Chapter 8: The Union Cave, Part One
Roku's P.O.V.
Route 32
"Zuki, you never told me that you had a Raikou," I said. "What's the story?"
We were walking down Route 32, heading towards Azalea Town. We had heard about a massive cave that stood in the way (actually, Zuki informed me of this…), and decided that we had to move as quickly as possible. That's when I popped the question.
"He was actually my first rescue," Zuki started. "Team Prime was in the Burned Tower, aiming to capture the 3 Legendary Beast Pokémon: Raikou, Entei, and Suicune. My sisters and I were at the scene, taking on the three admins: Gordon, Jay, and Aria, as well as their three Dragon-type Pokémon. We were dwarfed in power, and I feared for the worst…until Raikou called my name…"
Burned Tower
10 years ago
"Hahaha!" Aria laughed cruelly. "You fought well, but you knew you could never defeat us!"
Zuki lay there, her and Umbreon completely wiped out. She knew that they were possibly going to fail here.
"Zuki!"
"Wha…who's calling me?" she said to herself.
"Zuki, over here! Face me!"
Zuki turned her head to see Raikou beckoning her to look at him.
"R-Raikou…?"
"Throw your Poke Ball at me! We can defeat them together!" Raikou yelled.
Zuki produced a Poke Ball from her kimono and lobbed it as hard as she could at Raikou's figure.
"After that, Raikou and I formed a partnership," Zuki said. "We've been working together to rid the world of Team Prime ever since."
"But what became of Entei and Suicune?" Reia asked.
"As far as I know, Entei is still at large," Zuki replied. "Suicune is probably also roaming around somewhere, trying to stay out of Team Prime's clutches."
"I see…" I said quietly. I started to think if some Legendary Pokémon could ever form a partnership with me.
Then I remembered: I hadn't even told Reia or Zuki that I wanted to join. Being a Legend Keeper sounded like a lot of fun, and I could help rid the world of evil.
Later that night, we had set up camp at the foot of Union Cave. Reia, Zuki, and their Pokémon were asleep, and Luna and I were looking up at the night sky.
"…Hey, Luna?" I asked.
"Mmm?"
"I was wondering if, when I ever decide to join the Legend Keepers, if you'd be by my side through the entire thing?"
Luna rolled over and looked at me. "You're actually thinking about joining, aren't you?"
"Well, it seems like the right thing to do," I said. "I could actually make a difference in the world. There's just too much evil going on in this world."
"Something tells me that's not the only reason," Luna replied. "It's still about Latias, isn't it?"
I sighed. Luna really did know me, and we've only been together for a few days or weeks at the most.
"I also want to protect Latias," I said. "I almost lost her once. I don't want to lose her again."
Luna smiled. I could tell that she heard what she wanted to hear.
"Roku, I will never understand your motives," she said. "But know this: whatever weird and possibly life-threatening thing you want to be a part of…I'm gonna be with you, no matter what happens."
I smiled and felt a small tear run down my cheek. It was nice to have a partner to depend on.
Suddenly, Luna's fur started glowing an odd purple color. I dug around in her fur to find the Lunar Charm glowing brightly.
Then, Luna started glowing brightly.
I stepped back, awe-struck as Luna changed shape right before my eyes. The glow was bright enough to wake Reia and Zuki from their slumbers, and they were standing right beside me as Luna's evolution took place.
"The Lunar Charm…" Zuki said. "It's reacting to your bonds! Luna is undergoing an evolution!"
Soon, the glowing stopped, and I was left looking at a pitch-black fox-like creature, with glowing blue rings on her forehead, fore and hindquarters, and on her tail, as well as piercing yellow eyes.
"L-Luna…you've evolved…" I gasped, still stunned.
"Yeah…guess I did, huh?" she said, looking herself over. "I feel…taller."
We laughed lightly. "Heh…taller, huh? I don't know, that's not all you should be feeling. Do you feel anything else?"
"My body actually feels tougher for some reason," Luna said. "It's like…I feel like I can take a few more hits than I used to be able to."
"Of course," Zuki chimed in. "Umbreon have impressively high defensive capabilities."
"I also feel really focused," Luna continued. "Like nothing could break me out of my concentration."
"That means Luna has acquired the Inner Focus ability," Reia said. "It allows her to keep concentration, even if attacks like Fake Out would make her flinch. That's pretty rare for an Umbreon."
We sat there all night, admiring Luna's new look and capabilities. Reia ended up challenging me to a battle, and I nearly fell over laughing at Lyra's attempts to inflict any real damage towards Luna. Fennekin wanted to join into the fray, and so he and Lyra had a few training sessions together.
All in all, it was a long and fun night.
Latias' P.O.V.
Route 37
Latias made sure to keep her camouflage on to make sure no one saw her, especially none of those Team Prime nutjobs.
Floating along the forest, Latias realized something: Roku wouldn't know where to find her, yet she didn't even know where to look for Roku.
"Crap…I wish I'd thought of this before I set out on this expedition," she said to herself.
Just then, a light bulb popped up in her head. She knew exactly where to start looking. She lifted herself into the sky and took off, flying to the last place she saw him.
Roku's P.O.V.
Union Cave Entrance
I opened my eyes to a bright afternoon sun. I sat up and looked around to see the group passed out.
"Crap…How long were we up last night?" I asked myself as I got up. I looked at my P*DA and froze.
"Guys, get up! We gotta get a move on!" I shouted, returning Fennekin to his Poke Ball and gathering my things. Reia and Zuki got up slowly, yawning and stretching.
"What's the hurry?" Reia yawned.
"If we're gonna get through Union Cave by nightfall, then we've gotta move, like, NOW!" I shouted.
After a few minutes of waking everyone up, we headed for the entrance to Union Cave. Right then, we were stopped by a guy looking to pick a fight.
"Hey, you! If you're a Trainer, then how about you battle me?" he said aggressively.
"You should be a little more polite about it," Reia said in defense. "Just because you're being a bully doesn't mean he'll fight you!"
"Yeah? And what's his whiny girlfriend gonna do if I kick his butt?"
Reia looked at me and said, "Kick his ass."
"My pleasure," I replied, stepping forward. "Go, Fennekin!"
I threw out my Poke Ball, releasing my Fire-type from his virtual area.
"Get 'em, Pidgey!" the kid shouted, sending out the small bird Pokémon.
I almost laughed. Fennekin had gone through some rigorous training the night of Luna's evolution, and had ended up learning Howl and Flame Charge as a result.
"OK, Fennekin! Use Howl!"
Fennekin howled loudly to pump itself up, raising his offensive capabilities.
"Ha! Weak!" the kid shouted. "Pidgey, use Gust!"
The tiny bird flapped its wings and sent a gust of wind flying at Fennekin, pushing him back slightly.
"Now, Fennekin, use Flame Charge!"
"Time to roast this flying chicken!" Fennekin shouted, covering himself in a cloud of dust. Then, he exploded out of it, covered in fire, and blasted towards Pidgey, sending it flying into a nearby tree and knocking it out.
"What?! How is that even possible?!" the kid shouted in disbelief. "I've been training under Falkner! I can't lose!"
I flashed my Zephyr Badge and said, "I beat Falkner, so I don't even want to hear it. Perhaps you should learn to pick your fights a little better."
The kid opened his mouth like he was going to say something, then he shut it, returned his Pokémon, and ran off without another word.
"Heh, just like the rest," Fennekin said. "They talk big, but once they lose, they run like rats."
I laughed and returned Fennekin to his Poke Ball. With the battle over with, we made our way into the cave.
Latias' P.O.V.
New Bark Town
Latias touched down silently in the center of New Bark Town, then located the Pokémon Lab. If anyone knew where Roku went, it'd be Professor Elm.
I really hope that the Professor Elm knows where he is, she thought to herself.
Latias took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down. She was scared to think how the professor would react to seeing her again. She took a deep breath and opened the door to the lab.
"Hello?" she said, then stopped. She realized that Professor Elm didn't speak Pokémon. She assumed her human form and walked up to Professor Elm, who was typing rapidly on his laptop.
Taking another deep breath, she tapped her fingers twice on his shoulder.
"WAAH!" he screamed, jumping up and turning sharply. Latias screamed after him, jumping back and holding her chest, breathing heavily.
"Don't sneak up on me like that! You could give a guy a heart attack!" he scolded. Then he froze. "Wait…Latias, is that you?"
Latias almost said yes, but she remembered that Professor Elm wouldn't be able to understand her, so she simply smiled and nodded.
"It IS you! I can't believe it!" he said with glee, walking up and giving her a gentle hug. "I thought you had been badly hurt! Are you OK?"
Latias looked around, then saw the professor's laptop. She hurried over to it and began typing rapidly. Professor Elm walked over and looked at what she had typed.
I'm fine, but a group of bad people are after me. I came back here to find out where Roku went so I could ask for his help.
Professor Elm nodded and said, "Well, that's fine, but Roku actually left to look for you. As far as I know, he's probably heading towards Azalea Town."
Latias deleted what she had typed and typed some more.
Can you call him for me?
"Uh, I'll try," Professor Elm, turning to his P*DA. He went through his contacts until Roku's name popped up, then he called him. It rang, but he got no answer.
"He must be in a hole somewhere," Professor Elm said. Then he looked at Latias, who had a look of horror on her face.
"No, I mean in a dead zone, like his P*DA's not getting any signal."
Latias nodded and typed some more.
Can you track him somehow?
"I don't know," he said. "If his P*DA's not receiving any calls, then I don't know if I can ping him."
Latias nodded and hung her head in sadness.
"Hey, that's not the girl I know," the professor said softly. "I'm sure he's fine. He is a strong Trainer, after all."
Latias nodded and typed Thank you on the laptop before taking her leave.
"Hey, wait!" Professor Elm shouted before Latias could reach the door. "Are you sure you want to go out there, what with that evil group chasing after you?"
Latias thought for a bit. The professor did have a point. She dashed back to the laptop and typed.
Do you think that they can track me here?
"Don't worry," Professor Elm reassured her. "I'll make sure nothing hurts you. You can count on that."
Latias smiled sadly and hugged the professor.
"Thank you…" she said, knowing that the professor couldn't hear her, but feeling like it had to be said.
"Heh, it's no problem, Latias," the professor said. "As far as I know, your den should still be open, if you want to rest your wings."
Latias let go of the professor and nodded, leaving the lab.
Roku's P.O.V.
Union Cave Interior
"Man, it's dark in here," I said. "Hey, Zuki, could you light it up in here?"
"Sure thing," Zuki obliged, sending out her Umbreon and telling it to use Flash. The group made sure to close their eyes tightly before Umbreon blinded them again. When I opened my eyes again, the cave looked like a lit bunker.
"Come on, let's keep moving," I said, pressing on.
We walked on a little further, when I decided to ask Reia something.
"Hey, Reia?" I started. "Do you have a legendary partner?"
Reia stopped and hung her head in sadness. Then she started crying softly.
"Huh? Did I say something wrong?" I said, looking at Zuki.
"Reia doesn't like to tell this story, but she lost all of her Pokémon during an exhibition mission," Zuki said sadly. "She was ambushed by Team Prime's admins, and none of her Pokémon made it, except for Lyra, whom she protected with her own life."
"That's horrible…" I said, feeling a weight being pressed on my chest. To lose all of your Pokémon…that's the worst fate for any Pokémon Trainer. You might as well have just killed them.
I walked up to Reia and embraced her lightly, saying, "I'm sorry, I didn't know…"
"No, it's OK," she said, wiping the tears from her face. "I swore that I'd get revenge on them. That's why I joined the Legend Keepers in the first place." Her expression turned to one of confidence and fury. "They will pay…"
With that, Reia stood up straight and kept walking. I followed behind her, not helping but admiring her strength. Anyone else I know would've gone insane from a traumatic experience like that.
In that moment, I decided to join the Legend Keepers indefinitely. As soon as we got to Ecruteak, I was heading straight for that dance theater.
But it wasn't just for Reia, no. It was for Latias; for myself; for the world.
Luna and I looked at each other, and I could tell that she was thinking the same things that I was. I nodded, and she nodded back.
It was decided. Our paths were set. And if anything gets in my way…
They're gonna feel my wrath.
Author's Note: Looks like Roku has made his choice. And with his newly evolved Umbreon, nothing will get in the way of his goals. At least, so we think…
Anyway, I'm running out of ideas for something to write on my end notes, so if anyone who reads this has any suggestions for space-claimers, then post them in the reviews.
That's it for now. Strato Abyss signing out.
