Part One: Bolt the Starchaser

Chapter One:

Of Dogs and a Cat

"Great lords have their pleasures, but the people have happiness." Charles De Secondat

"Well, have you made your decision?"

"Ha! Have I ever!"

Two figures sat in near complete darkness, the only light coming from a small reflecting pool in the floor between them. One was large, grotesquely so, though he had no precise form to speak of. The other, smaller one was just as formless, but her voice held a tone of command. "So you are ready then?" she said.

"Yeah, I'm ready. You bet I'm ready. Can't wait to get out of this place. You sure Giratina won't notice my escape?" A vague, tremendous limb gestured to the infinite void above them, where the dim outline of cliffs soaring far above was the only thing that could be seen.

"The way is secret. Besides, he wouldn't dare report it, since it would mean he has failed his task as our warden."

"Well hey, I ain't complaining, I just want enough time to settle in before I have his army knocking down my door, you know? Prepare a bit."

"Don't you trust me?"

"Hahaha! Now that's a good one! Me trust you? Ha! When tepigs fly! Without the help of a psychic that is."

"Hmph. You insult me."

"Oh get over it, doll. Now, how do we do this?"

"Hold it! Wait a minute!" Another figure, smaller than both of the others, strode into the small circle of light around the reflecting pool. "You weren't thinking of letting him go and making me stay behind, were you mistress?"

"Oh look, the moron himself has arrived," The large figure drawled.

"Shut up, you! What, you think you're better than me?"

"I know I am, short-stuff. Now scurry on back to whatever hole you were hiding in. This is a serious stuff."

"Yeah, and I want a part of it!"

"Stop it, both of you," the female said in a commanding tone.

"Yes, mistress."

"Sure, whatever."

"Good. You both still know how to listen to me. Now, if you want to go with him, you must pick out a host. Otherwise you won't do my any good."

"I can do that!" the smallest figure said excitedly, "Anything he can do, I can do too!"

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that, shorty."

"Shut up!"

The female figure sighed. "I told you both to stop. Now, do you have a candidate in mind?" she asked the smallest one.

"Yes, mistress, I've been searching the world of the living for a while now. If one does not accept me, then I have several others who will."

"Excellent. You will both go then."

"And what about you, doll?" the largest said, "Will you be joining us anytime soon?"

"Yes, mistress, what about you?"

"Me?" She mused for a minute. "Hmm, I shouldn't think so. Things are not nearly far enough along for my presence. The seven seals placed upon me are still holding strong. I believe I shall send the other five first, to pave the way, as it were, for my return."

"More, eh?" the largest said doubtfully, "Well, as long as they don't get in the way of what I want…"

"You want everything," she said flatly.

"Heh, so I do. Well then! I guess you'd best warn them not to take what I've already claimed."

"Noted, now you two had best be going."

"Yes Mistress."

"Suck-up…"

"Enough! Both of you! Since it appears there is no hope of you working together, I will send you to different locations. My acolytes will be waiting for your arrival. I believe your target was in the capitol and yours was in the…"

"The Pikesdale Arena, mistress."

"Very well. Find your targets, get settled, and don't draw attention to yourselves. Just be ready when the time comes."

"Oh, I'll be ready. I've been waiting for that day for a long time now."

"I'll be ready too! And I bet I'll be ready before him!"

"Then make it so. Now, you'd best go."

"I'm going, I'm going. Don't get your tail in a knot."

"How dare you speak to the mistress like…"

"Shut up, you!"

A small chuckle came from the female as the glow from the reflecting pool brightened. "Ah yes, always at each other's throats. Well, that can't be helped. On your way now. Spirit of Greed, spirit of Envy, depart."

There was a flash and she was alone.

Far away, in a place where hardly anyone gave thought to the great evils of the world, two travelers stood looking down on a small, seaside town. The first, a young jolteon, looked down with barely contained excitement and wonder. His companion, a lucario with curious black-fur, watched him in amusement. "Well?" he asked.

"So that's what a normal city looks like!"

"Actually, that's more of a small town. I've been to cities before."

"You've been to places bigger this before?" the jolteon asked in wonder.

"Yes, my dear young jolteon," the lucario growled, "I've been lots of places."

"Hey! You're not much older than me!

"But I am older, aren't I Bolt?"

The jolteon smiled. "Yep! Say, have you ever been here before?"

"No, I have not."

"Do you know anything about it?"

"Other than it's the closest settlement to home? No," the lucario answered. He shouldered the pair's travel pack and began the trek down the path to the gate. "Now, we should probably go see if that inn has any rooms for the night. And if we have the currency they use. I'd really like to sleep in a bed tonight."

Bolt's stomach growled. "I'm hungry. Do we have anything more to eat?"

His companion fished a single Oran Berry out of the pack and tossed it to him. "There you go, the last of our supplies." His stomach growled as well and he winced.

Bolt gobbled up the large berry and sighed. "Will they have more food, you think?"

The lucario's stomach growled again, louder. He growled in annoyance and began walking. "They better…just remember not to sell your necklace. We'll never get home without it."

Bolt nodded and walked along beside him as they took the path up the cliff to the town. Surf pounded down below as the sun began the final stretch of its daily journey across the sky. He looked up, another question on his lips, at the lucario next to him, whose eyes were fixed on their goal. "Keski, do you even know what this place is called?"

"Well…" the lucario muttered, "Assuming that map we got is accurate, which is doubtful, I believe it is called Seaside Crest. It could be called something else though. The merchant warned us that things on the edge of the Seafoam Empire often changed without being officially recorded." He looked sideways at Bolt. "Out of curiosity, why are we here?"

Bolt grinned. "To find Mist, of course! What else would we be doing here?"

"I just noticed that, lately, you've been more concerned with seeing new places than finding her," Keski noted, "What makes you think she'll be here?"

"What makes you think she won't?"

"It's a pretty small town, Bolt… Chances are she's not here."

"Which is why it's all the more likely she is here! Or in a town like this," Bolt said triumphantly, "Because she's trying to hide!"

"So you just want to check every small town we come across?" Keski groaned and put a paw to his forehead, massaging it gently. "Bolt, do you know how long that will take?"

"Well we've done three in a month!" Bolt retorted cheerfully.

"And we're out of supplies and low on money…" Keski grumbled, "Besides, there are so many small towns scattered everywhere that we won't even be able to find them all, much less search them. This is the furthest one out, too! It'll take forever!"

"Then the obvious thing to do is start with the one in front of us!" Bolt replied. He broke into a sprint. "Come on!"

Keski took off after him. "Hey! Slow down!"

"No! You run faster!"

"Bolt!"

"See you in the town, Keski!"

"Bolt!" Keski ran faster, breaking into a sprint. The jolteon, however, was too fast. He shot up the road like a rocket, kicking up a trail of dust in his wake. The black-furred lucario growled in frustration and gave up after a few seconds. "If he gets into trouble before I can find him again…" he muttered to himself. "…. He's going to get into trouble. I just know it. Of course he is! This is Bolt we're talking about…" He sighed. "Sometimes I wish I wasn't in charge of protecting him…life would be so much simpler."

Bolt sped toward Seaside Crest, a huge smile on his face. It was a good day to be alive! The earthy feeling of the path beneath his paws, the wind whistling by, the warm sun beaming down overhead, and the sound of pounding surf down below, all so exciting! Run, run forever, on into the sunset! Never stop! It felt good to be free!

He let out a whoop and redoubled his speed, but the path into town was blocked by a low wall and small gate. Bolt skidded to a halt right in front of the gate, kicking up a large cloud of dust, and looked around in bewilderment. There was no one there! However, a sign posted on the gate said 'Use North Gate'.

"Well that's dumb!" Bolt said aloud, "Why go around when there is a perfectly good entrance right here?" He stood on his hind legs for a second and pushed against the gate. It was barred from behind and didn't budge. The jolteon sat down stared up at it, head cocked slightly to the side. "I'll bet…I could jump over it!"

He grinned, immensely pleased with himself, and trotted back a bit to get a good running start. "And a one, and a two, and go!" He leapt neatly over the gate and landed in a heap. "Ow…"

A nearby buizel stared at him in surprise. "Oi!" the twin-tailed weasel snapped, jumping upright, "What be all this then? Nearly landed on me tail, you did."

"Sorry!" Bolt said, backing off quickly, "Didn't know you were there when I jumped over the gate."

The buizel's eyes narrowed. "You be some sorta smuggler then?"

"Nope!" Bolt said, "I'm a bard!" He rose, shook the dust out of his fur, and darted toward the center of town.

The buizel blinked in confusion. As Bolt disappeared around the corner, he said quietly to himself, "What be a bloody bard?"

Bolt hummed a simple tune as he reached the town's center thoroughfare. He looked around, eyes shining. There weren't a whole lot of Pokémon on the streets and only five shops, but it was comfortable. The sun was setting in the background and the last shoppers were disappearing into their homes for dinner. Bolt's stomach rumbled. Food, right? Which one of these was the inn?

The young jolteon's eyes studied his surroundings, taking it in. Down the sloping street nearby the two large docks was a three-story building made out of a combination of stone and wood. A few more buizel sailors and some other water-types were resting on the porch, tankards of Mago Berry Cider in their paws. It wasn't strictly cider, since it wasn't made from apples, but the name still stuck with it. The place looked a bit crowded though. Maybe there was someplace else?

A bit closer to him, the small shopping district was closing up for the night. On the left stood a homely bank and a supply store advertising supplies for adventurers of all stripes. On the right were an apothecary, a warehouse both for travelling merchants and locals, and a store named 'Azzy's Goods and Services'. Bolt stepped up to it and sniffed the doorway. The scent of something good being baked wafted out from it. His mouth watered. Maybe if he asked nicely, they would give him some!

Mind made up, he pushed the door open with a paw and entered. The front of the store was empty, of course, but he went in anyway. After all, the door was unlocked. That meant it was still open.

"Hello?" he called, "Anyone home? With food?"

There was no response, but he heard something from the back. Curious, he went behind the counter to the slightly ajar door normally reserved for employees and peered through into the next room.

"Please, Malik, leave us alone." An elderly azumaril stood bravely in between a terrified marill and three very hostile looking Pokémon. Two were houndooms, both sporting sharp, bared teeth and wicked horns. In between them stood a very young meowth, not more than five summers, with his claws unsheathed and eyes filled with petulant rage.

"Make him take back what he said first!" he snapped, "My father is a great ruler! He's from the capitol! You're just ungrateful and I'm not spoiled at all! All I want is an apology for what you," he pointed at the marill, who shifted further behind the azumarill, "said about me!"

"I…I…" the smaller blue mouse squeaked in fear, "I'm sorry Malik! Just…leave, please?"

Malik crossed his arms and stuck his tongue out at them. "No, I don't think I will," the meowth said with a pleased purr, "As it turns out, you owe my father your taxes. Since you were so rude earlier, it reminded me of it." He turned to his two companions. "Search the place!"

The azumarill took a half-step forward, but immediately stepped back when both hounds snarled in his face. He swallowed, trembling in fear, but still spoke his mind. "We…we paid though! Every copper of it!"

"Well then," the young meowth said with a cruel smile, "I'm sure my father will be glad to refund it. Later. If you can prove you already paid, that is." The two mice were distraught, but cowered when the two hounds began tearing the room apart, looking for money.

Bolt took a step back from the door and glanced around nervously. What to do? They were in trouble and leaving them just didn't seem right. But those two houndoom looked pretty dangerous. He took a deep breath. Dad would know what to do. He was a hero, after all. He'd probably charge right in and put them in a world of hurt. Well, Bolt thought, can't quite do that. But…maybe there is something I can do…

His eyes fell on a stand filled with apples, ten coppers each, and he grinned. He snagged one in his mouth, kicked the door down, and marched right in with sparks crackling through his fur. The five Pokémon stopped in their tracks and stared at him. He spat the apple out with a snarl. "Thief!" he snapped, "That's what you are!"

The other occupants of the room stared at the strange jolteon in dumb confusion, but the meowth was the first to recover. He quivered in rage, from his whiskers to his tail. "What did you just say, you miserable little…"

Bolt ignored him and kicked the apple toward the Azumarill. "Ten coppers?! That's price-gouging! Why, I could get one of these for four the next town over!"

Once again, the room was filled with the deafening sound of stunned silence. "Who's this idiot?" one of the meowth's companions whispered to the other. Bolt whirled on him.

"Idiot, am I? Well let me tell you something, greed is a terrible thing and I will not allow it to go unchallenged! First, it's cheating people on small things, like apples. But then, it grows until it corrupts the government! The order of nature! Time and Space itself! Yes, Time and Space will become greedy and gobble each other up! Then, where would we be?"

"What?" Malik frowned. "That makes absolutely no sense!"

"Exactly! I'm glad we're understanding each other!" Bolt smiled warmly at him.

The three exchanged very confused glances. "Uh…" one of the houndoom said, "Citizen, if you wouldn't mind leaving now, we're kind of in the middle of something."

Bolt sighed. "And here I thought we understood each other…remember how I was talking about other things being corrupted by greed? Well, I just so happened to be standing outside that door, if you catch my drift. Oh! Sorry, you're not a water or ice-type. No drifts for you! I'll say 'if you catch my meaning' instead."

The trio stiffened. A hiss and two growls rose from their throats. "You accusing the boss' kid of something?" one of the horned hounds asked with a snarl.

Bolt laughed. "Me? Nope! Never! I'm just saying that Greed is an ugly thing! Which makes sense for you. It's almost fitting really. Poetic, even! You and Greed are exactly alike in that respect!" He grinned widely.

The meowth's face twisted and contorted in rage so much that it looked painful. He stamped his paw several more times and looked almost ready to leap at Bolt, despite the disparity in size. But then a look of hostile curiosity entered his eyes. "I haven't seen you around before. Where are your entrance papers?"

Bolt's grin slipped a fraction of a degree. "What entrance papers?"

"The one's they gave you for entering the city, of course!" the cat snapped, "They hand them out at the North Gate and all the other ones are closed! So you either have them or you're here illegally!"

"I…jumped over the South Gate…" Bolt grinned sheepishly and began edging for the door.

"Oh? Did you now?" The meowth turned to his two followers, triumph in his eyes. "Dorchett! Demogor! Grab that jolteon and haul him down to the police!"

"Yes, Malik!" the pair replied, leering at Bolt. "Come along, little jolteon," Dorchett ordered, "Don't make things get messy now."

Bolt cleared his throat. "I think this has been a lovely conversation, but I'm afraid I hear my mom calling me. Ta-ta!" He turned to run.

"Get him!" Demogor snarled. In moments, they were all out of the store, leaving a very relieved azumarill and marill behind them.

Bolt ran through the streets. That went well! Sure, he was in a bit of trouble now, but as soon as he found a way to lose his pursuers, everything would be perfect! Yet that proved more difficult than he imagined. Even if they were slower than him, they knew the town much better than he did and remained right on his tail.

"Persistent, aren't you three?" he called over his shoulder, "Most would have given up by now! Did I tick you off that badly?"

"Don't slow down now! Grab him!" Malik shouted. The two horned hounds responded by putting on a burst of speed, saving their breath for running. Bolt blinked in surprise as they began to close the distance. So, he too sped up.

Immediately, he ran into something hard, cold, and unyielding. He bounced off it and fell on his back, stunned. His vision swam, but he could make out the vague outline of a stone building with a painted wooden sign above the door.

"P…O…L…I…C…E…" he muttered, though it took his spinning head a second to realize exactly what that collection of letters meant. "Oh… Well crud!" He staggered to his feet and tried to run once more, but Dorchett and Demogor tackled him to the ground. They pinned him, snarling in his face, teeth bared and lips pulled far back so he could see the slight yellowing of their teeth.

"Stay down, jolteon," Dorchett warned.

"Or we'll mess you up good," Demogor threatened.

Bolt smiled pleasantly. "Don't suppose we could talk about this?" His two captors stared blankly at him. "Didn't think so…"

Malik came puffing up, breathing hard and overheated already. He glared daggers at Bolt, placing all blame for everything that had gone wrong today on him. "You think you are clever, eh? Barging in there, insulting me? Do you know who I am?"

"Um…no, not really. Just a basic outline from what I observed," Bolt replied. He brightened as an idea occurred to him. "I can tell you who I am though!"

"I don't care who you are!" Malik snapped.

"Well that's rude!" Bolt retorted, "In that case, I don't care who you are either."

Malik stared incredulously at him. "I can't tell if you're stupid or just a really good actor. Probably stupid."

Bolt shrugged. "It's possible. Keski always says there is a short in my brain. Claims it's because of the extra electricity flowing through it."

With extra care to show his contempt, Malik snorted derisively. "And just who is Keski?"

"That would be me."

Malik and his two guards turned sharply. So sharply they almost gave themselves whiplash. Standing with the setting sun behind him, Keski's black fur gave off an air of unmistakable menace. A growl rose from Dorchett's throat, answered by one from Keski's. "What are you doing here?" Malik demanded haughtily.

"I was looking for Bolt," Keski replied evenly, "But I found you three attacking him. Care to explain to me why that is?"

"This criminal does not have the proper identification in order to enter the city!" Malik retorted.

"…" Keski stared at him blankly. "…identification?"

"Yeah…" Bolt said, looking a bit mareepish, "turns out you need some sort of paper from the North Gate to legally enter this place. I just jumped over the south one."

Keski cleared his throat. "Ah, I see. Well, um, I will be right back then…" He turned to go, but Dorchett and Demogor intercepted him, appearing in his path.

"Not so fast, lucario," Dorchett said with a warning growl.

"Let's have a look at your papers," Demogor added.

Keski looked between them, shifting awkwardly. "Well, the thing is…" Malik grinned, pleased to no end by this development. "I…temporarily…do not have them…with me…" Keski winced, knowing exactly how unbelievable that story was, "But, if you allow me…ten minutes, I will be back…with my papers…which I have…just not on me…"

"Suuure," Malik drawled, "Should we sit down with blindfolds on and our paws over our ears while you take all our money too?" The two houndoom circled around him and backed him up against the same wall as Bolt.

Keski groaned. "This is all your fault."

Bolt looked up sharply. "My fault?" he said, aghast.

"Yes, your fault!" the lucario snapped, "And now we get to experience the consequences of your stupidity!"

"Hey! It's no big deal! We can take the three of them!" Bolt said. Keski rolled his eyes.

"Right," he said, "let's just start beating everyone up. Right in front of the police station. Because nothing bad could come of that."

"Exactly!" Bolt said happily, "So, we going to do this or what?" Keski sighed heavily.

"Sometimes I wonder why I bother…" he muttered. Bolt laughed.

"You probably shouldn't," he said, "Dad says that talking to me is like fighting a psychic. Your mind feels funny afterwards." Dorchett snorted, slightly amused by that comment, though glares from his two companions silenced him.

The front door to the police station opened and a Pikachu wearing a blue sash with the police's emblem on it stepped out. He stopped short when he saw the scene in front of him. "Um…"

"Officer Kachi! Officer Kachi!" Malik called, jumping from paw to paw in delight, "These two don't have their entrance papers! Arrest them!"

The bewildered pikachu blinked several times. "Well, I just got off my…" He looked back and forth between the two groups, unsure exactly what to do. He cleared his throat, assuming the authoritative attitude expected from the police. "Is that true?" he asked Bolt and Keski. The pair exchanged glances.

"Yeah…" Keski said apologetically.

After a moment's hesitation, the pikachu police officer held open the door to the building with a heavy sigh. "Well, come inside then. You're under arrest and all that. Anything you say can be held against you if your case ever comes to a court of law." Bolt nodded and stepped inside, eager to escape Malik, followed closely by Keski.

Malik bounced in delight. "Lock them up for ninety years, Officer Kachi! Throw away the key to their cell!"

"Thank you, Malik," Kachi replied, pasting a patient smile on his face, "Now scurry on home. You're probably late for dinner."

Malik paled and looked at the position of the sun in the sky. "Hey! You're right!" With this new goal in mind, the young meowth went running off towards home with his two bodyguards. Kachi gave another small sigh and closed the door.

The room they were in was small, but not uncomfortable. One half of it was taken up by a desk and wood chair, the other half had a few chairs along the wall of various sizes due to the diverse amount of Pokémon that came through here. Kachi hopped onto the one behind the desk and smiled at the two in a friendly way. "Well, welcome to Seaside Crest! Did you miss the sign on the South Gate?"

"No," Bolt replied, "I just ignored it. And then I was chased by Malik."

"Sorry about that…" he said, "Malik is…a bit…um, how do I say it? He's…overzealous in enforcing the laws his father makes." He rolled his eyes. "All of them. And believe me, there are quite a lot."

"Really?" Bolt's curiosity was piqued. "How many?"

Kachi wordlessly reached behind the desk and pulled out a stack of papers half as high as he was and dropped them on the desk. "There ya go!" he said with flippant cheer, "Have fun reading through them! And good luck following them all! We're supposed to enforce them, but to be honest, I don't even know what half of them mean! For example…" He picked the top paper off the stack and held it before his face, reading in a very proper accent. "All citizens are advised to stay indoors at reasonable hours during the night. Any citizens not obeying this decree shall be suspected of villainy." He tossed the paper casually toward Keski, who caught it after some fumbling. "Yeah, we have no idea what that is supposed to mean."

Bolt stared at the piece of paper in wonder. "What is this thing?" he asked, "We only have stone or clay tablets where I come from!"

Kachi grinned. "New to the Empire, eh? That is something a grass-type inventor thought up a while ago now. It's been around since…well, since before that big meteor almost destroyed the world. Basically, it's compressed wood pulp. Kinda fragile, but it sure beats stone or clay. They mostly use it to post jobs for the guilds, though we use it to keep track of red tape."

Bolt stared at it, fascinated. Keski just looked it over, mildly impressed, and tossed it aside. "So…" the lucario began, "what happens now?"

Opening a drawer in the desk, the pikachu police officer pulled out several blank sheets of paper, an inkwell, and a quill. "Now…you tell me who you are, how you got into the city, what you are doing here, and why you didn't go through the North Gate. Slowly, please, so I can write it down."

Keski grunted. "Simple enough. I'm Keski. This is Bolt."

"Hi!" Bolt said, grinning, "As I said, I jumped over the South Gate because it seemed stupid to go all the way around."

"And I climbed over it because that's where his tracks led. I was trying to catch up to him before he landed in trouble. It appears I failed miserably…" Keski explained wryly, "And we're here looking for someone."

Kachi wrote this down. "Who are you looking for?"

"My sister," Bolt replied, "Her name is Mist. She's an eevee. Have you seen her?"

Kachi shook his head. "Nope. Sorry."

"Aww…" Bolt's countenance fell and he sighed. "Well, there's always the next town…"

Kachi looked at him questioningly, so Keski explained. "We've been travelling for a bit now, looking around for her. She disappeared from our home on an island a month and a half ago. We couldn't leave immediately, not until we could convince a passing ship to stop and give us passage, so we lost her trail pretty quick. Bolt is determined to search until he finds her."

"Ah, I see," Kachi replied, scribbling down a few things, "And where exactly is your home?"

"It's…a bit west of here. We live on one of the islands out in the middle of the ocean," Keski explained, "A ship was blown ashore by the stormy seas surrounding our island. We helped repair it, but when they left, Mist had left too. We tracked the ship down and the crew told us she had convinced them to take her with them, so they did. They weren't lying, either." Keski grinned, a little blood-thirst in his eye. "I made sure of that." Kachi paused and stared at him, a little unnerved.

"But," Bolt said, picking up the tale, "They couldn't tell us where she had gone, so now we are just wandering around looking for news of her."

"Right…" Kachi said, setting aside the quill and blowing lightly on the ink to help it dry. It smudged a little and he grumbled under his breath. "Well, sorry to tell you this, but your journey ends here for right now."

Bolt blinked and Keski stiffened hostilely. "Why's that?" they asked in unison, though with very different tones. Bolt's contained pure curiosity, Keski's had an undertone of threat to it. In response, Kachi rifled through the pile of laws on his desk, searching for one particular one. Once he had it in his paws, he handed it to Keski, an apologetic smile on his face.

Keski read it through once, the growled. "Visitors without the appropriate documentation are to be held until their identities can be confirmed?!"

"Yeah…" Kachi rubbed the back of his head mareepishly, "Sorry, but that one is pretty clear and our job is to enforce the rules, no matter the circumstances…" He cleared his throat. "Also, this may not be the best time to mention this, but there's also a fine…"

"We have almost no money," Keski said flatly.

The pikachu sighed in response. "Then we'll need to find work for you to do…"

"How long will it take to confirm our identities?" Bolt asked anxiously, "I really want to find Mist…The way she ran off like that worries me."

Kachi pondered it for a minute. "Well, we can send out a message to your island within the week. Then all we need is a reply along with your descriptions. Not that it would be difficult considering you're the only pure black-furred lucario I've ever seen." Keski cleared his throat and nodded, smiling awkwardly. "So, I suppose the only thing we need from you is the location of your home." Keski and Bolt exchanged worried glances. "Is something wrong?"

"Well, you see the thing is…" Bolt began.

"We lived on a…special island," Keski said.

"There is a storm surrounding it all the time and the only way to get through is with this." Bolt indicated his necklace, where a single, crystalline feather hung. "So it was very hard to find a ship to carry us to the mainland. And this necklace is kind of our only way home, so we would rather not part with it…"

"May I see it?" Kachi asked.

"Uh…sure?" Bolt dipped his head and allowed it to slide gently onto Kachi's desk.

The pikachu picked up the feather and examined it. "Well…" he said, "I've never heard of any island like that…I don't want to accuse you of lying, but…" He frowned as he stared at the feather. "Come with me. There's someone here more familiar with obscure bits of knowledge than me. She might be able to confirm your story." He paused, but then remembered he was still holding Bolt's feather. "Oh, here's this back." He tossed the feather to Bolt, who caught it gently in his mouth and wrangled the strap back around his neck.

Kachi hopped onto all fours and led them swiftly into the rear of the police station. They passed the cells, the evidence room, and a room filled with beds, presumably for the officers living in the station. From the looks of things, it hadn't been used in years. In fact, everything was covered in a fine layer of dust.

"You'll have to forgive the mess," Kachi said conversationally, "No one really is assigned to clean the place and we're only here during the day, so it kind of falls through the cracks. Anyway, the door we want is right back here, the main office." He pushed it open with a slight creak from the hinges, revealing a cluttered workspace with four desks lining the walls, two on each side, and one larger one all the way at the back. All five were piled high with papers stacked so precariously that a slight breeze might push them over. Currently, only three Pokémon were in the room. On the left was a tangrowth rapidly writing on three different pieces of paper with as many vines. The fact that he could perform such a feat was impressive even without the added difficulty of tuning out the very loud conversation coming from the back of the room.

"And the governor wonders why we never get anything done!" a quilava snapped, flinging himself back in his chair, "Look at all this! I can't even tell what sort of wood this desk is made out of, there's so much junk piled on it!"

Beside him stood a female dewott with a serious expression on her face. She stood with military precision and kept her expression carefully neutral. It wasn't necessarily hostile, just unreadable. "Sir," she said, "Might I remind you that you could have completed a good portion of your work today if you spent less time complaining about it?"

"Oh, what's the point? There will just be more of it tomorrow. I'm pretty sure the major import for this town is paper because this stuff on my desk would fill half of a merchant craft's cargo hold!"

The dewott's lips crept almost imperceptibly upwards. "If you like, I could request an inquiry into the truth of that."

"NO! That would mean even MORE paperwork!"

"As you wish, sir. Though I would warn you that we do indeed have another batch coming tomorrow."

The quilava moaned and let his head fall on his desk, cushioned by the copious amounts of forms and records there. "I give up…" he groaned, "I'm quitting this job and spending my time down at the inn with several pints of cider. The waitresses are quite fetching. I'm sure I'll be nice and relaxed after a week with them."

His subordinate sighed heavily and shook her head. "Chief Pyralis, sir!"

"Oh, you used my full name and title. Now I know I'm in trouble…"

"Yes sir! Your conduct is unbecoming of a superior officer and sets a poor example for the rest of the force!"

The police chief glared at her. "The rest of the force? You and the workaholic over there are the only ones here!" He blinked, seeing the three who had entered for the first time. "And…Kachi…and…two other Pokémon. What are you doing back here, Kachi? I thought you were going home for the day?"

Kachi laughed. "Well, you won't believe this, but as I was walking out the front door, Malik insisted I arrest these two since they didn't have the proper documents to enter the city." There was a pause. "Oh, Bolt and Keski, this is Chief Pyralis, but we all call him Pyre, and that is Lt. Cascade, his self-appointed conscience."

Bolt grinned. "Hi! Nice to meet you!"

Cascade nodded guardedly in response. "Likewise."

Pyre glowered. "Entering without papers, eh?" the chief muttered, "Regulation number three hundred something-something or the other: the police force is required to control, interview, and background check all the traffic entering and exiting the city'. Because we all possess the power of Mew and can do impossible things on a regular basis."

"Yeah, so Pyre…what do we do with them?" Kachi asked, "They haven't done anything dangerous. We could put them in a cell, but I think the worst thing they did today was get on Malik's bad side."

Pyre raised an eyebrow. "How'd you two manage that?"

"I was looking for someplace to eat when I found him and his two guards threatening the azumarill and marill in the general store," Bolt immediately replied grimly, "I tried to intervene, but things went downhill quickly."

Pyre stared at him, incredulous. "He was threatening them? That's illegal. That's very illegal. Too bad he's Jasper's spoiled little brat, otherwise I'd drag him down here myself. Dorchett and Demogor, however…" He grinned. "Jasper doesn't have the authority to keep them out of jail. And we have two nice cells all ready for them."

The dewott cleared her throat. "Be sure that you have all the paperwork in order for them. Jasper will demand to see it. And don't forget the forms we need to fill out for these two before they can be properly jailed as well."

Pyre's grin disappeared and was replaced with one of horror. "Oh Arceus save me…" he said with a choked sob. Kachi cleared his throat.

"Sir, Lt. Cascade makes a good point," he began, "And none of us really want to deal with that right now. I mean, I'm sure Meadow is already going to scold me for being late to dinner. Also, I mean, I don't really think that a prison cell is necessary for these two. Even if they were by for less-than-legal reasons, which we have no evidence of nor is there any reason to suspect, the only thing they have done so far ignore a sign. So I propose we just send them on down to the Starchasers. They can have them do chores or something."

Pyre's grin returned. "And that only requires one form! A job-request for the Starchasers to accept!" He yanked a few papers out from the middle of the pile, bringing the entire stack down afterwards, and began writing furiously on them. While he was engaged in that, Kachi sidled up to Lt. Cascade.

"Hey, Cascade, would you mind doing something for me? Quickly?"

She turned and nodded. "Of course, Kachi, what is it?"

The pikachu motioned for Bolt to come forward. "See that necklace he's wearing? Can you identify what's on it?"

She frowned and reached for the crystal feather. "May I?" she asked politely. Bolt nodded and dipped his head as she removed it gently. The dewott studied it, taking in the small details. How the filaments blended together in a fine pattern, how it refracted the light passing through it, and the small rainbows that filled the interior. It was a marvelous piece of craftsmanship. When looked at from a distance, it looked transparent, but when seen up close it was one of the most colorful and beautiful things she had ever seen.

"It's very nice," she complimented, "Its structure almost exactly matches that of a real feather, just not one to any bird I've ever seen. Where'd you get it?"

"From my father before I left home," Bolt answered, "He said it would serve as a guide when I wanted to return."

Cascade examined it further, frowning. "No matter which way I turn it, as long as I let it hang, this end always points the same way. West." Abruptly, she finished her examination and placed it around Bolt's neck. "Reminds me of something an old friend told me once. It was a story about an enchanted island over the Western Sea. Only someone who lived there could find their way back, unless they told you how to get there." She glanced at Bolt sharply. "Just where are you from? What's the name of the place?"

Bolt and Keski exchanged hesitant glances. "Um…" Bolt said, "Well, it's just one of those islands out in the middle of the ocean. I don't really know what you would call it. It does have a mountain in the middle, but so does pretty much every other island out there." Cascade gazed at him, expressionless but clearly waiting for something more. "We call it the Island of the Rainbow…" The dewott blinked once. "That's really all I can tell you. I honestly have no idea what you mainlanders call it."

"Island of the Rainbow is enough to go on. For now." Cascade let that hang in the air for a moment before she shifted her attention to Kachi and continued. "I assume you want me to check up on this story of theirs for the purposes of identity confirmation?" The pikachu nodded in affirmation. "Very well. It may take me a few days. I might even have to consult a few of my contacts in other towns. But between the feather and this 'Island of the Rainbow' name, I can probably pin down where they claim to have come from."

Kachi smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Cass! You're the best, you know that right?"

"So they tell me," the dewott answered with a small, amused chuckle, "I'll get on it tomorrow. I don't think the Chief will forgive me if I make him fill out the approval forms for my inquiry tonight."

"I certainly will not!" Pyro growled, scribbling furiously, "Aaaaand done! One job request for the capture of a black-furred lucario and a jolteon." He got out from behind his desk and stepped over the papers that he had spilled on the floor, handing the slip of paper to Kachi. "Here you go! Take that down to the guildhall and post it on their board. Then, just hand these two over to them and call it a day. That way it's an official job request and our wonderful governor can't get his tail in a knot over it."

Kachi saluted enthusiastically. "Yes sir! Come on, you two! Time for you to meet our local guild!"