Arc One: Mystery

Chapter Nineteen: What We Can Do

We wait. I don't know how long we do, but it feels like hours. Then again, this day feels like it's taken months off our lives. But thank goodness we haven't waited that long...

I mean, we had to walk all the way over here, get some supplies, enter the mountain, found this passage, and then THOUGHT we found Xatu, but then he was really a Dusknoir, so we had him sent down the river. Oh! And I knocked out Eve...

Yeah, it's been quite the day, so the act of knocking a door sounds too easy is me.

Like, something has to happen, right? Is it going to fall on us?! Is there another Pokemon that's waiting in the shadows, getting ready to attack us?! I DON'T FRECKING KNOW ANYMORE!

"Are you going to knock his door again?" Sparks asks on my head.

I shrug my shoulders. "I don't really know what to do now. It feels like there's a catch to everything we do. I'm tiring myself out just thinking about today!"

Sparks chuckles a bit. "Yeah, it's been a lot. I wonder how everymon at the Guild will react when their hear our story."

He then hops off my head and says, "Well, if you aren't going to knock, then I'll just have a turn." He goes to tap the door when he stops.

I smile and say, "You're having second thoughts too, aren't you?"

"Umm, no. I think somemon is holding me back." Sparks says worried. "Is Eve doing this?"

Before I can say anything, we all hear and feel a rumble below us. Thankfully, it only lasts for a few seconds.

"W-what was that?" I ask. I then see Sparks get lifted into the air. He panics and says, "Hey, hey, hey! Put me down! I wanted to knock on the door too."

"Trust me when I say this, you don't want to touch the door." A voice calls out.

We're all surprised by the voice (even though we should have seen that coming) and I ask, "Who's there?"

Sparks is then put onto the ground, and the voice responses, "I'm the true Xatu, and I know your journey has been one for the ages, but rest easy knowing that this day is now coming to a close."

Sparks then says, "So, you're the real Xatu, right?"

"And I assume that you'd like me to prove it? It would only make sense after the battle you four had with that fake bird."

I let out a nervous chuckle, "Yeah, we'd appreciated that."

"Ok. Young mouse, I told you not to touch the door, right?"

Sparks nervously asks, "Why? What would happen if I did?"

"Grab a large rock and toss it at the door, and you will see." Xatu responds.

I listen to the bird and grab a rock that the size of my hand and toss it at the door lightly. As soon as it hits the door, it sticks onto it, but not long after that, electricity appears over it and causes it to get sent back towards me in pieces.

"AHHH!" I scream as I guard my face with my hands. Thankfully, Xatu stops the shattered pieces before they can get to me, but it does catch Lucas' attention, who's watching us while he stays by a sleeping Eve.

"Hey, are you guys ok?!"

"Yeah, we're fine." I answer, "Xatu was showing us...wait, what was your point?"

"Well, when Arceus gave me this room, he wanted to make sure that only Pokemon with a Lucky Pebble could enter the door, so he covered the door with a barrier that will send anymon who touches this without a pebble down into the river, and any projectile will be redirected back to the Pokemon who used it."

I look at the pieces that are still floating in front of me. "Ok, that makes sense." I say with my hands still over my face.

Sparks then says, "Wait, if you said that anymon who doesn't have a Lucky Pebble is pretty much toast, then does that mean that I can't enter?"

...

...

We hear him sigh and then say, "I'm afraid so, small Pichu." Sadly. "I know how hard your journey has been, but rules are rules, I made a vow to Arceus that I can't break."

Sparks gets on his knees, and I can see tears starting to come down his face. "S-so that's it? We just wasted our time coming here?"

I then hear Lucas get up. "You can't be serious. We just went through everything, and you're not going to let us do anything?! Y-you have to let us in, please! Our island is in danger!"

"I'm truly sorry, but I have to do my part to keep any balance that I can control."

I laugh, but not in a good way. That's it? AFTER EVERYTHING WE'VE BEEN THROUGH, HE'S JUST NOT GOING TO LET ANY OF US INSIDE?! All that time going down the path, through the mountain, caves, stairs, and the closest thing I get to asking Xatu something is knocking his door.

...On hold!

"Wait, if you need a Lucky Pebble to get in, then how did I knock on your door, and didn't blast off again?"

Xatu then sounds confused, "Don't you know you have a Lucky Pebble with you?"

"WHAT!?" We all yell. I grab the pieces of the rock I tossed and say, "I-I didn't know that's what I threw at the door. Sparks, help me put this back together!"

Xatu then laughs, "You didn't throw it at my door. For some reason, the power is inside of you, young Raboot."

I then look at my hands and roll my eyes, "Right, so I'm like the chosen one?"

Xatu laughs even harder. "You have no idea, do you?"

I shake my head, and he responds with, "You ate your Lucky Pebble."

"I ate WHAT?!" I say. I then try to cough it up as both Lucas and Sparks fall to the ground laughing.

"Ha, ha, ha! You really ate a rock. I think you have to be a Rock-Type to do that!" Sparks says.

Lucas then adds, "That must have been a tasty rock it if was worth eating."

I can't help but feel stupid, but also wanting to laugh myself. Why in the world would I swallow something that isn't edible?

"How long have I had that inside me? Why is it inside me in the first place?!" I ask Xatu.

"You can find out if you like." He says.

Suddenly, the rumble returns, causing Lucas and Sparks to get back up on their feet. Only this time, the door opens, revealing a path leading deeper into the mountain.

"You, and only you Raboot, are allowed to enter this room. Everymon else will have to stay outside until we are finished."

I turn back to my friends and say, "Sorry. Looks like I'm the only one who's going to be asking Xatu anything."

I can tell that they really wanted to ask Xatu a question, but Lucas just smiles, "As long as somemon asks him, it's good. That was our mission, right?"

I flash a smile back and say, "Yeah, it was. So no hard feelings?"

Sparks hops on Lucas' head and says, "Nope...well maybe a small one, but it doesn't matter that much. Have fun with Xatu."

"I will. Stay safe, you guys." I say as I wave to them. I then head inside the room.

As soon as I pass through the doorframe, I hear the door slam behind me, causing me to yelp.

"My apologizes. I should have warned you about that, especially sense your trip here was quite the adventure." Xatu tells me.

"Yeah, it sure was." I say. I then look to the side of the walls. Both sides have torches that begin to light up as I get closer. I then think to myself, and ask, "Xatu, can I ask you a question?"

"It depends on your question? What is it?"

"I was going to ask you if you knew if that Xatu was a fake?" I wait, but get no answer. I decide to look back to the walls and notice that the torches are getting brighter, making it easier to see the walls, which are full of beautiful colors, and I think I spy some paws from different kinds of Pokemon inside a line of blue paint.

"I see that you enjoy the colored walls." Xatu says, "When Arceus gave me this room, he made sure that it would look great. Many Pokemon came to help with the wall, and I must say, it does look pretty."

"It sure does." I say.

"...As for your question, yes, I did know that wasn't me and that you were in some kind of trouble." Xatu finally answers.

I frown a bit. "Then why didn't you help us out? It really would have been nice to know that ahead of time."

"There wasn't a need to." Xatu says. "I knew that you all would prevail against the Dusknoir."

I think about about defeating Eve and say, "But not all of us beat him though. If you stepped in, then I wouldn't feel so bad." In a sad tone.

Xatu then says, "I'm sorry, but I had to stay put. That Dusknoir could not find me. Besides, fights like those will show you the Pokemon that will stand by you at all times. Trust me, it will all work out in the end, you'll see."

I think about it. "Well, I guess you do have a point, but...why does something have to always go wrong?"

"This question doesn't just refer to today, does it?" Xatu asks.

"...no, it doesn't." I sigh. I then stop and say, "Ever since I got here, there's always been a catch to anything that I do. When we had to deliver that apple, we got stuck in a Mystery Dungeon. When we went to Ocean's Island, Zygarde attacked us. In Apple Woods, we got attacked by Shard and Fang, and...just the fact that I can't remember how I got here is killing me."

Xatu then answers me. "Life can never be controlled. We can only ride the waves and learn how it moves. Only then can we make the best of our life. Even in those events where something went wrong, what happened after them?"

I put hand to my chin. "Well, during Green Forest, Lucas saved me against those Wild Pokemon. We helped Eve in Apple Woods and got to know her better. Bolt had my back and stood up against Zygarde at the island..."

I smile as Xatu says, "You see, there's always a silver lining to everything. While those event may sound bad at first glance, there's always something about it that makes you and your friends stronger."

"But what good is losing my memories. Isn't that the worst possible thing that can happen to me?" I ask.

"Maybe you can see the world for the first time a second time." He says, "Besides, you seem to have very strong bonds with your friends. If you didn't lose your memories, you might not care about them as much, or hold on to them so tight."

The more I think about that, the more I smile, "I guess there really is a silver lining to everything that happens."

"Correct. A journey worth remembering is one filled with trial and fault, because only through wrong acts can we find out the right way to move on." Xatu says.

I then see something glow in the distance as he says, "You are almost to the cliffside, young one."

"Great!" I yell as I go from a walk to a run. I can hardly wait to get all of this off my chest. The question I've been wanting to ask is finally going to get an answer. As I run, the light gets brighter and brighter. So much, that I have to cover my eyes and slow down as the light feels like it covers me whole.

"You can open your eyes now." I hear Xatu say to me.

Realizing that I stopped, I open my eyes and I begin to start moving again when I see that I'm already at the cliffside, and it's a sight to behold. The cliff is at a perfect slope that's not too steep. In fact, the whole thing has many layers that stick out like stairs, making it a piece of cake to scale this place. On each platform, there's plenty of flowers with many Bug and Flying-Type going around the mountain and enjoying themselves. But the coolest thing is the it seems that we're in a glass dome, as the sky is covered in clear glass plates that bend the light from the sunset outside.

"I'm over here." I hear Xatu say, but this time, I can tell where it came from. I then spy Xatu standing on a ledge a little ways from me.

"Huh, I didn't think you ever used you mouth to talk." I joke.

He laughs and says, "I regularly only use my mouth if they can actually hear me speak. It may be fun using my head, but I prefer word of mouth." He then looks to the sun and says, "It really is beautiful, isn't it?"

I smile and nod. I make my way toward him and say, "It sure is. Arceus is the creator of this world, so I guess anything made by him would have to look amazing."

Xatu then starts chuckling. "Well, let's just say some of his choices didn't work for me. He always has his head in the clouds when it comes to designing anything. He loves to make things as grand as possible, for better or for worse."

He continues looking out and doesn't move to look at me as I get closer. "But you don't need everything, because if you have everything, then it will all become the same to you very soon and will get old. To be missing something is something to work for. Keeps the fire going, won't you agree?"

I answer, "Well, I guess your right. With everything that's gone on in my life, I do feel a bit more motived to try and reach my goal."

"And what is your goal?" Xatu asks as he finally turns around to face me as I finally get on his ledge.

"Well, I want to remember who I am." I answer.

"So you want to use your Lucky Pebble to find out?" Xatu asks.

I go to say yes, but I stop, there's one thing that I should ask before telling him my question. "Xatu, how many questions can I ask you?"

He closes his eyes and says, "I'm afraid I can only take one question from you."

I try to hide it, but I'm destroyed in the inside. I can only ask for either who I was, or ask about the Mystery Dungeon, but not both.

"Are you sure that you can't just bend the rules just this once?" I ask him.

He shakes his head, "That Dusknoir may have been a fake, but what he said about staying hidden...is true."

He turns back to look at the sun and says, "Arceus had never intended for me to stay here, cut off from the rest of the world. The reason he gave me this gift was to able to help everymon."

He then lowers his head. "But, as you know, the world has...split in a way that I am a very valuable Pokemon to have. Simply put, anyone who has too much of my knowledge will become somemon that can be of use to anymon, whether they have good intentions or not."

I then see something roll down his face. "Is...that a tear?" I think. Is was indeed, as it fell off of the bird and made a small splash.

"I long to see the sun outside of this dome, Red." He says. "In a world with two rulers, something as powerful as me can't ever fall into the wrong hands. It's an unfortunate price that we must pay."

I get worried and say, "Umm, when you say we, do you-"

"Yes." He says as he turns around. He then walks closer to me. "Lucky Pebbles are the sign of great things, Red. You don't just have some souvenir inside your stomach. That stone is the key to your adventure. It's a sign of being accepted by all the legendary Pokemon, including myself."

I'm shocked at what he just said to me. "R-really!? But I don't even know why I have it, let alone why I ate it."

"Do you want to find that out then? Is that the question you wish to use?" He asks.

I stare at him as I think about it more. Everything I wanted can be answered, right here, right now. But...

We also need to solve the Mystery Dungeons. We need to fix this world before I can go back to mine.

But I'm this close to solving my mystery! I can't...

...

...

But that's not right. As much as it hurts of me to say it, I'll have to find some other way to remember my past.

"N...no. We need to know why Mystery Dungeons are appearing, and how we can stop them. Can you tell me how we can do that?" I ask.

As I finish that, I see a glowing ball of yellow light come from chest. Before I can do anything, it zooms into Xatu.

"Uhhh, what just happened?" I ask Xatu.

Xatu then opens his eyes, which are full of the golden light that entered him, and says, "Don't worry, it was only the power of your pebble inside of you."

I then look at my chest and see that there is something glowing in there...and I'm getting sick just thinking about it.

"So, you want to know how Mystery Dungeons are appearing and how you can stop them, correct?" He says. "There's no going back after this. You wish to use your wish on that question?"

I take a deep breath and say, "...Yes. That's my question."

"Very well." He says as he closes his eyes. His glow then gets even brighter as he starts humming something to himself. I don't know what it is, but it's some kind of song.

"The dungeons are forming...because of chaos inside the earth." He says. "I feel the core crying out in pain as it moves, breaking as it does."

"Wait, are you saying the core is breaking?!" I yell in shock. "How did that happened?!"

"I..." He says with his eyes still closed. "I don't know. Perhaps it is because of two powers that guard the core, but it seems that they...aren't thinking a like."

"Two powers guarding the core." I think to myself. A light bulb then turns on. "Are you referring to Zygarde, are you?"

I then walk back and forth as I think about it more. "That would make sense. In order for Zygarde to be at 100%, both the red and blue cell needs to come together willingly. And he is the Order Pokemon, after all."

"But this isn't the first time that those two haven't gotten along." Xatu says. "Believe me, those two fight once in a while, but it has never brought consequences as bad as this. There has to be some other reason why this is happening, but...I can't figure it out for some reason."

I then feel something in me that causes me to fall to the ground in pain. "Gahhhh! What was that?!"

Xatu then sighs. "I'm afraid your time here is running out. You see, this place will send anymon out of here in case they managed to sneak in without a stone. The only expectances are mons that are here because of Arceus, such as myself."

"But wouldn't that also include me?" I ask.

He gets nervous and says, "While you do have a Lucky Pebble with you, that only grains you a little more time to stay in here. Sadly, that time doesn't last forever, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut this short."

My eyes widen. "You mean you can't tell me how we-"

"No, of course I will. I'll have enough time to tell you." He says, "But listen carefully, as I may only be able to say this once: What you must do is find the Flute of Aura, bring it to the core, and play it so that it will unite the two parts together."

I nod. "Ok, Flute of Aura...where is tha-"

I feel the pain strike through me again. "Gahhh!"

"I'm sorry that you are feeling this pain, but before you go, I must tell you this." Xatu starts.

"And what is it?" I ask as I start to feel weird.

"You could have asked to remember again." He says. "You were almost there, but then you choose to help everymon else, and for that, I'm very grateful."

I try to laugh. "It wasn't a tough choose, but it was hard one to say it." I then look down at the dirt. "I guess I'll just have to wait to remember everything about myself."

"You will remember everything one day, Red. I can tell you that." Xatu says. "But there are two things that you should know before you go"

"One, don't lose your pebble. That stone will be of excellent use on your adventure. I don't think you will be able to do your quest if you don't have it with you, and second-"

Before he can say anything, I notice that small balls of yellow light are rising around my area.

"Hmm, it seems that you'll be teleporting soon." Xatu says.

I raise my hand and see more glowing energy come out from it. In fact, I think I'm losing my arm. "This is normal, right?" I ask worried.

"Yes, it is normal." Xatu says. "But there's something that isn't normal about you."

The yellow lights start to get in my way of my view as I sweet. "Uhh, better make it quick."

He pauses, but then says, "You are a human that has been turned into a Pokemon."

I turn white as I say, "Heh, heh, so you know?"

"From the very start, yes." Xatu says. "But while I know it doesn't mean anything, your friends..."

He pauses once again as the light gets brighter and brighter around me. "It's better if you don't tell them that, as I see a great division the moment you tell them who you are."

Don't tell them. Well, I guess I was on the fence about telling them about that, but at least I now know that I shouldn't tell them, and why I can't.

I then try to smile and say, "Thank you Xatu...for everything."

As I feel myself turning into light. "No, Red." Xatu says, "Thank you for your courage, and our chat together. Good luck on your adventure, and I hope you find what you're looking for."

I then turn into a ball of light and move up into the air. "And you don't have to worry about your friends. I sent them all a gift for coming this way to visit me." I then fly from his sight into the sky.

As soon as I leave his sight, he turns back to face the sun and sighs.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Arceus." He says, "Time can only last for so long."

The waves of the river storm down their path as pieces of ice, varying in size, mixed in with the rushing water head down the stream.

One of the pieces of ice, however, has a Pokemon on it, but it keeps changing whenever it's red ring goes into the water.

While the Pokemon is in bad shape, it slowly, but surely makes it's way to the shore, but only by grabbing on the edge of a stalagmite with one hand in the water.

"Gahh! Finally!" He says as he puts his other hand on the pointy rock. He is then hit with a piece of ice, but he remains hanging on.

"Alright." He says as his hand gets covered by water, but not by the river, but by his hand trying to use Water Pulse.

He looks for another rock to grab on that's closer to the shore. Once he spots one, he looks to see if there are any ice chunks coming his way. "Nothing." He says. "Here I go!"

He then throws his Water Pulse into the water, trying to use the power of it to launch himself to the other rock. It doesn't work as well as he had planned, but he still manages to grab his target.

"Yes!" He says, and he goes to make another ball of water, but he fails to see a wave coming at him, and is swept away.

"NO!" He says with part of his mouth under water. He has no choose but to use his half-baked Water Pulse against the water to try and push himself back to his rock.

When he does use it, he comes up short to the rock, but in a second, he turns into a Lucario and stabs it with the back of his right hand. "Come on, I can't get swept away again." He says as he swings his left hand to grab onto rock. Once he does so, he takes right hand out of the rock and starts up another Water Pulse.

"Now, let's try that again." He says. He repeats his process, and makes it to another rock, this time not having that much trouble as the last one. He then looks to the shore as his form changes into a Greninja.

"I can make it. I can make it. I can make it." He says to himself as he makes and launches one last Water Pulse into the water. Finally, at long last, he makes it to the shore that he's long to get on.

"Yesyesyesyesyesyes." He continues to say as he crawls onto the shore and out of the water. When every part of his body is out on land, he flips over onto his back and coughs up water.

Minutes past before he makes a sound, and when he does, it's the sound of somemon laughing.

"Wow, that w-water was freezing. I can see why that makes such a bad punishment." He says.

He then flips back on his stomach and picks himself up, and at that point, he notices his arm is now a Grovyle's one. He then looks at his arm where his ring is and bangs it three times, turning into a Raichu, a Sylveon, and a Chimchar each time.

"Great, this thing's busted again." He says angrily. He goes to reach for his bag when he realizes that it's not with him. "Of course, it's back on those stairs. Gahhh! And it had all my stuff in there too." He says as he stomps around.

He then takes deep breathes and says, "Ok, calm yourself, Blade. It's not the end of the world if you lose almost all of your stuff."

He puts his hands on the side of his head and says, "I mean, sure. Now you got to get more berries, not to mention that you have to make a new ring, but...my needed to get an upgrade anyways, a-and I like berry picking, aaaaannnnnnddddd..."

He then turns off his ring for a moment to check his left hand, which has a shining blue rock connected to a strap that's tied around his left hand on top of a broken spike. "And my lucky charm is still with me, thank goodness."

He turns it back on, turning him into a Beedrill, and then sits down. "See, just keep thinking positive, and everything will work out in the end."

He then looks out to the river and continues. "It'll be fine. Scar's never that angry with you. He's like a big brother."

"..."

*Sigh* "I wish he'd always act like that. He's always rude around Shard and Fang. I mean, sure, we have more history together, but he doesn't have to act so tough whenever they're around, or any other Evil-Type for that."

He then stops and listens to the crashing of the waves. His form changes into a Gallade as he smiles. "So cool how something so powerful can be so relaxing at the same time." He says, but then soon coughs a little, letting out some more water.

He puts his hand over his chest and grunts. "Scar can be the same thing if he really tried to, and I've seen little glimpses of him like that, so why doesn't he show it more?" He says after his pain goes away.

He then gets up and starts stretching. "Alright, I should probably head back. Don't want to make everymon think I'm in some kind of deep trouble, ha ha."

He then closes his eyes as the stone over his left hand brightens. "Over there's one." He says looking at a wall. He goes to walk over to it, but he stops as he puts his hands on his back.

"Oh no! My cape!" He turns toward the water and sees it stuck on a jagged rock in the water. He breathes a sigh of relief and puts his hand out. His cloth is then covered by a blue glow as it's lifted out of the water.

"Good thing that it got caught on the rock, otherwise I'd have to find another one to replace it." He says with a smile.

He almost puts it on, when he hits himself in the head. "What are you doing? You need to dry this up first."

He the sets it on the ground while he turns into a Emboar. He then uses Flamethrower on the cloth.

"Nice how Scar got me a fireproof one." He thinks to himself. "I can't imagine how annoying it would be to dry this off and you couldn't just use a Fire-Type move."

After a while, he finally stops and turns into a Obstagoon as he puts it on. "Hmm, it's a little hot, but it should cool down soon...hopefully I don't get burned, ha ha." He turns back to the wall and see a reflection of himself.

"Hmm." He bangs the ring for a fourth time and turns into a Flygon. He looks at his reflection and says, "...yeah, that'll work." And walks towards the wall.

"Alright, now I can use that stone." As soon as he gets to the wall, he puts his left hand on it. Suddenly, blue aura appears around his hand as he screams, "Force Palm!"

The wall around him then breaks apart and reveals a very large blue rock.

"Wow." He says. "Looks like I should be able to teleport back home without a problem."

His stomach then growls as he blushes. "Looks like I'll have to find some food before I come back." He then snaps his fingers.

"That's it. I pick apples as an apology for not getting Eve. I'm sure that'll make them less mad at me." He puts his hand on the large rock and closes his eyes.

Before he teleports, he thinks, "That is a sweet name. Almost makes me not want to kidnap her."

"..."

"I need to talk with him before I forget." He says as he vanishes from sight.