Author's Note : This is an alternate universe; if you'd like to see what differences this universe has with the mainverse, see below.
I Am Not Worthy
There was a slight chirping in my ear.
"Hilaaaa!" a cheery voice trilled.
"Hmph... Sleeping in as usual I see..." an unimpressed voice commented.
"... Go away..." I muttered, further burying my face in my pillow.
"Nu-uh-uh!" Bianca's voice ticked. "And... Up!" She whisked the blanket away from me, leaving me exposed to the air.
I growled, embracing my pillow in my arms and hugging it around my head. I curled up in a fetal position. "Bianca, it's cold!" I complained, my voice somewhat muffled from the pillow.
"It's actually quite warm in your room," Cheren's cocky voice corrected me.
"Shut up, Cheren, nobody likes you."
"I like him!"
"No one likes you either, Bianca..." I murmured, followed by a yawn. I slowly and regretfully pried the pillow away from my face. The darkness that the pillow and my closed eyelids supplied was eroding away. "The sunlight... It burns..."
"You haven't opened your eyes yet."
"I'm getting there, Cheren," I retorted as I stretched, followed by another yawn. "Mmmm... So what do you two want today?" I asked, opening my eyes, only to squint them half shut immediately after. I turned to my window. "Oh, hello Pidove," I greeted him, softly scratching his head.
Pidove chirped happily, flapping a wing and inching his head closer to me.
"Hilda... We have to prepare for the ceremony," Bianca reminded me, just a little hint of worry in her voice. "We have to present our acts to the Sages today, remember?"
"Cere-... Oh, right!" I turned to face them. "I forgot, our inspection is at the last minute, right?"
Cheren and Bianca were standing at my bedside in robes that resembled the Sages', except that they were white and were missing the noble mark; a puffy hat.
I felt the smuggest grin grow on my face. "You both look so fancy," I sand mockingly.
Cheren automatically lifted up his hand with a straight face, revealing a third white robe.
I scowled. "Oh."
Cheren frowned. "I don't see how you can forget such an important event like this. Have you forgotten? We have to present our offering to one of the Sages and have him deem it worthy enough as an offering," he explained. "Really, Hilda. You do know how large of an offense missing this appointment is, don't you?"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," I sighed as I grudgingly took the robe from his hand. I fell back on the bed and spread my arms out, cherishing the last few moments of groggy bliss, letting the robe fall on me however it did. I closed my eyes. "Just... Give me a few more, alright?"
"But Hilda... Out inspector is Lord Ghetsis himself!"
"Word is, he's very impatient," Cheren warned me.
"Lord Ghetsis..?" I asked, opening my eyes and staring at the clean, slate, brick ceiling of mine. "I thought he didn't come to these things."
"Well apparently, he is this year. Perhaps it's because this year, King N's age is equivalent to the serving generation's," he spectated. "It could be his own way of paying respects to the Ancient Relic." I could only imagine the funny look on his face. "Hmm..."
"Hilda... Lord Ghetsis is the most powerful Sage," Bianca warned me, worry in her voice. "You remember what he did, right?"
I closed my eyes again. "Fine... Just let me change."
I left my house and let Pidove shut the door.
Cheren and Bianca were patiently waiting for me.
"Guys... This feels so weird," I declared, holding up my arms and watching the droopy sleeves sag. I chucked. "It feels kinda airy though. I kinda like it," I admitted, swinging my arms and feeling the cloth dangle. "But why did they have to chose the color white? We blend in with all of the roads and houses!" I exclaimed, gesturing to the said works. "I feel like a grunt..."
"Well, white represents youth, purity, innocence..."
"And it's also the same color as the Ancient Relic!"
"Oh yeah," I mused. "The Bright Stone."
"The Light Stone," Cheren corrected me with a cautioned voice. He bore a humorless face. "Hilda, reciting the name of the exulted Ancient Relic is seen as a lawful offense, and Lord Ghetsis..." he trailed off.
I nodded. "No need to worry, guys. I got this," I said with a reassuring smile.
"Do you even know what service you're going to offer?" Cheren asked. "Bianca's performing an out-aged Unovian anthem and I'm reciting the history that my research has supplied; those paintings in the shunned part of Chargestone Cave."
"Ooh, from that time when you asked me to bodyguard you?" I recalled thoughtfully. "So those pictures on the blue rocks."
"Hilda..."
I shrugged. "Meh, I'll just wing it."
"W-Wing it?!" Bianca exclaimed, her eyes wide. "Wing it!"
"Wing it."
Bianca fearfully shook her head. "That's a terrible idea! First, you'll get found out! Second of all, these things have time restraints... You always ramble on!"
"I'd advise against it," Cheren agreed, looking mildly surprised. "You know how serious these ceremonies are taken..."
"Yeah, I know," I replied, tediously nodding. "After all, the three of us and every other fifteen year old were taken to King N's Castle last year in preparation for this day. Not including the attendees and the serving generation, that is."
"And don't you want to prepare a good service for King N to see?"
"King N..." Cheren mumbled under his breath. "I don't know what you all see in him."
"Hey," I cut in, holding a hand up, "I don't see anything."
Cheren nodded thoughtfully. "True, but you don't pay any attention to our regimes and law system."
"Point taken," I admitted. "This is why you're trying for a council job and I'm not."
"Maybe you should start paying attention, though."
"Oh, come on Bianca," I sighed. "I've got you two to fill me in," I said smugly, wrapping my arms around both of their shoulders.
"If you did pay attention, you would know that there was a boy last year that 'winged it.' Lord Zinzolin saw this as an offense and had him publicly shamed," Cheren informed me smartly. "Then penalized."
I looked up at the sky. "Huh... Why don't I remember this?"
Bianca spoke with a lower voice. "Because you ditched the ceremony," she reminded me.
"Ooh, right," I remembered fondly. "That's when I met Vict-"
"Shh..!" Bianca hushed me. She looked around and sighed with relief when she saw that no one was listening in. "Let's get moving..."
And with that, the three of us started walking towards Town Square in a rhythmic fashion.
Last year, when everyone was watching the serving generation give their offerings to the Light Stone, I kinda sneaked away and went exploring without the grunts' eyes on me. I came across this abandoned, yellow brick tower that looked incredibly old but had a newly furnished metal lock on it. With the help of Tepig, I melted it off and lo and behold; the legendary pokemon Victini was there. Before that moment, I could have sworn it was just a myth.
"You know that the Sages don't condone venturing out of the main towns and cities," Bianca gruffly reminded me in a hushed tone. "Image how much trouble you can get into if anyone found out..!"
"Keep it down, Bianca," Cheren warned in a more menacing voice. "No mentions of 'Sages' once we get into Town Square, alright? That place is packed with imperial grunts; not these town grow-ups that we're seeing now." Cheren looked to his sides. "Let's just keep walking."
"Look, I think some grunts locked Victini in there in that tower," I gnarled under my breath, "and I still do." I frowned a little. "Until I came along, it was just cooped up in there with nothing to do and nobody to play with! At least he comes around to me in the night every once in a while"
"And I thought it was just a myth until you told us..!"
"Even so, don't talk about it in public," Cheren warned us, but even he sounded like he wanted to go into the topic more. "You know how King N feels about people and pokemon."
I sighed. "Right, right... Keep interaction at a minimal and you can only keep pokemon given to you by a breeder." I rolled my eyes.
That being said, Pidove was actually a wild Pidove that just liked to hang around. Tepig was my only actual pokemon. With Victini being a legendary pokemon and whatnot, I could get into even deeper trouble. I had a looming suspicion that these rules existed solely to keep our precious "King N" into power without offenders, save for the rebels of course; they probably had tons of pokemon.
"Paranoid bunch of-"
"Hilda!"
"Sorry, Bianca..." I murmured grudgingly. "It's just that, Victini's cool... It's because of this that I can't see it too often, and I keep forgetting how much censorship the Sages put on us."
"In any case, we're here," Cheren cut in.
He pointed at the harshly guarded building with a dozen or so imperial grunts marching around it with two at the doorway. It was made of black, sooty bricks that sat in the middle of Town Square. It looked a little out of place with all of our architecture being made with white bricks and whatnot.
Cheren turned to me and kept his voice at a low. "I had just the smallest inkling that you would forget," he revealed, slipping a piece of paper into my hand. "Stay safe, alright?"
"Cheren..."
Bianca and Cheren stepped forward, causing me to come to my senses and quickly take my place between them.
"What is your business here in the regimes' quarter?" the grunt on our right asked.
"We have to present our offerings to the Light Stone this year and Lord Ghetsis must deduct if we are worthy enough to recite to the exulted Ancient Relic," Cheren recited.
The two grunts nodded. "Very well. Lord Ghetsis will see you now." The grunt that spoke opened the bulky metal doors and lead us in. Once we were filed, the silent grunt followed behind and closed the door with a creak.
We were then engulfed in a cape of darkness, but then torches meticulously placed on the walls lit up in a pattern, illuminating the stony corridors in a warm orange light. From the inside, the bricks weren't ashen, but ochre and pure, just like the walls that confined Victini. It had a cavernous, dungeony feel to it.
Like me, Bianca and Cheren were looking from side to sidein awe as we were led away, the only sound being our echoing footsteps through the cramped but never-ending hallway. Moments later, the lead grunt stopped and opened a metal door that was bulky, but not as bulky as the one outside, and the two shooed us in, instead deciding to stay outside and watch the door for whatever reason that was.
The three of us found ourselves in an open but tight-feeling room. In actuality, there was only a person, the chair he sat on, a giant cauldron, and a table before the said person, which was made of the unexpected; stone.
The cauldron was probably as long as the room was, and even in the darkness I could see how polished and golden it was. The metal dish supplied the only light, a cool fire that flickered at a low red.
Such lighting protected Ghetsis' identity; he was mostly overshadowed due to the flame. I could just barely make out his facial features, but not enough to remember his face in the long run. I've only ever seen him at a distance; at last year's ceremony and at maybe one or two significant announcements in Town Square. And that other time...
I shook my head, slightly enough to know I was doing it, but idle enough that no one else would notice.
The red flame flickered on our three serious faces, making the atmosphere a lot more serious than it needed to be.
Bianca was the first to break the silence. "I-I'll present first." She was nervous at first, but quickly gained a humorless tone. It was... Uncanny. If I hadn't known her, I wouldn't have noticed.
Ghetsis nodded but said nothing.
Bianca stepped up and started singing.
I was going to listen to her, but I felt a tug on my ridiculously long sleeve. I turned my head ever so slightly. Cheren was staring ahead, but I noticed his fingers on the tip of my clothing. I faced front again "What is it..?" I asked, keeping my voice at a low.
"Hilda, Lord Ghetsis isn't a man to be fooled with," he warned.
"I know," I hoarsely whispered back. "That's pretty much all you've been saying on the way here..! Quit worrying, I got this."
From the corner of my eye, I saw Cheren shake his head, ever so slightly might I add. "You don't want to end up like your father."
I froze.
Cheren noticed. His voice was void of emotion, but his vibe was sympathetic. "I'm sorry. I'm just worried..."
I felt anger rising to the color of my cheeks as I stared forward at Ghetsis' shadowy figure, my eyes on him like he was the plague. "I... I know," I assured him. "You're a good frie-" I cut myself off when I realized that Bianca was finishing her last note.
The room was silent again, save for the echoing, flickering of the tall flames.
With a motion of Ghetsis' hand, Bianca backed up until she was aligned with us again.
Thankfully, Cheren volunteered. "I'm next."
Ghetsis nodded.
"As an offering to the great Light Stone, I'd like to share some of my knowledge." Cheren paused to see if Ghetsis declined the idea, but he didn't, so he continued. "My friend and I have researched Unovian myths and pasts for quite some time. I'd like to recite the history of Zekrom, King N's mighty steed."
I thought I saw Ghetsis scowl, but it could have been the trick of the flashing embers.
"I've been to many archives and seen actual sources of Zekrom's past and I have learned that Zekrom was once part of an entity. A being. One whole. It has split since and remained dormant in a stone, looking for its probable hero. Perhaps King N is this prophesied hero, the 'Hero of Ideals,' as some sources called him.
"In the process, a carcass of a pokemon was left behind. However, Zekrom is only half of a being. There is a second entity, split into its own... This dormant stone is remaining dormant, waiting for a hero of its own. Perhaps... I have reason to believe that this is the Light Stone, the second dragon, and our offerings are its own attempts at trying to find a hero to awaken it.
"We've only worshiped the Light Stone since King N has found it, shortly after awakening Zekrom. While Zekrom supplied electricity to those of nobility, the Light Stone supplies fire to us all. That mantle behind you, my Lord... It's far too weak to be the workings of the unnamed secondary dragon.
"'The Hero of Ideals,' or King N's title as far as serving us in this war and being the holder of Zekrom, most likely the Dark Stone. I can only imagine what title the holder of the Light Stone claims, or what name the Light Stone even reigns in a non-dormant state. I plan to test this theory when it is my time to present; this knowledge is what I offer the Light Stone."
'Woah, Cheren... Way to set the bar too high for me.' Now I wished I went first.
At this point, Ghetsis was definitely scowling. "And tell me your name."
"Cheren."
"And tell me, Cheren. Do you beleive this folklore to be true?" Ghetsis' voice was mocking, but there was a sinister back tone to it. Almost as if he was hiding something.
Bianca stiffened beside me; whether it was because she got no response while Cheren did or because she was fearful of Ghetsis as his words were not genial in the slightest, I couldn't tell.
I had to admit; I haven't seen Ghetsis many times in my life, but to hear him this close and at his normal volume was... Odd, for lack of a better term.
"I am not sure, my Lord," Cheren answered truthfully. There was a tinge of skepticism in his voice. Had he sensed Ghetsis' slip of qualm as well? "I tent to find out."
'Does he suspect that Ghetsis is hiding something too?'
Ghetsis chuckled darkly to himself, cutting himself off short. "Well then, Cheren. You seem like a bright young adult, but easily fooled." His voice was patronizing. "Tell me, where did you hear of such a fairy tale?"
"Fairy tale?" Cheren repeated with great audacity. His back was to us, but Bianca and I could tell that he was somewhat irate now.
'So much for warning me to be be careful.'
"With all due respect my Lord, there are paintings I have found in an overlooked section deep in the crypts of Chargestone Cave. I've seen them with my own eyes and came to this conclusion with the assistance of various archives in libraries across Unova. My friend even assisted with the topic."
"Chargestone Cave, you say?" The words rolled out of Ghetsis' mouth like some sort of venomous bliss. Needless to say, he was amused.
I felt Bianca relax just a little. Like I, she had expected Cheren to get some sort of backlash, but he didn't. Ridicule was better than penalization.
"It's unfortunate, but I must inform you that it is necessary to change your offering. Such atrocities shall not be brought to the Light Stone," claimed Ghetsis with a sadistic tone to his voice.
Cheren shook his head.
I would've whistled in a more casual environment. 'Woo! Cheren's got nerve.' I would've smirked too, but instead I kept my detached expression.
"Lord Ghetsis, suppose that the Light Stone is the secondary legendary dragon."
"Or suppose that this is all just fable," Ghetsis proposed. "Very well. You may present your offering of this supposed 'knowledge' on the condition that you lay a hand on the Light Stone and proclaim that your words are purely fictitious, meant to entertain."
Cheren paused for a second. "Is there a reason for laying my hand on the Light Stone?" From the tone of Cheren's voice, that wasn't the only thing irking him, but it was definitely the must curious to him.
"None whatsoever." Ghetsis took a sip of wine from the grail situated before him
If I knew Cheren well, he was seeing this as an opportunity to test out his theory, but he did have a point. What was the point of doing such an action? Ghetsis gestured him away, and Cheren defeatedly backed up and realigned with us.
'My turn, I suppose...' I stepped up and cupped my hand below my waist, taking quick looks at the note Cheren slipped me outside. It read, "My offering to the Ancient Relic is a tangible object that I will bring on the day of the ceremony and lay as an offering." I frowned. 'Really, Cheren?' Deciding to revert back to my original idea of winging it, I coughed and placed my hands behind my back. "My offering to the Light Stone is... Intricate Poetry."
I still couldn't see Ghetsis' face clearly, but he most definitely did not seem amused.
"I... Love Unova,
An empire like no other.
Led by King N,
I... Feel as safe as I do with my mother."
I kept a straight face the whole time, an accomplishment I was proud of.
Ghetsis balled his fist.
'Not... Good...' I coughed. "You know, because mother makes child feel safe all the time?" That sounded so ridiculous that even I was inclined to roll my eyes. 'Well, that's what I get for winging it and saying the first things that come to my head.' I pursed my lips. "You see, it's intricate, because minimal words are used, leading one to think; 'Is there some kind of hidden meaning behind this?'"
Ghetsis did not look convinced. "Do you wish to present such an abomination to the almighty Light Stone?" His voice was menacing, but more importantly, threatening.
"..." I didn't want to dig the ditch any more than how deep I just made it. 'Just like my poem,' I thought with a mental chuckle.
"I take it as an offense that you would even bother to waste a Sages' time with this," he said, raising his voice. "More so during the annual ceremony!"
There was a little voice in the back of my head telling me to quell Ghetsis before I...
"You don't want to end up like your father."
I remembered Cheren's words from not too long ago, and that was enough to make me bow and plea a, "Forgive me, Lord Ghetsis." No, I was not scared of the consequences, more so just thinking about them and thinking of how they applied to my father.
"Fortunately, you have caught me at a pleasant mood," Ghetsis spoke; despite his claims, his tone was still bitter and challenging. "To show your forgiveness, you must prior to the ceremony stand before the Light Stone and lay both of your hands on it; state your name and your treason, and why such a crime is wrong. You will follow up for the following month in becoming King N's handmaid."
I almost cringed but stopped myself. 'A maid..? But that sounds so boring...' I knew that some, if not many, people would be willingly accepting to serving King N first hand, but... It just sounded so boring, and Ghetsis probably knew I felt that way too. I stayed bowing but gave a nod of the head to show my understanding. 'So I guess when Ghetsis told Cheren to put his hand on the Light Stone, it was more for shameful purposes than anything.'
"Now be gone with you three. I have other means to attend to."
On cue, the grunts from outside re-entered to escort us out.
"And one more thing; I expect you to not have a slip of paper when reciting your apology."
I bust my door open. "AAHH! Finally! Freedom of speech!" I cheered as I ran in and jumped, immediately bunking myself on the couch after bouncing once or twice. I crossed my arms behind my head. "Time to relax."
"Freedom of speech?! Relax?! Hilda! That doesn't apply to you!" Bianca exclaimed as she followed me in. There was a look of severe worry on her face. "What you did... It's a wonder that that's all the punishment you're getting!" She was on the brink of hyperventilating.
"Bianca..."
"Hilda." Cheren followed her through the door. "How could you?"
"How could I what?" I asked.
"Be so... Loose with someone high in the ranks as Ghetsis."
I chuckled. "You tell me, 'Sir Fairy Tale,'" I teased with air quotes.
Cheren shook his head. "What you did was different. You did not take your presence with a sage seriously, and look where that's gotten you."
I scoffed. "I know. Handmaid for a month. Whoop," I said unenthusiastically while twirling my finger in the air.
"That's not the point," Cheren scolded, raising his voice a little. "It's a miracle that that's your only punishment!"
"Punishment?" a fourth voice chimed in as the door opened widely.
Our three heads whipped to the source and saw that it was my mother.
I paled. "Oh man..." I muttered.
She looked angry but overall worried. "What punishment?!"
I sighed. "Don't worry about it. I just have to become an imperial grunt/maid for about a month."
Suddenly, my mother didn't look so angry anymore. "Maybe this'll be good for you."
"What?! Mom!" I exclaimed, getting up from my comfy sitting.
"Well, it may seem like punishment to you, but it's an honor to many others," she pointed out. It was true, but still. I expected support. "And you barely pay any attention to your surroundings. You're so ignorant," she said somewhat apologetically. "As long as nothing is happening..."
"... No, nothing's happening," I assured her defeatedly. I then made my way to the stairs and trekked my way up to my room. I wanted to speak to Cheren and Bianca without interference.
I thought I heard my mother mutter, "It's alright," before hearing Cheren and Bianca follow me upstairs.
"Hilda, you know your mom is just trying to make the best of it," Bianca informed me as we entered my room.
I sighed. "I know, it's just," I claimed as I fell back on my bed. "This whole thing's just a drag."
"Hilda." Cheren meant business. His voice was sterner and more scolding than it was before. He was on the brink of yelling, but not actually yelling; that would be out of character. "You have to take things seriously for once. I've seen graver consequences for less done. We know that in actuality you haven't done anything too bad, but the Sages' see perspective differently."
"Yeah, well Cheren, he saw the slip of paper anyway."
"That's. Not. The point," enforced. "Remember when you lost your father?"
I stiffed. After a pause, I sat up on my bed.
Cheren walked over to me. "How did that make you feel? Your mother feel? The four of us know that he didn't do anything that grave, yet he received such a consequence." He took a cautious seat next to me on the bed with Bianca following in suit so that I was in the middle. "Though you wouldn't be making just your mother mourn. There's Victini, Tepig, all of these villagers, even Bianca. And even me."
'When Cheren gets emotional, he really means it.' I nodded. "Alright... I understand." And this time I meant it. "I'll... I'll try to dial it down in the castle and during the ceremony."
Bianca and Cheren looked like they wanted to stay quiet, just in case something they said would get me to change my mind, so for a while, we just sat there.
"You know, a month with out you will be pretty boring," Bianca finally said. "I know you two were talking earlier, so you didn't get to hear my song, did you?
Cheren and I shook our heads and listened.
"All my brethren, hear my plea,
Unity is the key,
Win what fire will be born,
This nation will not be torn."
I Am Not Worthy : End
I was not originally going to post this, but a friend convinced me otherwise. I was kinda just writing this for myself to get rid of my writers block because I honestly don't want too many people to read this (because this seriously has to be one of the corniest things I've ever written), but my friend said I should at least post it to get some criticism to help my writing, so... Yeah. I'm not actually sure if I'm going to continue this story, but if I do, this'll probably be around the length of each chapter. If you want it continued, do me a favor and just say so, because again, the intention of this chapter was to get rid of writers' block, but my friend is convinced that it's good, so... (I'll take follows as a sign to continue though). If not, I think it can stand alone as a oneshot. A lot of the story extends in my head, so...
Didn't proofread or re-edit, so I apologize for any mistakes.
Now to explain the alternate universe; think of it as Pokemon White's version of Opelucid City in terms of architecture, or even Lentimas Town. Basically, outdated stuff. There is electricity, but that's only accessible by the Plasma Regime (Team Plasma), so technology is pretty much useless in the hands of a commoner. The Light Stone is obviously Reshiram, but no one knows. Team Plasma runs Unova, but pokemon aren't released because N is doing it gradually (because immediately would cause riots, so). Plus, they're in a middle of a world-wide war (LOL, AU headcannon), so yeah, they're going to need those pokemon. The Light Stone produces fire for the civilians of Unova (which is an empire now, not a region) as opposed to making man made fires, hence the people are eternally grateful.
Yeah... That's all I remember at the moment. Thanks for reading!
