A/N: Well… this chapter was what some would describe as an 'awkward situation'. My original plan was to write original songs (and yes, putting in songs with lyrics you yourself came up with is a-okay under the rules. It's just copyrighted song lyrics that are the problem) for the play in this chapter, each one consisting of 35-40 lines each, but I couldn't come up with anything, so that got scrapped, pretty much at the last minute, for the finished product you see now. It's quick and dirty, and it drives my ambitious, perfectionist side nuts, but sometimes you gotta tell that side of yourself to fuck right off for the greater good.
Another thing: Doubtless some of you have seen the 'adverts' I've been leaving in the review sections of rule-breakers lately (hell, if you've stumbled across this story via those, they're obviously working, aren't they? ;]). I'm going to make my policy on those crystal clear right now. Rest assured, I will ONLY ever do that to rule-breaking stories and shitfics that I deem not worthy of serving as anything other than a billboard advertisement for this one. I'll NEVER, EVER, do that on a good, well-written story, because why would I advertise my product on another product equal to mine in quality? It would make no sense. So unless you want your work to be nothing more than an ad for mine… follow the rules and git good in terms of writing. Nothing more to it than that.
Long Way to Fall
By: Rylek196
Chapter 20: History Comes Alive
After taking a quick shower and then scarfing down a much-needed meal with such voracity that it unsettled some people, Hilbert was back on the gruelling road out of Nimbasa. He made sure to buy not two but three LMT's before leaving, as well as getting fresh water in his bottle rather than the days-old stuff in there already. Though he knew he needed to wash his clothes, he decided to forego doing so, as time was of the essence. Who knew how long he had before Juniper got antsy, after all.
The going was even tougher this time, due to the added weight of the Plume Fossil in his bag. His pace was slow, he was listing slightly to the side, and he had a feeling his leg muscles, even with his shoes, would be screaming at him in the morning. It was about noon when he passed by the sign indicating the Relic Castle's location again, and it took him another two hours to reach the abandoned construction site and its lonely crane, silent monuments for a building project long dead.
Despite the weight of the fossil, he increased his pace to get away from the site as fast as possible. Even though he knew the gang was dead by nature's hand, the memory of his encounter with them still haunted him. Having left the only shelter on the Route behind, he was forced to walk through the night to reach Castelia. Unfortunately, being out in the open in a desert meant it got quite cold, and he had to put his jacket's hood up and stick his hands in his pockets to keep his extremities warm as he trudged onward. A few foolish wild Pokemon (mostly Scraggy) crawled out of the sand to challenge him, but were all swiftly cut down by his Sawk or Dewott. However, the meager experience gained from these battles didn't equate to a level up for either of them.
At last, at three in the morning, he reached the north edge of Castelia. The city, having no bedtime, was still bustling, with the lights of the various skyscrapers on and hundreds of people going about their nighttime business. He caught a taxi to the Pokemon Center, which took another hour and ate up a good chunk of his money, to boot. The exhausted boy checked into a room at the Center, went upstairs, and fell asleep the second his head hit the pillow.
He woke up at just after ten in the morning the next day, having slept in a little to make up for the sleep he missed. "Another night with basically no sleep…" he grumbled as he got up. "I can't keep doing this…"
After getting dressed, he went downstairs to the lounge to get some much-needed breakfast. The mounted TV up on the wall was currently playing the news about the sandstorm in the Desert Resort. Apparently, the gang were not the only fatalities, with the body count now having gone into the low double-digits. He ate slowly because of this, and was only on his fifth spoonful of cereal when he heard the nurse on duty at one of the counters gasp loudly.
"You… you're letting your Pokemon go?" she said to the person at the counter, shocked. "But why would you want to do that?"
Hilbert grit his teeth in preparation for what he knew was coming next.
"Honestly? It's because I believe in what Team Plasma says," the young man , maybe a few years older than Hilbert, replied. "They're doing good, y'know? I just never realized that I was actually being abusive towards my Pokemon, so I'm letting them be free."
Hilbert let out a sharp bark of laughter. "'Team Plasma's 'doing good', huh?" he said bitterly without turning around. "Gimme a break. They're fucking terrorists!" With that last word, he slammed his left fist down on the table with enough force to shake his cereal bowl. Finally turning around, he got up out of his seat and stormed towards the other Trainer. "And I've been through more than enough hell thanks to them to prove it!"
"Oh yeah? Like what?" the Trainer said, crossing his arms.
"Hey, if you're going to start something, take it outside!" the nurse said sternly.
Hilbert ignored her, getting right up in the guy's face. "Oh, where do I even start? So far I've seen them steal a Pokemon a child, vandalize and rob a display at a museum for a reason I still can't figure out, and outright murder people, with me almost being one of those victims. And you've got the nerve to say they're 'doing good' and go along with their bullshit!? Are you insane!?"
"That's enough!" the nurse yelled, slapping her hand down on the counter. "Sir, if all you're going to do is try and pick a fight, then please leave."
Hilbert suddenly became aware that the Pokemon Center had gone relatively quiet, and that a lot of people were staring at the scene. Gritting his teeth, he turned on his heel and walked to the exit, but the guy called after him, "What you encountered was probably a splinter group anyway! There's always extremists in organizations looking to do good!"
Seeing red, Hilbert whirled around. "My ass it was a splinter group!" he roared, then stomped out of the building. Mood now sufficiently fouled, he made his way to the Skyarrow Bridge. Crossing it was far more boring going west-to-east, mainly because there was no Castelia skyline to greet him. By now, the strap of his bag digging into his shoulder was becoming actually painful, and his gait was slow and awkward. More than one person on the bridge gave him a strange look due to the way he was walking, leaning slightly to one side. He took a quick break on Route '3.5' to eat one of his LMT's, then continued on.
It was approaching one-thirty in the afternoon by the time he finally entered Nacrene again. Ten minutes later, he stumbled into the museum, all but collapsing near the counter.
"Oh!" the attendant cried, somewhat surprised at seeing the exhausted, panting boy before her. "It's you again! Been a while, hasn't it?"
Hilbert didn't even dignify that with a reply. Rather, he simply yanked the Plume Fossil out of his bag and put it on the counter. "Revive… this… now…" he panted, not in the mood for pleasantries.
The attendant's eyes widened at the sight of the fossil, ignoring Hilbert's rude tone. "Oh my, you actually got a fossil! Do you want me to revive it?"
"I just… said… that…" Hilbert said. "So… get on it… because I've been lugging… this damn thing… around… for days!"
"Okay, okay, I will!" the attendant said. "No need to bite my head off. This is gonna take about ten minutes, so don't go vanishing, got it?"
"Whatever," Hilbert said. Giving him a dirty look, the attendant gathered the Plume Fossil in her arms, and opened the door behind her, disappearing into what was presumably the fossil revival room.
Letting out a long-suffering sigh, Hilbert switched his bag's strap to his other shoulder. "Oh fuck, sweet relief…" he muttered, then made his way to the back of the museum, to the stairs leading to the Gym, and sat down to rest. He took his hat off and ran his hand through his sweaty hair. "At least I don't have to deal with all that damn weight on the way back…"
True to her word, the attendant came out ten minutes later, calling him over. "You'll be pleased to hear the revival was a complete success!" she said cheerfully, placing a Poke Ball down on the counter. "This is an Archen. It's a female. Take good care of it!"
"Don't worry, I will," Hilbert said, grabbing the Poke Ball and walking outside. He quickly selected Juniper's number on the Cross-Transceiver and called her. The Unovan Pokemon Professor was quick to answer.
"Yes, Hilbert? What is it?" she said as she saw his face on the screen.
"It's done. I got your damn fossil Pokemon," Hilbert said.
"I already know," Juniper replied. "The Pokedex data was sent to me as soon as the fossil was revived. Not a bad choice, Archen. While it's nowhere close to making up for Victini, you did do what I asked, at least. Your license is safe… for now." She gave an obviously-fake smile coated in false kindness, like an offered drink that actually contained poison. The implication behind the smile was readily apparent. It said, "Lose me a rare Pokemon again, and I'll twist your head off your body."
With a growl, Hilbert shut off the Cross-Transceiver, terminating the call. It wouldn't be too bad of an idea to look in the Pokedex to see what moves this thing has, he thought, pulling out the device and scrolling down to Archen's entry. Ignoring the text blurb for the Rock/Flying-type, he swiped over to its moves and stats page, and his eyes widened.
"H-holy crap!" he breathed. "Base 70 speed? 74 special attack? 112 attack!? This thing's a monster! I've hit the jackpot! What's its ability?" He swiped over to that tab, and his eyes again widened, but this time in dismayed shock. "Wait… Defeatist!? 'Lowers stats when HP is half or less'... you've gotta be kidding me!"
He stood there for a few solid minutes, considering whether to even keep the fossil Pokemon. He ran a hand over his face. I know this falls completely into the sunk cost fallacy… but I might as well, he thought. Taking the Archen's Poke Ball off his belt, he said to it, "I think I'll call you Artemis," before putting it back.
The last pieces of information that he cared about from the Pokedex were Artemis's current moveset and level. It was level 25, putting it ahead of anything on his team at the moment, and it knew Pluck, AncientPower, Agility, and Quick Guard.
With his sixth and final team member acquired, he took a swig of water, then began to make his way back to the Skyarrow Bridge. It took about half an hour to get back to Castelia, but he noted when crossing the bridge that the sense of overwhelming scale one got from looking at the skyline in the distance still had not gone away. He caught a cab to take him up to Route 4, but only rode it about three-quarters of the way there, not wanting to spend too much money. He quickly stopped in at yet another pizza place to grab a bite, eating it on the go, wanting to get out of Castelia before the crazy busyness of rush hour.
Walking for another good half hour, he made it with plenty of time to spare, trekking through the endless sand of Route 4. The sun was about to set as he once more came to the lonely construction site, and against his better judgment, sought shelter in one of the buildings, this time choosing a building on the left away from where he had encountered the group of ruffians. He went all the way up to the fourth floor this time, only one floor away from the abrupt, unplanned 'roof' of the structure.
Apart from a few barrels and long planks of wood scattered around, there was nothing out of the ordinary, nor did anyone else appear to be on the floor. However, as he gave it a once-over, the sunlight glinted off something on the concrete. "Huh? What could that be?" he muttered aloud, moving over to it. Picking it up, he found it was the jewel case for a T M. Though the QR code was a bit worn, he was still able to scan it, and it turned out to be T M39, Rock Tomb, a 50 base power move that was (obviously) Rock-type. Checking his Pokedex, he found that three of his Pokemon could learn it: Archen, Drilbur, and Darumaka.
"Well, that sure is better for type coverage on Scrapper than Cut," he said. "I'll teach it to him in the morning. For now…" He pulled Maru's Poke Ball off his belt and opened it. "Alright, Maru, you're gonna be the watch for tonight. If you see or hear anything- and I mean anything- out of the ordinary, wake me up, got it?"
The Discipline Pokemon gave a firm nod, also keenly remembering the events of a few nights ago and not wanting to repeat them.
Hilbert smiled at his starter. "I can always count on you, can't I? We've still got some time before I need to go to sleep, so how about we watch the sunset for a bit, huh?"
Maru made an excited chattering noise, and so for the next ten minutes, that was exactly what they did, sitting on the edge of the unfinished building watching the light fade on the vast desert to the west.
"We've been through a lot, haven't we?" Hilbert sighed, slowly running his hand down his starter's back. The fur there tickled his skin. "And we still have so far to go…" Maru turned his head to look at his Trainer. Hilbert's eyes hardened, even though Maru couldn't see it. "But I'm not gonna give up on you if you don't give up on me. And the next time we run into Team Plasma, and something tells me we will, we'll rip their damn heads off."
With the last of the daylight fading, Hilbert decided to turn in for the night. Using his bag for a pillow, he lay down on the concrete floor, and closed his eyes. Surprisingly, nothing bad happened that night, and the sunlight flooding into the unfinished structure roused Hilbert from his sleep the next day. He saw Maru still diligently keeping watch, a little tired but no worse for wear, and returned him to his Poke Ball.
After eating one of his meal packs for breakfast, he made his way down the stairs, and found the remains of a fire not ten feet away from the entrance. Reaching down to feel the ashes, he found they were still warm. "Probably another gang," he muttered. "Damn, that was lucky. I guess Maru didn't see this because of how deep inside the building we were. Either way, I'm not stickin' around for these bastards to come back. Time to clear out."
He rocked back on his heels, beginning not just a run, but a full-on sprint, putting some distance between him and the construction site. Once he felt he was safe, he slowed to a light jog, then back to a walk. He made good time getting to Nimbasa, arriving at the city's Gate by noon according to his watch. He went through it, and for the second time (and he would argue, his first real time) he entered into Nimbasa City.
Nimbasa, unlike the half-circle shaped Castelia, was a long and relatively narrow rectangle. The city was one of entertainment and leisure, in contrast to Castelia's business-centric approach, with an amusement park, sports stadiums, casinos, and even strip clubs. The Pokemon Center, luckily, was located only a few blocks away from the Gate, nestled between two apartment complexes to the west. Having just gone through another gruelling desert trek, he just wanted to take a shower and then have a nap. He checked into a room, then went up to it, and after a well-deserved shower, put on his jeans and t-shirt, lay down on the bed, and was out within minutes.
It was around two hours later when the ringing of his Cross-Transceiver awoke him. Checking the time on his watch, he groaned. "Damn, I overslept," he muttered. "Should have set an alarm…" Bringing his Cross-Transceiver up to his face, he saw it was Bianca's number. What could she want?
He pressed the button, and Bianca's face appeared on the screen. "Hi, Hilbert!" she said cheerfully. "Hopefully I'm not calling at a bad time again…"
"Nope, I'm actually decent this time," Hilbert said. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, sitting up. "Was just taking a nap. What is it?"
"Would you like to see a play with me tonight? There's this big theater in this city, and I was gonna invite Cheren, but he won't answer his Cross-Transceiver, soooo… wanna come?" Bianca's eyes almost seemed pleading.
"Alright, alright, fine," Hilbert said, rubbing his temples, briefly making Bianca's view go haywire. "What time is it at?"
"It starts around nine, so I'd say be at the theatre by at least eight forty-five," Bianca replied. Then she sighed in relief. "Good thing you said yes. I'd already bought the tickets before I called Cheren. If you said no or didn't respond, I don't know what I would have done if you said no. I didn't wanna go alone, is all…"
"I get it already!" Hilbert snapped. "I'll be there at eight forty-five, don't worry!" Before Bianca could utter another word, he shut off the device, terminating the connection. He sighed, but unlike Bianca's, his was one of annoyance. "Geez… talk about being needy. Might as well get some more sleep, though."
Setting an alarm for around seven on his watch, he lay back down, and closed his eyes again. Once the time came, he woke up, put on his jacket, checked out of the room, and went to find a restaurant to have dinner at, both because he didn't want to use his last meal pack yet and because he had some time to kill.
As the sun had now set, Nimbasa's nightlife had truly gotten going, with the city having transformed into a completely different place. Neon signs cut through the darkness, illuminating the city in dozens of bright colours, while spotlights placed near the Musical Theater, Big Stadium, and Small Court shone into the sky. Even the crosswalks weren't lines painted on the street, but big light strips under panes of glass that changed colour from red to green to indicate when it was time for people to walk and cars to go. Off to the east, the huge ferris wheel known as the Rondez-View turned in its never-ending circle, lit up with garish red and blue bulbs on the outside of the cars that were made to look like Poke Balls.
Man, how the hell does anyone get to sleep in this city? Hilbert thought as he walked along the sidewalk with dozens of others past lit up sign after lit up sign. Luckily, finding a place to grab some food on the cheap wasn't too hard, and he stopped in at a little hole-in-the-wall diner nestled between a few shops. The food actually turned out to be excellent, prompting him to devour the meal in record time. They probably literally can't afford to serve anything but good stuff here, he thought. I can't imagine rent in Nimbasa is cheap.
His belly full, and with the time approaching eight-thirty, he caught a cab to the Musical Theater, a rather garish building with a giant purple musical note decoration above the doors. "Hilbert! I'm over here!" he heard Bianca's voice cry. Spotting her loitering near the doors, he ran over to her, having to duck and weave through the crowd.
"Glad you made it!" she said giddily when he got to her. "Here's your ticket! What time is it now?"
Hilbert took the small slip of paper from her, then checked his watch. "It's only eight-forty, don't worry. We've got plenty of time. What's this play called, anyway? I forgot to ask you when you called."
"Oh, it's called "The Tale of the Scorch War"," Bianca said. "Ever since I heard what Ghetsis said in Castelia, I've been wondering about Unova's ancient history a bit more, and this just lined up perfectly with that! I know Cheren would've enjoyed it more than you, but…"
Though Bianca was talking, Hilbert was deaf to everything she said after the play's title. It was as if the world had gone into silent slow motion as he looked down at his ticket. Sure enough, there was the title of the play printed on it in black letters- 'The Tale of the Scorch War'.
First Ghetsis talking about this in Castelia, then getting stuck in the Relic Castle overnight, and now this play. Why is Unova's history following me around all of a sudden? A strange, inexplicable feeling of dread started to grow in his stomach, like a rope being twisted tightly. What does this all mean? I'm probably just going nuts, but I can't help but feel there's something more to this.
He was broken out of his trance by Bianca calling his name as she went into the theater. Evidently, she had moved on without him. "Shit!" he cried, racing after her to not lose her in the crowd. Said crowd was mostly middle age men and women, all of whom, he noted, looked well-dressed. Arceus, me and Bianca are so outta place and under-dressed for this. He had his ticket scanned by the person just inside the doors, then went into the building.
The interior of the Musical Theater was far more tastefully decorated than its exterior, with blood-red carpet with a black diamond pattern adorning the floor, and a chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The room was ovoid, with a mezzanine balcony, similar to the ones found in Pokemon Centers, hanging over it, going around its circumference. The way to get up to the balcony were two short staircases, one leading up to the left and the other to the right, making no difference which one was picked. Above this was a beautifully painted mural depicting some of the deities of Sinnoh, Dialga and Palkia.
Seeing Bianca up on the balcony, leaning over the marble railing and waving to him, Hilbert quickly made his way up to her, and together they went into the amphitheater and found their seats. They were on a large balcony with dozens of other seats facing the stage, high above it. Not gonna be able to get a very good view of the performance from here, Hilbert thought, sighing. And I doubt those little binoculars-on-sticks are a thing anymore.
The next ten minutes passed by uneventfully, save for Bianca's anticipatory fidgeting in her seat and the occasional sound of an instrument from the orchestra in the pit making some last-second adjustments and fine-tunings. Then, the lights dimmed, and the yellow curtain that covered much of the stage raised, revealing it to be bigger than it first appeared, and on a screen behind the stage, white text appeared as a mandolin in the orchestra played a few reverent-sounding notes.
This is but one of the legends of which the Unovan people speak… the text read. A flute then began to play, as the image on the screen changed, depicting a stylized artist's rendition of a marketplace scene from the ancient Unovan kingdom. Long ago, there existed a kingdom where two heroes ruled with the aid of a divine dragon, the text, now at the bottom of the screen, read.
The camera then panned across the scene, with new text fading in. It was a prosperous land blessed with lush forests, clear lakes, and peace. But one day the heroes began to quarrel and fight over the best way to lead the people. The flute then took on a decidedly more mournful tone, with the occasional plucking of the mandolin's strings. The image also changed to show two armoured figures, one in black, the other in white, clashing swords with each other. The elder of the brother heroes sought Truth, the younger, Ideals. These arguments grew heated, escalating into shouting matches, then physical fights. Eventually, they each gathered their forces, and battle lines were drawn, beginning a bloody conflict that would forever alter the history and fate of the land…
The screen then went black once more as the flute finished playing. The clanking of metal was then heard as the actors playing the heroes came onstage from opposite sides. They were dressed in full plate armour, identical to the image that had been on the screen seconds before- one was in shining silver-white armour, the other's was black as the night sky. The screen also changed to the silhouette of what could be assumed to be an artist's rendering of the original Unovan dragon, its upper half black and lower half white, with the rest of the screen around it being opposite.
"It has been a remarkable few decades, hasn't it, brother? Ever since we united the warring tribes of this land under us," the figure in the silver-white armour asked his ebony-armoured counterpart.
"Indeed," the black knight replied. "But… I cannot help but feel we did so using too violent a method. I am afraid we are only revered out of terror. Surely there must have been a more ideal way to have gone about it."
"Sometimes, harsh things must be done so better things can come of it. That is a fundamental truth of life. It cannot be changed."
"But-"
"There are no 'buts', brother, nor should there be regrets," the white-armoured knight said firmly, putting his arm around his brother's shoulder. "Just think of all we've accomplished along with the power of the dragon!"
The orchestra picked up again, and the actors broke into song, detailing the society of the kingdom and what they had done to create it. Throughout it all, though, everyone in the audience couldn't help but notice that the ebony-armoured hero sounded more uncertain than his white-armoured counterpart. Props representing the sandstone pillars of the Relic Castle in its prime were stealthily wheeled onstage by stagehands even as the background and lighting shifted to reflect this change in environment.
The real highlight moment came when the heroes, now in a full-on screaming match portrayed through the lyrics, called on representatives from each of the noble houses, and one by one, they appeared onstage. All in all, there were five of them, each bearing a flag with a distinct feature of a Pokemon stitched onto it: for House Lyndar, the tusk of a Haxorus, for House Raeshin, a Darmanitan's clenched, flaming fist, for House Talius, the arm of a Fighting-type called Mienshao, for House Mathias, a Braviary's wing, and lastly, for House Harmonia, a Bisharp's bladed helm.
Wait… didn't Ashley say that all the houses except Lyndar were wiped out and that we don't know their names? Hilbert thought. Unless the playwrights of this just made up the names…
Regardless of the thoughts of the boy, the song concluded with the heroes declaring war on each other, and forcing the houses to choose sides. House Lyndar chose to remain neutral, and as such was shunned by the others, its flag-bearer disappearing off the stage to represent the house going into exile away from the kingdom.
The pillars were once more wheeled offstage as the back screen changed to show the silhouette of the original Unovan dragon, and this time, it was animated, thrashing about side to side like it was being pulled by ropes from opposing directions. "It cannot be!" one of the flag-bearers cried as the dragon literally split in two, forming into spheres that quickly morphed into two new beings, which like their progenitor, were only shown as silhouettes. One was a white silhouette on a black background, the other a black silhouette on a white background.
The two new dragons then moved to opposite sides of the screen, siding with the heroes of their respective color. "It seems even the dragon has made its choice," the Hero of Ideals said to his brother. "Houses, decide who you will stand with!"
The flag-bearers from House Raeshin and Mathias immediately made their way over to him, with House Talius going over to the Hero of Truth. Only House Harmonia was left, with its flag-bearer seeming hesitant, looking at both sides, before ultimately going over to the Hero of Truth.
"The battle lines have been drawn, brother," the Hero of Truth said venomously to his sibling. "And whoever wins this conflict will decide the future of our land."
With that line, act 1 of the play was concluded, with the actors all walking offstage and the screen going blank as the orchestra finished playing its last notes. Act 2 then began as the screen flared to life once more, this time with the showers of sparks from what looked like forges along with waterfalls of molten metal. Actors dressed like blacksmiths walked onto the stage, some wheeling faux anvils with them.
"Come on, come on!" one of the blacksmiths cried. "We've got to get these weapons and armour out! Double time it!"
"We're going as fast as we can, damn it!" one of the other blacksmiths yelled, putting down his hammer briefly. "But the fires just aren't hot enough! We've got to call on Volcarona! Get it to increase its power!"
All of a sudden, there was a flash of light and smoke began to pour onto the stage. Out of the cloud stepped a woman clad in an elaborate costume that Hilbert assumed was based on the appearance of a Volcarona, having never seen one in person. It consisted of tight blue pants with blue dots on their legs, a black bodysuit with white fur along the top half, and six huge orange wings on her back.
Without a word, the woman swept one of her arms out, and the screen responded in kind, flashing as the showers of sparks grew in intensity, the rivers of red-hot metal flowing faster and growing thicker.
"Yes! It's working!" the blacksmith yelled. "Thank you, O great Volcarona!"
With a nod, the woman disappeared into another cloud of smoke that came from seemingly nowhere. The smoke cloud grew to encompass the entire stage, and when it dissipated, the stage was clear, with the silhouettes of the dragons back on each side of the screen. In the middle between them was an image of a grassy field.
The clopping of hooves was then heard, as each hero rode onstage on a chariot pulled by a Sawsbuck, flanked by the flag-bearers of the houses that had sided with them, as well as a small group of about twenty extras each, obviously meant to represent their armies. Both of them were armed with fake spears, though they did glint like they were made of real metal, and each had a fake sword sheathed at their waist.
Sawsbuck was a quadruped Grass/Normal-type Pokemon that resembled a deer. It was mostly brown, with curved orange markings near its eyes, and a cream underbelly and hooves. It had pink spots along its back, with a short tail and a tuft of cream fur on its chest, but most striking, it literally was growing flowers out of its antlers. More than that, the antlers actually resembled tree branches more than anything.
"So, it has come to this, brother," the white-armoured hero said.
"Indeed, it has," his ebony-armoured counterpart replied. "You have proven yourself to be unbending in your way of thinking, so this is all we can do."
"Much as this is not ideal…"
"Yes, but it is the harsh truth. A truth you refuse to acknowledge. Now, have at you!"
The orchestra picked up as both sides charged at each other, and as they did 'battle', someone in the orchestra itself began the next song, describing the war even as the dragons on the screen took the form of black and white spheres and clashed against each other over and over again. Eventually, these spheres changed color, becoming orange and blue, and grew bigger, sparks flying from them as they clashed, and soon a blinding flash of white light, combined with strobe lights on the stage itself, covered everything.
When it was over, the stage was clear once more, and the grassland on the screen was replaced by a vast desert, wisps of smoke still emanating from the ground.
The orchestra then started playing a rather more somber tune, made up mostly of soft choir and drums punctuated by the occasional plucking of an acoustic guitar. The final song of the play involved just a single actor, wearing a costume that was made to look burned, along with makeup made to resemble soot stains or burns on their face. They sang, their voice laced with wistful nostalgia, about the kingdom and people that had been lost, literally turned to dust, and how they wished for someone- anyone- to guide them out of the hopelessness of the situation and into a new day.
Then, answering his prayers, a new character walked onstage. He appeared younger than the burned man, maybe in his late teens. He wore a simple wite tunic, over which was a silver breastplate. "The son of the Hero of Truth!" the burned man exclaimed in relieved shock, kneeling before his liege.
"I can guide the remaining people and Pokemon of this land into a new dawn… if you will let me," the young man said. "Together, we can rebuild."
"Of course," the burned man replied. The screen then showed a Flying-type's eye view of the entire region as it currently was, as text appeared at the bottom. And so, the son of the Hero of Truth, having survived the war, led the people of Unova into a new age, the one we still enjoy today. However, the scar on the land caused by the war would remain for all time, and would never heal…
The curtain then came down for a few seconds, and when it went back up, the entire cast was onstage, and took their respective bows as the audience applauded. However, Hilbert wasn't among them, even though Bianca was, as he was lost in thought.
Was all that really true? Did the son of the Hero of Truth really exist, or was he just a made-up character for this? Ah, why do I suddenly care about this so much!? Just because Unovan history's taking an interest in me doesn't mean I'm gonna take an interest in it!
With the applause starting to die down, Hilbert and Bianca got up along with several dozen others as the curtain closed, making their way out of the theater.
"Man, I had no idea Unova's history was so eventful!" Bianca said, looking idly up at the sky as the crowd dispersed around them. "By the way, what time is it?"
Hilbert checked his watch. "It's just after eleven. Damn, it's late… I gotta get back to the Pokemon Center for some shut-eye."
Just as Hilbert was about to begin his walk back to the Pokemon Center (not wanting to spend any more of his dwindling money supply on taxi rides) a voice yelled out, "Bianca!"
Recognizing the voice, Bianca turned her head to the south to see a man making his way towards her, and her face went white. "Oh no…"
Hilbert looked where she was looking, and saw none other than her father, Patrick Kinway, running towards them, full-on shouldering past anyone that got in his way, causing a stream of angry curses and dirty looks to be thrown at him, though he ignored everything. Before long, he made it to the two teens, Bianca looking positively terrified to see him.
"Bianca, thank goodness I've found you," he said, catching his breath. He then straightened, taking an authoritative posture. "Bianca, you've gone far enough. It's time to come back home with me."
"What!?" Bianca cried. "Why? After I've been gone for what, almost a month now? After everything I've been through so far?"
"'Everything you've been through' is exactly why you have to come back to Nuvema with me this instant!" Patrick yelled. He then sighed. "Three days ago, there was a sandstorm in the Desert Resort. Your mother was beside herself with worry, even more so when it was reported that there were fatalities due to it- in the double-digits, in fact!"
"But I wasn't caught in the sandstorm!" Bianca cried. "Doesn't that count for anything?"
"Yeah, you weren't, but I nearly was," Hilbert interjected, speaking up suddenly. At Patrick's horrified look, he elaborated. "It was just after I found a fossil in the Relic Castle," he said, purposely leaving out why he was searching for said fossil, "I had to run for my life back to it, and it was almost on top of me by the time I made it. Had to spend a night trapped inside with a few other people, and I didn't have any food, either. The sandstorm lifted by the morning, but the point is, I got damn lucky. If I had been any farther away from the Relic Castle when it hit, or if it lasted longer than that… I don't think I'd be standing here right now. Which is probably why you should go with him, Bianca. This isn't a game and this isn't a joke, plus I've got a feeling it's only gonna get worse."
Bianca looked shattered. Tears were welling up in her eyes, as the realization that one of her closest friends had essentially betrayed her sank in. "Hilbert… please…" she whimpered, looking desperately at him. "Don't do this… don't take his side…"
"Well, it's good to see you've come to your senses," Patrick said to Hilbert before turning back to his daughter. "Like I said before you went gallivanting out on this ridiculous quest, do you have any idea what you dying would do to your mother and I? How selfish it was to just run away like you did?"
Feeling her chances at convincing her father to let her continue rapidly slipping away, Bianca dug through her purse and pulled out her Badge Case, opening it, the Gym Badges glinting in the neon signs of Nimbasa. "See? I've already won these Badges! That should be proof-"
"I don't give half a damn about those!" Patrick roared, causing Bianca to cower and several people to look their way. "The fact is, you could have died! You could have every Gym Badge in Unova- hell, you could have every Gym Badge in the whole damn world- and it wouldn't have made a lick of difference to that sandstorm! It would have killed you regardless!"
Bianca said nothing, merely whimpering helplessly. The tears that had been welling up in her eyes were now flowing freely down her cheeks. Patrick sighed. "Come on, Bianca. It's time to go." He put his hand on her shoulder, starting to steer her away from the theater.
"No…" Bianca mewled, but found herself unable to fight back. "Dad, please… please… She couldn't believe it. Her journey, her one chance to make something of herself and find out what her place in the world was, was over. She looked back at Hilbert one last time, who just shook his head apathetically. Looking down, she closed her eyes, gritting her teeth and sniffling, feeling more tears roll their way down her cheeks as her father led her further away.
Suddenly, there was the distinctive clack, clack, clack noise of high heels hitting pavement in a rapid rhythm, coming closer. "What the hell is going on here?" a woman's voice asked.
Patrick, Hilbert, and several onlookers turned to the source of the voice, and Hilbert's jaw dropped. No way! Not ten feet away from them and gaining ground, was the famous Gym Leader of Nimbasa City, Elesa.
The boy couldn't help but feel blood rush to a very private place and the primal, pubescent side of his brain started to take hold as he stared at her like an idiot. He had seen pictures of her online, but in person Elesa was-! She wore black tights over her legs- slim, shapely legs that seemed to go on for miles, and sharp, yellow stilettos were her footwear of choice, making her seem taller than she really was. She wore a barely-there yellow tank top with striped sections cut out of its black center, revealing the skin of her flat, toned stomach. Overtop her blonde hair was a pair of headphones, with two wires sticking out of them, looking like absurdly long pigtails going down almost to her ankles. In a word, she was hot.
Bianca's father, being a married man loyal to his wife, was not as easily distracted by Elesa's looks as the now nearly-drooling Hilbert. "What's going on is none of your business. Come on, Bianca. Let's go." He continued pushing his daughter along, but she planted her heels, refusing to move, seeing a ray of hope in the form of Elesa, and she was going to grab it and never let go.
Elesa's eyes flashed with anger. "Oh, is that so? Well, it just so happens that what happens in this city and to the people in it is always my business, and as it just so happens, I don't take too kindly to being brushed off."
With speed befitting her title as an Electric-type Gym Leader, she whipped out a Poke Ball, throwing it past Patrick and Bianca, where it opened to reveal a quadruped Pokemon. "Now you better tell me what's going on, or I'll have Zebstrika here Double Kick you outta town."
Zebstrika was a black-and-white Pokemon that resembled a zebra. Its body was black, with white, jagged stripes that looked like cartoonish thunderbolts all over its body, though they were most predominant on its chest and neck. Its legs had white stripes on them, and the inside of its ears, along with its eyes, were an arresting blue. A white, spiked mane ran down the length of its back, with the end of its tail taking the shape of a lit sparkler.
Patrick did not back down to Elesa's intimidation tactics. "I'm not looking for a fight here. I just want to protect my daughter from herself. But if you want to try and stop me, a battle is what I'll happily give you."
He pulled a Poke Ball out of his pocket, and threw it. "Go, Unfezant!" he yelled.
What emerged from the Ball was an avian Pokemon that resembled a game-bird. It had a pinkish-red wattle around its eyes, looking like the mask of a superhero of some kind. Long growths that looked like ribbons extended out of these, going down past its shoulders. Its lower body was mint green, while its upper body was black. Its tail, along with its wings, were also black and grey.
Elesa just laughed. "A Normal/Flying-type? Against an Electric-type? Are you dumb? Zebstrika, use Thunderbolt and take it out quick!"
Patrick just growled, not willing to back down. "Unfezant, U-Turn!"
What followed was nothing to write home about. As Unfezant gathered green energy around it, lunging toward its opponent, Zebstrika shot a bolt of electricity from its body, which lanced along the ground and struck the Proud Pokemon dead-on, knocking it out with that one attack.
Patrick grimaced, recalling his Unfezant while Elesa smiled. She turned to address the people that had gathered to watch the drama unfold. "And that is why you don't pick a fight with both the city's top model, and its Gym Leader: Elesa! Now I'll ask again, and I want a straight answer this time: What is going on? Why was this man trying to lead you away, sweetheart?"
Bianca sniffled. "He-he's my father, so he wasn't t-trying to kidnap me or an-anything. "What he was trying to do was… was get me to stop journeying!" She burst into tears again. "And… when I turned to one of… one of my so-called friends for help," the sentence was said with a murderous glare towards Hilbert, "He threw me under the bus!"
Bianca's father's face was turning red with anger. "The only reason I wanted to take you back to Nuvema is for your own safety! You could have been killed if you got caught in it!"
"I couldn't care less at this point!" Bianca screamed back at him. "First of all, I wasn't anywhere near the Desert Resort when the sandstorm hit! And even if I was… at least… at least I'd die knowing I tried to do something with my life instead of being stuck in Nuvema watching the world pass me by!"
"H-how could you say that?" Patrick said, beyond flabbergasted. "Do you even realize what you're saying..?"
"I do, and I don't care!" Bianca yelled. "I'm sick of being coddled by you and Mom! It's time for me to find my own place… by myself. Maybe I'm not the strongest Trainer, but who cares? I will keep going, and no one- not Hilbert, and not you- will change that."
His face twisted in pure wrath, Patrick finally exploded. "Fine!" he roared. "If you want to keep going, then by all damn means be my guest! Just think about the consequences of what might happen if you do."
With that, he healed his Unfezant, and took off on it, flying away.
Elesa flicked her already short bangs to the side, recalling her Zebstrika. "Whew! I thought he'd never leave. I was gonna have Zebstrika zap him if he didn't."
"Thank you, Elesa," Bianca said. "If you hadn't intervened… I might have had to give up here."
"Think nothing of it," Elesa said. "He did have a bit of a point, I won't lie, but while the world's a dangerous place and travelling it ill-equipped is bad, keeping someone from finding their place in it and reaching their full potential is worse. But Pokemon journeys aren't easy things, so if you're looking for a challenge, come to my Pokemon Gym at some point. I'll give you a battle that'll make your head spin."
Bianca nodded as Elesa walked away, the woman sneering at Hilbert as she passed him. Suddenly, Bianca marched right up to him. "You!" she yelled. "What was that!? Why didn't you take my side!? I thought we were friends!"
"I took your father's side because I've seen, and experienced, the dark side of these journeys first fucking hand multiple times by now!" Hilbert yelled back, his characteristic anger rearing its head. "You don't even wanna know what I've been through! We've got a terrorist organization on our asses, or have you forgotten about that!?"
"I can handle myself," Bianca hissed. "And I swear, next time we battle, I'll show you how strong I am, you asshole."
That caught Hilbert off guard. Bianca rarely swore, except when pushed over the edge. He could count on his fingers the number of times he had personally heard her swear. The shock, however, quickly wore off, and was replaced by more anger.
"Oh, give me a fucking break!" he yelled. "You didn't even want to go to this play without someone by your side, did you!? Admit it, Bianca- you're not cut out for this, and you never were." He turned around and started walking away. "Sorry I gave a fuck about your well-being."
A/N: A public service announcement to make to wrap this up. You might recall that back at the start of chapter 18, I had commissioned an artist named Karliroja to draw another picture for this story (and I implore you to go look at it, it's GORGEOUS). Well… she wasn't the first one I commissioned to draw that picture. I initially commissioned a user on DA named Ayywa to draw it. Things went smoothly at first, however, after they gave me the sketch and a half-finished coloring of Bianca's column, they vanished, taking the money I had spent with them. I'm obviously not going to say how much it was, but let's just say it was more than 250 dollars. To make a long story short, I was scammed. How you react to this is up to you. It's pointless telling you not to harass them, as I know that won't stop anyone, so all I can say is this: DO NOT commission them. They are a scammer.