Chapter Twenty-Nine:
Something Wicked This Way Comes

Disclaimer: I do not own the series Pokémon. Like, at all. It and all its respectable characters are © to Game Freak and Satoshi Tajiri. However, all writing contents and semi-plots here are © to me; unless it is stated otherwise. All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I do not own them.

Notes: We need a good year. Let's hope for it! Happy New Year to y'all you lovely readers! Thank you for sticking with me so far and for all those who reviewed. It makes me so happy and I hope to hear from more of y'all.

Current Team: Keno the Marshtomp, Sela the Poochyena, Ambrose the Kirlia, Faye the Taillow, Breela the Breloom, Luna the Skitty

Badges Won: Stone Badge, Knuckle Badge


"There's something in the air. Something's coming."
"What?"
"A storm's approaching…"
The Doctor and Rose, "Fear Her"


It began innocuously enough. A tremor that was small until it grew. It didn't take long for it grow severe enough to awaken everyone. Shay bolted upright with a sharp gasp that stabbed through her chest. The rest of her team woke up around the same time, immediate babbling in confusion. Familiarly coursed through her, as sad as she was to admit it.

"Earthquake, it's just an earthquake, guys!"

The room trembled enough to shake everything, but not quite enough to shift around or topple things.

Is it the volcano? Oh, fuck me, it is, isn't?

"It's not the volcano," Ambrose said, his voice tight and strained, small. So small. He was clutching at his head, a low moan of pain rising in his throat. "Something—something's coming. Something big. I can feel it…I can feel the rage."

The room finally settled, and everything else stopped rattling. Ambrose was shaking more violently, even after the earthquake had passed.

Shay reached for him, but he snapped at her, "Outside. NOW!"

The rest of the team exchanged uncertain stares with one another, even while Shay got up and dressed. She barely had her boots on and tied before she was out the door, the rest of her team rushing after her. When she glanced over her shoulder, she saw that Keno was holding Ambrose's hand, leading him along.

Doors to other rooms in the Center began to fling open, trainers and pokémon partners alike chattering away. Apprehension and thinly veiled fear crawled through the air on trembling words. They all began crowding together, voices rising in pitch and volume. Shay heard their snippets of conversation in passing, but she was the only one moving at a clipped pace. Getting outside was a surprisingly fast ordeal. The lobby was surprisingly empty for now, but she knew that it'd only be matter of time before everyone began trickling downstairs. Already, she had people tailing her, calling out to one another and asking what was going on.

Center staff were trying to calm those that were already out and about.

Another tremor hit before they reached the front doors. Everyone ducked to the ground on Shay's mark, and she motioned for them to get under one of the lobby tables. The tremors subsided and Shay waited for the rumbling to clear before scuttling out from the makeshift shelter. Ambrose moaned, still gripping at his head. Shay didn't hesitate to scoop up the Kirlia.

He immediately buried his soft snout into the crook of her neck, whimpering softly as he clutched her tightly.

"It hurts…it hurts so much…"

She cradled the back of his head and jerked her head toward the door.

Wordlessly, her team followed her.

The sky above was dark and foreboding. Her earlier fear that it was smoke from Mount Chimney arose once more, but she knew smoke. She knew its consistency, its texture. Spending years growing up in Southern California had sadly exposed her to the destructive force of fire. This wasn't that, however. They'd be choking on ash and smoke by now if the volcano had erupted, but…there was only one way to find out.

The sky was dark, as though night was still claiming hold to the world. Shay scurried out toward the center of the city square. From there, she could make out the summit of Mount Chimney. It remained dormant and unmoving, no black crown to top its broad mouth, no bursts of lightning and the earth bursting forth from its stony lips. The taste of the air was all wrong, too. It wasn't…dry and hot.

Light scorched through the clouds, bright and silvery white, illuminating the world for a few brilliant seconds. The air boomed with thunder barely a few seconds after that. Clouds. It was just clouds, swollen and rumbling with the promise of a storm. She could smell it in the air, too, that electrified and wet scent.

"That isn't lightning," Ambrose's voice was thin and small, Shay could barely hear him. He clung to her, desperate and still quaking.

Keno's broad hand grabbed her upper arm and drew himself closer to her. Faye took shelter along Shay's other shoulder, pressing in tightly against her neck and buried beneath her hair. Luna was growling softly, while Breela and Sela both whined softly, crowding around her legs.

"Something's wrong, this isn't natural," Faye whispered into her other ear. Before Shay could ask, she saw something moving within the dark cloud cover. Whatever it was, it was long, sinewy. Big.

Very, very big.

People were gathering outside now. Flying-type pokémon were grounding themselves, huddling together in fearful little groups, watching the skies like everyone else.

Another bellow cut through the tension, the sound of it louder than the thunder, emanating from the skies. Somehow, it sounded bigger than the storm it hid itself in.

Shay's heart slammed against the back of her ribcage; eyes wide as she watched more somethings emerge from the veil of clouds. Legs, perhaps. And a head, maybe?

"They're here." Ambrose moaned, his voice ringing in both her ears and along the surface of her mind before he went limp in Shay's arms. Shay tore her eyes away from the skies and down to the Kirlia in her arms with alarm. She gently shook him, but his eyes were closed, his head lolling.

"Ambrose? AMBROSE!"

"He's passed out, put him away!" Sela snapped, her own maraschino eyes remaining locked on the things dancing in the sky. Reluctantly, Shay pulled the Kirlia's pokéball off her bandolier and recalled him. Ambrose's weight all but vanished from her arms and she clipped his pokéball back on. The growing crowd gathered in the middle of Mauville's center courtyard arose with collective gasps. It rippled across the entire space, some even escalating to screams. Fingers began to point upwards, motioning to the big somethings that were churning overhead.

Shay lifted her attention to follow what they were looking up at and froze.

There was a clearing in the darkness that revealed what exactly was capturing everyone's notice so intently.

High up above them all, circling one another, were the Creation Trio.

Each of them was steeped in a deep and powerful aura of their own making. All sound flushed away, except for a painful, constant ringing in Shay's ears. That electrified feeling arose around her, she could taste it more clearly now.

She took a step forward. Then another. A third step. Something grabbed at her. She jerked out of the way, chest taut and hurting. Shay's fingers curled together, tightening into balled up fists.

"You sons of bitches."

Heat streaked down her cheeks, searing as trails carved down her flesh.

Dialga reared back in midair, shaking its head before charging out at Giratina. Palkia slammed into Dialga from out of nowhere, roaring as it did so. Giratina screamed at the two others, undulating as it raced after them. Dark energy rippled out of its maw, and with an ear-piercing skreich, it released its attack. The blast smashed into Palkia, and the massive dragon roared in pain and fury.

"Get down here."

All around Shay, people were beginning to retreat inside the indoor city with screams.

Dialga was knocked off course by the sideswipe of an attack from Giratina. The Temporal pokémon howled again as it twisted, falling with an almost graceful elegance.

Lightning danced across the sky, illuminating the three gargantuan figures.

"GET DOWN HERE, YOU FUCKING ASSHOLES! YOU OWE ME! YOU OWE ME A WAY BACK HOME!"

Her throat was raw, dry, threatening to tear as she shrieked.

Dialga righted itself, wailing with rage as it did so. It went right for Giratina, legs churning as though it was rushing across land. Giratina was busy facing off with Palkia, seemingly unaware of its opponent coming in from behind.

"COME DOWN HERE NOW! COME DOWN AND FIX THIS MESS!"

Arms encircled around her, yanking her backwards. Shay snarled and shouted, trying to smash her elbows into whoever was trying to hold her.

"Let me GO! Those fuckers OWE me! They owe me a way HOME!"

Hands yanked her arms down, pressing her close to their body. "Calm down! It's me! It's Brendan! Please, stop! You can't do anything from down here!"

Her entire face was flushed and wet, and her breaths coming in painful, shallow gasps. She fought back with every ounce of strength she had in her. The Creation Trio above continued with their battle, unaware of what commotion they were causing down on the ground below them.

Brendan grappled her into complacency, yanking her down. Another pair of arms wrapped around her middle, broad and warm to the touch. Something else was tugging at her legs, in different directions. They were dragging her down, pulling her away from her goal. Limiting her and egging on her rage all at once.

Giratina screamed to the heavens as Dialga bashed into it, but Dialga seemed to roll into the hit and coiled up on itself. Before either Palkia or Dialga could move in on the Renegade pokémon, Giratina sliced through the air, ripping open a dark portal to slide into. That left the other two facing off with one another.

The two roared their displeasure at losing an adversary before taking to one another with a vengeance. The storm clouds rolled in over them, just as another lance of silvery lightning flashed across the sky. Their silhouettes could still be seen in yet another dazzling display, the sounds of their roars intermingled with the next blaring thunderclaps.

Shay screamed, expelling all breath from her lungs, going limp in the many hands that held her back, dissolving into a fit of tears and gasping breaths as the Creation Trio disappeared just as quickly as they had appeared.

The rain began to fall as the sounds of the Creation Trio's battle carried on elsewhere, growing more and more distant with every passing second.

OoOoOoOoOoO

The room was in disarray. It was in worse shape than Shay had originally believed from the earthquake. Brendan lightly touched her arm as the door opened to admit them both. She didn't bother with the mess, nor did she give it a second glance. Shay's head ached as she stumbled toward the bed and collapsed onto it. She curled in on herself, ignoring how Brendan joined her, the bed sinking where he sat.

He placed a hand on her shoulder once more before collapsing next to her.

"I'm sorry."

Shay said nothing, continuing to stew in her silence.

Keno piled onto the bed on Shay's other side, facing her. He draped an arm over her. His words were soft as he spoke. "I'm sorry too."

It wasn't long before the rest of Shay's team joined her and Brendan on the bed, curling around her. All except Ambrose. He was still in his pokéball. Recovering, still passed out.

Shay drew her legs up to her chest, shuddering as her face flushed with heat, warmth welling in her face. Luna leapt onto the bed and wormed her way in closer until she was flush against Shay's belly. Shay cupped the Skitty's head, digging her fingers into the side of her furred face. Luna began to purr like a little engine. Somehow, it helped ease the tightness that still encircled Shay's chest.

Exhaustion gripped the woman tightly, enveloping her in its embrace. She was drained. Even after a full night's sleep, all she wanted to do was go back to sleep. Shay closed her eyes firmly together.

When she opened her eyes next, it was completely dark in the room.

Night had fallen. Or perhaps the storm was masking the daylight hours still.

Shay gave her X-transceiver a glance and winced.

Nope, it was nighttime.

Slowly, she pushed herself upright on the bed, wincing at the crick in her neck. She froze at the shifting bodies all around her—while her breath caught in her throat when she saw Brendan there as well.

He was curled on the other side of the bed, taking as little room as he could. The rest of her team was coiled together. Her head swam dizzily as she straightened fully upright. She brought a hand up to rub at her temple, squeezing her eyes shut, gritting her teeth together. A tension headache was already in the making, a slow and dull throbbing pain building up at the back of her skull and wrapping around her head.

"You okay?"

Shay wished she could have said she was surprised by the sound of Keno's voice. She swallowed past the aching hard lump in her throat as best she could.

"No," she croaked back, the urge to burst into tears so strong, it almost came to fruition. Wetness welled up in her eyes, but she scrubbed away at them. "They were right there. Right. There."

Her words broke, throat throbbing with a new lump.

A familiar broad hand sought her out, lightly pressing against her arm.

"There wasn't anything you could have done. They didn't even seem to notice us."

"That isn't the point," she whispered, not trusting her voice to rise any higher. "I…I could have…I just, they were…I…"

She shuddered and sniffled, grinding her teeth together.

"I just want to go home."

Keno rubbed her shoulder, coaxing her back down to the bed. "Rest. You need it more than ever."

She wanted to protest. She didn't want to go back to sleep. She wanted to leave the room, to prowl her way outside in the hopes that the Creation Trio were still in the vicinity. Shay knew the truth, though.

They were long gone.

"It wasn't our time. We'll get there, but…not today."

Shay struggled to keep her sobs stifled, even as Keno rubbed a hand along her head, gentle and placating. Slowly, she found herself lulled by his soft ministrations. Her eyes began drooping closed as he continued to stroke her hair.


Mount Chimney towered menacingly over all the towns that lay nestled along or close to its base. It was the tallest peak in all of Hoenn. As the name suggested, smoke the colour of gunmetal billowed out like a smoking chimney. It chugged away, rising higher and higher, blowing northward. The weather report earlier that day assured its listeners that despite the surprise appearance of the Creation Trio, Mount Chimney wasn't in any danger of erupting.

It was simply business as usual.

Shay stared up at the sky as the dark peak, legs hugged to her chest as she leaned against the trunk of a tree. The day was balmy, comfortable. Soothing.

Shay's body was chilly and covered with gooseflesh. There wasn't even a wind to account for that. The small rooftop garden was quiet, her only company being a pair of elderly ladies sitting on a bench not far from her, talking and laughing quietly with one another. A Volbeat sat in one woman's lap, an Illumise in the other. The two bug pokémon appeared to be communicating themselves, lighting up and going dim in repeated little patterns.

Her attentions rose higher still, until she was staring up at the sky proper. She could still see them in her mind: Palkia and Dialga and Giratina circling one another, trying to bluff and bluster their way into scaring the others off.

They reminded her of predators.

Shay closed her eyes, trying to will the images behind her eyelids to dissipate as she focused on the voice filtering into her ears from her headphones.

"—reports of weather anomalies in other regions such as Galar and Unova have arisen in the wake of the recent sightings of the Creation Trio; Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina continue with their battles, but now they seem to be spreading their conflict across the globe—"

She jumped at the light tap on her shoulder, jostling her from her light dozing. Shay inhaled so sharply, it cut through her chest like a hot needle.

"Wake up, sleepyhead. Got your coffee."

She grumbled back at him, slipping the headphones around her neck. Brendan quickly joined her on the ground, leaning his back against the trunk with a sigh.

"Thanks," Shay mumbled to him before she took a sip. The syrupy sweetness mingled perfectly with the dark roast of the coffee.

"You're welcome," he said softly. Shay found her gaze drifting back to Mount Chimney.

"Are you worried?"

"About…the volcano?"

"Your upcoming match with Wattson." Brendan corrected and Shay winced. She had completely forgotten about that.

"I know you've been training your team since we got here, but…" Brendan's voice fell quiet, but the words were still there, hovering in the space between them.

"…they were right there."

Brendan exhaled sharply through his nose, sparing a glance towards the woman beside him. Shay's eyes had once more elevated to the sky above.

"And what were you going to do? Keep screaming at sky like a lunatic? Try to get your team to attack them? You do realize how fucking stupid that was of you, don't you? You could have exposed yourself! And all that work my dad and Norman have done for you would have all been for nothing!"

Shay startled, taken aback by the swift change in Brendan's tone. She stole a glance his way, mind going blank as any response she might have had fled her. He wasn't looking at her, and his expression would have been almost serene—if the clench of his jaw wasn't so telling.

It took a good minute or so to work loose the molasses that seemed to have fused her jaw shut. Finding the right words was a good deal harder.

"I…I just…" Shay sighed and shook her head. "I didn't expect them to be here, it wasn't part of the plan. And I-I don't know…what to do now."

"You're going to do this the right way." Brendan said sharply. His words were soft, but firm as he spoke. "You can't take them on yourself, not right now. Not with your team as you guys are. You guys still need to train, a lot. And the first step to doing that is to get ready for Wattson and go from there. Okay? Otherwise, you won't make it through the League, let alone get to the Creation Trio."

Shay remained silent, mulling over Brendan's unexpected outburst. In spite of his calm delivery, Shay could sense the heat brewing beneath the surface of his words.

She was jostled by the well-meaning pat on her shoulder as Brendan stood back up, shifting his coffee from one hand to the other. He offered his freed hand to Shay, lips drawn into a quirky smile.

"C'mon. I know you've been feeling down, but you need a kick in the pants. Get out of the city with your team, and cram in some last-minute training with them. You'll thank me later. Trust me, Wattson is no pushover. You'll need to work out your plan before you go against him."

"I already have a plan," Shay remarked as she reached up and grasped Brendan's hand. He hauled her up, brow puzzling together.

"And what's the plan?"

"Attack."


Notes: Nothing like an existential crisis to fuel the angst. Also, hooray for the Power of Friendship!