~(C)~
The forest wasn't nearly as dense here. The full moon broke through the trees and helped light the path for Charmander.
His eyes felt bloodshot. He saw himself standing here alone days ago; he thought that he had mentally prepared for it. Perhaps he had. He knew that he was going to have to say goodbye, and he knew that it wasn't going to be easy. There was nothing more that he could've done. Still, though, he wished he could have spent a bit more time with Snivy before leaving.
Besides, if he kept insisting to himself that he would come across Snivy again at some point, then hopefully it would calm his mind. But what if you don't ever see him again? That thought lingered as well, and it did itself some justice by being the more likely of possibilities if he continued on as he had planned. But he had to be optimistic for the time being. Realistically, he could change his mind whenever he wanted. The Training Camp was only a few hours away. That also meant that if Snivy had the time, he could stop by and say "Hi." It wouldn't exactly be the same, but it would serve as a friendly reminder that both he and Snivy are thinking of each other.
Charmander's head throbbed again. He suspected that it would take a while for that bump he got from battling the swinub to heal. It bothered him knowing that he had another hour or so more of walking to do. Of course, he's walked longer than this before: far longer. But with the crazy events that happened this day, he was simply exhausted. During his former walks through the woods in the night, the hours felt like minutes, but this time, the forest didn't seem to allure him as much. The seconds were slow. But Charmander had a promise to keep to himself. He couldn't stop here.
And so he walked…and walked. And after he felt that he'd gotten nowhere, the forest cleared, and a series of quiet wooden houses emerged.
Charmander sighed in relief. He didn't even bother looking for proper lodging, and instead found a shaded spot on the edge of the woods and threw himself to the ground.
~(C)~
Charmander found himself in a different body inside of a house. He was sitting on the couch, finishing up an episode of Survivormon when his father opened the door. Ben the survivalist was brought on a desert island southeast of Ever Grande City with his Pokémon, Castform. They were able to survive due to both Castform's ability to provide fresh water and his ability to make fire (as long as he was properly nourished, which was difficult due a lack of wildlife).
"Hey, son, how goes it?" His father rubbed him on the shoulder, looking at the TV.
"Not bad," he said. It wasn't his voice, though. It was someone else's. "Ben survived again…"
"Really? What a strange turn of events." His father set down his backpack. "So, how was school?"
"It was alright. I had a Chemistry quiz today."
"How do you think you did?"
"Well, I think I aced it, so I probably got somewhere near a 75%." He turned off the TV. "Oh, we'll be having a guest speaker on Friday. Professor Juniper from the Unova region is going to discuss with the school her findings on the origins of Pokémon."
"Oh, really? I've met Professor Juniper before. Her field of study is fascinating. You're going to love her presentation."
"Yeah, it seems like something I'd enjoy."
"Oh, speaking of that, check this out." His father rummaged through his backpack. He pulled out a somewhat crumpled brochure and handed it to his son. "Sorry, it's a bit crumpled. But look at this. Professor Oak is going to be funding a new club for your school."
He read the title on the brochure. "Pokémon Trainer Training Club. Learn from the experts how to befriend, take care of, and train with your very own Pokémon." He opened up the brochure. "How come I haven't seen this in the school yet?"
"Well, he only approved of the funding yesterday; the club isn't going to start up for another several weeks."
He was too busy reading the brochure to hear his mother walking down the stairs. But he heard her say, "Hello, honey. How was work?"
"Oh, it was crazy. We got some breaking news from Silph Co. today. They've nearly perfected the Master Ball."
The body he was in looked up, confused. "Wait, didn't they make the Master Ball years ago?"
"They made a prototype. And by 'they,' I mean Team Rocket. After they were ousted, the project was abandoned."
"Why is it being rebooted now?" he asked.
"Well, the prototype required a great deal of hard labor and abuse of Pokémon to synthesize. But new methods have been developed that allow more efficient and more humane ways to create it."
"What does Professor Oak think of this development?" his mother asked.
"What do you think?" his father replied. "He's infuriated. He thinks that a Pokeball that powerful shouldn't exist. The Silph Co. President understood his concern. He insisted that the Master Ball would only be used for research and won't be available to trainers. He even swore to secrecy on the matter. The public won't learn anything about their developments. So…you know, keep your mouths shut."
As his periphery started to fade, the noise and voices began to grow muffled. The world fell silent as he brought his attention back to the television. Soon, his vision went.
~(C)~
Charmander woke with an odd pain in his chest. A small crowd of Pokémon were surrounding him as he sat up.
"He's awake!" someone shouted.
"Are you alright?" Charmander heard an elderly male voice ask.
Charmander sat up and rubbed his eyes. Ugh…What was that? I don't remember ever having a dream so clear.
"Sir?"
"Yeah?" Charmander asked modestly. He looked up at an aged Noctowl who was staring at him with worried eyes. Beside him was a Ledian and a Maractus, both staring in confusion.
"You didn't answer me," the Noctowl said. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just had a…weird dream is all."
"A weird dream? Look, you're a Charmander sleeping on the edge of a forest. That's a bit of a concern."
Charmander grunted. "Why does everybody always get worried when I sleep outside?"
"Well…don't you have anywhere else to sleep?"
"No. I'm not going to just knock on someone's door and ask if I could stay the night. I don't think they'd be okay with it."
"But it's not safe to sleep out here in the open."
Charmander shrugged. "I've been doing it for two weeks now. It's not that bad."
The Noctowl looked at Charmander for a while. "Ledian, Maractus, do you think you can collect Chesto berries without me today? I'm going to be busy."
The two Pokémon looked at each other, then back to Noctowl. "If you insist," the Ledian said before buzzing off towards the path with Maractus. Charmander noticed that they were both carrying baskets.
"Allow me to apologize," the Noctowl said, offering a wing to help him up. "That was a poor introduction."
Charmander grabbed the Noctowl's wing and pulled himself up. "It's fine. I never asked for one." He brushed himself off. Looking at his body, he saw a small cut in his upper chest where he was feeling pain. I guess my necklace poked me in my sleep, he thought. I'm surprised I didn't wake up from it.
"Whether you wanted to find us or not, welcome to the village of Chide. My name is Noctowl." Noctowl started leading Charmander into the village. "So, what brings you here?"
"Well, I heard that this village has a decent sized library, and I have…information to gather."
"Ah, so you're a knowledge seeker," Noctowl said, beaming. "You met the right Pokémon, then. The library you speak of is owned by me. What do you wish to learn?"
Charmander was silent for a moment. "It'd be a bit difficult to tell you without first explaining the…situation I'm in."
Noctowl laughed. "So this is what you'd call a situation? Having nowhere to stay, cuts and bruises all over your body, a bad looking bump on your head, and a concern for what you've recently dreamed? You must have an interesting life."
Charmander giggled. He does make a good point. "I guess I should probably explain myself."
Noctowl shook his head. "Oh, there's no need for that at the moment. Again, I apologize for being so disruptive. A sleeping Charmander isn't a common image around these areas."
"So I've been told," Charmander said.
"Anyhow, allow me to show you around."
He looked up at Noctowl with an uncertain glance as he started walking. Why would he give me a tour of the village? he thought. He doesn't even know anything about me yet.
As they walked into town on the dirt road, more and more Pokémon emerged before them. Commerce, communication, and company began to reveal itself as the general buzz of the public became more prevalent. Charmander smiled. It's nice to see civilization for a change, he thought. I don't think I've ever seen so many Pokémon before.
They turned right on the road. "This is the town hall," Noctowl said, pointing to a two story wooden building with his wing. "Heracross is our town mayor. If there's anything you want to address regarding our village, you should consult him."
Charmander noted the purpose of the building and carried on following Noctowl. He saw a couple Pokémon staring at him, and he waved in return. He heard Noctowl speak again. "This is the village square." Before them was a cul de sac of buildings and tents surrounding a fountain in the center. "Almost everything the village needs is here. That tent right there is the food market, right there is the bank, and storage is the building next to it. You can get orbs and shells in that tent right there, scarfs and other clothes there, and that large structure is our first-aid center." Noctowl gave a quick turn of his head. "Oh, actually, may you follow me into it?"
Charmander nodded, and continued following Noctowl into a wooden building that was just across the street from town hall.
It smelled like fruit and rubbing alcohol inside. There was a row of chairs along the outer wall and a row of cupboards behind the front counter, where there was an Audino stacking bottles. "Hello, Noctowl," the Audino said with a kind and effeminate voice. "Who's your friend? I haven't heard him around here yet."
Charmander's face scrunched. Did she just say that she heard me? How did she know we were here? She hasn't even seen us yet.
"Hello, Audino. This Pokémon beside me is a Charmander," Noctowl said. "I found him asleep by the woods."
"A Charmander?" Audino dropped the bottle she was about to stack and turned to face Charmander. "Oh, how exciting. Such an exotic creature."
"As you can see, he's a bit hurt. Do you have any oran berries for him?"
"Oh?" Audino gave Charmander, who was modestly rubbing the bump on his head, a quick scan. "Oh, dear, he is. Why, of course I do. I'll be right back." She rushed out of sight, making a small racket, but returned before Charmander had any time to think of or say anything. "Here you go. And don't worry about paying. For such a beautiful creature, it's on the house!" she said, placing a familiar looking blue fruit on the counter.
"Thank you very much, Audino," Noctowl said, walking up to the counter to retrieve the oran berry.
Audino exited the counter and approached Charmander. She looked closely at the bump on his head. "Oh, my. That's a pretty bad bruise on your head there. How did you get something like that?"
Charmander saw no sense in lying. "A swinub tackled me to the ground in a mystery dungeon," he said nonchalantly.
"Oh, are you an explorer?" asked Noctowl. "That would explain a lot."
Charmander shook his head. "No. I just wanted to kill time."
Noctowl laughed. "You have a high risk hobby, there. Here, eat this." He handed the oran berry to Charmander, who promptly took it.
After eating nothing but dry Chesto berries and flavorless meat, that oran berry nearly brought Charmander to tears. The first bite was slow and curious, but the moment the its juices hit his tongue, they created a symphony. It was candy to his taste buds, so sweet and powerful that he had to sit down at one of the chairs by the wall in fear that he may forget how to stand from the rush of stimulation he was receiving. It warmed him up, too. After the second bite, he felt a warm tingling in his stomach which spread throughout his body. His cuts and bruises died down. Even the bump on his head stopped throbbing after the third bite.
Meanwhile, Noctowl and Audino looked at one another, and then back at Charmander with amused looks on their faces. "Don't tell me this is your first time," Noctowl said.
Charmander just swallowed another mouthful of the fruit. "This is absolutely orgasmic," he said without really thinking.
A roar of laughter from Noctowl and Audino broke any hope for silence. "It is!" Audino said between breaths. "Oh, this is such an honor. I can't believe there aren't oran berries where you're from."
The taste of the berry was drowning out their voices. He didn't want to swallow the last bite. He wanted the flavor to stay in his mouth so it could play one last sweet sonata for him. But after a certain amount of time, the magic vanished, and the desire to get the food into his stomach became unignorable. So with one last taste, and a quick wipe off his mouth, he finished the oran berry with a pleased sigh. That was my reward, he thought to himself. After weeks of anguish and hardship, that was my reward.
Noctowl was still laughing in his wing. Audino was having a tough time suppressing her giggles as well.
Noctowl finally wiped his eyes and cleared his throat. "I don't think I have ever seen such an ecstatic reaction to eating an oran berry in my life, and I have seen many things. You really are a spectacular character."
"Do you feel any better?" Audino asked.
"I didn't even know I was feeling bad in the first place," Charmander said, "but that just confirmed that I was. Yeah. I feel a lot better."
"That's great. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
Noctowl shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm a little bit short on time. We'll be heading out now."
"Oh, alright, then." Audino turned to face Charmander. "Come back tomorrow if that bump on your head is still hurting. We'll probably need more than an oran berry to heal that up."
"Alright," Charmander said.
He stood. His body was buzzing, and Charmander could feel it thanking him.
"Thank you again for your kindness," Noctowl said.
"Oh, it's no trouble," Audino said as she returned to the cupboard. "It's always a pleasure to treat outsiders."
Noctowl walked towards the other side of the village after exiting Audino's building, towards narrower streets and tighter houses.
"I'm surprised you're so eager to show me around the place," Charmander said. "You don't even really know me yet."
"Oh, that reminds me, I never asked: do you have a name?" Noctowl responded.
"No, just call me Charmander."
"Alright, then, Charmander. Continue please."
"Uh…That's about it. Why are you doing this for me? You don't know who I am, where I came from, or even how long I plan to stay here. You don't seem too inclined to find out, either."
Noctowl smiled. "Right now, none of that is important. What I want is to make sure you feel welcomed here, not lost."
"But why? When you saw me sleeping, how did you even know that I intended to visit here?"
"I didn't. At that moment, that didn't matter. I wanted to make sure you were okay. And I wanted to make sure you knew that you are welcomed here, and that you have no need to feel lost." Noctowl was about to turn a corner before continuing. "Speaking of which, here we are."
The corner led to an open street, which revealed by far the largest building Charmander had seen. Two wooden columns, carved to appear like scrolls, kept up the roof of the porch, which introduced the double glass doors. Rows of flowers surrounded the wide walkway, and the grass of the lawn reflected off of the windows, several of which were on the left side of the building. From what Charmander could see, the entrance was off center, bearing to the right side, but the footprint was rectangular, making the building resemble a federal style architecture.
"This is the library, I'll take it?" Charmander asked, staring in awe at it.
"The heart of our village. My family has built and developed this library for seven generations now. Come. I'll show you where you'll be staying."
"Wait, staying?" Charmander asked, confused.
Noctowl approached the library's entrance. "Unless if you actually don't plan to stay here in Chide. Tell me, do you have any money?"
"Uhh…no." Charmander realized that he'd completely neglected the notion of currency up to this point.
"Then you won't be able to sleep in Cacturne's Housing and Inn." Noctowl opened the doors and let Charmander in. "You're going to need a place to sleep, food to eat, and other necessities. So why not obtain those necessities here in my library? It is your intention to gain from it anyway."
"Well…" That is an awfully good point. I may have been able to push through two weeks of surviving in the woods, but that was with Snivy. It probably won't be as easy surviving on my own. "My initial plan was to only use the library for its books and make shelter out in the woods, but your offer sounds much more promising. I'll be happy to stay here."
Noctowl beamed. "And it will be a pleasure to have you stay." He looked forward. "Now, before I let you go, I still need to show you around the library. This place is large, and can seem a bit daunting without knowledge on how to navigate through it."
On the right side of the entrance was a counter with a bell, clipboard, and inkwell on it. Charmander assumed it to be the check-out desk. Behind it was a closed door. In front of them was a spiral staircase. Below him was a carpeted floor, and above was a smooth wooden ceiling. And on the left side were the books.
There were rows of them. Charmander couldn't even keep count of the shelves, let alone the sheer quantity of books each one held. The smell of paper had been unfamiliar with Charmander up to now. He found it very welcoming.
"As you can see, our collection is there." Noctowl led Charmander around the outer edge of the library. Bookshelves hugged the walls and filled the inside. "You'll find most informative nonfiction in these rows. Manuscripts, generalities, bibliographies, journal archives, and encyclopedic works line the outer walls."
Charmander skimmed the titles as they walked through. Manuscript on the Structure of Early Writings, 3rd Edition read one spine. Another read Collection of Ancient Runic Incunabula from the Eastern Continent, vol II. Several read blank and others were too worn out to read.
"In this next row, we have works on…well, philosophy and theory would probably be the best way to generalize it. Beliefs, metaphysics, ontology, study of nature. I've grown a bit fond of this row myself." Noctowl continued. "The next row is social sciences. Language, sociology, statistics, law…And lastly, there's natural sciences. Math, chronology, physics, chemistry, engineering, fossil studies. Now, if you'll follow me, I'll show you the collection upstairs."
"Wait, there's more?"
"Oh, we've only touched on the boring genres. Come."
The spiral staircase made a rotation and a half before the entrance to the second floor emerged. It continued upward for another rotation and a half to where Charmander could only assume there was a third floor.
Although he hadn't counted, Charmander found that there was definitely more on this floor. The center rows of bookshelves were arranged horizontally rather than vertically, and when he looked down the end, he could see all of them. They were definitely narrower than those downstairs, and there were, once again, too many to count. All of this was on the right side of the staircase. To the left was a closed door.
Noctowl led Charmander along the outside bookcases, as he had done downstairs. "The books along the outside are divided into three sections. Non-fiction stories, Mythology & History, and How To's (including some of the best cookbooks in the world!). The inner rows, or ribs as I like to call them, are all fiction. I've labeled them according to sub-genres. Adventure, mystery, drama, suspense, fantasy. All have their own dedicated rib. Within each rib, the books are ordered via the name of the author, just as they would be in any library. Now, normally if you wanted to check out a book, you would sign it out with your name, address, and the title of the book on the counter downstairs. But since you'll be living here, you're an exception. You may take any book that you want without needing to do that. And if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask. That's what I'm normally here for."
As Noctowl spoke, Charmander led his hand over the spines of the books. Some felt like they had been collecting dust for a while. He looked behind himself, and instantly became aware of the hazard that had been following him—his tail. "Noctowl," he said, turning his head back. "Aren't you concerned of having a fire-type Pokémon with a flame on his tail living in a library with very combustible books everywhere?"
Noctowl stopped at the last 'rib' of books. "No. Why should I be? Surely you know that your tail only affects what you want it to affect. You don't want to hurt my books, do you?"
Charmander felt as if he'd made a huge, but painfully obvious discovery. "I…How did you…?"
"I read about it," Noctowl said as he continued to the stairs. "Venus the Pokéologist. He wrote the best collection of Eastern Continent Pokémon on this planet." He slowed as he approached the stairs. "Now…The third floor isn't quite as interesting. There's a reading cavity, a room where I make copies of endangered books, and a lot of open space. I plan on expanding the library there in the near future. Books are coming in at a faster rate than ever!"
Noctowl started up the stairs. Another rotation and a half and the floor emerged, exactly as he'd described. On the right was a large empty chamber, and on the left were two closed wooden doors. "The closest room is the reading cavity. Come here when you need absolute silence. Evidently, the other is my copying room. I'm usually there during closing hours. If you need to see me, you'll find me there." Noctowl turned back to the stairs and headed down. "So that's the library. Lastly, I'll show you where you'll stay."
Back on the first floor, behind the counter, and into the door was a short hallway that led to a four-way intersection. "This is where I live," Noctowl said. "And it's where my family has lived for the past five generations." He stopped at the intersection. "From where we're looking, to the left is the kitchen, dining room, and where I sleep. Forward is the stairs. They lead to my office where I'll have private meetings with commissioners and the like. Nothing too interesting. But there is a door to the second floor of the library up there if you want an alternative. And finally…" He turned to the right and started walking down the hall. "Follow me to your room. As you can see, there are three doors here. The one on the right is my storage room."
"What's in there?" Charmander asked.
"A stockpile of quills, ink, parchment, and blank books, along with personal items, seasonal decorations, and other items collecting dust. You're free to look in it if you want; just don't misplace anything. Now, let us continue. That door on the left that we just passed is the bathroom."
Charmander looked back, as if making sure that the door was really there. It was.
"And this is the guest bedroom," Noctowl continued. He turned a door-knob, and Charmander walked in. The room was nice and open. It was fit with a bed facing the door with a nightstand and lamp, a window to the right coupled a wardrobe next to it, a mirror on the adjacent wall right next to the door, and a small desk on the left. Charmander looked through the mirror, making the discovery that his eyes were green.
As he sat down on the bed, Charmander felt himself warm up from the softness. "Wow, this is really nice," he said. "Seriously, I wasn't expecting any of this."
"Now, there's no need for thank-yous. It's always a pleasure to have someone new in town. And, of course, I will expect you to fulfill your end. If I ask for you to lend your hand in helping me maintain this library, will you do so?"
"Yeah. No problem," Charmander said.
"Good! Because I have one small favor to ask of you—then I'll let you go for the day."
"Alright, what is it?"
"Tell me," Noctowl said, sitting on the desk chair leaning forward, "How did you get here?"
Charmander blinked. "How did I…"
"I know it's not my place to ask, but you have been the most interesting Pokémon I've met in a while. I want to know more about you. If you don't mind, tell me your story. I want to know everything."
The most interesting Pokémon? I've hardly even been talking. Besides, my life's not that interesting, save for… "I…How do you know I'll be telling the truth?"
Noctowl smiled, as if he expected that question. "I'm pretty good at telling when something is false."
"Are you sure?" Charmander asked. "I can't be positive you'll believe what I'm going to tell you."
"No you can't," Noctowl said. "I can promise you that I'll believe it—and I do—but you will never truly know. I hope that doesn't keep you from telling me."
Charmander let out a deep breath. "All right. So…here's how it started. I was born two weeks ago in a crater in the middle of Chesto Forest…"
~(M)~
"You're flying too high, Masquerain!" Simipour's voice rang through the trees under Masquerain. "I've been observing your flying patterns. Your wings are still weak. Please come down so that I can keep an eye on you."
"My wings feel fine!" Masquerain shouted back. He proved it by doing a loop in mid-air, even though Simipour wouldn't be able to see it through the trees.
"Masquerain, you're having a tougher time with your right wings, and you know it. I see you leaning right when you're flying. Now get down."
Masquerain sighed. He didn't like to admit it, but that was true. He could feel his right wings working a lot harder to keep himself upright. As excited as he was to fly again, he knew that it wouldn't be the same. But he remembered what Simipour told him: 'Broken wings often never heal. You're lucky.' It was difficult to be upset knowing that. With small hint of reluctance, he lowered himself, navigating through the branches to the ground, where he met the two girls and Hariyama.
"Thank you," said Simipour.
"Hey, Masquerain," Staravia called. Masquerain faced her. "Do you want me to scout ahead for the others? I can cover a lot more distance in faster time."
"No, it's been two weeks. They've surely traveled too far for you to find them by sundown." Masquerain turned and led the group down the path.
"Oh yeah?" Staravia whipped ahead and stopped in front of Masquerain, wings spread. "Try me."
Masquerain looked at Staravia for a moment in contemplation. "Fine," he said. "But if you don't find them in an hour, then come back. And please, try to keep a low profile."
"Deal. I'll be back in ten minutes." With that, she shot through the tree branches and out of sight.
"I'd love to see that happen," Masquerain said to himself. "It's been too long since I've seen Weavile and the others again."
A voice suddenly rang at him: "General Masquerain!"
"Simipour, how often do I have to tell you that formalities are unnecessary?" Masquerain replied. However, when he turned, he found a new face: one of a Pidgeot. She must have flew down seconds after Staravia's take-off. Masquerain stared at the new Pokémon. "Hello there. Do I know you?" he asked.
"You are Masquerain, General and Head Commander of the Arashi Search Division, are you not?" The Pidgey's voice strict and affirmative.
She could be playing me, Masquerain thought. "No. The Arashi are terrible Pokémon, and if you have any association with them then you should be in prison."
Pidgeot's mouth was agape. "Wha…ugh." She loosened her composure a bit. "I'm not an enemy spy. So tragic is the fate of the Gods."
Masquerain nodded. "Yet so rewarding is its consequence. I would be the Pokémon you have in mind. What brings you here to me?"
"I am Pidgeot, a Lieutenant First Class of Volbeat's platoon, and am returning with status updates from the northern divisions. Their armies are advancing south, so to avoid mass conflict with the capital city. They'll be expected to arrive in this general area within approximately ten days."
Masquerain let out an assertive sigh. "Lieutenant Pidgeot, I am the General of the Search Division. Status updates on army positions are completely meaningless to me."
"Uh, yes sir! I apologize."
"Is there anything else? Have any of the officers spotted a floating ice structure in their travels?"
"No, sir. However, I do have something to give you. It is a letter."
"A letter? Who gave it to you?" Masquerain asked as Pidgeot searched through a satchel she was carrying.
"Admiral Feraligator. And he got it from someone else, and he got it from someone else. The original writer made sure that he or she remained anonymous." She pulled out an envelope and handed it to him. "Here you are."
Masquerain took it with his mouth and set it down on the ground. The envelope was blank, save for the name "Masquerain" on the front and an unmarked unbroken seal on the back. "Thank you, Lieutenant. If that is all, you are free to leave."
"Sir!" She said before flying off.
Masquerain kept staring at the letter. Gods, I wish I had arms, he thought to himself, realizing he wouldn't be able to open it on his own.
"Who was that?"
Masquerain promptly about-faced towards the voice behind him and found Staravia. "Who was what?" he asked.
"That bird Pokémon you were talking with," Staravia said accusingly. "Do you have a secret messenger I don't know about?"
"What? No. It was a Lieutenant passing by."
"A Lieutenant passing by. That's completely believable." Staravia's sarcasm was evident in her tone, but her playfulness was evident in her smile. "Anyway, I found some of the crew mates. They're heading this way."
"You found them already?"
Staravia rolled her eyes. "I can't believe you have so little faith in me," she said monotonously. "Wasn't there a reason you appointed me as the head scouter? Oh, that's right. Because nobody can stop me?"
I don't have time to deal with this. "How far are they?" he asked, ignoring her statement.
"They've been doing a really good job keeping up with me. I suspect they'll be here in about…" She turned her head. "I don't know. Twenty seconds?"
Masquerain suddenly heard a faint voice calling his name. "Masquerain!" He knew exactly who it was and where it was coming from.
"Wow, even sooner," said Staravia. "I'm impressed."
Down the path, Ponyta came galloping full-force at Masquerain. On his back was Dewott, staring with those dedicated eyes at him.
"I can't believe we found you so quickly!" Ponyta shouted as he braked, sliding on the ground with all four hooves. Dewott held tightly on his back.
Masquerain let out a smile at his friends. "Dewott. Ponyta. Good to see you again."
"Master." Dewott came off Ponyta and knelt into a low bow. "It has been too long."
"Indeed it has. Are the others with you?"
"No." Dewott stood. "Weavile has abandoned his post. He's with Krokorok, Mawile, and Abra leading an Arashi encampment."
"What?" Simipour approached Dewott. "You mean he's not searching for the Fountain anymore?"
"No," Ponyta chimed in. "And neither are the others."
Masquerain felt his gut dipping. Something like this couldn't be true. At least, not without some sort of justification. He flew up to meet Dewott at eye level. "Take me to Weavile. I wish to hear his side on this."
"Master, I would never tell you a lie. Weavile believes that training the Pokémon in the encampment and taking out Machoke's Training Camp would help to eliminate the obstacles getting in our way."
"Machoke's Training Camp? You mean they found it?"
Dewott nodded. "The old leader, Volbeat, found a map pointing out its location from a passing Snivy and his friend. Now Weavile has taken over Volbeat's position, and plans to wipe out the Training Camp after several months of preparation."
Masquerain nodded, perplexed. It makes sense that Weavile seized this opportunity, but I do wish he'd've told me of his plans himself. "Very well," he said. "Tell Weavile I approve of his plan. Though, inform him that I rather he'd have came to or wrote to me himself rather than sending you."
Dewott took a step back. "I—master, I came here on my accord. Weavile didn't send me. He betrayed his orders you gave him, so I left."
"And I followed him!" Ponyta shouted from off to the side, where he was eating leaves and grass.
Masquerain glimpsed at Ponyta. "Does Weavile know that you're both gone?"
"Well, duh! We're not there anymore. But we left without telling him if that's what you mean."
"Then in my eyes, you two are just as much traitors as Weavile was. He abandoned my orders and you abandoned his." Masquerain sighed. "Luckily, I don't see Weavile as a traitor. I guess this was destined to happen. Weavile is just strong a leader as I am. That's why I chose him to lead you while I was gone. You may follow me once again if you so choose. If not, then return to Weavile. I'll make sure he forgives you and welcomes you back."
Dewott shook his head. "Absolutely not. I am loyal to you and you alone."
"You're like, a million times nicer than Weavile," Ponyta said. "I'm following you."
"Alright, then. Welcome back." Masquerain fluttered over to the letter that was given to him. "A messenger very recently gave me this letter. Dewott, your first order is to help me get it open."
"Yes, master." Dewott picked up the letter and broke the seal. "This letter is addressed to you alone. Do you wish to be the only one who reads it?"
"Show me the letter first," Masquerain said. "I'll decide afterwards."
Dewott opened the note contained inside and presented it to Masquerain.
The letter wasn't long, but it took Masquerain a while to fully read it.
Your destiny has been revoked.
It was signed with a four-toed pawprint that Masquerain instantly recognized. Absol, he thought. The goddess of chaos and destruction. Why is she tormenting me now? Blood rushed to his head, and his hearing started becoming blurry. He thought that demon of a Pokémon had left him and his affairs alone when she sent them directly into the blockade that costed them Ninjask's life. Now she comes with cryptic messages that offend his very purpose? My destiny has been revoked…That can't be true. She's trying to trip me up; it can't be more obvious.
"So can we read it?" Ponyta asked.
Masquerain snapped back to reality. Be the leader, he told himself. That's all you to do right now. "No. Dispose of it now."
"Aww, why not?"
"Because it was addressed to me and has nothing to do with the rest of you. Now get rid of it!" Dewott promptly scalchopped the letter into a million pieces.
Ponyta smirked. "Does someone have a secret admirer?"
"Mawile's attitude has rubbed off on you, Ponyta."
"Aw, thank you."
Masquerain let out a stressed sigh. I did not need to read that letter. "As sick as I am of Chesto Forest, I think our investigation is going to prolong itself here. That storm that shot me down…it may have been a sign. Weavile mentioned a great flash of lightning right before the storm stopped. Is this true?"
Staravia nodded. "Oh, yeah. I could feel it. It was…startling to say the least."
"Oh, man, yes!" Ponyta added. "That crack of thunder…Mmm. It sounded like Zekrom fusion-bolted the ground."
Masquerain nodded. "As I said before, I want to get involved. I wish to find where it struck."
"What? Why?" Ponyta asked.
"Because it may give us something to work with. You all think it so: that storm was unnatural. I think it's worth investigating."
Staravia raised a brow. "You mean now? Look, that storm may have been unnatural, but what does that have to do with Articuno's Fountain?"
Everything, Masquerain thought. "I don't know. Perhaps nothing. The point of investigating is to answer that. Now, can anyone point to the general direction of where the strike came from?"
Staravia nodded. "If we were back at the cave, I could definitely tell you."
"Then we will go back." Masquerain fluttered ahead with his head held high. I swear, Absol, if this storm provides any evidence to what you said, I'll make it my personal goal to take you down after I prove you wrong.
He almost heard a voice reply to him, 'Good. Then I have succeeded.'
