CHAPTER 1

Drew idly ran a finger over the scar on his forehead, a remnant from when he had he had fallen after being attacked. It had been almost ten years since the attack, but the scars he had received never faded. He lay on his bed, facing the ceiling, and now propped his head up on his hands as he reflected on the days following the attack. It was three days and several dozen stitches before Drew had woken up in the lab's ER. He recalled the fear that rushed through him as soon as he woke up, and that he had expected a killing blow to come at that moment, and only when it didn't arrive had he opened his eyes.

There was a knock on his door. "Drew? One of the Professor's assistants is here. Says it's urgent" His mother's voice called from the other side.

He groaned as he got up and surveyed his room. The walls were a blue that had faded so far as to be white in some areas; an old desktop computer on the table across from his bed and several neatly arranged books on the bookshelf next to it the only notable things present in his otherwise barren room. He moved for the door, pausing only to grab a t-shirt from his closet before heading downstairs.

"Who is it, Mom? And what does he want?" Drew asked as he descended to the living room, stopping short when the figure in the white lab coat sitting at the coffee table turned around to face him, a thin smile on her face.

"Morning, neighbor" she said, still smiling, though Drew could see how hard it was for her to keep that up. "The Professor has asked us to go to Petalburg for him. He said he needed a package delivered to Norman."

Drew's scowl deepened at her words, "Why is he asking me to go? You should be enough"

Her smile fell off, and Drew knew that she didn't like the idea of traveling together either. "I asked him the same thing, but he insisted on it. Wouldn't explain why"

"Tell him I refuse." He said, turning away from May to climb back up to his room.

"Do it yourself. I'm not some messenger to be shuttled back and forth like this." she growled, before storming out of the house, leading to a startled gasp from Drew's mother.

"Oh! You're leaving already, May? It's been a while since you came over, so I thought I'd get you to stay for lunch" Drew heard his mother say from the yard.

"Sorry Ms. Stroud, but I really have to go now; I was dropping off a message from the Professor"

"Such a sweet girl, she is. Too bad she's too busy to come around anymore, right Drew?" his mother asked as she closed the front door behind her. "Where did you go now? Come on now, it's almost noon, Drew! You can't stay cooped up in your room like this" the exasperation was plain in her voice as she realized that he had returned to his room the instant May left.

Who did Birch think he was, meddling with my life like this? Why can't he just leave well off alone? Drew fumed as he paced around his room. The conversation with May had got him worked up, and he stormed up and down the length of his room, cursing May and Birch as he did.

"Fuck!" he exclaimed, half in surprise and half in pain, as he clutched at his toe. In his fury, he'd walked into one of the legs of his bed, stubbing his toe and drawing tears to his eyes in the process. He blinked back the tears and drew in a deep breath to calm himself down. The anger was pointless now, and he needed to think clearly. He would have to go to the lab, to talk to Birch, try to talk the Professor out of sending him on this errand.

Drew sighed, already drained by the idea of convincing Birch that he wasn't necessary. The old man was notoriously stubborn, and rarely changed his mind once it was set. If May hadn't been able to convince him, it was going to be an extremely trying task for Drew to succeed.

-x-

Drew left his house about an hour after the conversation- some would call it confrontation- with May. He'd taken the time to get washed up and to eat a bit at his mother's behest. With all that done, he began walking to the lab. It wasn't far from his house- a twenty minute walk at worst. He set himself a slow pace, utilizing the time to try to come up with an argument to convince Birch to let him off the hook.

Despite that, he realized he had nothing solid to use as he turned the final bend, bringing the lab into view. He winced at the sight of it; the place was brighter than he remembered it being, the sunlight reflecting painfully off the polished white exterior of it. Shielding his eyes, he walked up to the building. Stepping up to the glass doors, he was taken aback when they didn't open. The doors were automatic, and there didn't seem to be any scanners around it, which added to his confusion. Why call him to the lab and then lock him out?

The sound of a vehicle's engine starting up pulled him from his cloud of doubts. Now, faint voices joined in with the engine- voices that sounded rushed. He walked around a corner of the building, towards the commotion- which seemed to be coming from behind the building. The knowledge served only to quicken his pulse, because his memory told him that the town's border ran immediately behind the lab, with nothing but wilderness beyond it.

He could make out individual voices amongst the noise now- including those of May and the Professor. Clearly, they'd begun preparing for the trip without waiting for his confirmation. Whether that meant they'd decided to go without him, Drew wasn't sure. With Birch, It was more likely that he had gone ahead with the planning as if Drew had agreed to going along with it.

He kept close to the side of the building as he approached; unsure of what he would find at the back of the building. He heard Birch say his name, but couldn't catch the rest of the conversation as a sudden metallic screech drowned out all other noise in the area. Pressing his hands against his ears, Drew stalked out to the backyard, intent on confronting all those present about the racket.

The words died in his throat as he took in what was happening in front of him, replaced there by a frightened yelp that he barely managed to choke back. The Professor and May were standing beside a large, camouflaged jeep. Around them, several people in white lab coats were shouting orders to a group of red-and-brown birdlike Pokemon that were ostensibly tasked with packing for the trip.

What had shocked Drew was the fence in front of him, or rather, the lack of it. A large gate portion of the fence had been peeled back- almost as if by hand- directly in front of the jeep. His mind worked furiously as he recovered from his initial shock. There had to be something wrong with this trip if the Professor had decided to avoid the perfectly good road to Petalburg and choose to have them drive blindly around the woods. May had mentioned a delivery. What would they be delivering, that it required so much secrecy?

"Ah, Drew! See, May? I told you he would come." The Professor's voice rang out triumphantly. Drew looked up to see a heavyset man striding purposefully towards him, a wide smile on his face. Professor Birch had gained weight since he had last seen him. Despite that, he was still a powerfully built man. A lifetime of researching Pokemon and their habitats had lent him a rather robust figure, due to rigors involved.

Following Drew's gaze, Birch patted his stomach "Ah, this. Since May relegated me to a desk job, I seem to have put on quite the belly. Still, I can't say it's all bad- I get to spend a lot more time around the kids now. Did you know I have kids now? A pair- twins- in fact. A boy-"

"Why do you want me to go with her?" Drew asked curtly, cutting the Professor off midway and immediately felt a pang of guilt as the hurt became evident in the older man's face. Never mind, I'll apologize for it later, he thought to himself; I can't let him get me side-tracked right now.

"Straight to the heart of the matter, eh? I'm sending you two to Oldale with something for Norman. It's nothing major, a one-or-two day trip." He said, caught off-guard by Drew's tone.

"What is this 'something'? And don't bullshit me, if this wasn't anything important, you'd have sent it via the main-fucking-road, with some random lab rat. You wouldn't be trying to send me into the middle of the woods where I was nearly mauled to death by fucking wolves!" Birch's words had Drew incensed. He found himself growing angrier with every word.

"Now, wait just a sec-" Birch tried to get a word in edgewise, before Drew's continued rant drowned him out.

"Not that you are sending me anywhere; I haven't agreed to anything, so how can you just presume that I'm going along with this shit? What is it with you two? Can't you just leave me alone? I don't want anything to do with either you or your fucking monsters!" Belatedly, he realized that he had screamed out the last line, and that all other noise in the area had died out completely.

Panting from the exertion, Drew looked around at the assistants who were trying to look as busy as they possibly could. May's expression was a mix of shock and outrage. She had been stationed next to the jeep, but was now stalking towards him, only for Birch to step in her path with his arms outstretched.

"No, May. He's got reason to be angry, you know that. Let him vent, it'll be easier to explain once he's done." He spoke softly, trying to calm her down. It appeared to work, as she returned to her original post and settled herself to glaring at him from across the gap.

Once he had coaxed May back to her original position, Birch turned again to face Drew, a wearied expression on his face. He held his arms up placatingly "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have patronized you. May I explain myself? I won't try to force you to go along with it, but I ask that you listen to me before you leave- is that okay?" he said, edging closer to Drew.

Drew said nothing, but nodded his head almost imperceptibly, indicating that Birch continue. He had no intention of going along with their plan, but he was curious now- he wanted to know why they were being so secretive about this trip.

"What do you know of the situation in Hoenn right now? Beyond Petalburg, I mean." Birch asked.

Without waiting for a reply, he continued "Not much, I'm sure. Littleroot is removed from most of the events in Hoenn, so there's no reason you should know what happens in the regions beyond, usually. However, what is brewing now will affect everyone, including us here. I would explain everything to you, but we don't have the time for that." He pulled a crumpled letter from the pocket of his lab coat.

"What's that?"

"It's from your father. It was dropped off a short while ago. He's asked for you to go to Oldale." Birch said, holding the letter out to Drew, who tore it out of his grasp.

The writing was definitely his father's, Drew realized, as soon as he broke the seal and opened the letter. Still suspicious, he glanced up at Birch once before reading the letter.

Drew, there's a war coming to Hoenn- no, a war within Hoenn. The peace is just about broken now. Norman is doing everything in his power to maintain order in Petalburg, but that isn't enough. What can help, though, is what Professor Birch has with him. I can't tell you what it is in this letter, but know that it is something that will help us secure these regions, let us weather this storm. I cannot force you to do anything, but I implore you, hear him out. I know how much you dislike Pokemon, and I would not ask this of you if I did not think it was absolutely necessary. Listen to him, and if you choose to follow his plan, then come meet Norman and me in Oldale as soon as you can. I know I have been vague, but I promise to tell you as much as I am able once you are here.

There was no signature at the end of the letter. Drew read it once more, letting the words sink in. One thing was certain- his father couldn't have been more vague if he had tried.

"What does he mean by a war within Hoenn?" he asked, pointing to the words on the letter as he did.

"Just that. Have you heard of Magma and Aqua?" He continued before Drew could reply, "They are two religious groups that showed up, at about the same time, around the time your family shifted to Littleroot.

"At first, they were fairly harmless in their zealotry- although zealots they have always been. Each worships a legend- Magma has Groudon, the Earth God; and Aqua has Kyogre of the Oceans." He paused here.

"At first, you said. What happened then?" Drew asked, his anger forgotten for now.

"People started listening to them." the older man shrugged.

"It was as simple as that. Each group sought out those cities whose people would identify with them the most, and set themselves up there. From there, indoctrination was a relatively simple matter." Birch said, his tone steeped with regret.

"One by one, the cities divided themselves into either the Magma or the Aqua factions, barring three- Petalburg, Rustboro and Mauville. These three hold out against both, refusing both doctrines. This is where we stand today. A regular Mexican (replace name) standoff. Magma and Aqua want nothing more than to destroy each other- as do their respective deities- but having this neutral coalition is almost as galling for them- they are fanatics; they cannot have people who do not believe in their god, who actively defy their god.

"They're growing impatient, too. That's why we're asking you to go to Oldale. Norman doesn't believe that this peace- if you can call it that- will last much longer. He needs to do something to ensure safety for his people."

"And this object, the one you can't tell me about, that's going to do it? You'll understand if I'm a little skeptical about that, won't you?"

"Please, try to bear with it for just a little. Your father will give you all the details you need once you meet him."

Drew opened his mouth to reply, but stopped himself short. It had been a long time since he had seen his father. Adrian had been posted at Petalburg for the past few years, as an advisor to Norman. Over that time, he hadn't called or written home too often- which Drew could understand now, if the situation there was as bad as it seemed. He still wasn't convinced, though.

"Why does it have to be me?" He asked.

"We can't entrust this item to just anyone, you know. Far too much is at stake for that. You were right about being unable to give this to one of my assistants at the lab. They are all too recognizable by their association with me."

"What about May, then? Isn't she a member of the lab?"

"I'm not one of the Professor's staff, if you're asking." The flame-haired girl walked over to where Drew stood with Birch, glowering all the while.

"I'm a Trainer, not a researcher. I help the Professor out from time to time, when he needs a specimen brought in or something, but my association with the lab ends there. My interest in research only goes so far as what will help me catch and train Pokemon."

"We can't have people who are known to be associated with the lab here carrying this, because we fear that the roads and the forest are being watched. Magma and Aqua don't know what it is we found, but they know we have found something that is vital to our survival. They will be on the lookout for anyone known to be a lab member. Two Pokemon trainers heading into the forest won't be of concern to them, we believe." Birch said.

"Two-" Drew started.

"Relax, we aren't asking you to have anything to do with the Pokemon. I meant that that's the impression we want you give off." Birch cut him off quickly. "As for why you over any other regular citizen, you'll have to ask your father for that too. He asked that we send you on this journey. He didn't elaborate, only saying that it had to be you." He shrugged helplessly. "I realize how vague and confusing all this must be to you, but consider what's at stake here- we can't afford any delays now."

"I-I need some time to think." Drew said. His anger had faded over the course of Birch's explanation, and the void it left had been filled with questions- questions that Birch didn't seem able or willing to answer here. Anything he wanted answered would require his compliance with their plan. If war was coming to Petalburg, then Littleroot would not escape unscathed. He was not convinced that whatever they wanted delivered to Norman would stop an army of men and Pokemon, and staying here- knowing that it would hit Littleroot at any time- would kill him.

"You're absolutely certain you can't tell me what it is you're sending to Norman?" He asked.

Birch sighed, "I cannot explain its use, or how it will help us- that would take too much time. What I can tell you is that it is an artifact of immense power."

"As long as I don't know how this thing works, I can't be sure that it will protect us, but that's more reason for me to go. I'd rather go to Petalburg and risk facing war there than sit here and wait for it to come to me." Drew said.

A smile appeared on the large man's face, and still beaming, he stepped over and clapped Drew on the back. "That's the spirit! Now, we don't have too much time to spare, so you're going to have to be quick about getting what you need for this. Also, you cannot tell your mother about this, don't want to unnecessarily worry her, do we?"

Drew nodded his understanding and quickly walked away from the lab, a multitude of questions echoing tumultuously through his thoughts.