Chapter 31: A Pokemon Emergency
Roku's P.O.V.
Route 39
We'd been traveling for at least half the day, and nighttime had fallen by this time. Reia and I had decided to rest for the night, much to Calem's disagreement, and set up a campsite. Luna and I had gathered firewood, and Lyra lit it ablaze with her new fiery techniques. After we had cooked dinner, Calem decided to hit the sack early, and Reia and I were sitting up on top of a hill, looking at the biggest full moon we'd ever seen.
"The moon looks really pretty tonight," Reia commented.
"Yeah," I replied, a calm feeling sweeping over me. "It's almost like nothing could ruin a night like this."
I felt something press against me, and I looked over to see that Reia had scooted closer to me, her head resting on my shoulder.
"You know, I just realized how long it's been since we first met," Reia said. "It feels much longer than what it really was."
That was true. We hadn't even known each other for a month, and it already feels like I'd known her forever. And during our time traveling together, we'd grown really close.
"I guess I should thank you for that," I said.
Reia looked at me with a puzzled look on her face. "Thank me for what?"
"For asking to join me on my journey," I said, looking her in the eye. "If you weren't there when I left New Bark Town, I never would've heard of the Legend Keepers, let alone where Latias was."
"Oh, uh...you're welcome," she said, her tone changing.
Reia looked away. I could tell that I didn't exactly say the right thing. I turned her head back to where I could look her in the eye again and said, "Of course, that's not the only reason. You're a great friend, Reia, and an amazing partner. To tell you the truth, I probably wouldn't have gotten this far without you, and I don't only mean in the battling part of it."
"Really?" Reia said, her eyes glimmering in the light of the moon.
"Really," I confirmed, a soft smile forming on my face.
Reia leaned in closer, and right as our eyes were closing...
RING! RING!
I backed up and looked at my ringing P*DA with disgust, noticing that it was a call from Cedric.
Great, thanks for ruining the moment, Cedric, I thought to myself, accepting the call.
"Hello?" I said roughly.
"Ah, Roku," Cedric said. "And Reia, too, I see. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"
Reia and I looked at each other, and she said, "Nope. Nothing at all."
"Great! I have an important mission for you," Cedric said informatively. "Calem needs to be briefed on this as well."
"Uh, he's sawing logs right now," I said. "Anyway, what's the mission?"
"I just got a call from the Gym Leader of Olivine City that the Ampharos that lights up the lighthouse there has been acting very aggressive as of late, even going so far as to attack her," Cedric said. "We have reason to believe that Ampharos has fallen prey to Team Prime's Shadow project. I need you to head down there and render assistance."
"In other words..." I said, pointing at the sword handle sticking out from behind my back. "You want me to purify it."
"If possible, yes," Cedric said. "Jasmine has informed me that as of right now, Ampharos is contained. It won't be escaping anytime soon. I know you need rest after traveling for as long as you have, but I suggest heading out as early as possible. Understand?"
"Yes, sir," I said.
"Good. Jasmine and I are counting on you for this one, Roku," Cedric said before hanging up. I scowled, knowing that the mood was officially dead, but I laid back with my hands behind my head, not wanting to move from this spot. I guess Reia had the same idea, because she was curled up next to me, snoozing away.
"Good night, Reia," I said silently before closing my own eyes.
Latias' P.O.V.
Route 39
A tear slid down Latias' face as she watched Roku and Reia from the sky. She slowly floated back down and landed, turning into her human disguise.
"I guess...Roku's made his choice," she said to herself. "But I guess it's only natural. I mean...no human could ever love a Pokemon...Not in the way I love him..."
Roku's P.O.V.
Route 39
My eyes fluttered open to a bright sky filled with puffy clouds.
"Kinda reminds me of the skies over Kalos," I heard Reia say.
I sat up to see her and Lyra getting packed up and ready to go. I stood up and saw that Luna and Calem were walking up the hill together.
"Hey, lovebirds," Luna joked, cracking a smile. "Sleep well last night?"
I scowled and said, "I should ask the same for you. You and Calem seemed to be getting pretty close."
Luna and Calem looked at each other, then they stepped away from each other.
"Ooh, hoo hoo, shots fired," Lyra said, laughing. "Anyway, wasn't there something you guys were supposed to brief us on?"
"What, so now you're eavesdropping on us?" Reia said.
"Anyway..." I interrupted, stepping forward. "We got a call from Cedric last night, and he gave us an assignment."
"What kind of assignment are we talking here?" Calem asked.
"A purification," I continued. "Apparently, the Ampharos that lights up the Olivine Lighthouse has been showing signs of hostility and aggression towards humans, even the Gym Leader, who looks after it. Cedric thinks that Team Prime might've had something to do with it."
"But why attack the Lighthouse?" Luna asked, puzzled.
"Because they want to hinder us," said a voice. I turned to see Latias walk up behind me.
"Latias, why do you think so?" I asked.
"The Lighthouse is a very important tool for sailors," Latias said informatively. "If they don't have a light to guide them safely to shore, they could be in real danger. They want us to save the Ampharos, because it will hold us back from completing our mission."
"Are you suggesting we should just skip it and move on?" Calem said.
"No. That's not an option," I said. "Cedric gave us a direct order. Hold-up or not, that Pokemon's in trouble. And it's our duty as Legend Keepers to help it."
"That's right!" Reia exclaimed. "Let's hurry!"
We finished packing up and headed for Olivine City at a brisk pace, even starting to run. We didn't stop for any of the Trainers that hung out on the road; we just kept running until we reached the city, which was only about a couple hours at least.
"Huff...huff...Sheesh, I didn't expect a run like that to be so tiring!" Reia said, putting her hands on her knees and resting.
"Aw, come on! Latias and I used to chase each other around New Bark Town! This is nothing!" I laughed, looking at Latias. "Right, Latias?"
My smile turned into a frown when I saw Latias looking down, a sad look in her eyes.
"Hey, are you OK?" I asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Hm?" she said, looking up at me. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired, I guess."
I looked at her, knowing that something was wrong. I could see it in her eyes.
"Well, OK, then," I said, deciding to let it slide. "Come on, let's go check on Ampharos."
We continued on towards the lighthouse, and as we walked past the Gym, a familiar looking guy with red hair stepped out. He turned around, and once he saw me, he scowled.
"You again, huh?" he said. I scowled back and reached for one of my Poke Balls.
"Relax, weakling," Darius said. "I'm not here to pick fights this time. The mood's already been killed."
"What do you mean?" I said, pulling my hand back to its original position.
"I came here looking for the Gym Leader, and it turns out that she's trying to care for a Pokemon with 'aggression problems'," Darius said. "Shame...I could use a Pokemon like that. One like that would probably never lose a fight."
I just shook my head and said, "Whatever. If you're not here to pick a fight, then I'm outta here. I don't have the time to waste on people like you."
I shoved past Darius and continued on to the lighthouse, taking the elevator up to the top floor. Once we got there, we saw that the Ampharos had been locked in the lighting chamber, and it was slamming its body onto the walls trying to get out.
"You must be Roku..."
We turned to see a shy looking girl with light brown hair stepping up to us.
"Yes, I am," I said. "And you must be Jasmine, Olivine's Gym Leader."
"I am," she said. "Cedric told me that you might be able to cure Amphy...Can you?"
"Of course," I said. I turned to Calem and said, "You'll have to open the door so I can do my thing."
"Huff, fine," Calem said, moving to the door that was keeping Amphy locked up. He disengaged the lock, and the door swung open right as I drew my sword.
"OK, this shouldn't take long," I said, raising my sword.
"Wait!"
The next thing I knew, the door had closed, and Jasmine was standing in front of me, arms spread out and a look of fear in her eyes.
"What are you doing?!" I shouted, lowering my blade. "I thought you wanted to cure Amphy!"
"Not in the way you were going about it!" Jasmine shouted. "I thought Cedric said to help Amphy, not harm her!"
"Aw, come on, let the kid try!" said a dark voice from the other side. "It's not like he can really harm me!"
"OK, what would you suggest we do?" I asked her, ignoring Amphy's taunts.
"Well, there's always the pharmacy down in Cianwood City," Jasmine said. "I hear there's a cure-all that might help her."
"OK, we'll go there and check it out," I said. "But, if the medicine doesn't work, this sword is the only way to cure Amphy. If it comes down to it, you can't interrupt me."
"OK...I understand," Jasmine said. "You'll have to cross the sea to reach Cianwood. It's a bit of a long trip, so be careful."
"We'll be careful," I said, sheathing my sword. "And we'll be back as soon as we can."
Jasmine nodded her head, and we took the elevator back down to the ground floor. As we were walking out, I sighed loudly.
"Kind of anticlimactic, if you ask me," I said. "And now we have to do even more work!"
"Do we even have a Pokemon that can cross the water?" Reia asked. "I don't think Calem's Greninja will be able to hold all of us."
"Yeah, and neither will his Charizard or Latias," I said, looking at my Pokemon, who shrugged her shoulders. "So flight's out of the question."
"Don't worry, I have someone who can help," Calem said. "Just give me a few seconds."
Calem held up his wrist and accessed his contact list on his P*DA. After selecting a name, a holographic image of a man with black wavy hair and slight stubble appeared. He looked to be in his fifties.
"Hello, Calem! It's been a while, how are you?" the man said.
"I'm doing good, Professor," Calem said, turning so the man could see us. "And so is Reia."
"Hi, Professor!" Reia said cheerfully.
"Reia! It's good to see you!" he said, returning the cheerful mood. Then he saw me and asked, "And who's this?"
"This is Roku Kimura," Reia said, introducing me. "Roku, this is Kalos' very own Professor Augustine Sycamore. He's the one who got us started on our journeys."
"Nice to meet you, Roku," Professor Sycamore said. Then he turned back to Calem and said, "So, what can I do for you? I know you didn't call just to chat."
"I need you to transmit Lapras through my PC account," Calem said. "I'm in need of his services."
"I take it you're not carrying a full belt?" Professor Sycamore asked.
"No, sir," Calem confirmed.
"Well, alright! I'll send him over right away!" the professor said, disappearing from view. A few seconds later, a Poke Ball materialized from his wrist. He grabbed it, and Professor Sycamore came back into view.
"Thank you, Professor," Calem said. "I have to go now."
"Very well," the professor said. "Good bye, you two. And good bye to you too, Roku Kimura. I hope we get a chance to meet in person."
I nodded and gave a slight wave before the line was cut. Calem shrunk the ball and put it on his belt, saying, "Let's go."
We headed out to Route 40, where the ocean started, and Calem threw out his new Pokemon, which resembled a plesiosaur with a bumpy shell on his back. I pulled up the Pokedex for a closer look at Lapras.
"Lapras, the Transport Pokemon. Lapras is highly intelligent, being able to understand human speech. People have driven this Pokemon almost to the point of extinction. In the evenings, Lapras is said to sing plaintively as it seeks what few others of its kind still remain."
"Wow, that's sad," I said. "That must hurt, knowing that there are few of you left."
"I thank you for your sympathy, young one," Lapras said. He turned back to Calem and said, "I understand that you are in need of a transport."
"Yes, Lapras," Calem said. "We need to get to Cianwood City to get some medicine for a sick Pokemon."
"Very well," Lapras said, shoving itself off into the water. "Please, climb onto my back."
"Uh, are you sure?" I asked. "I mean, there's three of us and only one of you."
"No need to worry about me," Lapras said. "I can carry all of you and more on my back."
Reia and I returned Luna and Lyra to their Poke Balls, and we piled onto Lapras' back. Lapras looked forward, and we slowly began our journey across the sea.
Author's Note: Anyone notice the cameo in there? Those of you who played Mystery Dungeon would know who I'm talking about. Anyway, please read and review.
Strato Abyss signing out.
