Author notes: Thank y'all for the love on all my stories! I really do enjoy writing these. This chapter focuses on Drew -, not anime Drew, my OC- as he documents his and Seyla's struggles.
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Drew's POV:
Do you know that feeling when you're ascending a flight of stairs in complete darkness, and you remember there being one more stair than there is? That feeling of horror and shock as your foot falls through the air? That's the only thing I can describe my and Seyla's experiences as. That feeling of shock, that still lingers, twelve years later.
We moved from Unova when I was maybe four years of age. There I was considered a prodigy, of some sort. I never let that- that praise get to me, but looking back on it now, it does seem remarkable. Kanto was no different. I found a lifelong friend in a girl named Seyla. We both were considered battling masters. To both of us, that never really mattered. All that mattered to us is the day we turned ten- the day we would finally be able to travel the world. Unfortunately for us, that day came much later.
Have you ever set your eyes on a piece of black opal? If you'd ever had the privilege, you'll remember the jewels' most striking feature: The iridescence, the shine of an infinite pool of colors, hundreds reflecting for every possible viewing angle. A layer of turquoise glassing over, keeping the true brilliance of the gem unknown. The only way I can describe Seyla's eyes. I remember the glassy shine they took on that morning...The morning our lives changed.
I remember one day at our Trainers' School, Pryce -the Mahogany Gym leader- came to -I suppose- survey our progress. Seyla says she overheard him asking about the students with the most experience and prowess, and according to her, he said our names. That bit of information was unfortunately lost to the ravages of time until recently when we were trying to -proverbially and literally- unmask the masked man.
We were walking to school one day and were suddenly grabbed by a large bird Pokemon. We both screamed for a few minutes, much to the irritation of our captor. That Pokemon was later revealed to us as the Rainbow Pokemon, Ho-Oh. Also known to the good citizens of Ecruteak City as 'the rainbow wings of the sky' similarly to how Lugia is called 'the silver wings of the sea'. We, however, both realized that we were too high up in the air to be anything but a nuisance to anyone below. No one could help us now. So the rest of that ride was spent in silence.
After an hour or so of flying, we landed in front of some sort of building, albeit a secluded one. We -presumably not much later- both woke inside of it. I do remember there being a Gastly in the masked man's possession. I read later that Gastly can possess other Pokemon and people with the mist that surrounds its ethereal body. Poor Seyla was trembling. I remember hugging her tight as I scanned the room for any significant details.
There were seven masked silhouettes, four looking around teenager-aged, two about our age, and one adult. The Masked man. I stared up at his mask unflinchingly. I felt for my Pokeball in my pocket. Behind my back, I let my Zorua out of his Pokeball. I then motioned for Seyla to step into the corner, and for Zorua to come forward. "What are you gonna do with us?!" I yelled through gritted teeth, trying to look as fearless as possible. Internally, I wasn't doing much better than Seyla. One of the masked teenagers jeered, "Look at him! He's putting up a fight!" Echoes of masked laughter echoed. Notably, the two grade school-aged masked children stayed silent. A foreboding voice broke the laughter. "Silence!" I scowled at the Masked man, Zorua right beside me. Seyla in the corner, quieter than a Whimsur, mumbling encouragement to her Eevee.
The Masked man sent out Ariados. As you can likely conceive, Zorua and myself were quickly bound to the wall. I tried pulling at the string, but my efforts were in vain. The Masked man procured two masks from his robe. One was forcibly put upon my face as I squirmed, and the other on Seyla. According to her, I at some point got my wits about me and was removed from the wall.
Those are the more prominent of memories, but I additionally remember the day we escaped. Green and Silver, -the two younger masked children- led an operation for them to escape, and assisted us at the last moment, provided we'd help them steal something from the masked man. We agreed and broke into his room on the way out. They grabbed two feather-looking things. The Rainbow and Silver wing. Once we were a safe distance away, we took off our masks and came face-to-face with each other finally.
Seeing their faces after all that time served as a moment of clarity.
A lot of us wear masks in our daily lives. Saying one thing to friends and another to coworkers. Putting up walls to hide our insecurities. But the question I'll leave you with is this: Behind or beneath, when does that mask become your face?