A long line of old and historically-styled portraits lined the walls on either side of the darkened corridor as three figures confidently strode towards the far end of the building. The interior of the structure was illuminated only by a few torches that had been mounted intermittently on various parts of the finely-polished walls, their ominous flames gently flickering with the ebb and flow of the occasional breeze. The hallway itself was as narrow and foreboding as a cave, exuding an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia in anyone who hadn't walked through its shadowy confines before.
All three humans were making their way towards the central area of the headquarters of the Knights of Palkia, and none of them were at all concerned by the ominous sense of fear and uncertainty that emanated from the walls of the underground complex. All of them had wandered through these dark corridors many times before, having now reached a level of apathy that many normal people would consider borderline inhuman.
One of the figures, however, had never been intimidated by such trifling matters. To her, the darkness was a useful ally; a shield to cover her plans and actions whilst sowing confusion amongst her enemies. Her long, jet-black hair flowed down in a ponytail to the small of her back, and her eyes were a shade of brown so dark it was difficult to distinguish their colour at all. Despite her cold and distant mannerisms, her face was soft and gentle, and to many she would be considered rather pretty.
Her dark skin was the colour of hazel, and she was dressed in bulky, almost military-grade clothing. Her blood-red jacket lacked sleeves, but had numerous pockets and storage compartments which presumably carried all sorts of items, whilst her black denim pants carried several subtle camouflage prints on them, distinguishable only when viewed from a certain angle. On her belt she carried six Pokeballs, all of different colours and varieties that indicated her prowess as a trainer. Although it was difficult to pinpoint her age accurately, she was likely in her early thirties.
The two men beside her were her escorts, and both wore the official servant's regalia of the Knights of Palkia. Their cloaks waved behind them as they walked, their arms folded in a fashion that almost resembled prayer. They had not uttered a single word since their guest had first arrived on the helipad ten minutes ago, instead choosing to silently lead the way towards a meeting with the leader of their organization.
The woman smiled as she thought of Camus, or as he was officially known, 'The Master.' No-one in the organization dared to speak his real name, for fear of unleashing his infamous wrath. Camus believed that he had transcended the bounds of mortality, and that he was now beyond trivial human mannerisms such as names. Indeed, he was certainly very old, and nobody was convinced of his exact birth date; all that was known was that he had inherited the command of the Knights of Palkia from a bloodline that stretched across four generations, and possessed considerable psychic powers from his numerous years spent in training. Camus had spent his entire life awaiting the day for the manifestation of Palkia in the mortal world, and now the prophecies were expected to at last come to pass.
Eventually the trio arrived at a large, double door which loomed some nine to ten feet above them. Much like the rest of the Knights' headquarters it was particularly regal in design, with a deep red color and a golden frame so exquisite that it could only have been carved by many master craftsmen over several years.
The woman watched closely as her two escorts moved to either side of the doorway and began to slowly open a path for their guest to enter. She stood impatiently, her hands leaning on her hips as the opening of the doors filled the empty corridor with a loud, grinding noise that would typically be reserved for a drawbridge or other huge, medieval contraption.
Eventually, however, the doors were opened and she slowly made her way into the large throne room that was illuminated only by the dull flickering of candlelight. The two escorts followed behind her, pulling the doors shut as they entered the room and were engulfed by the uncomfortable darkness that permeated the chamber. An awkward silence surrounded the woman as she confidently looked up at the old man sitting on the throne before her, his breathing heavy and painful.
Directly above the throne was a clear, glass dome which allowed the leader of the Knights of Palkia to observe the stars and other celestial objects as the nights and seasons passed by. The glass had somewhat unusual properties in that it seemed to amplify the light that it absorbed, bathing Camus in an eery, almost crystalline white glow. To the left of the throne stood Camus' young son, Yolus, whose posture almost mirrored that of his father - very confident, exuding the borderline arrogance that comes from knowing you are descended from an elevated bloodline.
"Avarna," Camus spoke slowly to the woman with a gruff, wheezing voice, "you may approach."
Avarna smiled her knowing smile before taking a few confident steps towards the throne and bending to one knee.
"It's been a while, Master," she replied reverently. "I'm happy to report that our enemies in the Johto region have been almost entirely wiped out."
The old man raised an eyebrow at this, clearly not expecting such a response.
"Wiped out?" He repeated. "All of them?"
Avarna nodded.
"Rise." Camus spoke gruffly, prompting the woman to get to her feet, her eyes staring not quite into the man's eyes. "You have some proof of this? It is not commonplace for three large organizations to just disappear overnight."
"It happened quite suddenly, my Master." Avarna explained in as humble a voice as she could muster, though it pained her to appear subservient before a man. "There was a large battle that took place atop Mount Silver between a young man called-"
"Knite Ferasim," Camus interrupted, "yes, I know."
Avarna gawked for a moment in surprise.
"The stars tell all, my dear," the old man chuckled in-between coughs, his finger pointing up towards the star-covered dome above. "You made it just in time. The key to unlocking Palkia is here at last, thanks to my son."
Camus glanced over towards Yolus, who smiled smugly.
"Then Master," Avarna swallowed nervously, "you mean that-"
"That's right, Avarna." Camus whispered. "Ferasim is here."
"I defeated him in a one-on-one battle and brought him here." Yolus spoke up, raising his head to allow the light of the stars above to reveal his features. "For a man with so much supposed power he was certainly an easy challenge. I didn't even need to raise my standard level."
"Were you able to obtain the plans to Team Rocket's machine, Avarna?" Camus asked the woman directly.
"Yes, my Master," she replied, removing several folded blueprints from one of the front pockets on her belt. "I also have brought one of the temporary members of Team Rocket with me who was a part of Ferasim's command team during his time with the organization."
"Excellent work, Avarna." Camus congratulated the woman, a lecherous smile forming on his face as he admired her form. "You will be greatly rewarded once the time comes for your many years of service."
"Thank you, Master." She responded bluntly.
Camus craned his neck to look up at the stars, the glass of the gazing dome revealing minimal glare from their intense sparkling. He closed his eyes for a moment, allowing the heavenly glory to engulf him completely.
"Ah, yes..." He whispered, more to himself than anyone else. "I can feel it... After such a long wait our mission will finally be complete, and our great Lord Palkia will walk the world again ready to command both humans and Pokemon and lead them to glory!"
He paused, his smile suddenly turning grim once more as he stared down at Avarna again.
"Yolus," he commanded, prompting the boy beside him to take notice, "escort Avarna to the holding cells so that she can meet our new..."
He paused for a moment as he considered which word to use.
"Recruit..."
"Wake up, sleepyhead!"
Knite's vision slowly warped from a pitch black shade to an unintelligible blur in which he could see several large, gold-colored shapes that eventually sharpened into the image of a young Shiori's face hovering directly above his own.
"Oh honey, you're awake!" The young girl giggled, suddenly wrapping her arms around his chest and causing the boy to immediately sit up, bewildered.
"Wha-?" He stammered, looking down at the girl with wide eyes. "Zu? What..."
He paused for a moment to absorb their surroundings. They were both on a very large bed that could easily fit about ten people on it. The room itself was circular, with a large pillar in the center of the room that the back of the bed jutted against. The walls were a deep red, and the floor and ceiling both matched exactly. Everything in the room looked to be padded with a soft, quilt-like material, and one single entrance was directly opposite them, where the faint outline of a door marked its location along with a small, narrow window with three vertical, padded bars dividing it.
"Where are we?" Knite asked, pushing himself off the bed and standing up. It was only now that Knite realized just how small the room was - the ceiling was just five feet tall and he had to squat slightly not to hit his head on the padded surface. "The last thing I can remember is battling with Medicham and... And then..."
Suddenly he spun around to face the girl, who was lying on the bed looking up at the boy, confused.
"But why are you here?" He questioned the girl. "You were running away with Maylin! Where is she?"
"I don't know." Shiori replied earnestly. "All I can remember is running away with my sister and then suddenly I heard a crash... Then I woke up next to you here..."
Knite circled the room several times, replaying what he could remember in his mind. He had been defeated during the Pokemon battle and blacked out when falling down the ruined stairwell of the Sunyshore City Hospital. And now he was here without a scratch on him. How was it possible?
"I wonder how long we've been asleep for..." He wondered out loud, turning to examine the door. The bars didn't appear to be very strong, but their padding made them difficult to grip. "We've got to figure a way out of here... That crazy guy with the Armaldo must have brought us here..."
Shiori shuffled her way over to the edge of the bed before sitting up, watching the boy curiously as he examined the lower potion of the door, tracing his hands along its edge in a vain attempt to try and find some structural weakness he could take advantage of.
"Hey, Knite?" She asked, a clear level of interest obvious in her tone. "How come you knew what kind of Pokemon that was?"
"What Pokemon?" Knite answered, not taking his eyes off the door as he began to exert a gentle pressure against it in various locations.
"That Armadillo or whatever you called it," the little girl continued. "I'd never even heard of anything like it. Were you some kind of trainer or something?"
Knite paused for a moment, repeating the question over and over again in his mind. A trainer or something? A trainer or something? Was he a Pokemon trainer? But how could a Pokemon trainer just wash up on the beach? And have no knowledge of the region he had washed up in? He felt as if he knew the answers deep inside his mind, yet every time he attempted to unlock them he felt a pain that was trying to shield them - as if some entity had shared his brain long ago and was refusing him access to the secrets it once held.
"I... I think so..." Knite replied, moving his hand up to his forehead and pressing it hard against his skull as he tried to wipe away the pain of attempting to access his lost memories. "I just can't remember... But when I was battling it was like I knew exactly what to do. It was weird..."
Shiori hopped down off the bed, wandering over to where the boy sat.
"Then you must have been a trainer!" she concluded excitedly. "A really good trainer! Maybe you even fought in the Pokemon League!"
"The... Pokemon League?" Knite echoed, causing Shiori to frown at him a little bit.
"Right, the Pokemon League!" she repeated. "Don't tell me you don't even remember the Pokemon League!"
"No, I definitely remember the Pokemon League, but..." Knite's words trailed off as he considered the possibility, then quickly snapped his mind back to the matter at hand. "Anyway, that's not important right now, Shiori."
"Zu." The girl immediately corrected him.
"Huh?" Knite stammered before realizing what she was saying. "Oh, right. That's not important right now, Zu. What's important is that I get you out of here and get you back to Maylin."
"Ooh, so we're going to escape?" Zu asked excitedly, hopping on the spot.
"Do you have your Pokemon with you?" Knite asked, but was visibly deflated when he saw the girl shake her head.
"They must have taken my Pokeballs while I was asleep," she explained sadly. "I don't know wha-"
The girl was quickly cut off by Knite covering her mouth with his hand at the sound of footsteps coming closer towards them from the outer corridor. Quickly Knite shuffled the two of them away from the door, waiting for whoever it was outside to pass on by.
Instead of passing, however, the footsteps stopped upon reaching the entrance to the holding chamber. The door began to shuffle slightly before slowly opening up, giving Knite just enough time to grab the first hand he saw, pulling its owner inside and wrapping his arm around the person's neck in a threatening gesture. A flurry of noise and confusion quickly unfolded, with actions and reactions setting off a chain of events in a matter of moments before eventually culminating in Knite holding Yolus in front of him, with a woman dressed in military garb pointing a customized pistol directly at Knite, its laser sight zeroing in on his forehead.
"Let him go," she spoke firmly and without hesitation. "I won't think twice about using this."
Knite considered the possibilities of what might happen depending on his choice of whether to let the boy go or not, but ultimately concluded that none of the eventualities would prove favorable, and so he loosened his grip on Yolus' neck, pushing him towards the woman and raising his hands in a surrendering motion.
"I'm glad to see you're smarter than your reputation would lead me to believe, Knite Ferasim." the woman complimented the boy, making it a point to not return her weapon into its holster yet as she kept the sight aimed towards her target.
"Ferasim?" Knite repeated. "So my name is-"
The woman frowned, then glanced over towards Yolus who was standing beside her, doing his best to regain his composure amongst heavy breathing.
"What's wrong with him?" She asked, obviously confused by Knite's reaction to hearing his full name.
"I think he has amnesia or something." Yolus replied with a gasp of air between each breath he took. "He was acting like this when I battled him in Sunyshore, too."
Zu quickly made her way over to where Knite was standing and wrapped her arms around the boy's leg in an effort to comfort herself. She stared up at the woman with scared blue eyes, uncertain of what fate had in store for her.
Avarna looked down at the girl with obvious surprise, then quickly turned her attention back to Yolus who had finally managed to get his breathing back under control.
"Who is this?" She asked firmly.
"Some girl he was with." Yolus replied. "He was trying to save her but she fainted when the building we were in collapsed over her. She's pretty lucky - didn't have a scratch on her. I figured we could use her as a bargaining chip to make him-"
"She's only a little girl!" Avarna snapped, the volume of her voice rising noticeably.
"But Avarna, she-" Yolus began but was quickly cut off by the woman.
"He can't get out of this complex, so you have no need for a bargaining chip." Avarna stated the facts as bluntly as possible. "Get her out of here."
"But!"
Avarna quickly turned to the boy, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him closer to her.
"We are letting her go. Right. Now," her eyes were filled with malice as she glared at the young Knight of Palkia. "Do you understand me?"
"No!" Zu protested, holding onto Knite's leg even tighter than before. "I won't leave Knite!"
Knite remained standing with his hands above his head and his palms facing his captives.
"If you let her go I'll cooperate with you however you want," he offered, but this only seemed to anger the woman even further.
"You don't have a choice, boy," she hissed back, her voice exuding the tone of the rattling of a Seviper's tail before it struck a foe. She smiled a sinister smile before continuing, "but it is rather amusing to see you have such a change of heart since your time in Team Rocket."
"Team... Rocket?" Knite gasped in disbelief as images of men in black uniforms and stolen Pokemon began to dance through his mind. He saw the foggy outlines of mountains and warehouses flash by in a detailed blur of memories all ending with the name 'Tamara'.
"That's right." Avarna revealed with relish. "You were a member of Team Rocket in Johto. Part of their special external forces, as a matter of fact."
Special external forces... Knite examined the word in his mind and immediately understood it to mean 'work for hire'. In essence, Team Rocket's special external forces was nothing more than a glorified term for Pokemon mercenary - an elite freelance Pokemon trainer who would take any work for the highest bidder. Such work was typically outlawed in most regions worldwide, but it could command a luxurious living if a trainer was skilled enough. Once again this was an example of specialist knowledge than an ordinary man on the street couldn't know, yet to Knite it just seemed like simple textbook information.
"The legendary Knite Ferasim," Avarna continued in a tone that was close to mocking, "elite Pokemon trainer gone rogue. Always seeking that extra power that no human could ever attain. And you finally achieved it when you caught Mewtwo and double-crossed your employers to get a taste of its powers."
Both Knite and Zu stared up at the woman in disbelief. Zu's eyes dashed from Knite to Avarna, then back to Knite once again, but all the while she made sure not to ease her grip on the boy's leg.
"You don't know what kind of a monster you're clinging to, sweetie." Avarna commented, the sight of her pistol not moving one inch from Knite's head. "Now come on - I'm getting you out of here."
"But-" Zu began to protest once more, but Knite quickly interrupted her.
"It's okay, Zu," he insisted, smiling down towards the girl warmly. "I'll be fine."
"But Knite..." The little girl whimpered, feeling tears beginning to well up inside of her.
"Tell your sister I said thanks for all her help, okay?" The boy spoke with a slight laugh in his voice, obviously a reminder of the good times he had shared with both Zu and Maylin, no matter how short they were.
"We don't have much time, little one." Avarna spoke, not taking her eyes off Knite for one instant. "Come on, let's go."
Zu looked up at Knite one last time, then reluctantly loosened her grip on his leg before taking Avarna's hand and being slowly escorted out of the room. Yolus quickly followed the two of them, closing the door and locking it firmly behind them.
"What about my Pokemon?" The little girl inquired, prompting Avarna to scowl at Yolus intimidatingly.
"Follow me." He sighed, leading the two of them down into the corridor and away from the holding cell where Knite now stood alone with his tattered memories.
The sun had already begun to set once Avarna had escorted Zu outside of the hilly regions of the Knights of Palkia's main facility. The sky above them was dark and foreboding, with deep grey clouds casting long, chilling shadows across the barren, rocky landscape which surrounded them. Avarna quickly escorted Zu several yards away from the main helicopter landing pad, taking her into a large, rocky section of overgrowth where the entrance to a cave lay waiting for them.
Upon their arrival at the entrance to the cave Avarna kneeled down beside the young girl, running her fingers affectionately through her long, golden-blonde hair and smiling warmly at her. Zu was unable to deny that she was incredibly pretty, and she looked far too kind and gentle to be carrying a gun. She stared up into the older woman's deep, dark, chocolate eyes, not entirely certain of what to say.
"Now Shiori," Avarna explained, pointing into the cave as she spoke. "This cave will take you through Mount Coronet. Once you get outside you'll be in Hearthome City and you can call your mother from the Pokemon Center there, okay? Your Pokemon will be able to look after you."
"But..." Zu replied, sniffling a little as she thought of the boy who remained inside the underground complex she had just managed to escape. "What about Knite?"
Avarna's expression became cold and distant at the mention of the girl's friend, but she regained her composure, taking Zu's hand and gently circling her finger over the back of it in a reassuring manner.
"You may not understand right now, Shiori," the woman insisted, smiling gently at the girl as she spoke to her softly, "but one day when you're older you'll understand why that boy can't be trusted. He would have tried to kill you eventually."
"Kill me?" Zu repeated uncertainly.
"That's right," Avarna sighed, "they all do it to you eventually."
With those final words Avarna got to her feet, waving gently at the girl as she made her way back towards the entrance to the Knights of Palkia's hidden complex, leaving her alone in the steadily-darkening outside world.
Zu watched the woman disappear from her field of view before removing one of the Pokeballs at her waist and releasing the creature that lay inside it. The burst of light quickly dissipated to reveal the small, bell-shaped figure of a tiny, golden Pokemon with two red-and-white ribbons protruding from its back. The creature squeaked at the girl with a beautiful, bell-like sound, obviously happy to see her as it floated around her several times, singing in a beautiful melody as it did so.
"Hey, Ching!" The girl greeted her Psychic-type Chingling happily. "Come on, we've got a phone call to make in that cave!"
"Ching?" The Pokemon inquired uncertainly, but nevertheless followed its trainer as she headed boldly into the darkness of Mount Coronet. "Chingling Ling!"
"Of course I told Dad I needed a Pokegear for my birthday but no! I had to wait until I was an official trainer!" Zu complained somewhat loudly as the two travelers entered the cave together, her voice becoming increasingly higher in volume as it began to echo off the cavern walls. "So it looks like you're going to be brushing up on your long-distance telepathy skills, Ching!"
The sound of sirens continued to fill the air as both Maylin and her father stood several yards from the rubble of one of Sunyshore City Hospital's outer stairwells. The police line had been erected almost immediately upon learning of the situation, and the once-enormous crowd had now dwindled to just the two of them and an exhausted Medicham powerlessly watching the bustling city workers continue to pull debris away from the scene.
Maylin's face was stained with tears and she had long since forgotten how long they had been standing there. Her father's appearance was much more stoic, holding both hands in front of him as if he were meditating, doing his best not to contemplate on what might have happened to his youngest daughter. Medicham's bruised and battered body had been pulled out of the rubble just before midday and despite a brief visit to the Pokemon Center the creature still appeared to be in some pain. It had refused to leave its trainer's side, however, and remained patiently waiting for any news of Zu or Knite's recovery.
"It should have been me under there." Maylin muttered between ragged breathing as she watched another boulder be lifted away from the enormous pile of rubble by one of the large construction vehicles operating in the area. "I should have pushed her outside first and then none of this would have happened!"
"You're wrong, Maylin," her father replied calmly, his eyes not moving from the scene of the debris. "The only difference that would have made would be for me to look after a younger hysterical girl."
Maylin remained silent for a moment as she allowed her father's words to flow into her mind.
"They've been searching for close to ten hours and there's been no sign of either of them," Keiji continued, "which means that they aren't there."
He paused before adding to his observation.
"Which means they aren't dead."
"If only I had made her stay home..." Maylin sniffled, staring down at the concrete beneath her feet, her shoulder on which Medicham leaned slumping slightly.
Keiji stared up towards the sky, where the sun was now barely a flickering light on the western horizon. The clouds above were long and dark as they stretched out across the ocean, doing their best to break up the ominous, red-soaked sky as the wind gently pushed them along their course.
"It's a bloody sunset tonight," he noted, prompting the girl to glance over towards him in an upset confusion. "I'm afraid something terrible has begun..."
"Cham!" Medicham suddenly spoke up, pushing its hand against its forehead as if it were trying to tune a radio dial within its brain. Quickly the creature limped over towards a nearby city fountain, its eyes closed the entire time. "Medicham!"
"Medicham?" Maylin mumbled uncertainly as she watched the creature lean against the decorative monument weakly. "Medicham, what's wrong?"
"It's receiving a signal." Keiji explained, watching the creature closely as it did its best to listen to the telepathic message flowing into its mind. He glanced down at Maylin, his arms folded in quiet understanding of the facts presented to him. "Maylin."
Maylin looked at her father uncertainly. She had never seen him look so serious before, and although she knew he was concerned about her sister, she also had a feeling that that was not the sole cause of expression.
"What is it, father?" She asked, now suddenly beginning to regain her composure as her father's external worry began to dawn on her.
"I believe it's time for your journey to begin."