'What got you thinking so hard?'

"The fact that this world is nothing like any of the pokemon worlds we remembered." I replied Blob from where I am lying on my bed, trying yet failing to sleep. The topic of conversation with my other fellow reincarnated souls still rang clearly in my mind.

I had told Volkner, Velda, and Akamu all I know about the contents of the stone tablet and what Shannon and I had speculated. In return, they shared with me certain abnormalities that they remembered to be different from whatever pokemon verse that they are familiar with.

For one, we had confirmed that there is no Ash Ketchum to be found in this world. Not even a Delia Ketchum exists. However, there is a Gary Blue Oak that is Professor Oak's grandson and that guy is already an adult.

The inconsistency doesn't end there. Velda is from Hoenn and she knows Norman on a personal level. He has a daughter named May but she is only a year old. Comparing May's age with Gary's, we can tell that the timeline is botched up as far as the ages of so-called 'canon' characters are concerned.

Truth to be told, there are already signs that this world is nothing like the other worlds we remembered from the various pokemon adaptations in various forms of media. For one, pokemon in this world are able to learn more than four moves and this world is a lot more dangerous and dark than the various adaptations that we know of. Volkner and Akamu also mentioned that certain things that are canon in the games are not present, at least not yet. For example, the high speed rail that is supposed to connect Goldenrod and Saffron is non-existent. Akamu remembered a little of the Sun/ Moon games which featured the Alola region, something that I had no knowledge of. According to him, he does remember that in the games Ultra Beasts can be caught but for some reason, the same does not apply here. We are not sure if his memories can be relied on since he is a Faller and certain details might have been forgotten, but it still goes to show that this world is unlike any pokemon verse that we are familiar with.

Which is to say, there is no 'canon' plot for us to refer to. Everything that is and will happen in this crazy world, there is no way we will know what is going to happen next. No plot, no canon, nothing. All we have are the little details or facts that we remembered from playing the games. The only thing we can agree on is that this is very likely not the anime verse and that we have to keep a very open mind when exploring what this world has in store for us. In an unfamiliar world like this, overreliance on what we think are facts due to our preconceived notions and assumptions might do us more harm instead.

If it wasn't for the fact that I am now involved in this whole world-saving gig I would welcome the unknown with open arms. To piece out the history of a world that I have no knowledge of, how cool is that? A pity that this world is as dangerous as it is beautiful.

'Oi, human.'

'What is it?' I mentally sighed as I replied to Blob through the telepathic link instead, too tired to even open my mouth.

'Just in case the worst comes to pass, we need to collect the missing 2% of my Cells before the big day happens. I have a very bad feeling, Le Porion might need to interfere with the affairs of this poor region on the big day. I need a minimum of 10% of my Cells to be remotely useful.'

'Where are the other 2% that we need to find?'

'Unfortunately, we had found all we could find in Johto. Kanto is the next best place we can go due to its proximity.'

'I don't think that I have the time to go all the way to Johto considering my new job.'

'Then find a way. Even at 10% of my power my strength is nothing to scoff at. You measly humans might really need Le Porion's help. If the plans of that idiot Giovanni comes to fruition, the world's balance will be severely disrupted. That is something that Le Porion cannot tolerate.'

'I will speak to Volkner about this since you don't want Looker to know about your existence. If anyone can help vouch for me and help find an excuse for me to make a quick trip to Kanto, it will be him.'

'See to it that you do. We might as well check on the resting places of the Winged Mirages at the same time since it's been a long time since I heard anything about them. This won't be a wasted trip for you.'

'Winged Mirages?'

'You humans refer to them as the Legendary Birds.'

'Oh.' I stated in realisation. Zapdos, Moltres, Articuno. Their myths and legends are indeed something that I am interested in, that is for sure.

'Now go to sleep, don't worry too much about the threat of an artificial legendary pokemon. Le Porion had judged this to be serious enough of a problem to lend you my glorious assistance. Even if the two squawking birds and the three woof-woofs do not appear to lend you their aid, Le Porion is on your side. I will deal with that meow-second thing myself if I have to.'

'Mewtwo. Not meow-second.'

'Both sound the same to me. Now, sleep. Le Porion orders you to sleep and my command shall not be defied.'

'Whatever you say, Blob. Thanks, and good night.'

'Hmph.'


Volkner apparently had similar thoughts to mine even before I went to find him. After hearing what I have to say regarding Blob and what he mentioned about the Legendary Birds, Volkner is even more certain that something has to be done about Indigo's legends. He had immediately suggested to Lance and Looker to investigate more about Indigo's legendary pokemon, namely Kanto's Legendary Birds and Johto's Tower Duo and Legendary Beasts, and to see if we can secure their help before the day of the battle arrives. The suggestion was quickly approved because if the worse comes to worst, only a legendary can fight another legendary.

Also, if Blob is indeed Zygarde as he claims to be, then we might really need to rely on his aid if the worst comes to pass. If the tales about his strength are indeed true, Zygarde's power is definitely nothing to scoff at even at 10% of its full might, that is something that Volkner agrees with me too and as such, collecting Blob's Cells now becomes a priority on our end, a secret only shared among the five of us reincarnated souls.

Legendary pokemon are often known to be very fickle due to the absurd amount of power they wield and the immortality that they possess, but they are also known to be protective of the respective regions that they each reside in. Legends and myths about their sightings that were passed down through the centuries usually took place when their help was really needed to quell whatever big mess had threatened the region. In a sense, they are their region's protectors.

Most legendary pokemon are also known to keep their word. They take oaths and promises very seriously. If we manage to secure their promise to lend us their aid in the coming crisis, that will be for the best. It's proven that such an act is achievable. The first Indigo Champion was said to have Moltres on his side and with its help, conquered and united both Kanto and Johto to form the Indigo. Moltres is known to be Kanto's friendliest legendary pokemon all things considered, and is also referred to by some as the Guardian of Indigo since it always appeared in their time of need.

From what I was let known, Kanto's Legendary Birds are often not in Kanto and instead, constantly flying across the world in places where they cannot be reached. Ancient myths and folktales about this trio of flying types refer to them as the Winged Mirages. Most of these tales have nothing concrete other than praising their greatness and strength, but there is a copy of a very old piece of parchment made available to me through the Indigo that spoke about a certain legend that nobody could verify.

The legend of the Thu-Fi-Zer.

It's a weird name at first glance, but I soon realise it's because the name Thu-Fi-Zer is a transliteration of a part of the Legendary Birds' names in Kanto's native language, something which the world refers to as the oriental tongue. If I have to use terms from my previous world, the oriental tongue is simply japanese, a shared language between Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and certain parts of Sinnoh but had severely declined in use ever since the PWL was founded in favour of using what is now known as the common tongue, which is also known as English in my previous world. A historian had once attempted to better translate the name of Thu-Fi-Zer into the common tongue and ended up translating it as Zapmolticuno. Zapmolticuno is also a name that is more intuitive to me than Thu-Fi-Zer, so that historian has my thanks in this matter for giving Thu-Fi-Zer a better translation.

From the name alone it's not hard to tell that Zapmolticuno is the mish-mash of names of the three legendary birds. The legend itself is also very vague and is passed down through word of mouth from way back, from a time even before the PWL was founded. Many parts of the legend had been lost but what we do know is that when the powers of the Legendary Birds are united as one is also when the Winged Mirages is truly born. There is nothing recorded in the parchment that spoke about the how, but there are hints that the three birds are kept separated from each other for a very good reason because if they ever become united, they are supposedly unstoppable. If the Winged Mirages goes on a rampage there is nothing that can stop them until they have their fill, that is what the saying goes.

What Indigo does know is that the Legendary Birds can be summoned individually through a very specific method. The problem is, nobody knew what the method is, just that such an option existed. As a sign of trust, Moltres had left a remnant of its flame to Indigo's First Champion which is still preserved somewhere at Indigo Plateau. We're not sure if the flame is the key to summoning Moltres in our time of need, but that's why we are trying our best to investigate further.

We had a little breakthrough when the former members of SKIP told us what they had found out about Kanto's Legendary Birds that they never let know to the League during their SKIP days. What was mentioned in the information they offered was that each bird is individually tied to some sort of "puzzle", each of them located in different places of Kanto and when this puzzle is solved, the Legendary Birds will know and immediately return to protect their homeland, Kanto. SKIP never made any headway in regards to the mentions of the puzzles and how to solve them in order to summon them if Kanto ever needs their help, which is one factor that pushed them to go ahead with Project Rebirth, the project that conceptualised and created the artificial legendary pokemon known as Mewtwo.

The thing is, if this information about the seals was dug out by SKIP, then it means that Giovanni has knowledge of it too. We can only hope that Giovanni and his Team Rocket had not made any progress in regards to solving the puzzles because if that were the case, it means that Team Rocket now has a way to summon the Legendary Birds anytime they want. If we were them, we would probably lay one big trap for each individual bird, solve each of the puzzles, and then ambush them the moment they got home in order to capture them. That is what any smart person would do if they wanted to acquire the power of the Legendary Birds. This is also probably what got Lance very concerned and the reason why he approved of Volkner's suggestion so quickly. Personally, I'm also hoping that something like this has not happened yet because if so, it means that Mewtwo will not be the only legendary pokemon we will be up against.

That's not all. There is also Mew, Kanto's very own mythical pokemon and the pokemon in which Mewtwo was created from. Mew is a being that has been proven by SKIP to have the DNA of every single pokemon in existence and the knowledge to use every pokemon move ever known to man and even more. Even when classified as a mythical pokemon, Mew's power level is proven to be off the charts even for the standard of a legendary pokemon. The only problem is that Mew has a strong aversion to conflict and is unwilling to hurt another soul no matter how evil they may be. The former members of SKIP had cautioned us and Lance that we shouldn't rely on Mew to help us due to this fact. Given Mew's nature, most likely, it will choose to be a bystander than to be an active participant in any conflict.

Kanto's legendaries are solely limited to the Legendary Birds. In terms of numbers, Johto has more legendary pokemon than Johto. Johto has five legendary pokemon and one mythical pokemon. Johto's legendaries consist of the Tower Duo and the Legendary Beasts. Their region's mythical pokemon is celebi.

The Tower Duo are nicknamed as such because about 700 years ago, which is way before the unification of Kanto and Johto and also before the founding of the PWL, the people of Ecruteak had built two nine tier towers opposite each other in the city. The original reason for building the towers were said to be for the sake of fostering friendship between pokemon and humans. The eastern tower was said to awaken pokemon, which is the Bell Tower that we all know today. Bell Tower is also formerly known as Tin Tower in the olden days because the original tower was largely made with a large amount of tin, hence the name. Ho-oh was said to roost at the top of Bell Tower a long time ago.

The western tower was said to be where pokemon rested. It was named as the Brass Tower because it was originally built using a large amount of brass. Like what Ho-oh did, Lugia used to perch itself there regularly. According to the stories, the Tower Duo had once believed in what the people of Ecruteak believed in, that humans and pokemon can coexist peacefully with each other. Them perching on the top of their respective towers was a sign of trust and promise that they too, will work alongside humans to help create a more peaceful world for pokemon and humans alike. It was through the towers that people interacted with Ho-oh and Lugia. Sure, the two legendary pokemon obviously won't be there all the time, but they do fly back to roost on the top of the towers frequently enough to foster closer relationships with the people of Ecruteak if the stories are to be believed.

The change came when about 150 years ago, a lightning bolt struck the Brass Tower. As a result, the Brass Tower caught fire and the inferno raged for three days and three nights. It would have continued burning if a sudden downpour didn't suddenly put out those flames but even then, the Brass Tower had already been razed to the ground. According to the legends, three nameless pokemon had perished in the fire but for some unknown reason, Ho-oh descended from the skies and resurrected them. The sudden resurrection of the three pokemon had terrified all those who had seen their rise and according to the legends, the three pokemon, knowing the depths of their own power and how it will strike fear into people, chose to flee. These three pokemon are Johto's Legendary Beasts. They never willingly appeared before humans after that. Even subsequent sightings of them are brief and are always by happenstance. The Brass Tower was never rebuilt and from that day onwards, people refer to it as the Burned Tower instead. Lugia and Ho-oh also never reappeared in Ecruteak nor do they appear before humans ever again.

There are other myths and tales about what really went on, although these are mostly speculations than anything else. There are accounts who claim that the lightning bolt that struck the Brass Tower was not a natural phenomenon, that it was a work of man. Apparently, not everyone was supportive of the idea of having humans and pokemon fostering better relationships with each other and then somehow or another, someone had the bright idea to call down a lightning bolt to burn the Brass Tower. It was for that reason that the Tower Duo was angered, because the promise and trust between the people of Ecruteak and the Tower Duo had been broken. It was why the Tower Duo was never seen again and why Ho-oh never roosted at the top of the Bell Tower after that fateful day. Lugia's whereabouts are supposedly unknown (at least to the public) but the Indigo League has managed to track its new resting place down to be the Whirl Islands.

The Whirl Islands are a small archipelago located between mainland Johto and Cianwood City. Children in Olivine are often told that if they misbehaved they will be sent to the Whirl Islands, where they will wander in the sprawling maze of dark caves for eternity or sucked into one of the many whirlpools surrounding the archipelago. A long time ago, the Whirl Islands used to be a single large island. However, at a point in time even before the twin towers of Ecruteak was built, two different factions were fighting over it and Lugia, who considers the Whirl Islands as its home, got upset and in its rage, cast lightning bolts to tear the island into four pieces and ended the conflict. Not only that, Lugia is also said to have created the numerous dangerous whirlpools around the archipelago to prevent its home from being invaded ever again. It was then said to disappear beneath the deep end of the waterfall basin within the archipelago, longing for the invisible trust between people and pokemon to manifest once more. That trust had been manifested once when the twin towers were built, but also lost again when the Brass Tower was razed to the ground. Ever since the burning of the Brass Tower about 150 years ago, whatever findings that the Indigo League has about Lugia had led them to believe that Lugia had once again taken refuge in the Whirl Islands after its trust in humans had been broken once again.

If Lugia is known as Johto's Guardian of the Seas, Ho-oh is known as Johto's Guardian of the Skies. Not much is known about Ho-oh after the Burned Tower incident because it is always flying around the world. What we do know is that Ho-oh has the mythical ability to resurrect the dead and that its fire is sacred. Tales often spoke how the few people who bear witness to Ho-oh are promised eternal happiness and how rainbows will follow wherever it goes. People also said that Ho-oh is constantly searching for a trainer with a pure heart, still believing that there will be a day where pokemon and humans can all understand each other and create a better world together.

As for Johto's Legendary Beasts, they are said to be Ho-oh's servants. While they are hardly seen again after their resurrection, tales of their exploits had still been passed down. The three of them are said to embody the events that happened to the Brass Tower: the lightning that struck it, the fire that burned for three days and three nights, and the sudden downpour that put the fire out. Nobody really knows if the Legendary Beasts were already a Suicune, Entei, and a Raikou prior to their revival or if Ho-oh's powers gave them a new form and made them Legendary Pokemon.

Suicune is the more prominent pokemon out of the three because there are more sightings of Suicune as compared to Entei or Raikou. Suicune is said to possess the power to walk across water and purify dirty water with a simple touch. Due to the powers it possesses, it is said to be often wandering around Johto in search of water to purify. The older folktales said that the northern winds always seem to blow in its presence and as such, it is also referred to as the reincarnation of the northern winds. Suicune is a seemingly helpful pokemon as it always used its powers to help pokemon in need and sometimes, save humans from disasters if it happened to be close by. Even then, its appearance was always brief.

Entei is the embodiment of passion and magma. It is said to always be racing across the land because it is unable to restrain its extreme power. Tales often speak of how volcanoes erupt whenever it roars. Its flames are said to consume everything that it touches. There are also stories that spoke of how Mt Mortar was Entei's handiwork and considering that Mt Mortar had indeed magically sprouted out of nowhere shortly after the Burned Tower incident, there might be some sort of truth to it.

Last but not least, Raikou. Raikou embodies the speed of lightning and is said to carry storm clouds on its back, allowing it to fire thunderbolts at will. Raikou arrives and leaves in a thunderbolt. Its extreme quickness lends itself to flight, which may be one reason why among the Legendary Beasts, sightings of Raikou are the least. It doesn't help that unlike Suicune, Raikou is said to be distrustful of humans ever since the Burned Tower incident, and is thus the least likely to appear before humans in our time of need unless the crisis severely threatens the entire Johto region.

Sadly, Lance had delegated the job of checking up on Johto's Legendary Beasts to someone by the name of Eusine, who is according to Volkner, "a nut about Suicune" and is thus the foremost expert in investigating the myths and tales about the Legendary Beasts since all three of them are linked to each other. The fact that Team Rocket may already know the method to summon Kanto's Legendary Birds is why there is now an urgent need to ascertain the status of Johto's Legendary Beasts and the Tower Duo. While Indigo is sure that the Legendary Beasts are often wandering about in Johto instead of travelling anywhere out of the region and they had always appeared in Johto's greatest time of need, Lance wants to be absolutely sure about certain things given the crisis Indigo will be facing.

Firstly, we need to be sure that Team Rocket has not gotten their hands on them or find ways to summon or immobilise them. Legendary pokemon are powerful, there's no doubting that, but there are always ways to circumvent their power. Volkner had admitted that such a thing is already possible with how technology had advanced in today's day and age and that such an endeavour is Team Galactic's specialty. Volkner had once witnessed how Team Galactic had almost captured Darkrai. What's worrying is that there are signs that indicated that Team Rocket and Team Galactic had recent cooperations with each other in regards to finding ways to capture and restrain legendary pokemon, which is why someone must be sent to ascertain if Indigo's Legendary Pokemon are indeed alright. On Indigo's side, Eusine will be sent to track the Legendary Beasts down. Indigo will also send people they trust to check on Whirl Islands where Lugia is supposed to be taking refuge at, and also the state of the Bell Tower, the place which used to be Ho-oh's home.

As for me, Looker and Volkner had tasked me to investigate the mystery behind the Legendary Birds, especially on finding out the method to summon them back to Kanto just so in case Indigo has another backup plan should Mewtwo prove to be too powerful to be rescued from the M2 Bind or properly contained should it lash out in a fit of anger. If possible, Lance had also wanted me to find out more about the myth on the Thu-Fi-Zer to see what it really is about since Giovanni does know about this particular fact about the Legendary Birds. We have no doubts that Giovanni had definitely done his homework on the legends of Zapmolticuno too since he had known about it during his SKIP days. We can only hope that he did not make any headway into the matter.

And thus, that's how I got assigned to my very first job as an agent of the interpol.

Find out as much as I can about Kanto's Legendary Birds and if possible, convince them to lend us their aid in the coming crisis. That is the official mission given to me by Looker and Lance. Unofficially, Volkner also told me to use this chance to help Blob in retrieving his remaining Cells in Kanto that he had said he needed. Hopefully, whatever Cells I help Blob find in Kanto will add up to the grand total of 10%, which according to Blob, is the minimum amount of Cells that he needs to be of any real use in the coming battle. Deadline?

Two weeks.

Talk about a tight schedule.


AN: The Thu-Fi-Zer, or Zapmolticuno, depending on which translations you had read about, is a unique entity belonging to the Pokemon Adventures manga. If you really want to know what they look like you can simply google it. To me, what really made me fall in love with pokemon back then was when I was reading the Pokemon Adventures manga. The realism of it, the darker elements of it, including the sense of adventure that comes with being a pokemon trainer is really what I think the world of pokemon should be. Of course, that doesn't mean that the world I am writing about is the manga verse. It's just that I want to pay a tribute to the Pokemon Adventures manga, the reason why I love pokemon as much as I do now, and this is my own way of doing so.

As usual, hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Character and pokemon list:

Nova Labelle, Age: 26, Female, Ground Specialist, Historian, Niece of Lysandre

Pokemon on hand:

1. Mamoswine (Berg), Male

2. Golem (Crust), Female

3. Excadrill (Solid), Male

4. Golurk (Drift), Genderless

5. Garchomp (Core), Male

6. Claydol (Vision), Genderless

7. Whiscash (Seis), Male

8. Marowak (Tinen), Female

9. Torterra (Terra), Female

10. Gigalith (Mantle), Male

11. Tyrantrum (Jaws), Male

12. Aurorus (Sail), Female

13. Sandile (Rumble), Male

14. Unknown creature, self-proclaimed Zygarde (Blob), ?