No more prologues.
No more warnings.
No more second chances.
That's the kind of monster I am.
A Mid-Sinnoh Night's Dream - XXVIII - And The Demon Said...
"Then… I'll see you later, Shaymin." Hilbert nodded to the levitating Legendary.
"Sooner than later, hopefully. What will you do?"
"I'm going to head back. To be honest… I don't know. I…"
"Remember, you have the others. Never forget that."
"Well, don't make it sound like it'll be forever. I had enough of that with Abra. Heh…"
"I'll get back to you as soon as I can."
"I hope you do." He bent forward, offering his hand, to which Shaymin replied with their front paw. The two shook.
Shaymin floated backwards, drifting into the wind limply, before falling back to the ground. "I can feel nature's power draining by the minute. We don't have much time left."
"Then it's now or never. Get going, Shaymin. Don't worry about the could-haves, if-onlys, maybe-ifs-"
"Save your quotes for later. We have work to do." Green shards of light began floating from the air as Shaymin disappeared into the black miasma, leaving nary a trace.
Hilbert plucked one of these shards out of the air, examining the weightless glass, before it too, faded, leaving only his outstretched hand. It formed into a fist, and the muscles in his jaw tightened.
"Right."
He returned to the Pokemon Center in Sandgem, looking over the scattered trainers, wild Pokemon, and villagers scuttling about in the dim makeshift shelter. Dust caked the floor where people had entered and tracked in a thousand directions. A Bidoof dyed black, a Starly pecking muck out of its feathers, a Glameow pattering over it all, well-groomed as ever.
Wait a minute.
His mother didn't care about the wild tears in his jacket, or the burn marks, or the streaks of red running across arms. Rather, she simply engulfed him in a hug and left the rest unsaid.
"My baby… my Hilby…" She cried into his ruined coat as she stroked his hair, much like she'd done when he first met Golurk.
"I'm fine, Mom." He tentatively gave into the hug, letting Glameow pace around between his legs. "Really, you should see the other guy…" He half-joked. "I'm sorry I walked off when you stopped me earlier."
"...I was shocked… I've never seen something so… so…"
"I know. I'm sorry."
After a few minutes, she composed herself, and wiped the tears out of her eyes with a dusted sleeve. "...I'm at a loss for words. I can't think of anything to say…"
"You don't have to, I'll handle it. Really, Mom, I promise."
"How can you handle something like this?" She sobbed, face stained.
"Just… put your trust in me. That's all I need right now."
"..."
He patted her on the shoulder a few more times, before crouching down to pet Glameow. It avoided his callused hands at first, before nuzzling into his palm.
"I'll see you guys soon. I need to talk with someone."
The others had left Lucas's room long before, likely to get some actual rest, leaving the two boys alone when Hilbert slipped in. He was sitting upright, propped up with a pile of pillows. On his bedside were a can of soda, a Poffin, one of Chansey's eggs, a protein bar, and lastly, a bar of chocolate resting on a letter.
The bedridden boy looked at him dryly. "Got rid of that anger?"
"Hell no. But that's not important right now. It's been a few hours, how're you feeling now?"
"Still can't feel my leg. Sort of itches, sort of doesn't. It's weird, but I'll get used to it."
"It wasn't fair what happened to you," Hilbert said, attempting to silently sit down on a nearby chair.
"I know." Lucas stopped, then sighed. "Life does that sometimes, I guess. Didn't this all start with some grunts trying to mug the Professor?"
"I guess that's true."
Lucas leaned back, well, as much as he could, while looking at the ceiling. "That was a while ago. Guess I won't see anything like that for a while."
"Don't talk like that."
"I'm not trying to be depressing. I'll accept it eventually."
"You shouldn't have to. I should have…"
"It's fine, now."
There was silence in the room, until it was broken by Hilbert's words, light hidden from his eyes.
"Bad news. I have a really dumb idea."
"As you have many times before."
"I need you to trust me."
"What are you planning?"
"Where's Team Galactic's headquarters?"
"...Hilby, no."
"If you don't tell me, I'll look it up myself."
"...It's in Veilstone."
"That's all I need to know," he said, pushing himself up in the blink of an eye.
"Hilby, no. I know how powerful Jupiter is. I don't think you can defeat her, let alone the other two."
"LIke that matters." He turned his back on Lucas. "I need you to put your trust in me."
"You need to calm down and think rationally!" Lucas nearly yelled, before breaking out into a coughing fit.
"I'm completely calm, Lucas. I know what I have to do. I've got my own brand of rationality, but I need you to believe in it for it to work," he said, still turning towards the door. "This will be the last time."
"You swear?"
"..."
"Hilby."
"Lucas."
"..."
"..."
"...Will you at least tell the others?"
"I don't want them to get worried."
"And yet, you're telling me- You're not making sense!"
"It's directly affected you the most."
"You don't speak for me. You need to stop doing these things, Hilby. We've done all we can do, it's time to step back."
"See, that's the thing. I can't. I feel like if I ever stop, I'm going to explode. I need to go and do what needs doing."
"It's not your responsibility, you had nothing to do with-"
"Doesn't matter. Lucas."
"You'll hurt yourself. You're already hurt! I mean, didn't you ever stop to get patched up?"
He looked down at his torn clothes and the red blotting what scraps remained.
"Maybe I am being selfish. Ah. It's too late now. I've got this power, Lucas. With great power comes great responsibility, or however the line goes. Team Galactic is making a hell out of the world right now, and at this point, there aren't many people who can stop it."
"You want me to have faith in you, but you won't even have faith in others?"
Hilbert's breath caught for just the slightest hint of a second.
"I… I'll be real with you. I'm not a hero. I don't care if I'm a hypocrite. I have to do this because I can do it, and therefore I should. If people and Pokemon are getting hurt, I don't care if someone else can help them, because I'll be there first. I know that's a really loose definition of right and wrong, and I know that you could easily turn me around into being the villain of another story, but I don't really care about any of that. I'm going to help people to the best of my ability. The only reason I'm asking you is… I don't think I have a tether otherwise. I'm burning up right now, but if you say stay, I'll stay."
"Stay."
"That was a lie."
"I hate you so much."
And yet, Hilbert didn't move an inch.
"Please. Let me do this."
"You'll have people waiting for you."
"Then I'll come back as soon as I can."
"But what if you don't? What then?"
"It's better to think positively and have a chance than to think negatively and have none at all."
Lucas grit his teeth. "What. Then?"
"Then I'll feel sorry for as long as I can."
"...We're following 'Never Say Die', aren't we?"
"You're becoming genre-savvy. Congratulations." Hilbert gave a singular clap. "At the very worst, I'll get sealed inside some fox or sword or something."
"Going off that logic…"
"Plot armor, if you've already guessed."
"Arceus-damn you, Hilby."
"Ah, just one more thing."
"You're not Columbo."
"Hey, don't call me that! Call me bro! ...But seriously, I have to kill the mood before I leave. I do think it's funny that you've picked up the habit of swearing by a deity you Sinnohvans don't swear by."
"That's your fault- You know what? I literally can't stop you. I appreciate the thought of you asking me, but it would be wrong for me to restrict you, even if I think it's a better idea."
"Just make sure you cite me in your research papers."
"What?"
"What, you can't see it? You'll become the next Professor, Barry'll become the Champion, Dawn's going to be the Top Coordinator, Cheryl's the next Indiana Jones, Marley's… probably going to be a Frontier Brain, and Riley will probably be just like me."
"So what, you're precognitive now?"
"See the future? Oh, no, not me. It just makes sense."
"Things only end up like that in TV shows where the endings have to make sense."
"Again, you've got to be genre-savvy."
"But we're not in a-"
"Yeah, yeah, forget about it. I'll be back."
"You suck at goodbyes."
"That's the thing; It's never goodbye. It just takes a while to meet again."
Hilbert opened the door, letting the dim light of the overhead slip into the room, creating a haloed silhouette.
"You know, this is probably symbolic of something."
"Go kick some ass, bro."
Hilbert flashed a thumbs-up back at him, before he stepped out completely.
"Looker. Evacuate Veilstone. Get everyone out of there."
The man on the other side of the line paused, surprised at the sudden demand.
"We're already sending people to the Galactic Headquarters," he began, "They've crossed a line, and the United Regions is calling in emergency squads."
"Get them out too. Everyone. There's not going to be a Veilstone in a few hours."
"...Excuse me, Black, are you intending to commit an act of terrorism?"
"No, not quite. More of a premeditated side effect. I just thought I'd call you beforehand."
"I appreciate the thought, but they're going to interrogate you if you do."
"Fantastic. Let me fix this shit first, alright?"
"Where exactly are you?"
"Well, see, I decided to stop by the Lucario Kingdom on my way in. It's a real jog, you know? Took me an hour or two, but I'm still feeling a bit winded."
"It's 3:33. In the morning."
"If emergency services are still working, so am I. Agent Black, at your disposal."
He could almost hear Looker pinching the bridge of his nose and, in fact, did hear him sigh.
"Alright. I'll put in an alert, but I can't make any promises."
"It's not a promise, it's a threat. Wait, I think I got that backward."
"The higher-ups are going to have a field day with this audio log."
"Oh, in that case, let me leave a little treat for them."
He inhaled deeply, raising the receiver closer to his face.
"WHEN THE HELL AM I GETTING PAID?"
A few moments later, Looker returned to the frame, rubbing his ears.
"Think you could have held back?"
"I've got to get my kicks in somehow. Nice working with you, Looker."
"Same to you. Don't-"
"Never Say Die."
"...Right. I'm sure you've got a family to go back to. Make sure that you do."
Click.
"Eh, a found family is close enough," he said to himself. He looked over to Lucario, who had just emerged from the council room, Abra levitating along behind them. "Are you ready?"
"They're going to start distributing Mega Stones soon." And as she spoke, a gong rang out across the mountain, rippling through the smoky skies.
"So we have a headstart." Hilbert tapped his Pokeball belt, and waited for a reply. Sure enough, each of them shook, as if standing to attention.
"Hey, everyone. I think it's like, a military tradition to give a rousing speech before going into battle. If you don't mind, could you all come out?"
Golurk slammed onto the ground, beating his chest with one arm. Abra floated a bit to be adjacent to the massive golem. Tyranitar and Garchomp appeared in twin flashes, giving a hearty roar to the sky. And though Shaymin wasn't there, there was the tiniest scrap of a pink flower, still clinging to its stem on the blackened grass. Lucario walked over to the two pseudo-legendaries and crossed her arms. Whirlipede appeared, and rolled in a wide berth around them, before skidding to a stop next to them. Honedge spun into the air, blowing away the wind, before coming to a tranquil stop, perfectly vertical.
"Thank you. Now, I'm not used to giving badass speeches of my own. I usually paraphrase, as you all know."
"It's one of your more entertaining habits," Tyranitar remarked.
"I must agree," added Garchomp, craning its neck forward to nod.
"Thank you both. I'm glad to see you're finally getting screen time outside of a fight."
"There's one of your less entertaining habits. The TV metaphors are like sandpaper to my invaluable brain."
"And thank you, Abra, glad to have you back. Your sociopathy is indeed comedic."
"A staple, I must say."
"Thank you, Golurk. I'm glad you're putting in more effort than just saying Clank."
"That is just how you interpret it."
"Is it really?" Honedge shook slightly, as if signaling her doubt. "Because all I ever hear are gears shifting."
"Caught."
"Ah. How unfortunate."
"And thank you, Honedge, I hope your sense of justice is satisfied."
"Oh, now you care about ideals."
"Your ideals include punching me in the face when I call you short, All Star."
"Aren't you going to thank me for something?"
"You do need to fit the formula," Abra added.
"Agreed," Golurk nodded.
And so did the two pseudo-legendaries, as well as the floating three-meter sword.
Whirlipede did a little spin on the ground.
"Ah, fine. Thank you for teaching me about aura, even if it took a while for me to get it."
"You're welcome!" She spat out, somehow sounding condescending. Must have been a trick of the light, because he was fairly certain Lucario physiology didn't allow them to look smug.
"And…" Hilbert kneeled down to… not-quite eye level with Whirlipede, but enough to show that he was making an effort. "Thank you." He tapped it on the shell with a knuckle. "I don't know if you can appreciate it, but you're still part of the team. Thanks for that."
The eyes on the side of the wheel-like bug flickered, before it spun two measures, giving an affirmative.
"And that's everyone. Shaymin might be able to catch up with us, but if not; Let's give it all we got, alright? Tyranitar, Garchomp- I'm not the most observant guy, but uh, would you two happen to have a few eggs to get back to?"
They did some sort of charade after he asked, with Tyranitar waving its arms around and Garchomp punching the air, but neither said anything so he couldn't get any meaning out of it.
"Well, fight like you do. Team Galactic has the power of three Legendaries on their side now, and they're hoping to capture more. Sinnoh can't afford any more losses. I know only two of you are natives, but I hope you can understand what I'm saying. Uh, let me try something. A rallying cry. I'll borrow some of it."
And with that, he cleared his throat.
"I'm a badass."
"Are you serious?"
"Say the line, Abra."
"Fine."
"I'm a badass." The Pokemon echoed.
"I'll fight for myself."
"I'll fight for myself."
"I'll fight for our friends."
"We'll fight for our friends."
"I'll fight for everyone and everything good in the world."
"We'll fight for everyone and everything good in the world."
"For as long as I can stand!"
"For as long as we can stand!"
"We're Team Black!"
"We're Team Black!"
"If a wall stands in our way, we smash it down!"
"If a wall stands in our way, we smash it down!"
"If there's an invisible path, we see it!"
"If there's an invisible path, we see it!"
"If there's an unbreakable obstacle, we push through until there's nothing left!"
"If there's an unbreakable obstacle, we push through until there's nothing left!"
"If there's an impossibility, we make it a possibility! OF ONE-HUNDRED PERCENT!"
"If there's an impossibility, we make it possible! ONE-HUNDRED PERCENT!"
They yelled together, their voices melding together and bounding far and wide.
"AND THEN, WE'LL SHOUT TOWARDS THE HEAVENS; JUST WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK WE ARE?"
A light shone, burning bright in their souls, and the world itself seemed to tremble.
Hilbert whipped to the side, looking off into the distance and pointing towards the shadow of Veilstone. As the Pokemon roared, Golurk turned a violent, jagged red, and sheer bluish-green pulsed outwards in a spiral, cutting through the black fog.
"WATCH OUT, YOU BASTARDS! WE'RE COMING FOR YOU!"
AN:
Next chapter will come out next week, I promise. The finale…. Hopefully soon after that. Feel free to engage in wild mass guessing in the reviews. Also, we have a TVtropes page. Please add to that. I'll go more in-depth about my feelings on this fic in the epilogue.
Thank you for reading my little dream of drills and companionship.