So I've decided to completely rewrite this story from the bottom to the top, as there was so many plotholes and I never actually got around to finishing it (which made me feel awful). I strongly suggest reading my other Pokémon fanfiction, The Passionflower, before reading this one, as there are characters in this story that were introduced in the previous one. Also, it would give you a stronger understanding of what's happening in here.
However, reading The Passionflower is not necessary whatsoever, and I'll do my best to execute the world in a friendly manner while keeping up with people who are already familiar with it.
Leaving constructive reviews makes you my best friend, as I'm always looking for ways to improve my writing. Now, that does not mean I have any plans to adapt to what you want or how you think I should do things. Anyway...
Read, enjoy, review, and share!
Prologue
Arceus was the supreme overlord of the known Pokémon universe:
At the beginning of time, from between his fingertips he had weaved the very fibers of existence. The mountains rose, the seas spread green, and the stars had aligned. He had created fifty-one legendaries to help him balance the scale, and to help him govern an entire kingdom of subjects. What he said was law, and most of the time he was fairly adept at outsmarting even the wisest of Pokémon.
But for the life of him, he could not figure out how to win a simple game of 'Go-Fish.'
"I do not understand this human game," he grumbled. He knocked the cards away, much to the amusement of the young girl sitting across the table from him. "What evil being came up with this?"
"For goodness sakes, Arceus," said the girl, a Meganium. She sighed. "You're the one who said you wanted to learn." She finger-quoted him, "You know, 'to better understand the inner workings of the human species.'"
Arceus leaned back in his chair, squinting at her. "Should you not be seeking out my new diver gents for me, Alfie? You are not…being much of a seeker."
"I'm not the one with a kingdom to rule," said Alfie, who was busy re-dealing the cards. "Plus, I'm on break right now. I've been dealing with a lot of drama in my personal life, so I asked Suicune to look for the divergents for me — just this once. When she finds them, I'll be out of your hair for a few weeks. Maybe even a few months...depending on this goes."
"Then I shall have time to rest."
Alfie grinned at him. "Yes, my Lord, then you'll have time to rest. You need it."
The two were sitting at a grand table in the middle of the overlord's throne room. The long room was lined by golden columns, which were connected by beams that arched up to a center point on the ceiling, much like a dome. The floor was covered in oriental rugs and the walls were lined with oil paintings that depicted many events from Pokémon history. There were beautiful Gardevoirs on either side of the table, silently watching them play.
Arceus crossed his arms. "You seem very calm about all of this," he commented. For Alfie, nothing seemed out of place — she was smiling to herself, her movements were slow and calm, her voice was steady. He had expected her to be overwhelmed, but she seemed hardly fazed. "This is your first real job as the seeker. When you return, there is a war to be fought. And yet, you do not looked intimidated at all. Why is that?"
Alfie shrugged. "There are worse things to be afraid of," she said. Her eyes were as yellow as the columns along the wall, but much brighter.
There was loud knocking on the throne room doors. Two servants swept towards the doors and pulled them open. Suicune, the North Wind, was standing there and looking out of breath, which wasn't unusual at all. She stormed into the room, her robes and long violet hair flowing behind her. As she reached the table, she stiffly bowed to Arceus and then gave Alfie a brief, but friendly, nod.
"You have found them?" asked Arceus.
"Indeed," said Suicune. She glanced at Alfie. "It is now or never, my seeker."
Alfie stood up, the chair squeaking against the floor. "Looks like my break's over," she said. She tossed the box of cards to Suicune, who caught it with one hand. The legendary inspected the box, turning it over on its sides and reading the label. "Now you two can learn how to play Go-fish together. Where are they?"
"Well, that might be a problem," said Suicune. "One of them, the boy — he is in Kanto. He resides in a mansion in Saffron City — you will know it when you see it. The girl might be harder to obtain. She lives in Lilycove with her aunt and uncle."
"In Hoenn?" exclaimed Alfie, who gave the overlord an exasperated glare.
Arceus folded his hands. "There is one thing I should mention," he said, "before you head out. You are well aware how quickly this war is escalating. There is not much time to dawdle around. You must move as fast as you can. Suicune will help you with transportation, and I am sure that Epsilon will pick up one of the divergents...if you ask nicely."
"Gotcha."
"And you know how this is going to happen for them," warned Arceus. He wanted to make sure that his hand-picked seeker was prepared for the job ahead of her. "Treading the line between life and death — the Reawakening is a truly traumatizing experience. Unfortunately, we cannot wait for it to happen naturally — if you know what I am getting at. I have never been so pressed for time. So, we can consider this…an experiment."
"Ah," said Alfie. Silent understanding passed between the two. "Well, in that case…"
She wandered off to one of the windows and peered outside.
"Man, Epsilon had it easy," she said softly. Her predecessor and close friend, a Lucario with infinite stores of knowledge about the Pokémon world, had let her Reawakening 'happen naturally' — as if cause-of-death being 'Raging Gyarados' was natural, but hey, when she had come back to life, he hadn't had any blood on his hands.
Now here she was, wondering which was the best way to murder someone without coming off a little too strong.
End of Prologue
