"Hey, are you awake? Please tell me that you're awake."
She opened her eyes only to see a total whiteness ranging beyond eyesight. Her trembling paws tried to stand up straight, but they just collapsed as she could not feel any strength left inside her body. She blinked her eyes again, and standing in front of her was a familiar figure, the one that made her inner soul stunned with shock.
"Kaze? I-is that you?"
Her voice crashed and there was no response either, only the silence that followed the echo. And, the blurry figure she saw earlier had disappeared.
"Where am I? Where is this place? Is this heaven? Am I dead?"
Question after question surrounded her to no end. Then, she could feel something, soothing and refreshing, like a faint gust of wind on a vast pasture on a peaceful summer day. She closed her eyes, trying to take all the sensation in. She then heard giggles, and then, the sound of someone crying.
"Don't worry, everything's gonna be just fine."
The voice sent a bolt through her head. She recognised that voice, it was from the one she loved more than anything in the world combined. She shouted, clinging onto the echo for a reply, but then she realized, she was falling back to unconsciousness again.
...
"Why? Why is it always happening to me?!"
Kaze burst into tears, clutching tightly onto the piece of paper. He screamed in agony, throwing a fist into the nearby wall. The flickering torch inside the chamber sent warmth to his mind, only making him more confused and depressed.
"Kaze, look..." Wigglytuff tried to reassure him. "...we all know Yuki is gone and there is nothing we can do about it." It took Kaze a really hard moment to swallow the truth down his throat either bitterly or regretfully. Then, what Wigglytuff said next lit a light of hope in his heart.
"But... there is still a way to resurrect her."
Wigglytuff inhaled and looked out the rising sky. "You see, Arceus is the creator of all the living creatures on this planet. I believe he can bypass time and space to bring Yuki back."
"He can?" Kaze asked back with a slightly more calmness this time.
"Yes..." Wigglytuff nodded sincerely. "...but Kaze, before you do anything reckless, I must warn you that timeline is a complicated concept and interfering with it is by no means a wise decision."
Kaze's heart sank down a bit. "I don't care!" he shouted, "I only want to see her one more time even if it costs my life to bring her back!" A strong look of determination shone unfadingly on his face. "Tell me where he is and I will ask him to bring her back!"
This time, Wigglytuff heaved a deep sigh, a sigh of regret for having told Kaze about that option. "Kaze, the hard thing is... We, mortal Pokémon, don't have the slightest findings about Arceus' whereabouts so..."
"Does it mean that I'll never get a chance to see her again?" he asked desperately.
"You can ask Torkoal, the town's elder." Wigglytuff gently advised. "I think he will know something about Arceus."
Kaze stood there, thinking to himself.
"But Kaze, do remember that we have a graduation test this evening at Mystifying Forest."
A friendly reminder came from Wigglytuff. Apparently, he had the slightest notion that Kaze would run away from the Guild before even graduating. It was not a bad thing to think as Wigglytuff had encountered these situations a whole lot of time; namely one of the famous explorer that worked for the Federation. But that is a story for another day. Right now, Wigglytuff only wanted Kaze to be well-prepared for the journey ahead of him.
He came next to Kaze and with beseeching eyes, he whispered, "Please Kaze, this graduation process is for your own good. If you can pass it, I'm sure that you can handle almost anything that comes in your way. So as a Guildmaster of yours, I want you to train hard for it, will you?"
"I will," Kaze said mildly.
...
Back when the day things had not gone astray for both of them. Kaze was having so much fun. He could not remember when he last smiled until that day, the day that Yuki fell down from the sky like an angel, blessed with purity and innocence that hardly could someone he knew be like her. Now, all what she had left for him, for this world was a lasting peacefulness, and the melody she played in the world he perceived just could not fade away.
Sometimes, he wondered, what if he did not meet her, what if he did not fall for her smile the first day they met each other, what if life did not let him suffer from this tragic loss and despair.
His mind went blank, no feelings of wanting to move on.
"Kaze! Wake up!"
Most of the times, Airon was the one who would cheer him up, and this time was not an exception. Kaze was like daydreaming, with his eyes fixed at the rock ceiling and his arm thrown around his neck.
"You've got to forget her Kaze!" Airon exclaimed, seemingly losing his patience telling Kaze to discard the image of Yuki from his head. Kaze led no response, only handing the letter over to Airon. Airon's eyes widened a bit before narrowing. He read through it before covering his mouth, concealing a gasp.
"How can I possibly do that Airon?" Kaze stared at the nightfall, his eyes sparkling in a veil of tears. "Have you ever lost someone who you love more than anything else, Airon? How does it feel when you see her disappearing in front of your bear eyes, Airon?"
In his mind, Airon knew that he could say nothing to cheer Kaze up anymore.
"I'll just leave you alone for a while," Airon said, closing the door.
...
Mystifying Forest. Covered with lushful trees that blocking out the sunlight, Mystifying Forest held a serene yet somewhat scary atmosphere. This place was where Pokémon from everywhere came and evolved.
Words of mouth about how wonderful and sacred this place was had reached Kaze since he was still very young. He had always wanted to be here, partially because of the desire to be as strong as his father. However, the reason for his departure today was not to evolve but to seek for a hidden item that Wigglytuff had placed somewhere deep down in this forest.
It would obviously be a Perfect Apple to Kaze as the hidden thing, so finding it would not be a demanding task.
"This forest is thicker than I had expected," Kaze said, clearing the branches away from his view. "It's a lucky thing that I haven't run into any wild Pokémon yet." Saying so but he knew he could handle a few of them pretty well thanks to all the training with Yuki.
"Grrr..."
It was not long until Kaze stumbled over a Monster House. Clenching his teeth, he let out a series of wide slashes. The defeated Pokémon collapsed before turning into ashes. Thinking the whole thing was over, Kaze was taken aback by the sound of steps.
"More of them is coming over, I'd better speed up."
A few moment later, he ended up at an empty clearing. There was nothing around him that could tell him whereabouts he should be next. All was the same, he was standing on a plot of land that had been recovering from the wildfire last summer. Then, realization struck him. Concentrating, Kaze emitted his aura into the surroundings. It did not take a long time before sign of heat caught his attention.
He went towards that route.
The only thing he did not know was that behind him, there were eyes watching him carefully...
A/N: So, how do you think about this one? I don't really know if there is a plot hole or the characters I built have such mediocre traits or not. I'm still trying my best to improve my writing skill, but I think it will take a long way. Anyway, my update schedule would be around a fortnight for each chapter if writer-block doesn't get in my way, so if you find my stories interesting, keep reading, will you?