Alex, Robert, and I flew out of Lumiose City on the back of the Pidgeots. We soared over the outer city and into the countryside. I smiled, my hair pushed back due to the wind. This could never get old.
Alex directed her Pidgeot to fly next to mine and we soared side-by-side. I grinned at her and she just laughed. Suddenly Robert and his Pidgeot twirled out of nowhere, diving into the lead. He looked back and gave us a thumbs up.
I patted Pidgeot's feathery neck. "C'mon. Let's beat him."
Pidgeot squawked and burst forwards, but so did Alex's. The three of us raced across the sky, reaching the river that led to Aquacorde Town. Finally, the town came into sight. We came in for a landing, which Robert managed to beat us by a few seconds.
He pumped his fists into the air when we touched down next to him. "Ha! Beat ya!"
"Congrats," I said, feeling a bit shaky on my legs.
Tierno and Trevor waved from a cafe table. "Hey, you're back."
I nodded and sat at the table, Alex and Robert following me. "Shauna said she'll be waiting at the Lab."
"So," Trevor asked, leaning forwards. "Were you able to keep Froakie?"
I held up the pokeball. "Yep. And we were able to win our first battle together with another trainer."
Tierno nodded appreciatively. "I knew Sycamore would let you. He's an understanding guy."
He looked at my two friends. "Who are they?"
"Oh yeah," I said. "Guys, these are my friends from Alola. Alex and Robert. Friends, they're Tierno and Trevor."
As they shook hands, I noticed three cups on the table, two by Tierno and Trevor. Taking a guess, I asked, "Was Serena here?"
Tierno nodded. "She was, but she left in a hurry once she saw the news."
He pointed at a TV inside the cafe behind us. It was replaying old news, but I could clearly see the Lumiose Tower. Not just that, but I could see Ash Ketchum. He was standing on top of the tower with his Pikachu and Froakie, a Garchomp looking mighty pissed.
"That's Ash," I said aloud.
Tierno looked at me. "You know him?"
I nodded. "Shauna and I met him while in Lumiose."
"Then Serena must know him as well," Trevor said. "She said something about needing to meet him."
Looking back at the TV, I noticed something off about the Garchomp. It looked relatively fine except for the eyes. Its eyes were glowing a sickly purple. It looked like Ash was trying to calm it. Finally an Iron Tail from Pikachu knocked some sense into it. Suddenly, the ground beneath Pikachu broke and Ash jumped off the tower after him.
I jerked forwards, eyes wide. "What!?"
"No way," Robert said. "That's suicidal."
"No," Alex murmured. "He really cares about his Pokemon."
Just in time, he was saved by a Blaziken, but the Blaziken looked different from usual.
"Mega Blaziken," Trevor explained from our looks and I nodded.
"Megas," I said. "We saw a couple back in Alola."
"Anyway," Tierno said. "He's fine. But Serena seems to really want to meet him."
"Huh," I said. "Interesting."
High-fived the both of them. "Well, I'll see you two around. I'm heading home."
They nodded and got on their Pidgeots. "See ya!"
They flew off and Robert nudged me. "I see you. Making new friends here in Kalos, trying to replace us."
I gave him the stink-eye and elbowed him in the ribs. "Now come on. Jessie is likely to kill me for being back this late in the evening."
...
I was about to knock on the front door, when I felt something. I looked behind me at Vaniville Town. I glanced at the trees outlining the town and then at the houses.
"What's wrong," Alex asked, looking at my face with worry.
"I don't know," I said, the feeling going away. "I just... I thought I felt something. Never mind."
Shrugging it away, I knocked on the front door. "You know, I should probably get myself a key to this place."
Jessie swung open the door, dressed in a white fur coat with her hair down. Where she got it I had not the slightest idea. Her and James' wardrobe always confused me.
She held her hand to her head in mock distress. "Zeno! Do you know how worried sick James and I were? We were about ready to call Officer Jenny."
I sighed. "Alex, Robert, this is Jessie. As you can see, she is a bit of a handful."
"I'll say," James said from behind Jessie. "Sorry kid. She's trying to guilt you."
"I can see that," I responded.
Jessie looked at my friends, then perked up immediately. "Oh, you must be Alex."
She took her hand and smiled. "Do come in."
She led Alex into the house and she gave me a look like, "What is going on?"
I just groaned while Robert burst into laughter. "Oh this is going to be great."
He elbowed me playfully and waltzed into the house.
"Oh yeah," I said. "Just great."
I went in and closed the door behind me.
...
Outside, the sun was beginning to set. The finals ray of the day shone on Vaniville Town, the shadows growing ever darker. A cloaked figure lays within the shadow of a tree, watching as the boy closed the door behind him.
Beside him, another cloaked figure appears, dressed in purple robes like the other.
"Is he the one?" the second one asked in a quiet voice.
"Yes," the first replies in a hoarse whisper.
"Then we must kill him," the other said, whipping out a jagged knife from his cloak.
"No," the hoarse-voiced one said, grabbing the other's arm. "The All-Powerful One wants him alive to see chaos engulf this region."
He lowered his knife. "Fine, but I don't get the reason why we must let him live. What purpose does Cha- Aack!"
He slumped backwards, his throat slashed by his comrade. Blood splattered the tree and the first cloaked figure caught him before he fell.
"You are not worthy to speak the name of the All-Powerful One," he whispered, dragging the knife across the other's face. "Much less question their divine authority. He must live because he is meant to."
He let out a Gengar and said, "Take care of the mess."
With a swish of his cloak, he disappeared into the darkness. Gengar rolled out its tongue and licked up the blood coating the grass and tree. Then he stomped on the ground, shadows pulling the body into the darkness. Soon, no trace remained, not even the Gengar.
...
"We've only heard stories," Jessie said, swallowing her food. "Do tell us of what Zeno was like in Alola."
"Yeah," I thought. "Just great."
I clunked my head down on the table as Alex and Robert talked to my "folks". They were actually getting along pretty well.
"Wait," Meowth jumped onto the table. "He died!?"
Alex and Robert looked positively alarmed. "He can talk!?"
"Trust me," I said, my voice muffled my the wooden table. "That's not the weirdest thing about these three."
"Back to the topic at hand," James said. "Zeno died."
"But he's still here," I could feel Jessie's gaze on me.
"He died alright," Robert said with a grin. "Defeating the Shadow once and for all."
"I didn't tell them about seeing the Shadow in my dream did I," I thought. "Probably best not to. He can't hurt us anymore anyway."
"Then he came back," Alex continued. "Saved me in the process."
"Aww," Jessie cooed.
I groaned. "You guys done yet?"
"Just about," Robert said. "Then we all competed in the Alolan League, which Zeno made it to the Final Round, where he lost to Hau, another one of our friends there."
Robert knocked the flat of his fork on the table. "Now we're done. I think Zeno's happy."
I lifted my head and glared at him, before looking at Jessie, James, and Meowth. "I need to ask you guys something."
Jessie nodded. "Go ahead."
I breathed in. "Well, it's not so much a question as it is telling you. I... I'm going to journey around Kalos and compete in the Pokemon League here."
James leaned on his hands. "Why?"
I took Froakie's pokeball and let him out.
"Froak," he said, hopping on my shoulder.
"This is Froakie," I told them. "I got him as a starter Pokemon today, but there's a catch."
Jessie raised an eyebrow. "And what's that?"
"He's what others would call a shiny Pokemon," I said and James looked excited. "But shiny Pokemon tend to not live as long as regular Pokemon. He's only projected to live for another two months."
Jessie covered her mouth and Meowth began conversing with Froakie while Alex and Robert looked at me in surprise. That's right. I hadn't told them that yet.
"So I want to journey with him," I said. "I want him to live as a Pokemon, experiencing the joys of battle, feel the loss of defeat, and strive to become stronger because of it. I want to compete in the Pokemon League with him and come out on top."
Meowth stopped talking with Froakie and looked at Jessie and James. "It's true. Froakie here is wanting to do all that. He's been waiting for a while for a trainer to come along to give him a chance to prove himself."
"Do it kid," James said, nodding his head at us. "And I take it you two will join him?"
We looked at Alex and Robert and they nodded.
"Of course," Alex said. "And I'll compete in the League as well. Give Zeno and Froakie here another rival to go up against."
I gave her a sideways grin. "Bring it on."
"Froak!" Froakie agreed with me.
"Just look after Zeno," Jessie said. "He tends to get in trouble."
"Believe me," Robert said with a laugh. "We know."
"Trouble usually finds me," I grumbled.
Froakie yawned from my shoulder and I rubbed his head. "Froakie's had an exhausting day. I think we should all get rest if we're leaving tomorrow."
Alex and Robert nodded understandingly and Jessie pointed to a door off to the side in the living room. "There's a spare bedroom in there. You can have it Alex."
Alex waved her hand. "No, I couldn't. I-"
Robert raised a hand. "I got the couch out here."
Alex shot him a glare and James laughed. "It's decided. Robert will be out here and Alex will take the spare bedroom. Meanwhile Zeno is going to be selfish and take his own bedroom without offering it."
"Oh ha ha," I said sarcastically. "I see what you're doing there."
After letting out Arcanine to sleep curled up on my floor, I let Froakie climb on him so he could sleep in his fur. I smiled and laid my head back on my pillow. Tomorrow I would be back on a journey through a region.
"At least this time," I thought. "It won't be like Alola."
However, my dreams would soon prove me to be wrong. So very wrong.
...
Like so many times in Alola, I found myself standing in darkness. I looked around, spotting a light in the distance. I walked towards it, my vision getting fuzzier with every step. Then, everything cleared.
In the middle of the black landscape stood a tree. On the left side, leaves and flowers flourish, while on the right, the branches droop, bare of flora. Blood drips from the tips and paints the side of Death red. Radiant energy spills forth from the side of Life, a rainbow of colors. The auras fill the void of darkness, lighting the shadows.
A calming presence fills the area, a green aura emanating from the whole tree. Suddenly, the lights retreat back into the tree. The shadows seep back to it, hoping to reclaim what was once lost. Then the darkness exploded with violet colors, the tree sinking down into purple liquid. As it shriveled up and died, something rose from the liquid. Giant claws reached out and grasped the tree, pulling itself out while bringing it down.
"I am rising," said a raspy voice that I remembered from six months ago. "You cannot stop me."
The tree sank further, the wood dissolving into goopy liquid.
"I am the embodiment of Chaos," spoke the voice, the claws grasping onto the sides of the ground, violet liquid splashing around me. "Soon you will discover that you are not strong enough to defeat me. I am nothing like the Shadow. You will see that."
Yellow eyes flashed from within the violet liquid and I turned my gaze away, my instincts telling me not to look. A roar filled my ears and I was plunged into the ground.
...
I saw a cocoon. Something curled up in an egg shape. It was connected to thick red-pulsing wires in a circular room. As I stared at it, I felt the presence of destruction, of death.
I saw a magnificent creature with antlers radiating light, trapped in a huge tank filled with clear liquid. She cried, a beautiful cry muffled by the water as electricity shocked her, the energy transferred into another tank, where a human figure floated.
I was in a cave. A small lake was in the middle of the large cavern, the water green. I could sense a multitude of presences within, waiting.
"Hero Born of Darkness."
That voice. It wasn't like the other voice. This one gave me a calming sort of feeling. A feeling of order.
"We will wait and watch to see if humanity is worthy. Troubling times are ahead. Know that you are not enough, not like last time. You are but one human. You cannot hope to stand against chaos itself."
My eyes shot open. I was awake. I clutched my heart and breathed in and out.
"Not again," I whispered. "Not again."
...
I was outside where Jessie, James, and Meowth found me.
I smiled. "They awake yet?"
Jessie nodded. "They're getting ready."
She nodded at James and he held out an ivory decorated box.
"What's this?" I asked, taking it.
"Open it kid," Meowth said proudly.
I took the lid off and found a knife laying on a small cushion. It was around five inches in length and was sheathed in fine black leather. I picked it up and put the box down. I unsheathed it and marveled at its beauty.
The hilt was just big enough to fit in my grasp, leather wrapped around it. The blade itself was black and looked very sharp. It was slightly curved and I twirled it experimentally. It had nice balance and I flipped it to where the back edge of the knife was pressed against my arm. I flipped it around again, Froakie watching my movements in amazement.
"I like it," I decided, smiling. "Thanks you guys."
They all hugged me and I relaxed in their embrace. It was nice to do this.
They pulled away and Jessie nodded. "Go out there and beat the Kalos League. For us."
I grinned. "I will."
I looked at Froakie. "We will."
...
While I waited for Alex and Robert to come outside, I practiced with my knife. I sliced the air, flipping my blade around and moving my body, imagining targets in front of me. I rolled to the side and came up with my knife pressed against a tree lightly. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Froakie practicing my movements with his hand, slicing, rolling, jabbing. He did this over and over until Alex and Robert came outside.
I stuck the knife back into its sheath on my waist and went to meet my friends, Froakie jumping on my shoulder and Arcanine lumbering after us.
"You guys ready?" I asked.
Robert pounded his chest with one fist. "Heck yeah man. Let's begin our adventure in Kalos."
Alex smiled at me. "Always."
I nodded and turned to look at Vaniville's gate. "Then let's go."
And so it begins! An adventure in Kalos! What awaits our heroes in this lovely region? What enemies lie waiting in the darkness, doing the bidding of the All-Powerful One? You'll just have to wait and see. Till next time folks. Toodles
