Chapter 26 – Canalave
Eventually, dawn came. Brandon woke up first. His eyes slowly opened, and he stretched. He looked around and saw, as I did, that there was nothing but ocean visible past the edges of Kyogre's back. Then he saw Deoxys and Mew sleeping, Mew curled up on top of Deoxys's crystal. He laughed quietly.
"Good morning," he said to me.
"Good morning," I said back.
With that, Brandon sat and watched the waves. After all, what else was there to do?
.
Soon, Deoxys woke. He opened his eyes, looked at Mew, then closed them again. Then they flew back open and he turned dark purple. He carefully removed Mew from his chest and gently placed her beside him. Then he sat up and looked around, his face returning to its natural color.
He stood up unsteadily (due to the movement of Kyogre) and moved nearer to Brandon. Brandon laughed softly, and Deoxys turned purple again and looked away in embarrassment. Then Brandon said, "Good morning."
Deoxys looked back at him, a lighter shade of purple now. "Yes, it is." Brandon snickered, and Deoxys became an even darker purple before glaring at Brandon and moving away to sit next to the sleeping Mew. Brandon laughed harder.
After a few minutes, though, we all returned to watching the sky go from orange to blue, and watching Kyogre silently but quickly cut through the water.
.
Finally, the last member of our small party awoke. Mew uncurled, then yawned and stretched, arching her back. Then she glanced around at her surroundings.
The sky was blue with just a tinge of orange in it, and still there was nothing but water as far as anyone could see. Deoxys looked down at Mew from where he was sitting next to her.
"Good morning," he said to her.
"Good morning," she replied happily, before floating up to kiss him on the cheek. He again turned slightly purple and looked away. Behind me, I heard Brandon snicker quietly.
Mew landed next to Deoxys again and sat facing the ocean. "It's wonderful, isn't it?"
Deoxys looked down at her, then back at the water. "Yes." Mew giggled and floated up to hug him, causing him to turn dark purple and, a few seconds later, return the gesture awkwardly.
Then Kyogre opened her mouth and began making the same sorts of noises as before. Mew and Deoxys released each other, and Mew floated away to sit in the middle of Kyogre's back, reddening slightly when she saw Brandon and me. Deoxys also saw us and his face turned purple again.
"Um… Kyogre says there's land ahead," Mew notified us all. She listened to Kyogre a little longer, then added, "We should reach it in a few hours."
We then returned to what we had been doing all the afternoon yesterday and that morning: Watching the ocean.
.
Roughly three hours later, by Brandon's reckoning, we spotted what Kyogre had spotted three hours earlier: land. We soon reached the shore of a forest.
We disembarked Kyogre and thanked her. With many clicks and whistles, she returned to the ocean.
Then Mew pointed in a direction. "She said that the port was that way; east." Brandon nodded.
"The port is Canalave City. Once we reach it, we just have to go east to Jubilife City, then south to Sandgem Town, and finally west to the lake. It's not far, all the towns and cities are close together around here."
We set off towards Canalave City.
.
Soon, we emerged from the forest and into Canalave City. Before we went any farther, though, we stopped to discuss our plans.
"Mew and Deoxys, neither of you can be seen," he told them.
"Why not?" Deoxys asked. Mew nodded her support of the question.
"I've been thinking," Brandon began, "and I think it's not safe. Team Galactic is everywhere."
Deoxys stated, "I think we can take care of Team Galactic. Especially now that they don't have that machine of theirs."
Brandon hesitated, looking slightly embarrassed. "Well, that's not the only reason. No offense, Deoxys, but you scare people. And Mew, I'm concerned that other people might try to kidnap you or something. I just don't know how people will react."
We all considered these points. Finally Deoxys nodded. "I want Mew to stay behind, and I'll stay with her."
Mew slapped him playfully (I think) with the end of her tail. "Don't I get a say in this, too?" Deoxys flinched.
Mew giggled. "Don't worry, I'll stay."
Brandon nodded, looking relieved. "I'll find a place for us to stay the night, then come and get you two."
I interjected. "Why can't we continue to Jubilife today? There's enough time left in the day, if you're right about the distances."
Brandon looked at me. "Well, you see, there's a river running through the middle of the route, and I don't remember there being any bridges. You all can just float across, but I can't, and I haven't figured out a way across yet." Then he added apologetically, "I'm sorry if I'm holding you up, Orian. If you want, you can go without me today, and I'll catch up later."
I immediately rejected the idea. "No, you've done so much to help me, the least I can do is wait for you."
Brandon nodded. "Thanks."
Soon, Brandon and I entered Canalave City. We (or strictly, Brandon) asked around about a place to stay the night, and were told varying things.
"No, there aren't any hotels in Canalave," one human told us. "You'll have to find lodging with a resident."
Another human had a different story. "Well, there is one inn," he said thoughtfully, "but it's been closed for fifty years. No one's sure why, but it's been passed down through families, and right now it's owned by a sailor who goes by the name of Eldritch. It should still be in working order, and he may let you stay there."
Brandon thanked him, and we left to find the residence of this sailor, Eldritch.
Soon we obtained directions to his house, and following them, we ended up in front of a small white house with a blue roof that was situated near the docks for the boats. Brandon knocked, and shortly the door was opened by a human with curly, long brown hair and red and white clothes. "Hello?" she said, looking at Brandon.
"Hello, I'm looking for the sailor, Eldritch," he said. "I need to talk to him."
"Oh, my husband? He's down by the docks with his boat, like he always is," she told us, then laughed ruefully. "That is, when he's not eating or sleeping."
"Thank you," Brandon said. She smiled and closed the door.
We went to the dock and found only one human there, who appeared to be absorbed in the task of making large quantities of rope. He was wearing white and blue clothes, a white hat, and a long red thing hanging down his chest. We approached him.
"Are you Eldritch?" Brandon inquired. He looked up.
"Yes, that's me. What can I do for you?"
"Hi, my name is Brandon, and I was hoping you could help me. I just got here, and I and my Pokemon have nowhere to spend the night. I heard that you owned the only inn, but that it was closed… And I was wondering if you would let me stay there. If it still works, that is."
Eldritch stopped what he was doing and put down everything. He stood up and stared at Brandon.
"You don't want to stay at that inn. There are stories that it's haunted and whatnot, but for some reason or other, it was closed fifty years ago by my wife's great grandfather and never opened again. I still maintain it, but only because that's what my wife's grandfather and father did. No one stays there if they can help it. You should stay at the Pokemon Center lobby or something."
Brandon considered this, then replied, "Still, I want to stay there. Because of my… situation, I need to be alone. I'll pay you for everything, too. Don't worry, I've got my Pokemon. Even if it is haunted, I can take care of a few Gastly or whatever it is."
Eldritch thought for a minute. "All right, but I hope you're prepared. Whatever happens, I'm not responsible." Brandon nodded.
"Here's the key." Eldritch took a brown, worn card from his pocket and handed it to Brandon. "It's in disuse, but still functional. You have to provide your own food and water; I'm not sure about the state of the pipes."
"I understand."
Brandon began to walk away, and I floated after him. Behind me, I heard Eldritch mutter, "I hope the kid makes it. No Gastly in that inn."