Hey everyone! I finally finished Chapter 30! Due to a combination of being busy with schoolwork and a case of writers block, this took a lot longer than I expected. I have to say, I'm glad I can finally put up a new chapter for all my readers. I hope you'll all enjoy it!
Chapter 30: You really do have natural talent as a leader!
It was late at night, and most Pokémon in Fenix Town were asleep. However, for Elina, this was an opportunity to have some telepathy lessons with Kala while none of the rescue teams were around. After she'd finally figured out how to relax and project her thoughts, they'd managed to make a lot of progress with the lessons. While their lessons had mostly consisted of asking each other and answering simple questions, Kala felt like trying something a little bit different this time.
"… And then you have to say a different Pokémon that has something in common with the Pokémon I described, and then describe a quality that Pokémon possesses," Kala explained. "We keep doing this until one of us can't think of a Pokémon that matches the trait the other described, understood?"
Elina nodded her head slightly.
"All right… Let's do this," Kala said, and switched to telepathy as she began the game. "Even though it's late at night, the Noctowl doesn't mind. Because the Noctowl goes hunting when it's dark, just like…"
"… a Sneasel?" Elina suggested, before quickly continuing when Kala nodded her head. "Yes, the Sneasel-y Sneasel goes hunting when it's dark, and it's sneaky and quiet like…"
"… a Luxio!" Kala responded, smirking as she continued. "The Luxio is sneaky and quiet when it goes hunting, but can shine so very brightly just like…"
"… a Chinchou!" Elina replied. "The Chinchou shines brightly, lighting up the ocean floor. It feels at home there in the sea, just like…"
"… a Clamperl," Kala responded, thinking for a short moment before continuing. "The Clamperl feels at home in the sea, although it usually stays still. But that's okay, because it has a tough shell to protect it just like…"
"… a Metapod!" Elina replied, smiling. "The Metapod is protected by a tough shell and daydreams all day long. It dreams of the day it'll be able to fly, just like…"
"… a Bagon!" Kala responded, smirking. "The Bagon dreams of growing wings so that it can learn to fly. It has a hard head to protect it when it falls, just like…"
Elina blinked a few times, trying to think of something. Eventually, she just shook her head, and Kala just nodded slightly.
"… Seems I win this round," Kala communicated via telepathy, smiling at Elina. "You did really well, though."
"Oh, thanks, Kala!" Elina responded, nodding her head.
"Well, maybe that's enough telepathy training for tonight," Kala said, yawning. "You've really improved at this in the past few days…"
"Yes, I guess I have," Elina responded via telepathy, seeming proud of herself. "I'm really glad you're teaching me, Kala."
Kala nodded her head, and then plopped down onto her pillow and fell asleep. Elina figured Kala had used quite a bit of energy on the telepathy lessons, and now needed her rest. Since it was so late, there wasn't really any point in waking her up anyways. Elina then realized that she too needed to find a place to sleep for tonight.
"You still here, Elina…?" Kala asked, seeming to be talking in her sleep. "You can stay here for tonight, if you'd like… I don't mind…"
Elina was surprised at this, but gladly accepted Kala's offer and lay down on the floor next to her. It was better than sleeping outside, she thought to herself as she fell asleep.
Chiaki woke up the next morning to discover that Blitz seemed to be sitting in a corner with his eyes closed, whispering something while holding the silver rescue team badge in his paws. Chiaki tried listening, but couldn't quite make out what Blitz was saying. He did think it sounded kind of like Blitz was trying to give himself a pep-talk, though. Chiaki also thought he heard Blitz mention Sera's name a few times.
"… Blitz, what are you doing?" Chiaki asked, smiling at the Shinx.
Blitz gave a startled yell, and his fur shone brightly for a moment, before Blitz calmed down.
"Ah… Don't startle me like that," Blitz said, sighing.
"Sorry!" Chiaki responded, rubbing his eyes. "Good morning, by the way!"
"Good morning," Blitz replied, attaching the badge back onto the treasure bag. "So… ready to head out?"
"Yeah, I'm ready!" Chiaki responded, with a cheerful smile.
The two of them headed outside and began heading into the town, Blitz carrying the treasure bag with the rescue team badge on it. It felt a bit weird carrying these things, and Blitz wasn't sure how he felt about being a rescue team leader, even if it was only until Sera was feeling better. At least being the leader of a rescue team wasn't the same as being the leader of a Luxray pride.
How different would it be from the missions they'd been on so far, though? He wasn't entirely sure about that. While he probably did have a bit more knowledge on these things than Sera did, which was why she often looked to him for advice, surely things would be different when he actually had to be the leader?
He thought about it while he and Chiaki were going around the town plaza, making some preparations for today's missions, before beginning to head over to the HQ to meet up with their teammates. On the way there, they ran into a certain Gothorita.
"Hi!" Bow said, happily waving at the two.
"Oh, hi Bow," Blitz responded, smiling at her. "What are you doing out here?"
"Um… I forgot," Bow replied, shrugging her shoulders slightly. "What about you guys? I'm guessing you're on your way to the HQ?"
"That's right!" Chiaki said, nodding his head.
"Yeah, that's where we're going," Blitz said, glancing around. "Sera and Azure might already be waiting for us there, so…"
"Oh, that's okay!" Bow responded, nodding her head. "We can talk later! Also, I just remembered what it was I was supposed to do, so I better go do that before I forget again!"
"Thanks, Bow," Blitz replied, smiling at her.
Bow ran off into town, and Blitz and Chiaki headed up to the HQ. As they went inside, they soon spotted Sera and Azure talking to each other, while other rescue teams were looking at the bulletin boards.
"Hi, girls," Blitz said, walking up to them.
"Oh, hey there, Blitz!" Sera responded, smiling at him.
"Feeling a little better today?" Blitz asked.
"I guess so," Sera replied, shrugging slightly.
"That's good," Blitz responded, nodding his head.
"What about you, Blitz?" Sera asked, tilting her head slightly. "Are you ready for this?"
"Yeah," Blitz replied, glancing at the rescue team badge. "I have the badge and I know how to use it… Got some items that might be useful… We just need to pick out some missions to do."
They waited for some of the rescue teams to move away from the board, before walking up to it and seeing which missions were posted up on the bulletin board. As usual, there were requests from Pokémon needing to be rescued, needing a particular item to be retrieved, or having someone escort them to a certain point within a dungeon. It wasn't too difficult for Blitz to pick out a few missions.
"These look good," Blitz said, looking over the three missions he had picked out.
"Wow, that was fast," Azure commented.
"Uh, thanks," Blitz responded, showing the missions to his three teammates. "So, what do you guys think?"
"Yeah, they look good to me," Azure responded, nodding slightly.
"I agree!" Chiaki said, with his usual cheerful smile.
Sera just smiled and nodded her head.
"Okay, then…" Blitz said, taking a deep breath. "First, we must find an item on the tenth floor, and then we must rescue two Pokémon on floor twelve and fourteen."
"All right, let's go!" Azure said, grinning. "Another adventure, here we come!"
And so they headed over to Kala's room, and were quickly teleported to the mystery dungeon where their missions awaited.
Stella was looking into the chest where the four Axis Tower crystals that had been retrieved were currently being kept for safety, looking somewhat concerned as she closed the lid and locked the chest. She looked out the window, knowing that it was about time she told the Pokémon of Fenix Town how their current situation was linked to something that had happened a long time ago.
As she was standing there, thinking to herself, Bow returned from her errand.
"I'm back!" Bow said, cheerfully running up to her mother.
"Ah, welcome back," Stella responded, patting Bow on the head. "Did you do what I asked you to?"
"Uh-huh!" Bow replied, nodding her head.
"Good girl," Stella responded, giving a small smile. "Now that you're back, there's something I wanted to talk to you about."
"Oh?" Bow said, tilting her head slightly. "Is this about why you've been so worried lately?"
"Yes," Stella responded, nodding her head. "I will soon inform the other Pokémon in Fenix Town about what is going on, but I wanted to tell you first."
"Why?" Bow asked, looking up at her mother.
"Because of something that happened in the past," Stella explained, motioning for Bow to sit down. "Did I ever tell you about Cassandra?"
"Um… I don't remember," Bow responded, thinking for a moment. "Was she… one of the previous town oracles?"
"Yes, exactly," Stella replied, telekinetically picking up some old scrolls. "Listen closely, as the way the Pokémon of this town live their lives was in many ways a direct result of these events in the past."
Blitz didn't feel entirely comfortable leading the rescue team as they made their way deeper into the mystery dungeon, but he kept reminding himself it was only temporary. Having the knowledge and skills, being the rescue team leader wasn't at all very difficult for the young Shinx. However, if anything, the fact that he was good at it only made Blitz feel even more uncomfortable about it. After all, it could just be another sign that destiny could not be fought, and he just had to accept what was decided for him.
Once again Blitz had to take a deep breath, and remind himself that being a leader of a rescue team and being the leader of a Luxray pride were two very different things. He was just doing this to help Sera, and so he just had to try to not let it bother him.
"We're nearly at the tenth floor," Blitz said, glancing back at his teammates. "Remember to keep an eye out for a Persim Band once we get there!"
"Okay!" Chiaki responded, nodding his head.
"Understood," Azure replied, briefly turning around and firing a Bubble Beam at a wild Pokémon following behind them. "Heh, thought it could sneak up on us, huh? Not when I'm around!"
Sera wasn't sure why, but for some reason, she felt… lighter. It could've just been because she wasn't carrying the treasure bag full of items like she normally did on missions, but she knew there was more to it than that. When she had admitted to Blitz that she wasn't fit to be the leader of the rescue team, she had thought she would be feeling really bad about it. And it did feel bad to begin with, but now… Sera couldn't explain it, but she felt really relieved.
For a long time, Sera had wanted to prove that she wasn't just a little kid. She wanted to prove that she had the maturity, intelligence and strength to be the leader of a rescue team, but who was it she was trying to prove this to? She wasn't sure if she knew the answer to that question anymore. She was confused about a lot of things now, but felt as if things would soon be much clearer.
"It's like… I've opened the door leading to a whole new path, just waiting for me to explore it," Sera thought, and couldn't help but smile. "As I explore it, maybe I'll find my answers."
Right now, Sera didn't feel that she needed to prove anything to anyone. She could just go on missions, explore and have fun with her friends. It would've been nice if things could just stay like that for a while, but she had to take Blitz's feelings into consideration. He didn't seem entirely comfortable with the whole leader thing, which she figured had to do with his own insecurities about what was expected of him.
Blitz had told her he was okay with being the leader of the rescue team until Sera was ready to take back the position, but was it really okay to let Blitz do this?
"There's the stairs!" Chiaki exclaimed.
"Yes, I see them," Blitz responded, briefly glancing around to see if there were any items nearby, before they all headed up the stairs to the next floor.
As they began looking around for the Persim Band, Chiaki couldn't help but quietly observe Blitz and Sera. It seemed as if things were getting better between the two of them, although it was a bit difficult to really tell how they were feeling. Chiaki wasn't sure if there was anything he could do, but he wanted to help more if he could. Chiaki wondered if his friendship with Elina had been anything like the friendship between Blitz and Sera, and felt a bit saddened by the fact that he couldn't remember how it really felt.
Sure, he had made many friends since meeting Blitz and Sera, and he felt he could talk to Elina about a lot of things, but he wondered if there might be something more to having a best friend.
"Guys, you hear that?" Azure asked, her ears twitching slightly. "I think I hear… snoring?"
As they moved over to the next room, they noticed the Persim Band they were looking for on the ground. However, there was a sleeping wild Pokémon right next to it, a pink sheep with white wool around its neck. The Flaaffy was sitting on the floor, with its back leaning against a wall.
"So… How are we going to get the item without waking up the Flaaffy?" Azure asked.
"I doubt it's possible to do without a Sneak Scarf," Blitz responded.
"Do we have one of those?" Chiaki asked, glancing at the treasure bag.
"No," Blitz replied, shaking his head. "However, it shouldn't be too hard to knock it out quickly for the four of us."
"Okay, what's the plan, then?" Azure asked, with a confident smirk.
"I'll sneak up to it first, since both it and I are electric types, and thus I resist its attacks," Blitz explained, looking over at Sera. "Sera, I want you to use your Helping Hand to increase the power of our attacks."
"Okay, Blitz!" Sera responded, nodding her head.
"Azure, you can try attacking from a distance with your Bubble Beam attack," Blitz said, looking over at Azure. "That way, you won't risk being affected by the effects of the Flaaffy's Static ability."
"No problem," Azure replied, grinning.
"And Chiaki, you can come with me," Blitz said. "Try grabbing the Persim Band while I try to get the Flaaffy's attention, and use Detect to dodge its attacks if necessary."
"Sure, I can do that!" Chiaki responded, nodding slightly.
Blitz began moving closer to the Flaaffy, Chiaki following closely behind. The two tried to move as quietly as they could, while Sera prepared to use her Helping Hand to make her teammates' attacks stronger. It didn't take long before they had gotten close enough that the Flaaffy woke up. Blitz quickly tackled the Flaaffy to the ground, while Chiaki went to pick up the Persim Band. The Flaaffy gave an angry bleat, and pushed Blitz aside. Sparks of electricity flew from the Flaaffy's wool as it prepared to attack, but Blitz was only concerned with keeping the electric sheep's attention on him.
Chiaki had managed to pick up the Persim Band while Blitz kept the wild Flaaffy distracted, and was soon ready to assist Blitz in fighting the sheep Pokémon. The fight was over in just a few moments, and they could put the Persim Band into the treasure bag and move on to the next floor.
"That was pretty awesome, Blitz!" Chiaki said, smiling.
"Oh, um… It really wasn't anything special," Blitz responded, glancing around. "Just basic stuff about how the Pokémon types work, and taking advantage of it… The kind of thing most Pokémon know, really."
"If you say so…" Chiaki replied, tilting his head slightly. "I still thought it was cool, though."
"Uh-huh…" Blitz responded. "We've still got two more missions in this dungeon, so let's keep going, shall we?"
The rescue team continued moving onto the next floor, and Blitz asked Azure to listen closely for the first of the two Pokémon they had to rescue. With Azure's help, it didn't take long before they knew which direction would likely lead them to the lost Pokémon fastest. Blitz quickly led his teammates through the maze to where the lost Pokémon was, and used the rescue team badge to teleport it out of the dungeon.
"Okay, one more to go," Blitz said, with a slight smile. "Let's go, guys!"
They kept on moving, Blitz leading the way as they moved towards the next floor.
"Hey, am I imagining it, or does it seem like Blitz is actually enjoying this a little bit?" Azure whispered to Chiaki.
"I think so too," Chiaki whispered back, glancing over his shoulder at Azure. "Things are going really well, after all."
"Sera seems to be feeling pretty good too, doesn't she?" Azure asked.
"Yeah, it seems that way," Chiaki replied, smiling. "Things are looking up for us, aren't they?"
"What are you two whispering about?" Sera asked, glancing at Chiaki and Azure behind her.
"Oh, it's nothing!" Azure responded, grinning.
They soon reached the next floor, and looked around as usual. Finding a Reviver Seed, only to realize their treasure bag was already full, they had to have a brief discussion about which item to swap it for. Taking the Reviver Seed while leaving a Pecha berry they had picked up earlier behind, they continued making their way through the maze. Blitz suddenly stopped near another room, listening closely.
"… Azure, do you hear that?" Blitz asked, looking over at his teammates.
"Yeah, it sounds like there's a lot of wild Pokémon just head," Azure responded.
"I don't think they've noticed us yet, so let's take a few moments to prepare before going in there," Blitz said, rubbing his paws against the ground and charging up some electricity.
"Oh, you mean use the attacks we know to increase our strength?" Sera asked, smiling and nodding her head. "Okay, I understand!"
While Blitz continued charging electricity to increase his defense from special attacks and increase the strength of his own electric attacks, Sera started using her Helping Hand to power up her three teammates. Chiaki closed his eyes and took a deep breath, meditating for a moment to increase his attack power. Azure simply just curled up into a ball in order to increase her defense.
Once they were all ready, they headed into the room to deal with the wild Pokémon in there. After the battle, one of the wild Pokémon dropped a small red treasure chest-shaped box upon being knocked out by Azure's Slam attack.
"We should take this back to town and have Bijou open it for us," Blitz said, looking through the treasure bag to figure out if there were any items they could use up or leave behind in order to make room for it.
"I hope there's something good in there!" Azure commented, grinning.
"You know, the treasure boxes are smaller than I expected," Chiaki said, tilting his head slightly. "Then again, I suppose if they were much bigger, we wouldn't be able to fit them in the bag…"
Once Blitz had made room for it and put the treasure box into the bag, they could keep moving on to the next floor and begin looking for the second Pokémon they had to rescue in order to finish their last mission for the day.
As she finished telling the story, Stella gave Bow some time to let it all sink in. There was a lot to take in, and understanding how it was all connected. Bow stared with wide eyes up at her mother, and seemed to be trying her best to remember everything and properly put all the pieces together.
"So… That's why so many buildings in this town are made of stone..." Bow said, tapping her hand against the side of her chin.
"Yes, indeed," Stella responded, nodding her head. "Like I said before, a lot of the things that happened back then had a major impact on how we live our lives in this town today."
"Cassandra was really awesome," Bow said, looking up at her mother. "It's almost a little hard to believe that I'm related to her."
"What do you mean by that?" Stella asked.
"I'm such a scatterbrain," Bow responded, sighing. "There's no way someone as forgetful as me would ever make a good town oracle."
"Everyone has their flaws, Bow," Stella replied, smiling at her daughter. "Just because you're a little forgetful, it doesn't mean you won't be a good town oracle."
"Yes, it does!" Bow responded. "I mean, how am I supposed to help Pokémon if I can't even remember my own visions? And writing things down doesn't help, because I'll just forget I did so or where I left my notes!"
"I understand that must be frustrating, dear," Stella replied, patting Bow's shoulder.
"No, you don't understand what it's like…" Bow said, sighing. "I really do try not to lose my focus, and remember what I'm told and what I've seen, but… I'm hopeless, really."
"Bow, you are far from hopeless," Stella responded. "In fact, I think you've been getting better at keeping your focus on things lately."
"You really think so?" Bow asked, looking up at Stella. "Or are you just saying that because you're my mom?"
"I really do mean it," Stella replied, embracing her daughter. "Sure, you tend to get distracted and forget what is currently on your mind at times, but when it's something important, you don't lose track of it."
"What do you mean?" Bow inquired, tilting her head slightly.
"You were there to lend Blitz an ear when he needed someone to talk to, right?" Stella asked, smiling at Bow. "And because you were able to understand the way he felt, you showed him that he was not as alone as he thought he was."
"Huh… I guess so," Bow responded, thinking about it for a moment. "We talked about our feelings about the future, and our destinies…"
"Exactly," Stella replied, nodding her head. "You were able to reassure the young Shinx and show him that he was not the only one with concerns about the future. I'd say that shows you have potential to be a great town oracle someday."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Bow said, blushing slightly.
"Trust me, you have what it takes," Stella responded. "Even if there are some things that are difficult for you now, if you just keep working to overcome them a little by little, I'm certain you'll come far."
"Sounds like it might take a while, though," Bow commented.
"And that's perfectly fine," Stella replied, smiling. "Pokémon mature at different rates, after all."
"I guess so," Bow responded, nodding her head slightly. "Thanks."
"Just believe in yourself," Stella said, patting Bow's shoulder. "You're stronger than you think."
"Okay, I'll keep trying," Bow replied, tilting her head. "So, um… About Cassandra, and the other stuff… I have a few questions."
"Go ahead, ask anything you'd like to know," Stella responded.
After finishing their last mission for the day, Blitz and his teammates returned to the rescue team HQ and received their rewards from the missions. With not enough space in the treasure bag for it all, most of it ended up being sent to their item storage box at Lionel's item warehouse. Then it was time for Azure to go help her mother at the café, while Sera had to get home in time for dinner. After saying good-bye to the girls, Blitz and Chiaki began heading home as well.
"Wow, I'm so impressed with how you handled those missions today!" Chiaki said, smiling at Blitz. "You really do have natural talent as a leader!"
"Uh… Chiaki, please don't say things like that," Blitz responded, looking rather uncomfortable and staring down at the ground.
"Oh, sorry," Chiaki replied, remembering how Blitz felt about it. "So, what are we doing tomorrow? Aside from more missions, I guess."
"Well, we need to sort through our items, so we have what we need and still have room for more useful items we might find in dungeons," Blitz responded. "Also, we need to have Bijou open that treasure box we found."
"Oh, that's right!" Chiaki said, nodding his head. "What do you think is inside that treasure box?"
"I don't know," Blitz replied, shrugging slightly. "It might be something useful, but we'll see what it is once Bijou has opened it for us."
"I can't wait!" Chiaki commented, grinning.
The two Pokémon soon returned to their home, and went to sleep. New adventures would await them tomorrow, but for now it was just a regular night.
…
At least, for the two of them it was.
Bow was still awake, staring up at the starry sky. She attempted to see if the stars would hold any answers about the future, while also thinking about what she had been told before about the past. She was wondering if there was a chance that history might repeat itself, even if Cassandra and the other Pokémon who lived during that time had taken some precautions to prevent that. Still, if they had really wanted to prevent that, they could've told Pandora to better plan out something in case the magic spell she had used eventually wore off or was broken.
At the very least, Pandora had made sure that she would have a successor before moving on to the next world, and that everything she had learned about magic was written down, including the instructions for the spell she had used to seal away their enemy.
"She may have been good with magic, but I don't think she can possibly have thought things through," Bow whispered to herself, still looking up at the starry sky. "She should've asked Cassandra and the others to help her think of something…"
Bow glanced over at her mother, who was currently asleep.
"I should ask mom to include something about that in her next letter for Samara," Bow commented, before turning her gaze back to the stars. "Just so she won't make the same mistake."
Bow yawned and laid down to sleep, hoping she would remember to bring this up to her mother tomorrow. However, a few minutes after falling asleep, Bow suddenly got up and quietly made her way outside. Slowly, but surely, she got further away from the stone building. Suddenly, she stopped and looked around at her surroundings, with a confused look on her face.
"Huh? When did I get out here?" Bow wondered, tilting her head slightly. "Did I go here in my sleep?"
Bow looked around, but there wasn't much to see. It was dark outside, and the area was eerily quiet.
"… I should hurry back home," Bow muttered, and turned around.
After taking a few steps back in the direction she came from, she suddenly felt something wrapping itself around her leg. She looked down to see what appeared to be a thin shadowy tentacle coming out of the ground.
"What's that?" Bow said, grabbing onto her leg and trying to pull it out of the tentacles' hold.
As she struggled to free herself, an eerie laugh began echoing through the area.
"Let me go!" Bow shouted, feeling a bit panicked and trying to pull harder. However, more tentacles soon emerged from the ground, and before Bow could scream for help, one of them had wrapped around her head and covered her mouth.
"I finally caught you…" a voice from behind Bow said, and the Gothorita was able to turn her head slightly to see a Sigilyph hovering behind her. "Hello there, Bow. I'm guessing you've recently learned who I really am?"
Bow stood there frozen in terror, wondering just what was going to happen to her now…
End of chapter 30.