breeze, as if peppermint candy was licking his face.


    But nothing could''ve prepared him for the flock of sweet eye candy that crashed into his face! 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 one of the stacks by the door.


    She stopped and turned back at the... shall we say, clueless and innocent boy standing by the door with twinkling galaxies of disbelief swirling 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 the girl, past the cashiers wearing amused smiles behind their tills and straight into this little Dreamland.


    Could he believe it? He certainly couldn''t!


    The floor was white and shiny, squeaking into his ears as his head spun around the shelves like a UFO. Shelves stocked full of¡­ everything¡ªbright pink spray bottles, bright green spray bottles, bright yellow spray bottles¡ªlined neatly 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 silkiest smoothest jazz he¡¯d ever heard kissed his ears to complete the supermarket experience!


    "Let''s start with the most basic of basics," Dawn''s voice pulled him out of Lalaland 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 3500 dollars; it''ll finish 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 heart monitoring machines. He couldn''t have been serious. No way.


    "If you tell me you''ve never been to a Pok¨¦ Mart once in your life, I''ll drop dead right now and give you 5000 dollars next month because I know you''d be lying."


    But Lucas just stared at her. And there it was, swimming in his bleached blue eyes: the truth.


    The words "Oh my gosh..." dropped right out of Dawn''s mouth.


    "Well¡ªit¡¯s not like we don¡¯t have any shops in Twinleaf; they just don¡¯t look¡­ like this, and they definitely don''t have as much stuff; people usually just come here or go to Jubilife to get stuff for their Pok¨¦mon," he explained, demystifying the whole situation.


    "Wow¡­¡± she said, ¡°If you think this is impressive, you should see the department store in Veilstone¡ªokay, let''s come back down to Earth. This is a potion."


    Lucas ogled the simple plastic purple spray bottle in her hands.


    "Lucas, this is your best friend in the whole world as a trainer. Never go anywhere without this; apply it on the wound," 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 another spray bottle from the shelf. ¡°It looks like some sort of artifact or relic; definitely doesn¡¯t look like any potion I¡¯ve ever seen. So¡­ deluxe.¡±


    Dawn merely pointed at the laminated tag stuck on the shelf¡¯s edge as she casually strolled away, straightening her coat.


    Full Restore: 3000p.


    Ouch.


    Lucas gritted his teeth and followed behind her.


    "This is your other best friend."


    Lucas ogled a mini dark green can sitting in Dawn''s hand. It had a little Pok¨¦ Ball printed onto it. "A classic repel. When you''re tired of being jumpscared by random nonsense in the grass¡ªnot that wild Pok¨¦mon only stay in the grass (Oh my god I hate being in the wild)¡ªtwo quick sprays on your body and voila! Tu es libre! 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 an assorted party of supplies; they were heavy, all the sprays and cans. No wonder Dawn handed him the basket midway through their spree. Regardless, they''d reached the till after about 20 minutes of hardcore mentoring and explaining to Lucas that he was too broke to buy any other type of potion or repel.


    "Would you like a plastic?" The lady behind the till asked Lucas with a sweet smile.


    "What¡ªI thought we weren¡¯t using plastics anymore? I was about to buy a tote bag; my last one broke¡ªanyway, you¡¯ll just carry everything in your bag, Lucas. Get used to it." Dawn said. ¡°Besides, pollution¡¯s for losers¡ªoh, by the way: do you have any dry-sweet poffins¡ªoh! And where can I find Omega 3 pills?¡±


    "What do you need Omega 3 pills for?¡± Lucas asked.


    "It¡¯s not for me.¡±


    After another brief exchange that involved nit-picking, Lucas smiled, "Thanks, Dawn... I¨C"


    "Excuse me, Lucas Grey?"


    Both Dawn''s and Lucas''s heads snapped in the direction of a jolly yet professional voice.


    It was a man.


    He was wearing a straight, clean, and qualified green suit lined with streaks of black and shiny golden buttons. He had spotless black gloves, as if he wanted no mark of his presence left on whatever he touched.


    "Yes?" Lucas scraped the words out of his throat. ¡°I didn''t steal anything; I promise, all we did was buy a few supplies!¡± His eyes squinted, trying to recognize the man, but he was wearing a cap that fit so perfectly on his head that it almost completely covered his eyes. Come to think of it:


    Was there a security guard when he''d walked in? He was too awed by the whole store to notice. He really should''ve paid more attention to his environment.


    "Good evening. I''ve received a special gift for you, Mr. Grey." The man said, his hand holding out a cardboard delivery box sealed with tape, complete with tags and barcodes.


    Lucas''s slowly turned to Dawn, her eyes about as blank as white paper. She didn''t seem phased at all; in fact, she looked a bit irritated at his slow processing? That''s what it looked like to him.


    "Sorry, who''s this from? I never ordered anything¡­" Lucas asked, staring at the man''s half-covered face.


    He pulled his cap even further down his face (as if he needed to). "I''m sorry, but the sender would like to remain anonymous. They told me it was absolutely imperative you received it..." the strange man explained.


    Well, that didn''t help anyone with anything, and now a funny feeling stirred in Lucas''s heart. That was until he felt a nudge on his shoulder.


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    "Are you gonna take it or...? I hate to constantly nag you and all, Lucas, but we kinda have things to do and places to be, so you might wanna make like a Sharpedo and boost your speed," Dawn said, her head tilted towards the door.


    ...


    "I mean¡­ it is a free gift. Plus, I''m too curious to turn it down when I haven''t seen what''s inside¡­ I''ll take it. Thank you, sir.¡±


    The box exchanged hands, and Lucas politely nodded and followed behind Dawn (who was staring at her Pok¨¦tch very condescendingly at that moment) toward the exit.


    "Lucas."


    The boy froze upon hearing the man''s silent voice echoing in his ears.


    "It''s for later.¡±


    Obviously, there was something weird about the situation. When the two exited, Lucas gave Dawn a strange look, unable to shake off this feeling of¡­ urgency.


    ¡°Hey, this might sound a little crazy (and I honestly might be), but was that security delivery guy or whatever he was always there?¡±


    Dawn gave him a funny look, one he didn''t like at all. The type of look people give you when they don''t understand; when you act off. But he wasn¡¯t acting off¡ªshe was.


    ¡°Uhh¡­ Yeah?¡± she said, tracing her lips with a stick of Pecha lip therapy with her phone in hand, ¡°He was right by the door, Lucas; you should really pay attention to your¡ª¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I know, I know; it''s just¡­¡± he fixed his scarf. "I can''t take this. Something doesn¡¯t feel right," he said, making a sharp U-turn back into the store. Lucas''s eyes darted all over the place, lying to themselves with the prospect of the strange man reappearing if they just looked away and looked back.


    But strangely enough¡­


    "Excuse me," Lucas walked up to one of the ladies 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 turned to her colleague as if telepathically telling each other that this kid was crazy; seriously, what security guard was he even talking about?


    "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. ¡°Is there any other way we can help you? Would you like to buy anything else?¡±


    ¡­ He was gone.


    Lucas exited the store again, the parcel still in hand and his mind spiraling. Outside, Dawn glared at him with icy eyes, her hands on her hips as she pointed at the Pok¨¦tch again in frustration.


    "Come on, Lucas, do you know what time it is? You could''ve at least told me you forgot something if you needed to go back in the store," she hissed.


    "What?" Lucas''s voice was spiked with confusion.


    "It''s fine, no big deal. Listen, if we''re gonna work together, we gotta communicate.¡± She shook her head, sighing. ¡°It''s fine. No need to get worked up. Let''s just get on with things.¡±


    "Wait, Dawn, I was returning 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 those two in there, and I never saw a guy in a suit. A green suit at that¡ªwho wears a green suit? Wait, what kind of green? Like lime green? Anything other than emerald is just¡­ ugh! People don''t respect themselves." She 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 grassy greenery of Route 202. Pine trees, shrubs, and chirping. The sky had a bit of glitter in it, stars twinkling as the sun''s dying orange flame was being consumed by the violet darkness of night.


    Wasting no time, Dawn pulled a Pok¨¦ Ball out of the marshmallow-looking bag hanging on her shoulder and pressed the white button. A bright blue flare burst like a firework, and out he came.


    "Hi sweetie!" Dawn squealed in a high pitch as she smothered her Piplup in hugs and kisses. She dug in the pocket of her rosy red trench coat and pulled out a handful of small Pok¨¦ Balls. "Lucas, meet my partner in crime and future Universal Master Rank Contest Champion: Tweety!¡±


    ¡°Tweety¡­?¡± Lucas stared at her, deadpanned. ¡°That''s uhh¡­ a name (._.).¡±


    ¡°Excuuuuuse me? Is there something wrong with Tweety? Something doesn''t sit well with you?¡± Dawn poked¡­ more like jabbed¡ªactually, stabbed his chest over and over with her finger; which hurt more than you''d think with her sleek glossy nails almost piercing through his chest through his jacket.


    ¡°No, no, I was just saying that¡ª¡±


    ¡°That''s what I thought.¡±


    Seeing another Piplup gave Lucas a strange feeling, like looking in a mirror but not at yourself? Something like that. Tweety pecked at that navy blue fluff he was dressed in, picking out any untidy bits and bobs¡ªspeaking of his fluff:


    ¡°Look at those feathers¡­ he¡¯s super shiny; yeah, that¡¯s some high-class sheen! He almost looks like you wash him in glitter or something¡­¡±


    ¡°Obviously¡ªlooks matter, Lucas. Imagine walking around looking scruffy and untidy¡ªno one''s gonna take you seriously!¡± Dawn said, pulling out a tube of sweet-smelling hand lotion and rinsing her hands in the stuff. ¡°You know, if a judge saw me and had no idea who I was (yet), my first impression would almost solely be based on looks. Plus, his sheen is super important; too tardy and he won''t look good; speaking of which¡­¡±


    She dug in her bag, plastic crunching and crackling as she pulled out a little box of pink puffy poffins and gave one to Tweety¡ªwho didn''t hesitate to pick it apart with peckish pecks; pecks steeped in mannered mannerisms. But yes indeed, this little penguin had to look prim and perfect if he was gonna win any contests and win any lady Piplups.


    ¡°Hold on¡ªoh, I get it!¡± he said, finally piecing things together. ¡°I should''ve figured this out when you were talking about sweet-dry poffins and Omega 3; it was so obvious: you¡¯re into contests, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Dawn nodded. ¡°Yep, I¡¯m gonna be a coordinator¡ªwait, you actually seem to know a bit about this stuff.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ my mom¡¯s a coordinator, so¡­ I kind of have to know all this stuff¡ªbut if you wanna be a coordinator then why are you working as an aide?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m just here to get paid; do you know how expensive really smooth poffins are? Don¡¯t even get me started on supplements and vitamins; I obviously need money to fund all that stuff, so I got this job; now I need even more for the preliminaries in three weeks, so I¡¯m trying to do the jobs that pay big bucks¡ªbut that stupid¡­ no. Never mind.¡± She shook her head as if trying to realign something; trying to straighten out her thoughts before they got out of line.


    Lucas didn¡¯t know what to say in any of this; actually, his thoughts were still lingering on how he was the only one who remembered the man in a green suit who¡¯d given him this random gift; a gift which, every time he considered unpacking, he felt unable to unravel. Nonetheless, the moon had already begun its rule over the sky, and the squawks from the seashore had been muted by the appearance of stars, replaced by far-off ringing and chirping from the grassy fields of Route 202¡ªsounds that might¡¯ve seemed sweet, or at least serene, if they weren¡¯t undercut by emerging howls worming through the trees.


    A repellent of sorts. One that was certainly working on the pair of kids.


    ¡°Well, there¡¯s no way we can stay out now. Let¡¯s meet back here early tomorrow, and maybe we can actually get stuff done,¡± Dawn said, zipping up her bag and fixing her beanie for the nth time to conclude their little session. ¡°Eight o¡¯clock sharp, I''m taking you over to Canalave, there''s a book there I saw on the Sinnoh Myths that might help you. Of course, you can just use the Internet, but sometimes books are better."


    ¡°Okay,¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°Sharp means sharp, by the way. No later; remember.¡±


    Lucas nodded, taking her number to finally bring a close to their session.


    But not an end to the strange feeling swirling in his body as he trekked back home through the now-nightly Route 201, which lacked the incessant cries of Starlies¡ªmuch like he lacked any clarity or answers on what on Earth had happened in that store.


    Now, the absence of Starlies wasn¡¯t to say the night lacked flyers; in fact, there were a few Zubats screeching in the sky as they flapped their scrawny twin-tailed bodies around. Most notably was a big Staraptor (by the looks of it¡ªhe wasn¡¯t too sure, but it had feathers) that had made its way up and down his trajectory six or seven times¡ªnot that he was counting. No, he was too swamped in thought to pay much attention, although, in his growing curiosity, he would stop a few times to try and observe the silent avian. Yes, it hardly made any noise; not even the flapping of its wings could be heard, unlike the handful of eyeless Zubats¡ªand nothing like a mighty staraptor. On top of that, the more time his eyes observed it, the less it looked like a predatory Staraptor.


    All the way home, it followed him, past the snowy pine trees of his hometown, which were almost invisible to him, having seen them too many times to care. Many houses had light beaming through their windows¡ªa sign that it was indeed no longer time to linger outside. He knocked on the door, instinctively awaiting Nanny to open up as she¡¯d done countless times after he¡¯d come back from hours at the Lakefront with Barry, only to remember she¡¯d vanished.


    But not the bird.


    No, the bird was still there, strangely enough. It had decided to nestle on some branches, merging with the inky dark so perfectly that he could barely see it.


    He could still see it though. Just barely. Though he barely cared at that point, more interested in the prospect of a shower after that unbelievably strange day¡ªmaybe a plate of leftover Karp as he sat and watched the History Channel.


    Strangely enough, it was as he shut the door that he noticed it flap its broad, dark wings away. Losing interest.


    Gone.

 Entry #02

    Thursday, 15 January 2044


    Okay, something weird¡¯s happening. What the heck was today? I don¡¯t even know what to say¡ªfirst of all, Nanny¡¯s still not back from wherever the heck she went. I even had to feed her poor Eevee before I left. More importantly, I called Mum this morning and she didn¡¯t answer. I mean, she answered later¡ªbut that wasn¡¯t an answer! If it were up to me, none of this would be an issue. I''d make sure of it too. Everything would be way better if it went my way¡ªI mean, she was talking to literally everyone but me! Plus, I didn''t get to tell her the craziest part about today:


    I actually saw Mesprit! Like, what? I should''ve taken a picture. I was so dazed I didn''t even think about it¡ªand the craziest part is I¡¯m not even making it up! I bet Barry would think so, wherever he is now. He¡¯s probably in Jubilife by now. I¡¯m gonna call him just to brag, though he¡¯ll probably tell me how much he doesn¡¯t give a f¡­


    He¡¯s really vulgar. Mum never liked that. She¡¯d probably still be upset I¡¯m hanging out with him since he might influence me. I still need to tell her I¡¯m going to Canalave tomorrow with Dawn¡­ maybe not, actually. She¡¯ll probably tell me it¡¯s dangerous going out or whatever. I mean, I get what happened to Dad, but it''s not like I¡¯m going into the deep wild¡ªplus, anything could happen to me anywhere, so¡­


    Not that I don¡¯t get her concern, but I have to leave home eventually. I mean, it¡¯s not like she does anything but leave home anyway to be with Keira and frickin¡¯ Dexter and those guys. Seriously, where the heck did Nanny go? Two days?


    Oh! What the heck was that thing outside? Too small to be a Staraptor¡ªI mean, it had a sort of crest or head thing, didn¡¯t it? It was probably a small one¡ªyeah, a really small one.


    No, that definitely wasn¡¯t a Staraptor. And why the heck was it following me, though?


    No, no¡ªthat¡¯s not even important since...


    Something weird¡¯s happening, man. That voice in that dream I keep having, plus¡ªoh my gosh, that Cyrus guy and his Pok¨¦mon! That was crazy! I bet when Mum says not to talk to strange people, she means guys like him. I thought I was gonna die, man!


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    I just realised I¡¯m home alone.


    Well, I knew this already, but seriously, other than Nanny¡¯s Eevee, it¡¯s just me. Not that I''m not used to it. Barry would probably say, ¡°Man up! You shouldn''t need anyone!¡± or something.


    He''s probably right. If I''m supposed to be a strong man¡ªa strong trainer¡ªthen I''m gonna need to stop being a charity case. Like with Dawn today. If I can''t even find what I need for myself and my Pok¨¦mon, what the heck kind of useless man will I be?


    What sort of man or trainer will I be if I can''t get myself under control? That just reminded me of that Cyrus man''s Houndoom¡ªcompletely obedient. Straight-up under his control like mind control or something! That was epic! I mean, I was still too scared to do anything, but I won''t act like I''m not curious as to how the heck he managed any of that, even with something as evil as a frickin¡¯ Honchkrow!


    And how come Dawn didn''t remember that guy in the shop? How come no one else did? Seriously, I can''t stop thinking about it! What am I supposed to do with this box? I can''t even open it. Well, I can, but¡­ I shouldn''t. Professor did say there''s a time and place for everything, and I feel like this is one of those scenarios where I can''t be rash. I''ll just keep it on my desk for now, that way it doesn¡¯t get messed up.


    Speaking of messed up, what''s up with Dawn and Professor Rowan? I wonder why he''s not letting her help as much as she wants. I mean, she''s pretty cool. Except for when she''s all like, ¡°Let''s go, let''s go, let''s go!¡± and all. I get having things to do, but maybe she can tone it down. I''m pretty sure we''re the same age, so her being so¡­ controlling? Whatever she''s doing, it''s weird.


    But she''s a huge help.


    Anyway, this whole mission sounds like it''s gonna be a lot of fun. Just imagine how many cool Pok¨¦mon I''m gonna see¡ªfirst, I¡¯m going straight to Solaceon Ruins, but I''ve gotta get strong first, so I''ll head to Oreburgh¡­ or maybe the school?


    No, that''s exactly the problem! I need to be decisive and all that if I''m gonna be strong and firm and stuff. Okay, okay: tomorrow, I''ll go to Canalave with Dawn, and then I''ll go to Oreburgh Gym.


    That''s the plan.


    That''s all for today. I''ve gotta sleep early and wake up right on time. I''ve gotta get my act together.

 Interlude #02

    Getting his shit together?


    That little bitch could never! Such a naive dumbass I can''t believe he thought he''d amount to anything, that fucking loser. Sometimes I wonder how he''d have turned out if he hadn''t met him. Thank fucking Arceus he did though, he''d probably have died without him.


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    If it was up to me now, he wouldn''t have existed in the first place. Waste of space and time.


    Fuck him.

 Chapter 8: Dreams do...

    Lucas woke up to the sound of his alarm crying out like a baby; bells dinging so loudly that he wanted to rip his heart out through his ears.


    The more it rang, the more rage stirred in his soul. The whole ordeal had him wondering why on Earth he had set his alarm¡¯s noise to a fricking bell of all things. As he reached for his phone (which was going uncharacteristically ballistic), he began to wonder if he even needed the alarm; why couldn¡¯t he wake himself up? This chiming time bomb certainly wasn¡¯t worth all the mind-numbing noise.


    But when he finally terminated all the ludicrous beeping, the truth of the situation splashed him with a wake-up slap that shook off all sense of drowsiness.


    ¡°No¡­ no no no¡­¡±


    Twelve times.


    Twelve times the device had squeezed its lungs in a helpless attempt to wake him up; to help him; and now, in all its brutal honesty, the numbers paralyzed him with a deep glare.


    9:02 AM.


    ¡°Damn it! What the hell?¡± Lucas threw himself out of his covers, stubbing his toe against one of the solid wooden legs of his bed. ¡°Ffffrick! How the fudge did I sleep through my alarm¡ªI slept earlier than usual!¡±


    All the turmoil was dialed up to twelve when the tempest in his mind met the tempest outside. Through the square lens of his bedroom window, he saw it: wet drops free-falling from the sky, a storming symphony pattering against the roof as the rain showered freely. The day was completely under its thumb, and with the inexplicable passage of a lone bronzong floating by, distorting the air around it in a hypnotic haze, his heart spasmed.


    No time.


    There was no time!


    Frantically, he opened his phone to find a flash flood of messages, none of which did anything to decrease his rising heart rate.


    ¡°You¡¯re late.¡±


    ¡°Are you nearby?¡±


    ¡°Where are you?¡±


    ¡°Are you even awake?¡±


    How could he waste another person¡¯s time like that? He snatched his jean jacket from the floor, scrambling to find his running shoes, one of which had somehow sprinted off to who the hell knows where¡ªand he could¡¯ve sworn his bag was right on his desk, right where he left it after unpacking it last night! There was just nothing coming together; but most importantly¡ªwhere was his scarf? White and woolly, where? Where?


    He swung open his door to find¡ª


    ¡°How did my shoe even¡­ what the hell?¡± Lucas almost stumbled down the stairs as he snatched his missing shoe, which had somehow wound up on the staircase leading downstairs¡­ along with everything else. Like breadcrumbs to lure in a Psyduck trailing down the stairs. There his backpack was, thrown on one step, all the sprays and bottles he¡¯d bought yesterday littered across the ground; one step below that¡ª


    ¡°Azure!¡±


    He jumped down the last few stairs in a moment of mindless panic. On the floor, broken and split in two with no shining light, a pok¨¦ ball; dead and empty, covered in fluffy blue plumage¡­ and strangely enough, shadowy navy feathers that looked more like avian knives than quills, along with black ashy burns on and around the Pok¨¦ Ball.


    ¡°Azure, where are you? Don¡¯t tell me you ran off!¡± his voice burst through the house.


    Why?


    Why was it so cold all of a sudden?


    Lucas turned to find the living room door gaping open¡ªin the middle of a rainstorm; a loud and uncharacteristic downpour. Strangely enough, however, all the drumming and trampling of the rain was drowned.


    Drowned out.


    Muffled out by a deafening noise that grew louder and louder.


    It was a voice; organized ramblings coming from the living room, and like a Dustox to a Chandelure, he followed. The closer he got, the more coherent the words became; the more coherent the voice, formal and feminine.


    ¡°I¡¯m here at the crime scene¡­ reported¡­ robbery¡­ Pok¨¦mon¡­ crime group¡­ Galactic¡­ unfortunate incident¡­ Police investigating¡­¡±


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    There it was.


    His scarf; strewn across the floor right in front of the TV, marred by dirt as if someone had tossed it away. And that wasn¡¯t the only thing out of place¡ªthe entire living room: sofas, carpet, vases, and tables tossed upside down.


    ¡°Who did all this?¡± Lucas squeezed the dirty scarf in his palm, currents of panic washing over his mind in an anxious rinse; but when he gazed at the TV (which was playing at the highest volume), the screen was in chromatic disarray, pixels frozen in confused static.


    It was then that Lucas noticed how severely cold it had become¡ªunreasonably cold, the wind from outside invading the inside, and yet it lacked the unpleasant moisture of a torrential downpour; rather, it was frigid and frosty.


    Ice cold.


    That was when the door banged, drawing Lucas to the white storm of frost outside¡ªa white storm that, in no way, had any relationship with logic, accompanied by a sweet arctic howl that called him into the snowscape.


    Dragged by a need to know, he ran outside into the freezing cold, greeted by snowfall to see it in the middle of the blizzard; cold and blue with frigid cerulean fur¡­


    BEEEEEEEEEEEP!!


    Lucas woke up to the sound of his alarm crying out like a lost infant; the incessant beeping noise making him want to wring his own brain. The more it pinged and buzzed, vibrating on his nightside with no remorse or care for his prolonged exhaustion¡ªthe more it pinged and buzzed, the more confused he became!


    What on Earth had just happened?


    The acuteness of reality became very apparent, everything from the way his eyes felt uncomfortable as he adjusted to the orange light coming in from outside, to how his duvet brushed against his skin told him that whatever he¡¯d seen was a fickle of his imagination.


    No.


    The lighting was off. The sky wasn''t the regular blue he was anticipaing. The cries of Starlies outside were not the rude awakenings he was used to¡ªthey sounded conclusive. As did the orange light entering through his window¡­ which was wide open; and upon seeing the inexplicable passage of a lone Bronzong hovering by in a thin veil of psychic energy¡ª


    ¡°No! Are you fricking serious? Why is this happening to me?¡± He cried in a fit of anguish and distress, flinging his phone against his mattress as he pulled his hair.


    The numbers never lied. Never; and in all their heartless honesty, they froze him with a cruel and icy punch to the gut when he checked his phone.


    17:06 PM.


    ¡°This is literally impossible, what the hell¡ªwhat the heck is going on? There¡¯s no way I slept for that long!¡±


    He snatched his phone, flying to his wardrobe as he browsed through his very real messages from hours ago, almost cursing as he crushed his thumb closing the closet too frantically.


    ¡°Five minutes extra is all you have.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m leaving.¡±


    No. Not like this. Not like this. In a blur of fingers, he dialed the numbers.


    Beep-beep¡­ beep-beep¡­ beep-beep¡­ beep¡ª


    ¡­


    ¡°Dawn! Listen, I¡¯m so sorry, I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Wow, a whole how many hours, Toffee? Oh, right¡ªnine hours after our agreed meeting time you suddenly wake up and remember we had something important.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I seriously overslept¡ª¡±


    ¡°Overslept? Oh, Lucas. ¡®Over¡¯ sleeping is waking up thirty minutes¡ªmaybe even an hour later than you¡¯re supposed to wake up; which should still be long before you rendezvous. I don¡¯t know what to call whatever you¡¯re on about, if you¡¯re even telling the truth. Sharp means sharp."


    ¡°Dawn, please listen¡ªit¡¯s not my fault¡ªI don¡¯t know what happened! This has never happened before! I swear I set an alarm for half-past seven; I never wake up late regardless, I promise you this wasn¡¯t on me.¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°Dawn¡­?¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°I¡¯m still in Jubilife. The Professor gave me a job to do out of the blue this morning.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand¡­¡±


    ¡°Then use your brain and get here before I leave. The library closes at seven, and I¡¯ll be done here by six. I¡¯m busy the rest of the week so¡­¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much, Dawn! I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m so sorry.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. But you¡¯ll be really sorry if you let it get dark. Sharpedo, Lucas.¡±


    *Cut*


    Before the line began to cut, Lucas blitzed through everything in his room, scraping his running shoes (which had somehow wound up under his bed) and grabbing his jacket from the chair by his PC, which he¡¯d somehow left on all night stuck on several Bulbapedia tabs on a so-called ¡°Lustrous Orb.¡±


    Unfortunately for him, this was no time for curious exploits. He had neither the space nor time for either. Pulling his scarf from under his pillow, he burst out of his bedroom, flying down the stairs something at Mach speed¡ªsomething like a Garchomp.


    No time.


    There was no time for a proper breakfast, so he grabbed the last three Rage Candy Bars from the box, unceremoniously leaving it on the counter next to a pile of unwashed bowls. Skipping over a sleeping Eevee, which remained calm through all the ruckus, he nabbed a Nanab Berry¡ªand his backpack which he¡¯d thrown on the table before taking a shower last night before grabbing the handle and¡­


    Before he shut it completely, he checked the pockets of his jacket for¡­ there it was; once he felt the pok¨¦ ball in his pocket, ease eased itself into his jittering psyche. Azure was still with him, he hadn''t lost him.


    Whatever had happened in that weird dream, the type he¡¯d been having far too many times in the past few days, was nothing but nonsensical fathomings.


    But something else seized his thoughts at that moment.


    An idea.


    Soon after, he shut the door and began trekking¡ªrunning. Sprinting out of his hometown, past lines of pine trees and through tall grass with time dwindling away.

 Chapter 9: Black.

    Past Sandgem, past curfew, past what he knew. Presently, Lucas was still rushing toward his destination; making like a Sharpedo, to be exact, although those were more about speed through the sea than dashing through the forest, which was exactly what Lucas was doing.


    Cold wind licked his face in a gust. The sound of grass and trees rustling in the dark whispered in his ears as he trekked through the gravel route at night, but no matter how fast he dashed, it felt like it would take nine nights to get to the Capital; and according to the GPS on his Poketch, it would take an estimated 30 minutes to get there at his current speed!


    Again, the chiming and ringing of Kricketunes sang in his ears with the crescent moon hanging in the starry orange-black sky. Unfortunately for him, the moon was an invitation for some of the darkest things the wild had to offer.


    He gripped his scarf.


    ¡°I bet Mom would freak at the thought of me out here in the wild by myself!¡± he said between huffs, jaggedly sprinting past a wall of shadowy trees like inky black towers. He felt like he was in a heater. ¡°But why the heck did I wake up so late¡ªseriously! Now I¡¯m running through this stupid forest all by myself, and who knows what might be out here!¡±


    Alone again. The not-so-distant howling echoed all around him, doing little to quell any nervousness he felt, but it did answer some curiosity he had about what might¡¯ve been out there. Enough to make him swallow any doubts he had about not bringing his partner out; so, with swift conviction, he pulled his Pok¨¦ Ball from his pocket, feeling it inflate in his hands as it spewed his partner out in a bright flash.


    ¡°Azure! Good to see you, buddy! Hey, I need your¡ªow! Stop!¡±


    Wasting no time, Azure immediately poked and stabbed Lucas with his yellow knife of a beak! If anything, his partner was helping him run faster, even if it was to avoid getting hurt. ¡°Please stop! 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¡ªow!" Lucas tried and failed to negotiate with the angry blue bird, which let out a frustration-fueled tweet that sounded more like a bold-faced ¡°No!¡± than an avian cry, still wearing an angry look on its fluffy white face¡ªuntil a series of entanglements and rash waddling led him to fall on said white face.


    ¡°Woah, are you okay?¡± In that moment, all the tension building up within Lucas was mostly flushed out, replaced by surprise and a tickling feeling in his gut that made a few chuckles spill from his mouth.


    ¡°Ow! What''s your frickin¡¯ problem? Are you that much of a sore loser? Look, we don¡¯t have time for this. We need to get to Jubilife City, but¡­ well, not that I¡¯m completely freaking out, but I heard this forest isn¡¯t safe, so I need your help, okay? Now come on, let¡¯s¡ª¡±


    Azure slapped away his hand with one of his little wings, picking his bobbly head off the ground and puffing up his chest. He didn¡¯t need the help of a little weakling like Lucas!


    A faint snap cracked in Lucas''s ears, and before he even turned around¡ª


    A feral roar paralyzed him as a shining beast cloaked in polished yellow light burst out of the blackness of the trees!


    Lucas yelled, shocked by the sudden ambush. Literally. A fur ball shrouded in crackling electricity tackled him onto the ground and let out a vicious feline hiss.


    It was a Shinx.


    A wild wield Shinx bearing its pointy demonic fangs at him, its crazed glowing yellow eyes, with pupils like knife slits, beamed into the very depths of his soul. Lucas shrieked as the savage cat dug its claws into his arm¡ªonly for the cat to be sent crashing into the ground as Azure tackled it into the grass!


    The boy''s heart drummed like never before, his mind flipping out like it was falling from the sky. ¡°Azure, no!¡±


    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 that squeezed out a blood-curdling shriek that shook the forest!


    Lucas was paralyzed. This was insane. This was¡­ cruel! It was such a raw display of animosity; too pure to be hatred, just 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 much different from that sorry battle he''d had with Barry. This was horrible. 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 adults in the town¡­ was this what they were shielding him from? Something as gory and ruthless as this¡ªthis was just wrong.


    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 stood.


    That''s when Lucas realized. An epiphany. The cruelness, the rawness, the carnage seemed to be exactly why trainers and Pok¨¦mon alike did this. He could feel it in his trembling hands and racing mind.


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    One twisted thought.


    A realization.


    There was nothing more exhilarating, nothing more entertaining than cruelty.


    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 lay on the black grass. Lifeless. 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 grit 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"


    An 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?! Just do what I¡¯m telling you to do, you stupid idiot! You¡¯re gonna get yourself killed with all your stubbornness; can¡¯t you see?"


    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!" Lucas exploded, turning his head at the Shinx, which wagged its spark-tipped tail that looked like a string of electric wire. He gritted his teeth, his heart pounding as he pictured it playing out in his head.


    There was no time.


    He charged at the charged-up feline, lunging at it to pin it to the ground. The baby-blue electric devil sidestepped his advance effortlessly, hissing aggressively at him as it scratched his back; he howled and winced, the sharp pain of its savage claws slicing through his jacket and digging into his skin zinged throughout his whole body.


    The first of many.


    Lucas jolted and cried, being ravaged by the Pok¨¦mon; his jacket was torn and ripped by its carnage-causing claws, blood leaking from his body out of the slits it scratched into his skin. But just when he thought he was about to be mauled to death, light thumping drummed on the grassy ground, and he heard a loud hiss entangled with brutal tweeting.


    Azure bashed his head into the wild Shinx, taking it down once again! The two little beasts tumbled in the black grass, sparks flying from the Shinx''s now-glowing body, which 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, paralyzed again, the burning sting of sores squeezing tears from his eyes. He was such an idiot; what on Earth made him think he could go out late? 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¡­


    There it was.


    Something sparked in Lucas''s brain, blood running down his face from an open scratch. He frantically threw off his backpack and rummaged through it, throwing everything out¡ªpotions, repels¡ªsnatching a white box that rattled with millions of balls. A box of Pok¨¦ Balls. He tore it open without a second thought, grabbing hold of one, feeling it inflate in his palm before¡ª


    ¡°Azure, get out of the way!¡± he ordered, squeezing the ball in his hand as he aimed. Ignored. ¡°You stupid piece of shit, get out of the damn way!¡± Lucas snapped. In a blind fit of rage, he dashed at the Piplup and swung his foot like a bat, kicking its little frame away from the feral feline¡ªall before flinging the Pok¨¦ Ball at the cat like a rock, thwacking it dead on its head and enveloping it in a bright blue light.


    1¡­ 2¡­ 3¡­


    The Pok¨¦ Ball pulsed a bright victorious blue. Lucas dropped to his knees.


    "Yeeesssss!!" He punched the air over and over again in furious victory. "I¡­ I caught one! I caught a Pok¨¦mon! I..." His eyes fell on the body of a battered, unmoving Pok¨¦mon that looked like a lump of black and blue under the moonlight.


    "Azure!" Lucas cried in distress, grabbing his bag, which was lighter thanks to him taking out most of its contents, and running toward the Piplup. "Azure! We won! Hey!" He shook the Pok¨¦mon, rolling it over to see its eyes flickering white and rolling into the back of its head. His heart hammered in his chest. ¡°Shit! No, no¡ªhey! Wake up! Oh my god, Azure, I¡¯m so sorry!¡±


    He scrambled for a potion spray in the dark, squeezing the trigger, his nose struck by the clinical smell of alcohol fused with fruitness. He aimed as best as he could with a shaking hand and drenched the piplup¡¯s bloody sores with the ointment.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you¡¯ll be fine!¡± he cried.


    But he wasn¡¯t fine. No response. Still. Quiet.


    Lucas put his hand on his little feathery chest, which had now deflated¡­ he felt a little heartbeat. Stubborn and staunch. Without a second thought, he returned Azure to his ball. He needed to get to a Pok¨¦ Center. Fast.


    With his bag on his back, Lucas dashed through the forest, grass groaning with rustling complaints as he kicked through it in a frantic hurry. His breath, jagged and stressed, came out in foggy clouds chilled by the night''s cold. Sandgem was far behind him at that point; the only thing around him was blackness swaying in the wind, leaves like inky clouds rustling in eerie whispers. He looked down at his wrist.


    17:48 PM.


    "What the hell? Time can¡¯t be going that fast¡ªno, it¡¯s okay; I''ll get you healed up, Azure! I¡¯ve got it all under control, okay? Straight to the Pok¨¦ Center, straight to Dawn¡ªit¡¯s all under control, it¡¯s all¡­¡±


    The words froze in his throat. He couldn¡¯t scrape them out. Up in the air, there it was again; gliding in the air just barely ahead of him like a kite; a murky, black and winged shadow.


    There it was again, following him.


    Something was horribly wrong. Harmonious howling rippled through the air, deathly synchronized hymns fused with the sound of stuttering electricity hit his ears and made his heart drop to its knees. Lucas started shaking as if he''d been electrocuted, frantically looking around as he ran on increasingly heavy legs, analyzing the deep darkness between the trees until...


    He stopped.


    A pair of yellow dots beamed at him from the shadows of the trees.


    Gleaming eyes.


    He wasn''t out of the woods yet.

 Chapter 10: Enviroment.

    ¡°Oh shit!¡±


    He sprinted.


    Faster than he had ever been in his life. The sound of vicious growls and crackling electricity grew ever closer behind him. He panted, huffing and puffing as the sound of predatory galloping reminded him of just how unprepared he was.


    "Why? What did I do to deserve any of this?!" he cried, his voice congested by panic, his black, grassy hair tossed around in the cold wind as he ran for his life.


    He glanced behind him¡ª


    "AAAAAGGHHH!!"


    His heart nearly exploded when he saw it.


    When he saw them.


    Shrouded in strings of jittering electricity and growling with bloodlust: an enormous Pok¨¦mon with a big black mane around its snarling, furry blue face charged toward him from afar, its deathly golden eyes penetrating the darkness with a laser-like stare that made Lucas want to drop dead.


    But it wasn''t alone.


    At its side, more volatile electrical amber eyes beamed at him, the sounds of ferocious feline hisses streaking 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, glares draining him of his will to fight. Even the little Shinxes, like fluffy baby-blue fluff balls of static death, growled and streaked across the dark grass like bolts of lightning.


    Reinforcements, it seemed. Though it was unknown why the Shinx that had attacked him was all alone and separated from the rest of the pack, it was clear that its loud cries and hisses had attracted the mob of beasts like magnets. Fitting for a band of electric Pok¨¦mon.


    He had steered away from the main route, now struggling not to stumble through tall strands of lecherous grass as he ran and ran and ran. Lucas''s lips trembled, quivering hopelessly as he cried internally about his inability to take control of any situation he was thrown into.


    Why was any of this happening?


    He had always taken a backseat in his own life while his environment controlled him. He couldn''t control Azure. He couldn''t control anything. Powerless¡ªand as if to laugh at his weakness, it was in that moment of especially heightened mental anguish that 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.


    Lucas was screwed.


    He couldn¡¯t fight a Lux pride. He couldn¡¯t¡ªno way! And yet¡­ it was that same fear that spurred him to make a decision he feared wouldn¡¯t save him but one he had to try nonetheless.


    He was down to his last one.


    With his back against the wall, he dug into his pocket and pulled out another Pok¨¦ Ball. Not to catch. To fight.


    ¡°Go, Eevee¡ª¡±


    Suddenly, as if heaven itself was calling him:


    Bells?


    Chiming and chingling rang in his ears loudly¡ªextremely loudly. Emerging from the grass, all around him, their wings vibrating with urgency: a fleet of big red insects flew in the direction of the charging pride, singing loudly like a band in ringing tunes.


    Kricketune and Kricketot, 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 immediately an all-out war broke out. Flashes of violent yellow hazardously sprayed through the shadowy black forest as roars and chimes of wrath screamed all around the forest of Route 202. Lucas was merely an onlooker, paralyzed by fright and shock at the events unfolding.


    The fleet of Kricketot, led by one giant Kricketune with limbs like literal longswords made of red iron, cleaved and sang a melodious war cry. A tune of battle as they charged the Lux pride, which was shockingly ferocious, baring their electrically charged fangs and claws, with the baby Shinx of the pride covered in a lustrous golden light¡ªa telltale sign of battle.


    But the bugs were dominating. They caught the cats in webs of sticky strings that slowed them down, clinging 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 Kricketot, like soldiers in a harmonious army, cried with deafening songs that paralyzed the fierce Luxio in waves of rippling melodies that knocked them right out.


    Asleep.


    Lucas''s heart still raced, but relief washed over him. He had never taken any interest in Bug types, 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.


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    They were in complete control.


    This was madness.


    Too mad to be true.


    Come now, a clan of tuneful bugs defeating a hazardous pride like this? Never.


    A thunderous roar shook the forest, causing Starly and other winged creatures to explode out of the trees in fear of what was next. 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, shrouded in a luminescent field of yellow aura.


    Like zombies back from the dead, the Luxio and Shinx, which had been incapacitated, began slowly getting up, eyes wide and jittery, 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 searing through his pants.


    A murderous howl of unity blared like a war horn of death, and a bolt of lightning burst through the air, striking a guardless, unsuspecting Kricketot down.


    Dead. Instantly.


    The pride charged, fully charged with fur covered uncontrollably 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 electrified Pok¨¦mon 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 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 still vibrating hopelessly as it let out a final ghastly tune.


    This fight had gone to the predators.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t real, this can¡¯t be real¡ªholy shit!¡±


    He was next.


    Lucas was next.


    He would be if he didn''t get the hell out of there, so he sprang up, his heart struck by static 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!


    That was a lie. He glanced back once, shocked to see how much the thick veil of yellow lightning engulfed the area of the forest he''d been in, like an unyielding mist swallowing the entire area.


    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 now stained with droplets of brownish red, he crunched the gravel of the original route.


    ¡°He thinks I¡¯m suitable for this? ¡®I¡¯m the best guy for the job¡¯? Screw that! Who told you that, Professor Rowan? If this is how it¡¯s always going to be, then I don¡¯t want any part in this!¡±


    But those were just crazy thoughts fueled by the nightmare he was tossing and turning in. He couldn¡¯t lie to himself. He couldn¡¯t turn back now, after all the Professor had done for him. That¡¯d be crazy¡ªbesides, he hadn¡¯t even started the real parts of the mission¡ªand now he wanted to let it go?


    Fortunately, those thoughts were immediately eclipsed by glimmering hope as Lucas''s eyes widened in relief and awe. Lights like stars glowed prosperously in the night, delightful and inviting.


    Like a galaxy on the ground it was.


    Jubilife City.


    ¡°No way¡ª¡± He snapped his head at his Poketch. 18:07 PM. ¡°Holy shit¡ªI made it! I made it, Azure¡ªwe made it¡ªthe city right there!¡± Lucas cried cheerfully.


    He could finally slow down, catch his breath as he marched down a slope of gravel, the unholy forest stalking him from behind. The gravel forest road slowly faded into fine asphalt, and the further down he walked along the path, lamp posts lined the road; even the trees became straighter, no longer wild and dispersed, like refined guards.


    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 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 202 at night, there was hope.


    ¡°Okay, whatever Professor Rowan saw in me was probably still some delusional old man BS¡­ but there¡¯s no time to waste. I''ve gotta get Azure healed up¡ªand head straight to Dawn!¡±


    Yes. He was right.


    But he had no idea just how right he was. This marked the end of his first time in the wild for Lucas Grey.


    Perhaps the future wouldn¡¯t come with such serene grace; maybe his luck wouldn¡¯t be so super, and maybe, something critical was about to hit him full swing.


    Or something.


    His legs felt like lagging tails he had to drag across the ground, he¡¯d never run as much nor as hard nor as long. But none of that mattered, he¡¯d finally made it, all before the sun had wholly set, which wasn¡¯t to say the sky wasn¡¯t black, rather, he still had time to spare.


    There was no time to rest. He had to find the Pok¨¦ Center and get Azure all the way healed up. But¡­


    It was overwhelming.


    The transition was in no way seamless. In fact, for lack of better phrasing, he felt like was high on garganacle. Like he''d caught a whiff of the loudest ghastly. Not that he knew what any of that was... yet.


    From wrathful sparks of animalistic animosity to floods of LED lighting that sent his head spinning like rapidly, something like staryu. He pulled his phone out and shot her a text.


    ¡°Just got here, where are you?¡±


    Seconds later, the device buzzed in his hand.


    ¡°Meet by Pok¨¦ Center. Packing up.¡±


    Perfect. Quite frankly, he wasn¡¯t sure how the logistics were going to work given his partner¡¯s current ¡°situation¡±. Pressing a few buttons, he set the GPS on his Poketch towards the nearest Pok¨¦ Center and entered the new environment.


    One with plenty of new faces.