Note: Sorry for the late upload, got busy yesterday. As always, enjoy. I might also have a little Q and A chapter in between this and the next arc. If ya'll have any questions about the fic, or good 'ole me, feel free to ask in the comments.
Sinnoh Chapter 3: A Whistling Woman and a Murkrow Hen…
"Did… did anyone else see that?" Ash asked, pointing towards the woods.
"Huh? I didn't see anything…" Dawn said, looking amongst the dense trees and bushes. The other trainers looked towards the forest as well. They didn't see a thing.
"I think you're seeing things, Ash."
"It might have just been a wild Pokémon…" Platinum said.
"It's alright senior Ash, Dia's scared of his own shadow too," Pearl said.
"No I'm not. Well… maybe just a little."
"See?" Pearl exclaimed. "Nothing to be ashamed about! Now…" That's when he saw it too. The dark essence, passing through the trees.
"Ahh! I saw it," Pearl said, rushing next to Diamond. "I saw it in the trees!"
"You saw what?" Platinum asked, the concern in her voice growing.
"No it's…" Pearl lost his voice.
"It looked like a trainer," Ash said. "...but it… I don't know."
The trainers scanned the treeline, the mysterious presence nowhere in sight. A handful of Starly and Kricketot stood in the forest. Platinum noticed that the pokémon seemed off. They were examining the area too, their senses on high alert.
They saw it too… she thought, before the immediate area was shrouded in darkness.
It came from above the trainers, blocking the sunlight as it leaped from the tree tops, hurtling towards them.
"Out of the way!" Ash screamed as the group dispersed. It landed with a loud crash, dust and a blackened hue erupting from the point of impact. A cloud of darkened debris shrouded the aggressor.
"Be ready…" Ash said, reaching for a pokeball. Pikachu, Piplup and Empoleon lined up in front of the trainers, awaiting their command. Soon the dust settled, revealing a nightmare.
It was, or at least might have once been, a human, But instead of human skin and clothing, it was composed of a garish, dark swirl of blackened energy, similar to the substance that they found on the Pachirisu. It had arms and legs like a human, a particularly short one, and it had eyes, ears, and a nose. But it lacked a mouth, just an empty space of the dark essence laying underneath the rest of its facial features. After the initial shock the trainers then noticed that something was sitting on her shoulder. It was a small creature, with a pointed head, hooked beak, and it seemed to have wings folded up against the rest of its body. It could almost be identified as a Murkrow, if it wasn't also made up of the black essence. It moved like it was wide awake, yet its eyes were closed.
"Dia… what is that?" Pearl said.
"I… I don't…" Diamond stuttered, fumbling for a pokeball.
"Alright everyone, just stay calm," Dawn said, her focus dead set on the mysterious creature.
"Hey there, what do you want?" She asked loudly, almost screaming at the mysterious creature, not even knowing if it was a human trainer and their pokémon.
Where's my mum? I want to see my mum. Dawn could hear it, the voice of a little girl, worming its way inside her head.
"What? Your mom?!" She had no idea how to respond.
"Dawn!?" Ash didn't have a clue as to how to react to this thing on its own, and now Dawn was saying things out of the blue.
Where is she? Did she leave me? Now he heard it too, the invasive presence reaching into his mind. It was like speaking to Red, but whereas he could feel the multitude of emotions in Red's voice, just as if he were talking to anybody else, this was… different. It was like listening to the echo of a person, a sign that someone was there, but indeterminately far off.
"Are you lost, child?" Platinum asked, moving up to Empoleon.
"She's speaking to you too…" Ash looked back to the other trainers. They all nodded.
"We can help you, but you need to tell us who you are," Ash said. His voice was shaky too, but he tried to sound as calm as he could. Maybe they could avoid a fight…
"Ash, be careful," Yellow warned.
She left me in the woods! I'm scared and she left me!
"Lil' girl, please calm down," Diamond asked bluntly.
"No need to be scared, we're friendly, aren't we Dia?'
"Ya! We can help ya…"
You won't help me. You can't help me.
The trainers didn't even notice that the girl was gripping her shoulder where the Murkrow was perched, until she lifted her hand, revealing that there was something attached to her fingers. Long, ink-like strands protruded from them, leading up to the back of the Murkrow, which flew off its perch and floated in front of the girl. It didn't open its eyes. It didn't have any.
"Guys…." Pearl quivered.
The girl leaped into the air, along with her Murkrow, charging at the trainers with a loud shriek.
"Empoleon, ice beam!" Platinum commanded. Empoleon opened its small beak and released a thin, concentrated laser of cryogenic energy. It looked like the hit would be dead on, but the Murkrow shifted in mid-air, dodging the attack. The girl seemed to be dragged by it, her momentum violently shifting towards the small, distorted pokémon.
Aaggghhhh! All the trainers could hear her wince in pain.
"Totodile, go!" Ash released his Totodile, who's smile quickly dissipated upon seeing what he was up against. The girl landed in a pile along with her tethered Murkrow.
Mmuurrkkrroow!
I'm sorry, I'm sorry!
The distorted girl launched herself at the trainers again, this time at ground level. As she ran, she seemed to be dragging the Murkrow behind her by its tethers, almost like she was pulling a balloon. The girl seemed to leap into the air, aiming directly for Empoleon.
"Totodile, bubble beam!"
"You too Piplup!"
The small blue pokémon launched a barrage of high velocity bubbles at the target. This time, it didn't notice the attack on time, coming in from its left. A direct hit! The girl crashed on the floor once again, this time staying down.
I just want to see my mum…
With her final words echoing in the minds of the onlooking trainers, the girl's form distorted, melting down in a concentrated singularity before collapsing completely. All that was left was a blackened pool where the girl once was, identical to the pool that sat next to the Pachirisu at the hotel.
"What… what was that?" Yellow said, stunned.
"I… I don't know…" Platinum said. "Is there anything like that in your world?" She looked to Ash, not sure as to which answer would be better.
"No… I don't think so…" Ash's mind wandered. He had seen some unconventional horrors and bizarre evils in his travels, but never something like that.
"Is anyone hurt?" Dawn asked the group. The trainers looked around, their pokémon as well. Everyone seemed unharmed.
"That girl… she was hurt…" Ash said out loud, more so speaking to himself then anyone else present.
"Pika? Pikachuuu," Pikachu ran up to Ash, standing attentively. This concern in his voice was apparent, more so towards the state of his trainer rather than the overall scenario.
"Right, scary stuff Pikachu," Ash said while kneeling down, scratching Pikachu under his chin with a smile.
"Well done Empoleon," Platinum said as she placed her pokémon back in its pokeball. She turned to find Diamond and Pearl, who had rushed up to her.
"You're okay Platinum. We're all okay," Diamond said reassuringly, more so for himself than to anyone else present.
"But what was that? No one knows what that was?! You don't see creepy little girls with no mouths popping out of the woods everyday you know!" Pearl exclaimed.
"No, but it's probably connected to the Pachirisu. It has to be." Platinum responded. The other trainers nodded.
"There's a pokémon center nearby, we can stop there for a bit," Yellow said.
"Good idea," Dawn noted. The trainers began walking down the road again, not speaking another word during the rest of the trip.
The pokémon center was relatively full, with a handful of trainers taking a pit stop before the final stretch to Mount Coronet. Granted, this center was far smaller than the one back in Jubilife city, the other trainers being a collection of young teens and adults. Luckily there was a set of couches in the middle of the center that hadn't been taken yet. Ash and his companions took the chance to sit down, resting their aching feet.
It was a familiar sight for all of them. The atmosphere in the pokémon center was alive with chit-chatter. Young trainers would tell their stories of catching their first pokémon or beating their first trainers to their friends, while the older ones would boast about the various gym leaders they have beaten, and proclaim their lofty goals of succeeding in regional tournaments. It helped to take their mind off what they just saw, somewhat.
Platinum had left momentarily to report to professor Rowan and Moon, hoping to find some answers for what they saw. Diamond and Pearl were surrounded by a small group of kids, entertaining them with their various manzais and other comedic acts.
Ash sat back at the couch, his mind still spinning from the mysterious child. Could it be tied to Red? The presence he felt when it entered his mind drew parallels to Red. It had to be…
His train of thought was interrupted by a familiar voice just off to his right. It came from a man, standing around a group of young teens, his back turned towards Ash. The teens looked nearly identical to each other, likely a set of look-alikes.
"But sir…" A teen on the right spoke to the man. "I've been training with my Starly for weeks now, and it won't evolve into a Staravia."
"Well a pokémon wont evolve simply because you want it to," The man replied, placing a hand on his purple hair that matched his purple, loose fitting shirt. "You have to train with it more to fully understand it. That's what being a trainer is all about."
"Well maybe it's just lame!" The teen protested. "I should just capture another one, maybe I can find a Starly that's better, and stronger."
"Ya know…" The man smirked, "I used to think a lot like that too when I was your age. But then someone taught me that you should be as dedicated to your pokémon as they are for you."
"Was this person strong?"
"Stronger than I realized, at the time," The man chuckled to himself. Another child called to them.
"Come on Jerry's, we're leaving."
"Thank you for your time, sir," The Jerrys said. The man nodded as the children ran off.
"You shouldn't sell yourself too short, you're pretty strong too," Ash said, walking up to his old rival. "Good to see you again, Paul."
"Ash. It's been too long," Paul said, shaking Ash's hand.
"Way too long," It had been years since Ash had seen him, though he could never forget his face. It helped that it didn't change much. Even though Paul was smiling, a rare sight during Ash's time in Sinnoh, his black eyes felt as though they could pierce through your soul, making you feel very, very small.
"Still can't keep your Pikachu in its pokeball, huh?" Paul gestured towards the little Yellow pokémon.
"Pikaaaa?"
"Would never dream of it."
"Guess some things really do never change. So, what brings you to Sinnoh?" Paul asked as they sat down at a set of couches next to them.
"It's a long story, but we're looking for something at mount Coronet."
"Looking for what?"
"Well umm… we don't know."
"You don't know?"
"Well," Ash pulled out the black shard from his bag, unraveling it. "It has to do something with this."
"I see," Paul said, scratching his chin. "Always up to something interesting, huh?"
"You can say that," Ash replied with a soft chuckle. "What about you? What are you up to these days? Still trying to take on Cynthia?" Ash asked.
"No actually," Paul said, his head lowered. "Actually, I'm a pokémon breeder now."
"A pokémon breeder?! Really?"
"Surprised?"
"Well…" He hated to admit that he was. He of all people knew that people could change, and in the end he considered Paul a friend but… it was difficult to imagine the once ruthless, determined and often cruel trainer to suddenly take up pokémon breeding.
"Hey, I get it. I can't believe it myself sometimes. But after you defeated me, well… I guess I had to do a little bit of soul searching. I traveled again for a while, tried out the gym circuit in Kalos but it all felt… wrong, somehow."
"Huh?" Ash knew the feeling a bit too well.
"After a while my brother asked me to help him out with his work. It's funny, I laughed when he asked but…"
"But…"
"I still said yes. I've been at it for a few years now. It's been nice, so far."
"Hey, that's great! You're brother's a super cool guy." Ash recalled Paul's brother, Reggie. At the time, the man was the opposite to Paul in every way except battling prowess. He was soft spoken, patient, and caring. "Must be nice to have a brother looking out for ya."
"It sure is. So what about you? You still taking on gym challenges? I heard you won the first Alola tournament league."
"Well, not really. After I won I traveled around for a while but now I'm just… not doing anything…"
"Oh? Someone take the fight out of you too?" Paul said with a somewhat mean-spirited smirk.
"Well no, I just… kinda stopped, ya know? Felt like I needed to take a break, I guess…"
"Well, that doesn't sound like the Ash I know at all."
"Oh…" Ash felt himself sink.
"Granted… I wouldn't say I sound like myself at all, these days." Paul's smile shifted, becoming far more genuine. For the first time in his life, Ash swore that Paul's expression was somewhat inviting. Dare he say… friendly.
"Listen Ash, you taught me a lot during our rivalry back then, though I didn't realize it 'till you beat me. You taught me that I should view pokémon for more than just their power, that I should give back to them as much as they give to me."
"Huh…" Hearing him say all this was bizarre. All of this was a far cry from the many times Paul had called him pathetic during their meetings in the past. What did he do to this man?
"Yes, professor, it was almost identical," Platinum said, finishing her explanation of the day's events to the Professor Rowan's over the video screen, stationed in the corner of the pokémon center.
"And you said she just… disappeared?" The Rowan on the right said.
"Yes, well, at least we think so," More so she hoped. If that was an actual child, then… what if they just…
"Your sister's analysis of the Pachirisu hasn't turned up anything valuable, though we are happy to report that it is recovering."
"That's great," Platinum said. Though she was quite happy to hear that, the dourness in her voice was obvious.
"It's the child, isn't it," The Rowan on the left said. Platinum meekly nodded. The professors briefly looked at each other.
"Platinum, you cannot assume anything right now, not without more evidence. We have no idea what that thing was or why it attacked you," The other Rowan said.
"Yes, of course Professor," Platinum said, not entirely convinced.
"You and your friends did the right thing in defending yourselves."
"Perhaps you would feel better if you speak to them about it."
"And we are always here too, if you need to talk."
"Thank you, I will. Good day professors." She said, turning off the video screens. Her head spun, not knowing what to think. There was a lot to consider, but she knew that dwelling on the answers would be fruitless. They just needed to hope that the answers would be at Mount Coronet. She walked back to the group. Ash was with someone she didn't recognize, must have been an old acquaintance. Dawn sat next to Yellow, browsing her phone. She walked up to the distracted trainer.
"Hello, are you busy?" she asked Dawn.
"Oh, Platinum!" Dawn said, clearly startled. "No, not at all." She shifted a bit to her right, making space for Platinum, who sat promptly next to her.
"Thank you, senior Dawn."
"I'm not that much older than you, you know," Dawn said. Last time she checked Platinum and her friends were only a few years younger then she was, and with how Platinum spoke, you'd assume that she was the older one anyhow. She was clearly wise, always thinking out her actions clearly and with precision, quite the opposite of Dawn's own, carefree spirit. Granted, Dawn couldn't help but feel that the other trainer was slightly off, her tone dreary. Despite the show of sophistication she always presented, she could tell that Platinum was quite upset.
"Hey I know this is all a bit much to take in right now," she said, using her best supportive voice.
"I understand. It is a fact but still… who was that child? Maybe we should look up any missing children reported in the area recently or…" Platinum's voice began to crack. "She was just a child… what if we… we...?". Dawn saw the first tear hit the floor, as Platinum began to choke up.
"No, no, no," Dawn said, hugging the other girl, letting her cry into her shoulder. It wasn't anything beyond light sniffles, but the support was appreciated. "I'm sure that whoever that girl was isn't gone. We'll find out what's really going on." She didn't hesitate, even though the honest truth was she had no idea what was going on. The thought that they might have just killed a small child hadn't even crossed her mind. But it couldn't have just been a child. It just… couldn't be.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" Platinum said while lifting herself, wiping her eyes. "Sorry, I…"
"Hey, you have nothing to be sorry about," she said. "There's no need to worry."
"Hmph," a smile crept on Platinum's face, "you say that a lot."
"Cause it's true."
"I guess you're right. Thanks, senior Dawn."
"Right… senior…"
"Hey Dawn!" she heard Ash's voice calling her. She looked over, realizing that he was sitting next to… Paul?!
"Oh? Hey!" She quickly got up, though she paused for a moment, looking back to Platinum. "Oh, sorry. I can stay if…"
"No no, you go on. I'll just keep senior Yellow company," She said, looking over to see that Yellow had fallen fast asleep on the couch. She took out her phone. It wouldn't hurt to look up any missing child reports in the area.
"Right…" Dawn ran over to Ash and Paul.
"Paul! Fancy meeting you here."
"Likewise. Figures you would be here along with Ash," Paul said.
"Well, what would he do without some company? You know how reckless he can get."
"Oh, I'm quite aware."
"Come on guys…"
"We're just messing with you Ash," Dawn chuckled.
"I noticed you have a lookalike over there," Paul said, looking at Yellow and Platinum's direction. "She looks a little down."
"Yeah, she's just a bit scared," Dawn said.
"Scared? Scared of what?" Paul asked.
"Right, the girl…" Ash sighed. "We found something in the woods outside. It looked like a little girl and a Murkrow, but it was… wrong."
"It wasn't like anything we've seen before, super weird and creepy," Dawn said.
"So, what happened to it?"
"We stopped it. It just… disappeared."
"Right," Paul thought for a moment, before getting up. "You should get the word out soon."
"The professors will, but we need to know what's going on first," Dawn said.
"You better," Paul said bluntly. "Well, it's best I get going. It was good seeing you all again."
"See you later Paul." Ash said.
"Stay safe…" Dawn said as he promptly left the pokémon center.
