The Boy In The Lake


Inyssa's hands clasped the controller so hard her knuckles went completely white. Her breathing was slow and deliberate, and her unblinking gaze was set on the television in front of them. Barry sat next to her, slowly and methodically taking cookies to his mouth.

"You know you have a shield, right?" he asked, mouth full. "You should use it sometime."

She huffed without taking her eyes off the game. "That's only there for stamina regeneration, and besides blocking with a shield doesn't give you invincibility fr-" She reeled back, hitting the head of the sofa with her nape. "Shit! Oh god, that was too close."

Inyssa's character in the game had barely managed to avoid the swing of the boss' fire sword. The beast running around her looked like a mix between a gigantic spider and a scorpion, which also happened to be on fire.

"Come on, come on…" she whispered through ragged breath. The beast jumped towards her character. "Shit, roll! Wait no! Not into the lava! Not into the goddamned lava!" She let out a pained growl and hid her face in her arms. "Motherfucker…"

Barry had no qualms about laughing at her misfortune. Inyssa shot him a look which could have frozen a Tyranitar and punched his arm with one hand, while handing him the controller with the other one.

"Here, you take it." She let herself fall against the sofa, crossing her arms tightly. "This boss is bullshit anyway."

"You know that you don't have to just dodge, right?" he said as he put his hand on the controller. "We picked up a fire resistant shield like ten minutes ago."

She shrugged. "Shields are for scrubs."

"Says the one who just got her butt handed to her."

Inyssa's cheeks flushed and she looked to the side, avoiding his gaze. "S-shut up! It's not my style, okay?"

She wrestled the bag of cookies from his side now that his hands were occupied, to the boy's dismay. She angrily put a few in her mouth and chewed strongly, eyes still narrowed in frustration.

"You're starting to sound like Lucas," she protested, the shadow of a smile crossing her lips. "Don't you dare go all nerd on me."

Barry's fingers froze on the buttons, and the character on the screen almost fell to her death. The boy's eyes opened wide.

"Lucas!" he yelped, looking at her. "We forgot to tell him that we were gonna stay here for a while!"

Inyssa froze too, with that distinct feeling one gets where they realize they forgot something important. Anxiety, she figured it was.

Barry was right; both of them had assured the boy they'd go to Pastoria as soon as they were done with Veilstone's Gym leader, but back then she didn't expect to both lose her starter and catch a strong fever on the way. She'd been in Veilstone for a week already, and not only had no one run into Enma but her sickness refused to go away, weakness clinging to her bones. It slowly waned with each day that passed, but too slowly for her liking.

"We should probably give him a call later," she said. "To Percy and Reiko too. Hopefully they're still there by the time we get to Pastoria."

Barry nodded, a wistful look on his face.

"I hope he's okay," he whispered, hands still on the controller. "Wonder what he's doing now…"


Lucas wasn't used to breaking the rules, in the same way that a Durant wasn't used to walking into a Heatmor's nest. Not to say he had any moral objections to it. After all, he knew first hand that the greatest discoveries in history had come from people thinking and exploring out of the box.

Still, breaking into a place which Rowan had explicitly warned him was dangerous was somewhat out of his comfort zone. He couldn't help being startled and jumping every time a branch brushed his side, to the annoyance of his starter. He could feel the air getting colder and denser as he made his way through the thick flora which lay northeast of Pastoria.

"It… it shouldn't be this cold, right?" he whispered, hugging himself. "We were just on Route 213! People were in their bikinis there!"

The large quadrupedal Pokemon at his side raised his sight slightly and let out a deep sigh. Archimedes had grown more than a little bit ever since he evolved, and now he sported two robust bushes coming out of his back. He stomped his feet carelessly, leaving giant footsteps where he walked.

Lucas stroked his chin. "Could it be because of the trees? Maybe the flora around here acts as a sort of heat eater, similar to that of a Piloswine's fur. The roots, trunk and leaves could absorb not only carbon dioxide but also the warmth of the air and soil."

He had taken his Pokétch close to his mouth as he spoke. During the first days of his travels he'd learned that carrying a notebook and pen around while he explored was counterproductive and slow. He found it far more efficient to record everything he said and then write it down later in the commodity of his room.

"Not the discovery I was expecting, but it's a nice surprise," he told Archimedes, a satisfied smile on his face.

The Grotle growled in response, shaking the ground around them. He didn't seem to be paying attention to his diatribes, judging by the way his dark eyes studied everything around him carefully. His knees were somewhat lowered and the leaves sprouting from his back seemed to be more ruffled than usual.

"Grrr…"

"Come on Archie, don't be a grump," Lucas said. "We spent a couple hours yesterday studying all the species that could appear around here, didn't we? The worst we could run into is a Quagsire and I'm sure you can take care of that in a jiffy."

Archimedes gave him another frustrated growl and shook his head, though he decided not to argue.

Things started to get odder as they advanced forward. The trees became twisted and less colorful. Roots grew closer to the ground and Lucas came close to tripping face first to the floor more than a few times. But strangest of all was the complete lack of any chirp or growl coming from the wild Pokemon of the area, which had been plentiful only a few minutes before.

"Come on, it's gotta be around here…"

Their last barrier ended up being a thick berry bush almost twice as tall as him. With herculean effort Lucas was able to make his way through the myriad of branches and emerged with his coat and beret stained with red.

"Oh… oh no." He shivered when he touched the sticky berry juice, sticking his tongue out in disgust. "I'm gonna… have to ask Sierpinski to wash this out later."

Archimedes didn't have as much trouble as his trainer, choosing to simply stomp over the entire bush and flatten it beneath his feet. He even took a bite out of a couple branches, just to prove a point.

Lucas would have protested if he weren't so entranced by the sight before him. Beneath his feet dirt and sand mixed together as they advanced towards the enormous body of water that stretched in every direction only a few feet ahead. No plant or tree grew close to the shore, and the ground itself felt colder and colder the closer it was to the water, to the point where it was frozen in some places.

Mist came out of his lips as he breathed, and he could feel the cold turning his fingertips numb and drying his throat. For once in his life he was thankful for his stubborn refusal to ever take out his scarf and hat.

He took a few steps forward and the ground crunched under his feet. "Lake Valor… this is so much different than in pictures."

Sunlight reflected off the clear waters in front of him, almost making it seem like there was something shining underneath the lake. The closer he got the more a part of his mind wanted him to jump into it. It looked so inviting…

Another growl from Archimedes brought him back to reality. He shook his head and turned towards his Pokemon.

"I… we should probably start investigating," he said. "Looks like my earlier theory was wrong. We gotta figure out where this cold is coming from and why the Pokemon around the lake are acting so strangely."

Archimedes stomped his feet strongly, failing to get his trainer's attention as he walked towards the lake. The Grotle's sight went from Lucas to the trees beneath them with desperation, eyes narrowed and body lowered.

"We'll need help for this," Lucas said as he took a Pokeball out of his belt. "Sierpinski, come out!"

The light appeared on top of the water, forming into a large blue creature with a long neck and a sturdy shell covering his back. Four flippers grew from the sides of his oval body. The Lapras's bright eyes and warm expression changed to a pained frown as he felt the temperature of the water he was now swimming in.

"Laa!" he cried, narrowing his eyes at Lucas.

"I'm really sorry!" he hurried to say. "I know it's really cold! I promise I'll make it up to you later with treats."

While the two exchanged growls and apologies the Grotle stood behind, eyes set on the shadows coming out of the forest. He took a few steps back and tried his best to concentrate. He could almost hear…

"We just need to get to the cave at the center of the lake," Lucas explained with a nervous smile. "If we can find the source of…"

He stopped. In front of him, Sierpinski opened his eyes wide as a cry got caught in his throat. Looking at something past his trainer. Behind you! He seemed to say.

Lucas turned around to see the trunk of a tree flying towards him. Sierpinski's Pokeball fell from his hands, and his legs refused to move. Almost on top of him now, and he didn't even have time to let out a scream.

Something jumped between them, taking the blunt of the impact and catching the trunk with his maw. Archimedes bit down on the tree and shoved it aside with monumental effort, breathing heavily. Lucas stood frozen for a few seconds, his mind unable to react to what had just happened.

"Wh… what.." he whispered. "What was…?"

A high pitched yelp escaped his lips as he looked up towards the forest. Two red, burning lights stared him down from the darkness within those trees. Eyes.

Behind him Sierpinski let out a cry of anger directed at whatever that was, and Archimedes got into battle position while he pointed the bushes on his back towards its direction.

The wild Pokemon stepped into view, and Lucas had to contain a sob of terror.

He'd never seen something so horrifying in his life. A giant scorpion-like Pokemon, easily twice as tall as him, stood at the edge of the forest. Her head was oval shaped with two white protrusions coming out of her mouth. Her body was divided into violet and lavender sections that ended in a long tail which moved from side to side behind her. Two thin arms came out from under her neck, and at the end of them there were pincer-like claws covered in what he imagined was some sort of venom.

"Draaaaa!" The thing yelled, stabbing the ground with the claws of her right hand.

Lucas wanted to cry. He felt the cold clinging to his bones and turning his body into a shaking mess, unable to react to the beast staring him down with such contempt.

Something hit his back, bringing him back to the reality. He turned around and Sierpinski's eyes met him, full of urgency. He shook his head strongly and nodded; he couldn't just stand there.

"R-right!"

With shaking fingers he grabbed the Pókedex from his pocket and pointed it at the terrifying beast, whose four robust legs were slowly walking her closer to them. He did not want the word closer to have anything to do with him and that thing. The device came to life and an electronic voice filled the shore:

Drapion: The Venomous Monarch Pokemon - Poison/Dark Type. Its tail and claws have enough power to turn a car into scrap, and the poison that soaks them can kill in mere minutes. Its body is covered in a protective armor and its head can rotate 180 degrees, eliminating all blind spots. Avoid running into this species at all cost unless you count with a powerful team.

"But…! That's impossible!" He screamed into the uncaring cold. "You're not supposed to be here! This doesn't make any sense!"

The wild Pokemon seemed to understand the words being spoken, and sporting a wicked grin which showed her fangs she raised her head proudly. She closed and opened her claws as her feet stomped the ground beneath her. All hope of a peaceful resolution died the moment he realized the Drapion was challenging him and his Pokemon to a duel. One that, he assumed, he would not walk out from if he were to lose.

The bravest part of his mind tried to fight the rest and forcefully make him declare an attack before the beast got bored of waiting and tried to snap his… well, everything in half with her claws.

Luckily there would be no need for that, as Lapras was infinitely braver than him and attacked at once.

He exhaled deeply and spit a short torrent of scalding water which left a trail of steam as it traveled forward. The Drapion growled and jumped out of the way with little effort, and the ground where she previously stood unfroze as the attack fell.

In mid air she hit the ground with her tail, raising a cloud of dirt their way. Her four feet hit the ground with a loud thump and she started running forward before another attack could be thrown at her.

Fast was about the only word in Lucas' mind as the behemoth appeared in front of them in a blink. A heavy shadow fell on top of him and his Lapras, a whole bunch of purple blocking his view. He jumped backwards and let out a high pitched (and somewhat embarrassing) shriek.

"U-use Frost B…!"

He didn't get to finish his order. The Drapion raised her left arm toward the sky, smiling maliciously, and the sun reflected on the white of her claws. A short chuckle was the only thing she thought he deserved as she threw her claws forward, ready to snap her prey in half.

She stopped a few inches short of his face, and a pained cry escaped her mouth. Lucas watched horrified as she rotated her head 180 degrees toward Archimedes, who had trapped her tail within his maw, dark eyes burning with rage. She tried to snap it free with her powerful muscles, to no avail, and before she had time to react her body was flung upwards with strength she did not expect from such a pitiable Pokemon. The Grotle managed to lift her entire body with his mouth and with all his might he threw her back toward the line of trees.

Through the thick layers of fear currently paralyzing him, Lucas had the small hope the creature would fall to the ground and hurt herself. Such hope was short lived as the Drapion grabbed one of the nearby trees with her tail and slithered until her entire body was coiled around it. She opened her mouth and bared her fangs, crushing the trunk with her muscles as though it were a toothpick. The message was very clear:

This will be you, her eyes told Lucas.

I'd rather not if that's okay with you, his trembling legs replied.

"Sierpinski, use Frost Breath on her legs!"

He threw his hand forward as he yelled, just like he remembered Inyssa doing when they had battled together. The absolute confidence in her posture, the way her eyes showed no doubt or fear… he could only pray that image would give him even an ounce of courage for the fight ahead.

The Lapras breathed a white, gelid mist, which spiraled forward an at impressive speed and turned the ground to solid ice. Lucas was more than a few feet away from the Pokemon and even he could feel the cold sticking to his bones and his breath becoming visible.

Drapion tried to jump out of the way again but the attack caught the tip of her tail, nailing her to the ground and making her land on top of the frozen dirt. Crystals emerged from around her feet, growing larger and preventing her from moving. For some reason the attack wasn't as strong on her as he expected, but it would have to do.

"Archimedes, reinforce that with Leech Seed!"

Two thick vines jumped from the bushes on the Grotle's back, coiling for a second before diving into the ground. After a few moments after dozens of roots sprouted around Drapion, grabbing her tail and legs strongly and pulling her down. She desperately tried to set herself free, hacking at the ice around her with her claws, slowly breaking it apart. The muffled cry of pain and frustration which came out of her mouth turned Lucas' blood cold.

You have time, use it!

He raised the back of his hand close to his face and started fiddling with the Pokétch attached to his wrist. His fingers moved as fast as humanly possible, and after a couple of failed tries he managed to press the Emergency Beacon button, which flashed red thrice before turning off.

A sigh of relief escaped his lips. The device would now send a cry of help to any other Pokétch nearby, alerting them of his exact location. If he could just hold off for a few minutes…

A loud crunch caught his attention, directing him to the sight of Drapion finally freeing her tail from the roots and ice. The ones around her legs were starting to weaken too under the constant barrage of her sharp claws.

Without thinking he took his hand to his remaining Pokeball and threw it into the air. The flash of light materialized into a flying creature with dark brown plumage and a head shaped like an owl's. Her light colored eyebrows went to the side and up in a trident shape and her red eyes pierced through the mist like a knife cutting through velvet. She barely needed a second to study the situation around her, and before Lucas had time to give out an order she dove towards their foe.

"Hypnosis!" Lucas yelled, turning his hands into fists. "T-try to put her to sleep!

Just before reaching her foe, the Noctowl stopped and extended her wings, opening her eyes as wide as she could. A strange wave of energy was expelled from them, hitting the Drapion in the face. Her limbs lost strength and fell to the ground, and the beast had to struggle to keep herself awake as she leaned back and forth.

Lucas grit his teeth. He knew the effect wouldn't last long, not with her natural resistance to psychic attacks. This was his chance to attack.

"Tiresias, use Echoed Voice! Sierpinski, Water Pulse!" he ordered, throwing his hand forward once more. "Archimedes, Razor Leaf!"

All his Pokemon attacked in unison. The Grotle stomped his feet on the ground and pointed his bushes at the Drapion, releasing a rapid torrent of knife sharp leaves forward. Lapras and Noctowl followed, spitting waves of water and sound which combined into a glowing whirlwind of energy that swallowed the Drapion whole. Her scream almost deafened Lucas, sending a painful chill through his bones and forcing him to cover his ears. He felt bad for the poor thing until he remembered that she was currently trying to kill him.

Then he felt bad again for a little bit, because he really couldn't help it.

The dust cleared after a few seconds, and Lucas' veins turned to ice. The Drapion was not only free of her bindings but stood just as proudly as she did before, not more than a few superficial scratches covering her body. The only difference was the venomous, burning fury clear in her eyes, directed straight at him. She opened her maw and let out a scream which pierced the air, turning his legs to jelly.

"A-a-attack it!" he yelled, walking backwards as fast as his feet would allow. "Keep it away!"

Sierpinski had to stop him from tripping into the lake by grabbing the back of his shirt with his mouth. In front of him, his remaining Pokemon let out another torrent of attacks, which Drapion swiftly dodged by jumping to the side as if the previous barrage had done little more than tickle her.

Tiresias chirped loudly at the beast and threw herself down with all her strength, landing on her back with enough force to make her knees buckle. Without wasting a second she started pecking at the Drapion's face fiercely while Archimedes tried to bind her once more with his vines.

For a single, short moment Lucas thought they might have a chance. Then he noticed the beast's fangs steaming as they turned a burning red, and his heart dropped. He opened his mouth to yell a warning but it was too late.

Drapion's head turned 180 degrees, and before the Noctowl had a chance to dodge she felt her body being enveloped by her maw. Sharp teeth dug into her flesh as she desperately tried to free herself, pecking at her eyes with all her might. But before she could do any lasting damage the teeth enveloping her caught ablaze.

Her shriek of pain filled the entire lake. She only remained conscious for a couple heartbeats, before her head fell backwards, immobile.

Lucas stared in horror as the beast spit the unconscious body of his Pokemon to the ground, where the impact raised a cloud of dust around her. Several dark spots stained her feathers, in the points where the fangs had dug into her.

Drapion let out a sound which could've passed for a snicker, and turning only her head she set her red eyes on Lucas. The boy froze completely, while his two remaining Pokemon covered him and growled at the beast to stay back. It didn't.

She burst forward with another burst of speed, appearing on top of them and coating her claws with a powerful dark energy. She slashed at Archimedes' side with ruthless strength, flattening him against the ground. She then raised her other hand and threw it forward towards Lucas' neck. He closed his eyes and waited, resigning himself to his fate.

A scream broke through the air, startling everyone in the lake.

"Flash Cannon!"

Drapion looked up to what she first thought was the sun, though after a moment she realized the light she was staring at was getting bigger and bigger. A gasp escaped her mouth as a torrent of white energy swallowed her and drew a scream of agony from her throat.

Lucas stared dumbfounded as the floor exploded in front of him. Drapion's body was thrown backwards with astounding strength, landing on top of the frozen ground with enough force to break it apart. She did not move again.

"Oh thank goodness, you're okay!"

His brain now a pile of mush, Lucas raised his head towards the voice. Floating above him and slowly descending was the weirdest Pokemon he'd ever seen. It looked like a giant blue bell with two flat arms coming out of its sides. Two red protrusions came out of the lower part of its body, what appeared to be its eyes. But strangest of all was the hole under it, which revealed its body to be completely hollow.

A person stood on top of it. A tall, slim man with blue hair which went up in a crescent shape. Something about his white and black uniform looked so familiar to Lucas, though he had trouble identifying it.

The man jumped from his Pokemon and landed in front of him. His deep blue eyes reflected clear worry.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. His voice was low and melodious. "When your beacon appeared in my Pokétch and I saw where you were… I came here as fast as I could!"

Lucas had trouble responding, partly due to the state of shock he was still in and also because he was somewhat drawn in by the man's handsome features. He couldn't be much older than him, a couple years at most. His face was round and his cheeks somewhat rosy, and the nervous smile across his face made the boy blush. At least until his gaze averted from him and fell on the unconscious body of his Noctowl.

"T-Tiresias!" he yelled, pushing the man aside as he ran towards his Pokemon. "She's hurt! That thing bit her and... and…"

The man stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. Without saying a word he knelt in front of Tiresias, putting his hands on her side and inspecting the dark spots on her body.

"Wh…" Lucas whispered, lower lip trembling. "What are you doing?"

He didn't respond. His fingers grazed the stained feathers while he took a closer look at the wound. After a few seconds he sighed in relief and smiled.

"That Drapion used Fire Fang, didn't she?"

Lucas was caught off guard by the question, but he nodded slowly.

"Thought so. You were lucky." He put a hand over his knee and pushed himself to his feet. "The fire that coated her fangs not only momentarily killed the venom but it also cauterized the wound shut. Your Noctowl will be okay, though you'll need to take her to a Pokemon Center."

Lucas couldn't help but let out a sob of happiness that also kind of sounded like a cough. He lowered his head as he tried to hide his tears and took Tiresias' Pokeball in his hand, returning her to it.

He got up and bowed to the stranger. "T-thank you so much! I don't know what I would've done if…" He gulped, the words getting caught in his throat. "Also… sorry for the trouble and um… not introducing myself. I'm Lucas."

The stranger let out a sweet, dorky laugh. "Don't worry about it. You were understandably worried about your Pokemon, and to me that makes you worth saving already." He extended one of his hands forward, which Lucas shook a bit too enthusiastically. "You can call me Saturn. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Another flash of familiarity crossed his mind. Something about the man's name and his outfit… it was somewhat familiar and filled his chest with an uncomfortable feeling that he couldn't place. Though he didn't have much time to think about it as Saturn addressed him again.

"Excuse me, do you mind if I…?" He pointed at the unconscious body of the Drapion, and took out a Pokeball from his pocket. "Were you planning on catching her? Because if not, I could really use someone this powerful for my team."

Lucas shook his head weakly, taking a few steps back from the sleeping beast.

"I don't want anything to do with that thing," he said. "You can have it."

He smiled brightly and threw the device at the Drapion's chest, which enveloped her in a red glow and turned her body into light, trapping her inside. The Pokeball shook three times before closing with an electronic beep. With grace the man kneeled to grab it and hung it from his belt before walking towards Lucas again.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you doing here?" He looked around, taking in the remnants of the battle. "Didn't you hear that strange things have been happening around the lake lately?"

"I came to study just that," he replied as he returned Archimedes and Sierpinski to their Pokeballs. "I wanted to come up with a theory as to why the lake turned so cold, but…" He sighed and looked at the broken piece of frozen ground where the Drapion stood a few seconds before. "I never expected to run into… that."

"Well, they're certainly not native to Lake Valor," nodded Saturn. "This Drapion probably came here from the Great Marsh down south. There have been unusual Pokemon sightings around the place in the last few months."

"Yeah, that's what I heard too. But it doesn't make sense… what could cause such a drastic change?"

There was a heavy pause. Saturn stared at him for a few seconds, a puzzling look shadowing his face. Lucas felt the weight of his stare and couldn't help but take a careful step back.

He tapped his feet against the ground rhythmically, arms crossed and eyebrows knit together. He seemed to be deliberating something, and judging by the seriousness of his expression it looked to be a matter of life and death.

"Lucas…" he finally said, his tone startling the boy. "Tell me, have you heard of the legend of the Lake Guardians?"

The question caught him more than a little off guard. Out of all the things he expected to hear from Saturn, a question about legends wasn't one of them, especially since it really didn't seem like his style. It wasn't like Lucas wasn't accustomed to or interested in myths, but he simply didn't care about them as much as cold, concrete facts.

"I… think so, yes." He nodded weakly. "Azelf, Mesprit and… Uxie, right?"

"Yes, exactly. Do you know their story?"

"Their story…" He deliberated for a second, trying to remember what he'd read long ago. "If I remember correctly… it was said that they were created by Arceus when the world came into being, and each of them holds one of the pieces to the human spirit… or something like that."

Saturn's eyes brightened at the sound of his words, as if he couldn't be more delighted he remembered the myth correctly. The sight of such a smile forced the boy to lower his head, cheeks flushed.

"And you know what happened after?" he prompted, raising his hand palm up.

"I…" Lucas bit his lip, drawing a blank. "N-no, I don't think so."

He saw the man clap his hands together, as if he had received the opportunity of a lifetime.

"Once the guardians gave their gifts to humanity, they were ordered by Arceus to rest, until their power were needed once more," he explained. "Mesprit settled west of what one day would become Twinleaf Town, and with its incredible power it carved a gigantic crater in the middle of the forest and made the humans build a temple for it to sleep in. Azelf and Uxie followed their sibling's example, choosing northeast of Pastoria and west of Snowpoint respectively for their new homes."

Lucas narrowed his eyes. Those giant craters… he couldn't possibly mean…

Saturn couldn't help but smile at the dumbfounded expression of the boy. It wasn't just any day he got to impress someone with this information.

"That's right; as the centuries passed rain and storm filled the craters until they became Lake Verity, Lake Valor and Lake Acuity. It also eroded the temples built in the guardians' honor, turning them into the mysterious caves that lay at their center."

Lucas was entranced by his story, even if part of his mind doubted the veracity of it. Still, the clear passion behind his words, the way his eyebrows knit together and his fingers curled into fists as he spoke… he couldn't help but feel somewhat enamored by it.

"T-that's amazing…" he whispered. "But… what does that have to do with what we were talking about?"

Saturn looked at both sides, a scowl forming on his face as if he were wary of someone listening in on them. After a few seconds he got close to Lucas (a bit too close for his liking) and looked at him with the most serious expression he could muster.

"Can you keep a secret, Lucas?" He put a hand on his shoulder, squishing it lightly. "I'm not supposed to talk about this, but after meeting you here today…" He smiled. "I feel like I can trust you."

Lucas let out a faded gasp of excitement. "I promise I won't tell anyone!"

He gave Lucas one last, thoughtful look as he took a deep breath and gathered his words.

"I'm part of… well, you could call it a nonprofit organization," he said, thinking over his words carefully. "We work all over Sinnoh with the express purpose of making this world a better place."

Lucas raised an eyebrow unconsciously, and Saturn couldn't help but laugh.

"I know it sounds… inane," he admitted. "But I can assure you we and our objectives are serious. For years we've been doing everything in our power to right the wrongs done to this region."

Lucas' fingers twirled as he listened carefully, eyes opened like plates.

"I didn't mean to insult you." Shame crept up his body as he spoke. "I just… didn't know a group like that existed in Sinnoh."

Saturn's chest puffed with pride at the kid's words, and a somewhat smug expression landed on his face.

"We only want what's best for everyone," he said. "If you had the chance to change this world for the better, wouldn't you grab the opportunity by the horns like a Bouffalant?"

Lucas stood quiet, unsure of how to respond. He'd never thought about his dreams in the same vein as trying to make things better for people, even if his actions would lead to something like that. The pursuit of his own desires had always come first, which sounded really bad now that he had stopped to think about it.

He remembered Inyssa and Barry, and the way they had inspired him to begin his journey, even if they didn't mean to. He smiled, grabbing his chest with one hand.

"I feel like I should try to help people by doing what I like," he told Saturn, voice firm and determined. "Most of the bad things that happen around the world are caused by lack of information. People make terrible decisions because they don't have enough data to guide their actions, and everyone around them ends up suffering because of that…"

Saturn listened to him carefully, somewhat taken aback by his elaborate response.

"I started working for Rowan because I wanted to learn the secrets of this world…" He looked down to his palm, a sad smile across his face. "If I can just learn everything I can and explore to my heart's content… then the information I gather might prevent bad things from happening in the future. That's the way I want to help this world."

A long silence swept across the shore, lasting long enough that Lucas started to fear he'd given the wrong answer. But Saturn simply looked down and smiled wistfully, as if his response had reminded him or something.

"I knew I could trust you…" he whispered to himself. "Very well, I'll share with you what I know. Are you sure you want to learn this information?"

Lucas nodded strongly, and felt the man's heavy gaze on him. He opened his mouth and spoke slowly, barely above a whisper.

"The reason the lake is in such a condition… the reason the Pokemon around here have been acting so aggressively…" Saturn furrowed his brow, his expression turning serious. "That's because Azelf isn't here anymore. It's been stolen."

"Wh-what!?" Lucas' eyes opened wide and his beret fell slightly to the side. "What do you mean stolen? Who could…?"

He stopped when he set his eyes on Saturn. The man's lips were pale and thin and his eyebrows were knit together so strongly he could see all the wrinkles covering his forehead. A shadow of something hidden and dangerous flashed across his face, and for the first time Lucas felt somewhat scared of him.

"One of our former members." He spit the words like they were poison. "She betrayed us and took the guardian for herself, even going as far as killing her friends to escape." He closed his eyes and shook his head, as if what he was saying were causing him pain. "If it weren't for her the bridge leading to Eterna City wouldn't have been destroyed, either."

Lucas' mouth hung slightly opened. He couldn't believe Saturn's words; to think someone would be willing to do something so horrible…

"I'm… so sorry." He lowered his head, avoiding the man's gaze. "That's detestable. That woman… I hope someone catches her soon."

"It's not your fault," he said. "In any case, there's your reason. Azelf exuded power even through its sleeping body, keeping the lake and the forest around it alive. Without it… well, you can see it yourself." He gestured all around, from the frozen shore to the twisted and dry trees surrounding them. "Everything becomes cold and lifeless."

Lifeless was a good way to describe it, Lucas thought. From the first moment he set foot on the forest leading towards the lake he could feel his energy and enthusiasm being sapped from him. Despair clung to the leaves and ground, happy to eat alive whatever came in unprepared.

Rage flared inside his stomach. He couldn't help but hate the unknown woman which turned such a beautiful place into… this.

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud ringing noise, which also managed to startle Saturn. The man looked toward his wrist where a custom version of a Pokétch was located, and narrowed his eyes at the name of the person currently calling him.

"It's from one of my coworkers," he smiled nervously. "I hope you don't mind, it will be just a second."

Lucas stammered around three different responses into a garbled mess of words. Saturn seemed to understand as he nodded and took out a small earphone from the side of the Pokétch, connecting it to his ear.


The woman stood in the middle of the dark room, Pokétch close to her mouth and right hand tapping the fabric covering her hips. A devious smile adorned her face.

"Commander Saturn here," the voice at the other side of the device spoke. "What is it, Mars?"

She allowed herself a few moments of silence, while she raised her hand towards the nearby table and grabbed a photo frame. Three people were depicted in the picture; two young kids and a tall, old man with silver hair.

"Always so professional…" she whispered, her voice sending chills down the spine of the two Galactic grunts standing behind her. "Aren't you happy to hear my voice again?"

Saturn let out a frustrated sigh.

"Can you please get to the point? I'm in the middle of something here."

"You're seriously no fun."

"The point, please."

She set the frame on the table again, shifting her feet over the sticky dark red covering the floor beneath her. The outline of a body could be seen lying next to them.

"Doctor Willow has been taken care of," she said matter of factly. "He won't betray us again."

"...I see. In that case, we can start a search for Ursa and those documents tod…"

"That's not all."

Saturn's voice came to a halt, and Mars couldn't help but smile at the sound of it.

"One of my grunts found the girl. Inyssa," she said. "Turns out she really is in Veilstone after all."

There was a short silence before Saturn spoke again.

"…Understood. I will arrange a team to capture her and…"

"No," she cut him off, tone sharp and rough. "She's mine. I'll take care of it."

Another sigh reached her ears, this one just a tad more exaggerated than the last. She knew exactly the meaning of such a sound.

"Very well, I will leave that to you. Report back to base once you're done, and no further transmissions unless necessary."

"Have a nice day," she whispered as she finished the call.

She threw her arms backwards and put them behind her head, a satisfied smile showing on her lips. After a few seconds she turned around, and her dark red eyes met with her two oldest grunts.

"It's time to move out," she said. "We have some scores to settle."


Saturn took the earphone out and sighed, his shoulders dropping.

"Is… is there something wrong?" Lucas asked behind him.

He turned around and formed a gentle smile. "Nothing to worry about, just work related stuff. My coworker can be such a pain sometimes." He took a hand to his hair, ruffling it. "I should probably get back soon, I'm sure I'll have to file a mountain of paperwork due to her recklessness soon."

Disappointment set on the pit of Lucas' stomach, turning his mouth sour.

"I… I understand," he nodded, trying not to sound too disheartened. "I hope she doesn't make you work that much this time."

"We can all hope." He laughed. "But before I go, I wanted to ask. How are you planning to get back to Pastoria? It's getting late."

Panic filled him as he realized the situation he was in. Both Tiresias and Archimedes were hurt by their fight, and Sierpinski couldn't handle very well on ground. He had no way of getting back safely.

Saturn seemed to understand, and without doubt he looked for something inside his pocket. He took out a black and gold Pokeball, caressing it with his fingers.

"You really should have a Pokemon for this kind of situation," he advised. "Someone who can either teleport or fly you out of trouble."

Lucas lowered his head, ashamed. "I… haven't been able to catch a psychic Pokemon yet, and my Noctowl isn't strong enough to carry me for..."

"Here, catch."

Saturn threw the Pokeball upwards at his face, and Lucas desperately tried to catch it, flailing his arms spastically. His fingers grazed the edges of it and he barely managed to grab it before it fell to the ground.

"Since you let me have that Drapion, I thought it'd be fitting for me to give you something in return," Saturn explained. "That Pokemon will be able to get you safely back to Pastoria. And don't be intimidated by how he looks. He's a total softie."

"W-what!?" he stammered, his heart beating like drums inside his chest. "I can't… I can't accept…"

Saturn raised a hand to interrupt him, sporting an amused smile. "It's okay, he was caught very recently and I already had six members in my team. He'll obey you as if you were his original trainer."

Lucas wanted to protest, but the words wouldn't leave his mouth. After a few heartbeats he simply lowered his head and nodded.

"Thank you so much," he said. "I'll treasure it dearly."

With that settled Saturn turned towards his Bronzong, putting a hand over its metallic body. He looked at Lucas one last time before leaving.

"I'm very glad I got to meet you, Lucas," he said, turning the boy's face completely red. "I'm sure we'll run into each other again."

Lucas nodded so strongly he almost hurt his neck. "Y-yes! I hope we… I mean, I'm sure that will happen, yes!"

The man laughed at his endearing tangling of words, and just before his Pokemon teleported them out of the lake he winked at him.

"Until next time, friend."