Episode 5: Conflicting Desires
"It's not a stomach ache, it's my body adjusting to good food," Lucca groaned. He was flat on his back on the floor beside his bed, while Mimia soothed him. "They said we were allowed to eat as much as we wanted, so I ate as much as I wanted."
Mimia said a few words in his usual feral language, but he sounded happy. That prompted Lucca to turn over, so he began to massage Lucca's back.
"Hurgh. It's not as bad as you're making it out to be. I could still fight if I needed to," Lucca replied. He got a happy yip as a reply, making him sigh. "I do wish I could see you indulge every now and then, too. It worries me that you don't."
Mimia stopped in surprise.
"Well yeah. Don't take it the wrong way, I'm focused on our mission. But we just did the toughest part, which was finding the others on Fossil Hill. Just like our training, you've got to treat yourself with something as a reward every now and again," he said as he twisted his body to get comfy. Mimia replied with a bothered round of noises. "That's also valid, though! Father didn't say we couldn't enjoy good food on our journey."
Mimia finally stepped away, letting Lucca get up. He made a shorter round of curious sounds this time.
"Be real with me right now. How're you feeling? Not peckish at all? Or nosey about something?" Lucca asked.
Mimia turned away and sniffled, and then patted his belly with a foot. "Brr."
"See, that's the spirit! Let's see if there's not a little sweet we can get or something. The night won't wait for us!" Lucca cheered.
Mimia leapt at him with a round of aggressive barking.
"I won't do anything like that again. You're holding onto the money, you're in charge, I promise!" Lucca leaned back and snickered. Mimia growled at him. "Hey, I mean it. The thing with that shopkeeper was seriously an accident. It won't happen again. Right now, I just want to go out and have a good time with you. Let's check out the village."
Mimia sounded like he accepted that, but just as the two headed out, they noticed Azu head past the room. "Azu? What's she doing awake?"
Mimia made an interested sound as they followed, but Lucca had to stop at the accursed stairs. With a cheeky smirk, Mimia hoisted Lucca on his back to walk down, but they stopped when they began to overhear words from the front hall.
"This isn't like the other times, Lilan. Those Shining Warriors are irredeemable parasites, and now they're in our home. We need them out of here," Roserade rambled, pacing back and forth.
"But Dad, we've just met them. They haven't done anything wrong," the little Roselia cried. Lucca and Mimia exchanged glances. Azu had spotted them too, but signalled for them to stay still.
"You're about the learn a harsh, valuable lesson about life," Roserade brought his roses to his face. "I'm telling you, those guys are fakes. They're here to take advantage of us and ruin our lives. They've done it before already. I thank the gods every night I got as lucky as I did back then."
"You always say that but then you never tell me what. It's always 'back then' this, 'the old days' that. You're just like an withered old Bellossom," Lilan complained.
"If you don't mind me asking, I am curious myself," Azu said, stepping down. The two grass types were surprised. "I wouldn't underestimate children either, if I were you. They can handle a lot more than you think."
"I don't need you lecturing me on parenting," Roserade replied with narrowed eyes.
"Please excuse me, that wasn't the intention," Azu said, and bowed. "My name is Azu. I'm actually researching the Shining Warriors. I'm not one myself. I don't have an amulet."
"Oh yeah, you don't," Lilan pointed out.
"So you're freeloading off them?" Roserade asked.
"Accompanying them. I want to see things for myself. But if you've had a run in before, any information you can tell me would help. And please excuse my intrusion," Azu replied, trying to look as proper as possible. Roserade growled in hesitation, and then looked at his son, who stared back with an intent look.
"It was ten years ago, now. Six Pokémon wearing amulets just like that group showed up here in Vergrace. Everyone was ecstatic, believing they were going to get their Bestia energy back. Life could go back to the good old days, where we could use Pokémon abilities to ease our lives. Would you believe me if I told you that Vergrace was once a city, occupying this entire region?" Roserade began pacing again.
"This whole region? Like, the fields and farms around?" Azu asked.
"Everything. You step out of Fossil Hill and you're in a city. We used to have everything, living in luxury. But then those blasted 'heroes' showed up. My wife… your mother, Lilan. She made us keep them here in the family inn for free. Served them an evening's worth of food for free, too. Lots of Pokémon came for autographs and all that," Roserade recalled, looking up at the ceiling.
Lucca and Mimia exchanged glances again.
Roserade came to a stop. "That same night, when I returned to our personal quarters from clearing up, my wife had been murdered. Her body had been torn to shreds by Pollen Puff."
"Isn't that a Pokémon attack?" Lilan gasped. "Mum was killed by a Pokémon attack?"
"And who are the only Pokémon allowed to use Pokémon attacks?" Roserade asked. Lilan covered his mouth.
"When me and several other villagers confronted them to investigate, they attacked us. Used up a dangerous amount of Bestia firing Pokémon attacks all over town. Ruined everything, and then just up and left," Roserade said. He was shuddering now, and couldn't look at anyone. "Apparently it was to stop some dangerous gang of Pokémon. I don't fully know what happened that night, but what I do know is several Pokémon lost their lives, and half the Bestia in the area vanished overnight. Farms stopped growing, the river dried up, and several buildings lost their foundation and collapsed on themselves. The town was reduced to the petty village you see today."
"You never followed this up at all?" Azu asked.
"How could I? I'm just an innkeeper. I don't know how to wield a weapon, I don't have the money to hire mercenaries, and I don't know the first thing about where those warriors went. All I know is that when they came here, they brought destruction with them, and left without so much as an apology," Roserade answered. "And now here we are ten years later with less Bestia than back then. The whole prophecy is a hoax!"
"Urf… I'm sorry, I didn't…" Azu shuddered and turned away.
"You were there Lilan, but too young to remember. So many other Pokémon had their lives completely ruined. Since then, a lot of us in the village have hated them," Roserade stated.
"You said Mum just went away for a long time. Do you mean… she's never going to come back?" Lilan asked. "… and it was a Pollen Puff that killed her…"
Roserade hesitated. "I'm sorry, Lilan. I wanted to wait until you were much older before telling you. But just ten short years later, and fate wants to be cruel to us."
"Hold on a second," Lucca cried, hopping off of Mimia. He forgot about the stairs, and slipped and tumbled down them instead, landing flat on his face.
"Ah, Lucca! Are you alright?" Azu gasped. Mimia was barking at him desperately, too.
"Ow… I-I'm okay," Lucca raised a flipper. He shook himself off and cleared his throat. "Until you confirm where that Pollen Puff came from, it could be anyone who could have attacked her."
"Regardless, it was the Shining Warriors coming here that brought such malice and destruction. You threaten to do the same," Roserade stated, glaring at him viciously. Lucca gulped. "I don't care where you've come from or what your objective is. I want you out of the village in the morning."
"I can't speak for the heroes of old, but we're not like that. In fact, I'm certain that I'm the oldest of the group. We couldn't do anything evil if we tried—" Lucca reasoned.
"I said I don't care. You were eavesdropping, weren't you? But were you even listening? Why would I give any of you a chance? Do you have any idea how lucky I am to still have a roof over my head and my son?" Roserade raised his voice. Lucca mouthed a response, not expecting this tone. "It physically kills me to even have to serve you incels. If I could kill you, I would! You insensitive, fake abusers of—"
Roserade moved to slap Lucca, but Mimia barked and shifted between them in a flash. Everyone froze and dropped to complete silence. Lucca wanted to continue arguing, but the words wouldn't come for some reason. A minute later, Roserade pulled back.
"I'm sorry," he sighed. "Please just be out of here by the morning. Come on, Lilan."
The little Roselia looked as though he wanted to say something too, but was no better than Lucca. All he could do was drag his feet as he tried to stare at Lucca and Mimia before he was pulled out of the room.
"I apologise for bringing up such terrible memories," Azu gasped and stepped forward just before they left. Neither grass type turned around. "I mean it, I'm sorry. But I understand now. Like I promised, we only intended to stay the night. We'll definitely leave as soon as possible."
There was another pause. "Thank you." Roserade said as he disappeared behind the counter.
"So that's why," Azu mumbled, rubbing her arm.
"Azu," Lucca muttered, and slumped.
"Sorry you two had to hear that. I didn't mean to pull you into it," Azu said. Mimia whined.
"It's fine. I kind of lost my thought process, there," Lucca admitted. "I've never dealt with anyone who felt that way before. I didn't know what to do."
There was a long pause, where Azu didn't turn around. Lucca didn't think much of it until he heard the slightest sniffle. "Azu?"
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she whimpered, cradling herself. "I'm just going to be in the way, aren't I? I've not been with you guys for very long, and I'm already making so much trouble."
"Whoa whoa, what's this about? You've not made any trouble at all," Lucca assured, giving her a rub on the back. "It's not your fault a tragedy happened here a long time ago."
"But I'm… I should've been more aware of that. I'm supposed to be a scientist, but I keep making dumb, insensitive mistakes like that," Azu sighed.
"And I almost stole from a shop because I forgot how shops work," Lucca stated. That made her stop. "It's okay to make a couple mistakes as long as we learn from them, right? And that wasn't even a mistake. Now that we know that guy's story, we can be respectful about it, right? None of this is your fault."
Mimia added a round of reasoning too, sounding almost like he was singing. That got Azu to smile, and she turned around.
"What're you doing up, anyway? After the way you ate, I'm surprised you're not knocked out," Azu wondered.
"Eheh, that was me catching up on missing lunches," Lucca replied, rubbing the back of his head. "We were going to get Mimia some sweets and check out the village, but now I'm thinking maybe we shouldn't."
"I don't want any disasters like the fruit stand happening again, so I'm tagging along. I needed to find an open shop, anyway. I need Blast Seed oil," Azu demanded.
"No complaints from me! I was going to ask you when I saw you, anyway," Lucca smiled.
"Of course you were," Azu rolled her eyes.
The next morning…
The bed was comfier than anything Lucca was used to, so he slept better than he thought. A vivid dream of him and Mimia sharing an endless pile of Rawst berries was interrupted by Mimia singing in the background. A pleasant song, but an interruption nonetheless.
"Huh? Wha-wha?" Lucca gurgled. He was astonished at how undignified he looked. He drooled, while his tail and a flipper hung halfway off the bed, and the other flipper rested on his belly. He was chewing on his pillow, too. "Why did I…?"
Mimia barked beside him, making him flinch. It took a minute to realise how high the sun was in the sky, so he rolled over, only to get tangled up by the blanket and fall off the bed with a hard thump. Mimia only snickered at him, though.
He was the last to wake up apparently, so he rushed to get breakfast and then joined everyone else in Azu and Shelly's room. The room was still a mess, but the group had made space to lay out a world map between them all.
"Geez, look at you. Don't get crumbs on the map, sleepyhead!" Ruby teased, giggling at him.
"Sorry, sorry. I er… I've been camping out a lot, so having a roof over my head was just… I g-got carried away," Lucca replied. Mimia picked at the crumbs on his face with a cloth.
"You're okay, we're just getting started. Did you sleep well, anyway?" Ruby asked.
"Huh?" Crystal said.
"Too well. I almost missed breakfast," he complained.
Ruby giggled again. "Can't have that now, can we? You'd never stop moaning!"
"That's awful nice of you. I can't remember you ever asking if I've slept well," Crystal commented.
"Don't read into it, jerk," Ruby growled.
"Well, we're all here. If there's a way to summon Angel now," Azu began.
Crystal held her amulet forward, tapped it, and then shook it as if to pour out a drink from a bottle. To their surprise, Angel suddenly fell out of it, in all her oversized glory. Everyone had to flinch backward, and it still looked as though she would crush them against the walls. She was still asleep, face flat on the floor and behind raised high.
"A-Angel… Angel! Angel, wake up!" Crystal cried.
It took Lucca and the group a moment to realise that even though Angel filled the room and smeared their sight, as if Angel was a ghost, there was no feeling of actually getting squashed. It still felt claustrophobic, though.
"H-huh? Whazzat… wha, huh—" was all the Togekiss managed to say before she vanished in a flash of blue flame. Everyone remained against the walls until they heard her scream madly somewhere in the distance.
"A-Angel?" Shelly spoke up. "What just happened?"
"What the heck?" Angel screamed at them, popping her head through one of the windows so suddenly that the group flinched. "Couldn't ya have picked a wider space for me? This beauty needs room to spread her wings!"
"Eh? Don't nnng! Don't do that!" Crystal screamed back. "We don't have a clue what's going on or what to do. So how were we supposed to know?"
"Why'd ya even wake me? It's so early!" Angel pulled at her tufts.
"I'm surprised that even worked," Lucca commented. "Okay, let's not argue about this. What's the plan? Where are we going? That's what we needed to know."
"How the heck should I know? Figure it out yourselves, you boneheads!" Angel pouted and turned away. The whole group gawked at her, but she didn't seem to get why.
"Pfft. Some guide you are," Ruby spat.
"Guide? Oh right, the Shining Warrior stuff!" Angel gasped. The group exchanged glances, and Crystal slapped her face. "I've been asleep and stuff, you've gotta cut me some slack! You try being a deity who spends hundreds of years doing nothing but sleepin' in the void."
"If you can turn me into that, sure," Ruby grumbled. "Where's our next trial? Might as well go to the closest, right?"
"And a better explanation of the other details would help us a lot, too," Crystal added.
"Hmm… the nearest trial…" Angel tapped her chin. "I'll just say: you'll find it. It's across the sea, so your next step would be there."
She pointed to the map, but it was impossible to tell exactly what she was pointing at thanks to her oversized, stubby wing. Everyone stared for a moment, and then Shelly made a guess and put his paw on a location.
"Yeppers, right there!" Angel nodded. "Get there and get yourself something to travel the ocean with. You wanna get to that little island off the coast."
"That's—" Shelly whispered with a slight panic, but shook his head. "Erm, that looks hard to get to."
"Girage Fields. It's the capital of Heroica. Is that our next stop? Remember that you've got to translate for me, please," Azu pointed out. "I've always wanted to go there. It's supposed to be a really big city, and since it's close to the sea, many different species pass through there. There's loads of shops selling rare items, and amusements like theatres and fancy restaurants!"
Mimia started barking at her, making Lucca snicker. "Hey simmer down buddy, there's nothing wrong with a little excitement! When we get there, it'd be wrong if we didn't take at least take a look around. I've never seen a city before."
"Neither have I. This could be fun," Crystal added.
"It's pretty cool. If there's a lot of Pokémon, I might have a better chance of finding him," Ruby said.
"You're going to tell me who it is you're after someday, aren't you?" Azu asked.
"Only if it's important. Right now, you don't need to worry," Ruby stated, to which Azu mumbled.
"The trial isn't actually in the city though, is it? If we cross the sea to that island, it's there?" Crystal asked.
"I'm not gonna spoil the whole thing! You'll find out when you get there. For now, just aim to get yourself some sea travel," Angel replied.
"I'm worried that you not telling us is only going to make things harder down the line." Crystal slumped with a sigh. "You did say we get special powers. Can you at least tell us what those are?"
"Aww, you guys're boring. You don't wanna wait to find out? It'll be all cool, you'll be desperate to survive and then Angel swoops in to save the day, special hero powers giving a miracle for your epic comeback!" Angel cheered, throwing her cape around.
"Yeah, actually. I'd prefer to know before almost dying in battle," Ruby stated, making Angel fall flat.
"Alright, alright. Hah, I had to get the boring ones this time," Angel grumbled and folded her wings. "For starters, as you've probably already figured out, I'm not physical. I can't touch you, you can't touch me, and so I can't physically help you. In fact, it even consumes energy to manifest myself like this. That's why I had to disappear and sleep yesterday. Was that yesterday?"
"If that's the case, then hurry up and get to the blasted point!" Ruby cried. Mimia barked with her.
"Now that I'm awake though, you guys have access to—" Angel stopped herself, and then smirked. "Actually, looks like I'm going to get my epic comeback, like it or not."
"Huh?" Crystal cocked her head. After a moment of silence, the sound of screams and cries became unmistakeable.
"Outta the way!" Ruby was the first to jump to the window. "I can't see anythin' from here. Angel, what is it?"
"You're gonna have to understand what kinda guide I am. I'm not going to direct you every step of the way or over every little thing. I'm just there to point ya towards the fountains, nothin' else," Angel answered. Ruby's frustration grew with every word. "So treat this scenario the same way as if I weren't here. You could either ignore it and go about your journey, leavin' the village asap like you promised, or go check out what's makin' everybody scream."
"Well there's only one option then, isn't there?" Lucca answered. Wait a minute. If she was asleep, how does she know about the promise to leave?
He paused in the doorway, surprising everybody except Ruby, who barged past him. Never mind it, Lucca. No surprise she can eavesdrop.
Outside looked like a riot. An aggressive crowd had formed, but many of the Pokémon were scared out of their minds. Not one of them held a conventional weapon either, choosing to confront the danger with wooden utensils like pot lids or a stone axe; if not, then reliant on their natural claws or sharp teeth. Just the sight of that gave Lucca a bad taste, so he pushed his way to the front.
"Get back!" he ordered as he shoved the Pokémon aside. This is just like the Poipole. They're done for if they fight like this!
Their enemy was a two-headed dragon Pokémon, each head laughing heartily to each other. Oddly, it had an arrow lodged into its leg, but the wound formed around it was dry. As the dragon stomped its way closer, the crowd drew back, until Lucca confronted it.
"Ho? One of them is not a coward after all," the right head snickered, and licked its lips.
"Doesn't matter, it's all a front! They're all cowards," the left head laughed.
"This bodes well, though. This village does seem far more prosperous than the last. Plenty of meat," the right head said.
"Right? I'll be feasting for months!" cheered the left head.
"How many times must I remind you that it's 'we'?" sighed the right head.
"Hell no. Get your own, you freeloader!" the left head snapped at the right.
"Freeloader? We share a body, you imbecile!" the right head snapped back.
Is he a feral? They seem a little too civilised for that, Lucca thought as he watched the heads bicker. They eventually started biting each other's necks hard enough to leave marks. Civilised might not even be the right word, but I don't know any worse.
"Wait a sec, you're—" Crystal gasped.
"Yeah, no way! How'd you get here?" Ruby gasped. It took a second, but both the dragon's heads snapped to the group, and then they gasped.
"You! We really found 'em!" Evark-left remarked. "Maybe I will share a meal with ya. Your stupid plan actually worked!"
"As they always do. Patience leads to the greatest vengeance," Evark-right bragged.
"You know this Zweilous?" Azu asked.
"He's called the Monster of Misgeriom Woods… if children wandered into the woods without grownups, they never returned. It's because Evark eats them," Crystal warned, and the group gasped.
"But Misgeriom Woods is a region away now. Why'd he show up here?" Azu asked.
"That old village was startin' to run dry of meat. When there's not enough Pokémon to eat, we move on," Evark-right began. "But when you two came along, weapons in paws, I realised that you might be travellers. So we defeated you and then marked you instead of eating you outright… we thought that if we followed you, you'd lead us to a new place with plenty of meat. And you did!"
"And now, you've fermented long enough. You're our next meal, and this pathetic little town is our next feast!" Evark-left announced.
"I'm impressed you know the word 'fermented', but I don't believe that is the word you wanted there," Evark-right commented.
"Do you have to say something over every little thing? Can't you just shut up and enjoy the meal?" said Evark-left.
"Not until you learn to appreciate my intelligence. If it wasn't for me, we'd have starved by now."
"Oh yeah sure, like I need your help to run this place through the grinder!"
"Well we're a full team this time, and I'm not gonna be caught off-guard. We're not gonna lose this time," Ruby growled, flaring her back.
"Ruby!" Lucca snapped at her. "The world watches!"
She moved to argue with him, but silenced upon seeing the crowd. There was fear written all across the crowd, even though their eyes were on the group, and not the Zweilous. She concluded she couldn't use her fire here, and readied the Parashelter instead.
For Lucca, a heavy unease filled his chest. Roserade's story completely occupied his mind, and right on cue, he spotted that very grass type and their son in the crowd. They were the only ones watching intently, rather than out of fear.
Just like he feared. As a result of us being here, this dangerous Pokémon found their way here, Lucca told himself. We have to stop them. Before any casualties happen, we HAVE to stop them!
"Oh don't think we don't see you drawing those nasty cheats," Evark-right stated suddenly, snapping him back to reality. "All of you kids think you're so tough, what with your fancy knives and swords and other sharp tools. That's cheating in a Pokémon fight, you know!"
"What? But Pokémon can't use their powers because of the lack of Bestia energy. How is it cheating to defend ourselves with something else?" Azu cried.
"You just hafta fight like a Pokémon. Like this!" Evark-left replied.
He breathed in briefly, and then spat a large ball of blue fire at the hut to his left. The fireball caused an explosion over twice its size, incinerating a chunk off the top of hut and filling the air with a harsh heat. The right head let out a fireball of its own toward a building on the right, this time aiming low so that the grass in front of the building was struck. A second later, the whole building collapsed, and smoke shrouded the screaming crowd.
"What the heck do you think you're doing? Stop!" Azu shrieked.
"He's not going to stop. We have to stop him!" Ruby shouted, flaring her back again.
"Go ahead and try me!" both of Evark's heads said in sync, and drew back as they breathed in once more.
"Wait, what's happening?" Crystal gasped and pointed.
Energy welled up in Evark's necks, and blue fire leaked from their maws. Centred around the Zweilous, the grass began to turn grey, and the air began to darken. It looked like the very atmosphere was fluctuating toward them, and with it, the world around them began to drain.
On top of that, their attack threatened to be devastating. Mimia barked like mad, Crystal couldn't turn away, Shelly was nowhere to be seen, and Azu stood guard with a very anxious look. Ruby was the only one besides Lucca to be front and centre, and planted her feet.
Both of Evark's heads released their attacks at once, and this time they came out as huge streams of blue fire. Ruby roared at the top of her voice to exhale her strongest Flamethrower yet, and both fires collided in a blinding clash. Fire and embers spread like mad, and the sky began to fill with smoke and heat. After a moment, Ruby's attack began to let up, and Evark's fire closed in on them.
"Ruby!" Crystal screamed in panic.
The group shielded themselves just before the attack hit, and an explosion overtook the battlefield. Ruby coughed as she was sent flying, scraping her face and body as she fell and rolled back into the screaming crowd.
All this smoke is perfect! Lucca knew to take advantage. He lunged forward and leapt to swim through the air, drawing his swords in the process. He held his breath so as to not give himself away, and landed behind a laughing Evark. Neither head detected his presence at all, so he raised one sword high and drove it deep into the dragon type's back, throwing his whole body with the momentum.
An ear-splitting cry filled the air, drawing all eyes to his feat. Evark writhed in agony and both heads choked on their breaths, but Lucca knew he couldn't stop there. He held himself up on that sword, using it like a pole to swing his body around and slash with his other sword. He landed a clean, fatal cut, and then silence fell.
"Lucca!" Crystal cried. She sounded even more terrified than a few moments ago, making Lucca's heart race. She wasn't looking at him, though. She had gone pale, and pettily covered her eyes.
In fact, many Pokémon in the crowd had covered their eyes or turned away. Those that didn't, glared at him with extreme disgust or fear. As he scanned the crowd, that feeling of unease intensified, and he felt like he'd messed up even worse than ever before. Yet when he spotted Roserade and Lilan, the guilt drove deeper.
Lilan was horrified. The once adoring child had gone totally white, and his face was devoid of anything but. Lucca had messed up. That was all he could think about. He had mercilessly killed this dragon Pokémon in front of the villagers, but not without destruction to their property and a huge drain on the Bestia of the region.
That was what was hurting him. He was smack bang in the centre of a massive circle of white, dead land. It was like Evark's blue flames had sucked all colour from the world, leaving him with stale air, stone soil, and the ruins of the villagers meagre homes.
"What do ya think you're starin' at, huh?" Ruby's shout pulled him back to reality. She charged back through the crowd and stood in front of Lucca. "He just saved all your asses! So what's with that look?"
She was covered from head to toe in damage, and shivered from her attempts to stand still. "Ruby…" Lucca muttered.
"Don't let 'em treat you like crap, Lucca!" she ordered. "This guy spent how long terrorizing places and eating children, and Lucca just ended him. Why are you scared of him?"
Mimia joined in, though he didn't say anything. With his eyes shut, he strolled over to Lucca and the fallen dragon, and then turned to face the crowd.
Lucca didn't know what to say. Mimia… and Ruby… you guys are strong. But right now… Yeah. They don't deserve to be wasting their strength on me.
"It's fine, you two." He stopped Ruby with a flipper, and then approached the crowd, specifically where Roserade was. He was the only Pokémon to stare him in the eyes, unwavering. "We'll leave."
"What?" Ruby gasped.
"We'll leave, and we won't come back until Bestia is restored. I swear it," Lucca announced.
"I gave you what little trust I had left for you, and you still brought complete ruin to Vergrace. You couldn't even resolve it without proving yourself a murderer," Roserade stated.
"A murderer? But he—" Ruby snapped, but Lucca silenced her.
"Empty promises won't make me forget this. Never, ever come back. No matter what happens," Roserade demanded.
Lucca gulped. He took out the Anima Flower they'd been given yesterday and placed it on the floor. "I'm sorry."
No one else in the crowd responded. They didn't need to. Their anger and fear said it all. Lucca signalled for the others to follow him, and they reluctantly followed without comment. He spotted Shelly sneak back into the group, too. Ruby still gave the crowd a nasty scowl, though.
What Father said is true. I never thought it'd come out this way, but it really is true, Lucca realised as he began to walk out into the fields beyond.
The drain of Bestia continued to spread as he walked. Trees shed their leaves and colour as the seconds counted away, and the air felt thinner and dryer. Even the paint on the remaining buildings seemed to turn grey. He looked up to recall memories, and imagined the old Primarina watching over him.
Evark probably stole countless young lives that gave him the urban legend he had. Clearly, he believed that lack of Bestia to be a conspiracy, too. He threatened to destroy this world, so things are far better off without him, Lucca concluded. And yet, am I really branded a murderer for killing him? Somebody HAD to do it, or he would only keep doing what he was doing. I had to be the prince… the one Pokémon who can shoulder the world's heaviest burdens…
His eyes narrowed, and he looked down. Am I going to spend the rest of my life like this? Making the toughest choices for Pokémon so that they don't have to? Will they never understand, and I have to face their punishment? Will I always be alone?
"Misters!" a young voice cried out.
Lucca was surprised to see Crystal and the others still following him, but was even more nervous when he spotted Lilan sprinting toward them. His heart raced as he came to a stop. The little Roselia had to catch his breath, and then held up the Anima Flower.
"You forgot this!" Lilan shouted.
"Lilan," Lucca muttered. He reluctantly took it back. "But why? It's yours, and you'll need it now that the village is—"
"You're gonna need it more!" Lilan shouted angrily. Lucca gasped. "Everyone's scared of you 'cos you killed a Pokémon in the village. But I'm not!"
"You're brave, coming out this far," Azu remarked.
"And, and, I st-still believe in you guys and stuff. You're not bad guys!" Lilan shouted. "I can't stop my Dad from being mad at you. But I think grownups suck. You just saved the village from a bad guy, and everyone's mad. That's super unfair! I-I really want you guys to save the world and stuff, a-a-and to help… somehow… please…"
The group looked to Lucca for a response, but the words wouldn't come. He just didn't know what to say. This kid really defied his father and everyone else who was rightly mad at him to give them the Anima Flower.
"With that kind of attitude, you're already a hero," Azu leant toward Lilan. "Truly. You're being a massive help."
"But I… can't fight… or anything… I wanna help you guys properly!" Lilan pleaded.
"The legend means we have powers you won't get. It sucks, but that's just how it is," Ruby stated. "Plus, you're not old enough. You get that, right?"
"Ruby!" Shelly cried.
"But that just means you have to make sure Pokémon can't put you down when you get older," she continued. "Go back to the village, and learn how to fight. That way if any other bad guys like that ever come again, you can look after your Dad and everyone else. Just doing that, you're really helping us."
"I will! Maybe someday I can come help you guys, too!" Lilan remarked.
"Exactly, that's the spirit! Never forget what you believe in, okay? And keep going, no matter what anyone says," Ruby added.
"Ruby," Crystal whispered.
"You better head back before they start coming after us," Azu suggested. "Thank you again. Thank you so much."
"I will! And when you guys come back, I'll be the village hero!" Lilan said with a nod. He sprinted back with his eyes as bright as when they first met.
He's kinda like me when I was younger, Lucca realised, and shook his head. He smiled a bit, and then faced forward. Somehow, I'd forgotten what that was like. Every single Pokémon is counting on me, but not all of them are able to voice it. As long as Pokémon like him are around, I can't give up or start feeling bad like this.
He snuck a glance at Ruby too, who didn't seem to want to look at the rest of the group. And then there's Ruby, too. She's really something. Maybe this won't be so bad after all.