Mistralton Arc: New Pathways
The next morning, they packed up their things and cleaned the room. Just before they left the stadium, however, they were stopped by... none other than Corrina. "Hello, you two.", "Hello," Jacky greeted her.
"Happy victory yesterday, Mari." Corrina smiled at her.
"Thanks..." Mari smiled back.
"I'm really impressed by you. By both of you, in fact. That's why I want to give you a gift." She reached into her bag and pulled out two bracelets. "Here. I don't need them... I kept them with me to give to trainers I deem worthy." She gave Mari and Jacky each one of the bangles. They were dark grayish-black and bore pretty patterns on their surfaces. And both of them bore round stones shimmering in rainbow colors. "Hey... that's... that's one of those stones!" it caught Mari's eye. "A keystone, isn't it?",
"Yes." Corrina nodded. "These are mega bracelets. I want you to take them.",
"But... we can't use them." Jacky remarked. "We don't have any Mega Stones.",
"But Pokémon that can potentially unleash Mega evolution", Corrina replied. "Take them. You might need them someday." Jacky looked at the bracelet. "...Thank you, Corrina.",
"No problem." The skater smiled. "Well then! Goodbye!" She waved and then disappeared. Mari slipped the mega bracelet over her wrist. "That's sweet of her," she commented. Jacky nodded and did the same. "That's right. Then nothing stands in the way of our onward journey! On to Chargestone Cavern!" They strolled through Driftveil and followed Route 6 north. When they reached the cavern entrance, Mari stopped. "Oh..." A net stretched across the entrance to the cave, and it seemed to be electrically charged as well. She instinctively backed away. "Galvantula..." Jacky sighed, her face contorting. "I'm relatively sure about that. Hmm..." She pulled a Pokéball from her belt and tossed it up. "Luxio, I need you for a second." Luxio landed on the ground. "What are you going to do?" Mari asked. "Trying something." Jacky looked at Luxio. "Please try to move the net to the side so we can slip through it without tearing anything."
Luxio nodded and used its paw to push the net aside a bit with utmost care. "The Galvantula that owns this net will kill us if we tear it, won't it...?" Mari asked nervously as the net threatened to tear.
"Then we better hurry." Jacky ducked and then nimbly crawled through the gap. Mari followed her, careful not to touch the net. "Real slow... You're doing great, Luxio." Jacky praised her Pokémon, who nodded, anxious to really not tear down the net. She straightened up and held out her hand to Mari before pulling her friend to her feet in the cave. Luxio then slipped through as quickly as it could. "Whew..." Jacky eyed the net. "The net is intact and so are we.",
"That's good..." Mari exhaled. "Well, here we go... let's make our way through this maze."
The two walked deeper into the cave and Jacky looked at the floating stones and electrically charged rocks with great fascination. "I have to admit, it's really beautiful in here," she commented. Luxio seemed to enjoy the atmosphere of the place and jumped around happily and exuberantly. Then, it sprinted to one of the charged rocks. "Rrrgh!",
"What's Luxio doing?" Mari asked as the Pokémon pressed its snout against the rock.
"I don't have a clue. Hey, Luxio, what are you doing?",
"Raaaarrr!" Luxio began to absorb the energy of the rock. Suddenly, there was a glare in the rather dim cave as it began to glow. Mari put her hand in front of her face. "That... that's... what I think it is, isn't it?",
"It's evolving!" Jacky exclaimed excitedly as the light grew even brighter and the crackle of electricity grew louder. Then, the light went out and a lion-like Pokémon with black fur and yellow eyes now stood in Luxio's place. It backed away from the rock and turned to the girls. Mari pulled out her Pokédex. "That's a Luxray. Wow, amazing.",
"Luxray- The Gleam Eyes Pokémon. Evolution of Luxio. When its eyes gleam gold, it can spot hiding prey- even those taking shelter behind a wall. Luxray's ability to see through objects comes in handy when it's scouting for danger", the Pokédex buzzed.
"That sounds really impressive," Mari commented as she stowed the device back in her bag. "It can see through solid objects. Super cool.",
"It's absorbed the electrical energy of the rock", Jacky mused. "That must've given it enough energy to finally evolve." Her Luxray growled in confirmation.
"Hah, then this was just what it needed. Check this out, Zoroark!"
Maris Zoroark appeared next to her and it looked at Luxray curiously. Luxray squinted its eyes happily and playfully rammed itself against Zoroark, who growled in protest and then retaliated with a shove. Sparks flew from Luxray's fur. "Raaawr!",
"Hey, slow down, Luxray!", Jacky tempered it. Mari had to smile slightly until she thought of something and it immediately died. Jacky looked to her at that exact moment. "What's wrong?",
"I just remembered something..." She crossed her arms. "Beyond Mistralton is Route 7, that's where my aunt, Lyra, lives. With Maki. I... want to stop by there.",
"Oh..." Jacky nodded and put a hand on her shoulder. "We will. And we'll get your cousin back, Mari.",
"I know." Mari relaxed her arms again. "I'll make sure of that most personally... Come. We should keep moving."
Jacky nodded, albeit with a hint of uncertainty. "Hey, Mari... How about you stay in Mistralton or your aunt's house for a day or two? I'd have something to do while we're there.",
"Like what?",
"Oh, just something small. But until then, I really need to be able to fly on Noivern without having a heart attack.",
"Well, it's about time," Mari agreed.
"Uh..." Jacky hunched her shoulders. "I'm getting a little jittery about this...",
"Oh, nonsense! I'll help you." Mari waved it off. "We'll figure it out, I already told you.",
"You make it sound so easy!",
"I've already done it. And it IS easy.",
"Huh... So... are you going to stay in Mistralton and let me do what I'm up to...?",
"Sure. After I taught you how to fly.",
"Okay! Agreed!" Jacky nodded and then looked to the Pokémon. "Well then, guys! We're going to muddle through this cave for now!" Luxray nodded and ran ahead, Zoroark following it with its ears perked up attentively.
It took them what felt like an eternity to reach the other side of the cave. Luxray and Zoroark had found their way together, sparing the girls the eternal wandering inside this labyrinth, but the cave had still been quite vast, resulting in a miserable trudge. When they finally reached Mistralton, the two gratefully withdrew their Pokémon. "Okay, Skarmory! Now, we'll give flying lessons together!" Mari shouted, calling her Pokémon out, and Skarmory landed on the ground with a cry of joy. "Noivern, we're in this together!" Jacky's Noivern landed in front of her, wings outstretched. "Go on! Climb on its back!" Mari urged her friend, already swinging onto Skarmory's back, which spread its wings. "Kyaaah!",
"Let's go then...!" Jacky stood next to Noivern, who crouched down to help her climb up. Uncertainly, Jacky dug her fingers into the dragon's collar fur before pulling herself onto its back. "Okay, take off!" Mari leaned back and Skarmory shot into the air. "After them, Noivern! But not like- WAAAAH!" Panicked, she threw her arms around the dragon's neck as it soared into the air with a mighty flap of its wings. Mari looked over her shoulder and grinned. "Agility, Skarmory!" she shouted, and Skarmory accelerated. "Hold on tight! Best lean forward and don't tense up!",
"WHAAAAT?!" Jacky was too busy trying not to fall off and pressed her face into Noivern's neck.
"Relax!" Mari shifted her weight and steered Skarmory next to Noivern. Jacky took a quivering breath and slowly and hesitantly straightened up.
"You need to shift your weight to tell Noivern where to fly to. Lean forward and it flies down. Lean back and it flies up. Lean to the side to tell it which direction to head into. It's best not to look down or you'll just panic.",
"Okay..." Jacky leaned forward slightly and Noivern responded immediately. It folded its wings and chased downward. Jacky suppressed a scream and leaned to the right- not, of course, without convulsively holding onto Noivern's fur. Mari followed her on Skarmory. "That's it! Now lean back!" She did so herself, and Skarmory gained some height. Mari expertly held onto its slender neck. Jacky did the same and Noivern shot up with a loud roar. "So, how does it feel?" Mari asked.
"It... is... unfamiliar..." Jacky replied.
"Very well. Let's really get going then. Follow me! Let's go, Skarmory!" Mari shifted her weight forward so much that Skarmory folded its wings and took a breakneck dive. They sped toward a street of Mistralton before Skarmory spread its wings again two meters above the ground and intercepted the free fall.
Jacky risked a glance down and immediately felt dizzy. "Don't you dare! Noivern!" Her Pokémon imitated Skarmory and plunged to the depths. She nearly screamed her head off as the ground came closer at a frantic pace. Just before the dragon thundered into it, it spun around and caught itself. Mari laughed as she reappeared beside them with Skarmory and they both regained altitude. Jacky was pale as a sheet and threw back her head. "Are you CRAZY?",
"Apparently!" Mari giggled. Jacky had to giggle along with her, despite her initial panic. "Why didn't I dare earlier?" She enjoyed the cool wind as Noivern sailed calmly through the air, swaying ever slightly from right to left. "It's not that bad."
Skarmory cooed and veered off to the left. "Now comes the fun part... or the not so fun part. Depends! Skarmory, let's show her what close trust promises!" Skarmory nodded and flew a loop. In mid-swing, Mari let go and fell.
"MARI!" Jacky screamed, her heart almost stopping in shock. Skarmory shot after her gleefully, quickening its pace before catching Mari. She waved up to them. "Yoo-hoo!",
"Are you crazy?!" Jacky gasped. The black-haired girl piloted Skarmory back up to her. "No. But I knew Skarmory would catch me. You have to trust your partner unconditionally, then you can't fall down at all.",
"Hm... Okay..." Jacky nodded. "I'll give it a try... Here we go, Noivern!",
"Raaaaargh!" Noivern flapped its wings and swung up into a loop. At some point, Jacky let go and fell. She cried out in fright and tried to roll over onto her stomach. The earth was closing in at a hell of a pace. In the next moment, Noivern pushed itself down and surfaced beneath her. She landed on the dragon and held onto its fur again. "Whew!" Shaking slightly, she straightened up again. "Wow, that was really cool!",
"Told ya!" Mari joined her and winked. "No matter what happens- Noivern will definitely not let you crash. Now, we'll take away your fear one by one! Skarmory, let's fly a little faster!", "Kraaaaaah!" The steel bird nodded and shot forward, and Mari spread her arms out to her sides.
"Okay, THAT's crazy! Alright, we can do that too! Go, Noivern!" Noivern took up the chase and Jacky dared to let go and spread her arms. She maintained her balance. "Wohooo!" she screamed. Mari grinned at her before holding on again and leaning forward. Skarmory started to descend and landed softly on the ground. Jacky patted Noivern on the neck and it followed the two before landing next to them. "Heh... I think your fear of flying has fizzled out," Mari commented.
"Yeah, I think so too." Jacky grinned triumphantly.