=Chapter 27, The First of Six=
*Jacob to Arky*
*It's been a few days since we helped save Articuno, since then we arrived in Lavaridge Town, and thankfully the winter snowstorm that Articuno had created didn't reach this far. The Lavaridge Gym Leader is currently away tending to some unruly Fire Pokemon at the summit of Mt. Chimney, but they'll be back tomorrow. In the meantime we've tried alerting the police to Viridian and what he and his colleagues were doing. Yet Officer Jenny didn't believe us, something about how absurd our story was, despite receiving a call from the very same Pokemon Adoption Center reporting the incident.*
*She said there was no way Viridian would dare hurt a legendary Pokemon or could have hurt that legendary Pokemon. Something about Viridian being on live television for an interview, and that she was watching it at the time so whoever this 'Viridian' was obviously was lying to us.*
*She would keep an eye out for someone matching the person's description, but she had her own troubles with a recent wave of thefts of medicine from the local PokeMart.*
*In the meantime, we were trying to find how who Viridian was, and why Officer Jenny didn't believe us when we said it was a man calling himself Viridian, who was the cause of the snowy weather and injured Articuno along route 112.*
(Jacob's PoV)
Jacob watched as Karen scrolled through the top one hundred Trainers in Hoenn at the Pokemon Center's Computer database. They'd been at this for a good few hours today, scrolling through every trainer's aliases that they used when competing in tournaments, challenges, contests, anything outside of a regular battle. Karen was getting angrier and angrier as they continued to find no mention of the name Viridian among the top trainer aliases. Sure a few of the guys they saw looked like their guy, but they weren't him.
"He's got to be here!" Karen snarled as they found nothing after the fifty seventh highest ranked alias trainer in Hoenn. "This is literally, the last list of trainers who gave themselves alter egos and aliases for tournament names! He's GOT to be here somewhere!"
"Maybe we should take a break Karen, I mean sure I want to find him as well, but we've been at this since sunrise, we haven't even had breakfast yet!" He said.
As if to add to that statement, his stomach, Sara's stomach, Karen's stomach, Kenna's stomach, Ziggles' stomach, Lance's stomach and the rest of their team's stomachs all growled in unison. Jacob hadn't had time to think about making their breakfast before Karen dragged them all to the PC which she had reserved for their use all morning so she could look up the records of every trainer with an alias in Hoenn for Viridian. After their first hour of searching their teams had left their balls, expecting breakfast as usual, only to be forced to wait for Karen to finish searching before they could even think of it.
"Not yet, I want to find this guy before we eat!" Karen said, and Jacob knew not to argue with Karen when she had that look in her eye.
Ever since she saw Articuno injured the way she did, Karen had been on a path of vengeance to find out who Viridian was, and by this point Jacob knew not to get in the path of a revenge obsessed teenaged girl. Ziggles also warned him not to upset her any further; it was just simpler to let her vent her steam before it got worse.
"Come on where are you?" She whispered furiously as she flew past twelve different names in the span of five minutes, checking each one thoroughly before moving on.
Then, after a few more minutes, Jacob spotted the name Viridian among all the other names on the list, and now he and Karen knew why Officer Jenny didn't believe their story fully.
"Lovely… so that's Viridian?" Karen said as she leaned back in frustration. "No wonder Jenny doesn't believe our whole story, who would when we call the number twenty fifth ranked Trainer in Hoenn a guy?"
"Jezebel Agate, alias 'Viridian', ranked number twenty five in the Pokemon League, age thirty nine." Jacob read out loud, telling their teams who 'Viridian' was. "Viridian's team varies from challenge to challenge, but her signature Pokemon that has been seen in nearly every battle has been her leading Pokemon, Ebony, a female Leafeon she said she's had since birth and her strongest battler. Ebony, also age thirty nine, is the fastest and hardiest member on Viridian's team, and her signature move is Grass Whistle, which has been known to put entire audiences to sleep without proper protection. Viridian has entered the Pokemon League Championship seventeen times but still has yet to come out victorious like many before her. However, despite her failings to win outright, she and Ebony are a force to be reckoned with at any level."
He sighed in frustration, knowing that the Viridian they found and the Viridian they met are two different Viridians. If Viridian wasn't an alias, then it must be his real name. If they searched for ONLY people with viridian in their name, they could find him, but there could be countless people with such a name, first, last, middle, it didn't matter as there were thousands of trainers in the database.
"Alright, I admit defeat, let's eat." Karen said with a sigh, standing up and stretching.
"About time!" Jacob sighed as they recalled their teams to eat, minus Sara and Lance.
(She really needs to learn to control her temper.) Sara whispered to him privately, looking up at him with tired amber eyes. (If it weren't for you, I'm sure her team would be very unhappy with her right now.)
*I'm sure her team is still unhappy with her.* He thought back as they left the Pokemon Center and headed to a small clearing to start cooking.
As they left Lavaridge Town, they headed out and away from where most of the outdoor spas were, the spas being Lavaridge's selling points and being most famous in all of Hoenn for. There was a stretch of woods that stood at the base of the ridge alongside Mt. Chimney that they found yesterday before talking to Officer Jenny. The small clearing wasn't special; it was just a small space wide enough for their teams to eat in peace away from the town. The major thing it offered was privacy for the two teams and their trainers, in particular a certain member of Jacob's team.
The reason for the privacy was that, after Kenna had been adopted and he became her adopted trainer, she found herself wanting to show off her new 'home' to those around her. By 'home' she meant her Pokeball and Jacob, because she was happy to have found a trainer that she liked. While this would have been cute to Jacob, and indeed it was cute for Jacob and Sara to watch her prance around with him close by whenever people were around, this drew more attention to 'her' rather than 'him, which was her original intention.
Passing by trainers would not stop asking him about where he got her, did he want to trade, would he trade her, this and that, every single time they saw her. Honestly, now he knew why Kenna was so shy around people. If this was the reaction she got every time, no wonder she preferred to hide back in the adoption center whenever someone visited.
"Alright slave, get to work!" Karen joked, plopping herself down and releasing her team so they could eat. "You got hungry mouths to feed!"
"Well whose fault is that?" Jacob joked as he put his bag down and began to pull out their food to eat.
Meanwhile, Sara was slowly releasing the rest of his team one by one. First was Harold then came Roran, no longer wearing a splint, Ivan, Coral, Kenna, and finally Kora!
"Beuuuuu…"
Kora the Beautifly flapped into the air with her multicolored wings and planted herself atop Jacob's shoulder, tickling him with her proboscis and making him laugh. Professor Nomel had sent her back saying that she missed him greatly, more importantly his cooking. However he hadn't yet learned all he could from the spores and powder she emitted from her wings, so he asked if he could send her back when their visit was over.
She didn't mind spending time with Professor Nomel, but she really wanted to eat more of Jacob's cooking. Even after evolving from her Wurmple stage, she was still a bottomless pit.
"Alright, alright I'm working on it!" Jacob said as he filled the pot to make soup. "Jeez Kora give me a few minutes will ya, been back for half a day and already your hungrier than a Snorlax."
"Beuuutifly!" She giggled as she flew over him, watching him prepare the pot to cook.
Jacob went to get firewood while Roran, Ivan and Harold kept an eye on the food to make sure Kora didn't dig in early, remembering the last time she got into it. Firewood in hand, he set about lighting the fire to get the pot going, and then began to cut and slice berries to make soup for them all. "We need to go shopping soon; we're out of some of our food." He said to Karen as he skimmed over how few supplies they had.
"We don't have the money." Karen said sullenly. "If Lavaridge had a tournament arena we could compete to earn some for food, but we've got to make do with what we have. The only place that's really competitive around here is the Gym, which also doubles as a huge spa!"
"Well we have enough to last us a week if we don't go overboard…"
(Which we won't thanks to you!) Sara said to him privately with a smile.
Jacob smiled at that thought, naturally he wouldn't let that happen to them, he'd sell the Keystone and anything else he could before he'd let any of them starve. Of course before that happens, all the berry trees in Hoenn would have to die.
(?'s PoV)
She watched the two trainers and their teams in the clearing from the safety of the tree line, easily hiding herself so that nobody, not even the Krilia or the Riolu could detect her.
"Being a Trainer is so difficult some days!" The female trainer moaned. "Having to buy all this extra stuff and lug it around with us when we travel. Why do people think the Trainer life is so much fun and so easy?"
"I know it's such a drag for poor Karen, having to let her friend Jacob carry all of the food and supplies the two of them buy on his back. What a cruel world we live in." The male trainer said with a laugh.
While the two trainers laughed and poked fun at each other, their Pokemon sat around and busied themselves with other tasks, the blue-flamed Ponyta watched her trainer making food alongside the Kirlia while the Grovyle, three Mightyenas, and Swellow watched the Linoone and Breloom shove each other around. The Milotic had coiled herself and also watched the trainer, whom she guessed was Jacob, cook food, though she paid more attention to her surroundings and was keeping an eye out for danger.
-We can sense it… but which one is it…- She thought to herself, trying to figure out who had the power she felt.
She looked at the bag, and felt once more the familiar power, the power of the multicolored stone that shined greater than any star, felt more powerful than even the Great Creator Pokemon, and felt so very familiar.
It was in there, she could feel it, and her powers confirmed that it most definitely was coming from there. That power was inside that bag, and she had to get at it. But she couldn't, not right now, the Pokemon were too alert, too protective, and she would need to be physical to touch the object despite her powers. Right now she was invisible, but that was only so she could watch them.
-Yes, we know, we know we must get at it…- She told herself. –We must make sure he is ready to use it…-
She eyed the bag again, a plan coming to fruition as time went on and they continued to prepare food for the Pokemon. –He's familiar… yes… familiar… he's not like you but like you still… three badges… familiar… yes…-
She eyed the male trainer, then eyed the Grovyle, wondering how best to go about her plan. –He's got to be the starter… yes… yes he must… is he though, I don't know…- She thought. –Yes, yes he must be… we understand… yes… that is the starter… the closest of them all to the trainer… must be… yes… very much so!-
-How should we do it?- She asked herself. –That's it… yes… we do that… we understand!-
(Jacob's PoV, One hour later)
"Ah, much better…" Jacob sighed with contentment as he patted his belly, now happily stuffed with Oran Berry Soup. "Nothing like a nice bowl of soup to make a day feel ten times better right team?"
All together they all agreed, Kenna neighing, Harold crying, Ivan howling, Coral nodding, Kora whining, Roran chirping, and Sara mentally agreeing with him. Karen's team also looked happy to have been fed, and Karen herself seemed slightly more cheerful despite their earlier problems. He would have prepared more variety for the carnivorous members of his team, but seeing as they ate around lunch time when it was really breakfast, a soup seemed more appropriate.
After Kora ate her food she flew over and landed on Jacob's head, eyeing the remnants of the soup pot with eager eyes. "Still hungry?" Jacob asked with a laugh. "You had the biggest bowl Kora, are you still hungry even after that?"
"Beeeeu!" She squealed.
"Alright go ahead and dig in, not like anyone's going to stop you!" He chuckled, and watched how fast a Beautifly could flap over to food.
After nearly four months separated, Kora was still the same as always, crazy about food and crazy about eating his food. *Which was probably the whole reason she tagged along with me in the first place.* He thought to himself.
As Kora finished eating the bowl of food, he thought he saw a pair of purple lights suddenly appear in the tree line. He blinked when he saw them, and the next moment they were gone. "That's weird… I thought I saw something." He said to himself.
Suddenly all around him he heard the sound of bodies landing on the floor. He looked around and saw Sara, Kora, Karen, Ivan, Roran, Kenna, Ziggles, Lance, Nora, Laura, Coral, and Shrew all on the ground and fast asleep. Only Harold was still up, and looking just as confused as Jacob was as to what was going on. "What the…" Jacob said as he rushed over to his team while Harold walked over to him. "Sara… Sara, wake up!"
Sara however simply snoozed on, looking quite peaceful as she slept in his arms, despite the gentle shaking and sound of his voice. Karen and the rest of their teams were similar, all of them sleeping peacefully where they were standing, sitting, or floating. They weren't injured, but they weren't conscious. "Grovyle?" Harold asked, looking around the clearing as if expecting an attack from some source.
"I don't know Harold, but we've got to find a way to wake them up!" Jacob said, thinking carefully about how to wake them all up. "Okay… I think we still have some Chesto Berries in my bag. If I can just ground that up, extract the juice and pour a little into each of their mouths then the caffeinated berry extract should wake them up instantly!"
"Hehehehehehe…" A voice giggled.
Jacob and Harold turned around to look for the source of the voice, and saw a floating purple entity right over his backpack. It looked about two feet tall, with a head resembling a large pointed hat and tufts. Its mouth was opened wide in the resemblance of the letter W, and it had amber colored eyes that were eyeing him and Harold. "What the… what kind of Pokemon is that?" He asked, pulling out his Pokedex and having it scan the new creature.
[Mismagius, the Magical Pokemon, It chants incantations. While they usually torment targets, some chants bring happiness.]
"Mismagius, what's a Mismagius doing here?" Jacob asked himself as he looked at the Ghost type before him.
In response to his question, its eyes glowed purple, and he felt himself suddenly freeze up. He couldn't move his body, and by the looks of it Harold had been hit with the attack. "Hehehehe!" It giggled into his mind again, before plunging head first into his bag, only to reappear holding a small box, the very same box that held his Keystone. "Mine now!" It giggled again, before taking off toward the woods.
"Hey!" Jacob shouted, feeling his body work normally again and taking off with Harold after the Mismagius thief. "Give that back you thief!"
"Grovyle!" Harold yelled, sprinting after the ghost but not so fast he left Jacob behind.
Meanwhile the thief had continued to fly off into the woods, staying just within sight range so they could keep up, glancing back at them and waving the box at them as if taunting them. "Mine now, mine now, mine now!" She kept saying over and over in their minds, still giggling with laughter every time they saw the box.
"That's my Keystone!" Jacob shouted angrily, not liking how this day had been going.
First they couldn't report Viridian to the police, then they didn't have breakfast that morning, and now the Keystone that Arky told him to take care of was being stolen from him by a little thief!
But as they continued to chase after the thief, Jacob felt something poke at the back of his mind. Why was this Pokemon purposefully taunting them with the box? Why didn't it just knock out Harold and Jacob along with the others, before taking the box? Why did it even want the box, and inside of it, the Keystone to begin with? Why wasn't it increasing its speed to get away, it clearly was fast enough to make a getaway, but they could still keep up with it. It was as though it 'wanted' them to catch it, or at the very least follow it.
Still that didn't matter; he had to get that Keystone back! "Harold, run ahead and stop that ghost however you must!" He shouted to his Grovyle, knowing Harold could handle himself if things got tough for a minute.
"Grovyle!" He said before taking a huge leap and easily catching up to the Mismagius.
Yet just as he caught up to the ghost, it turned, hit him with whatever it used before to stun them, and took off yet again. Harold was stunned only for as long as it took Jacob to catch up to him, then he was freed and they resumed the chase. Every time Harold got close enough to the Mismagius to attack, it turned and stunned him again before he could shield himself from it, before resuming its escape, giggling madly each time they tried. Yet still it did not leave their field of vision.
By now they had been running for a good ten or fifteen minutes, and he was running out of breath fast. "Why… is it… doing this?" He asked as they continued to chase after the ghost. "Where is it… taking us?"
"Gro…" Harold replied, just as confused as Jacob was.
Then the Mismagius turned sharply and vanished out of sight behind a line of trees. Jacob and Harold raced after, and found they were inside a small clearing similar to where they had been eating with the others. He looked around for the Mismagius, but couldn't find it.
Instead he saw a person, sitting cross legged on the grass, back turned to them and looking down at a group of six Pokeballs all strapped to a belt. The person, a girl by the looks of it, was wearing a greenish bandana and purple sweatshirt with matching colored jeans. Her gym shoes were covered in dirt, dried mud, had bite marks and even some burn marks with bits of ashes stuck to their soles.
"Hey have you seen a Mismagius run through here?" Jacob asked, catching his breath as he and Harold looked around for the very Pokemon he asked about.
The girl didn't look back at him, but took the belt of Pokeballs and strapped them to her waist as she stood up. Then she looked around at him and revealed her face, which was concealed by a strange mask, one that looked very odd to him.
"Uh… hello?" He asked.
In response, she looked at Harold and reached for one Pokeball on her belt, and held it up to her eyelevel, the ball looked very old, and very dirty.
"Uh no, I don't want to trade… I just want to know if you saw…" He tried to say, but in response the girl tossed the Pokeball and released the Pokemon within.
It stood six feet tall with a mostly red and beige body that stood on two strong and powerful legs, had a V shaped crest adorning its head and a ferocious look in its eyes.
It was a Blaziken.
"Whoa wait, no I don't want to battle!" Jacob said as he took a step back while Harold stood in front of him, preparing to defend them both.
The Blaziken assumed an aggressive stance and its trainer remained silent, apparently oblivious to Jacob and Harold's unwillingness to battle. Then she spoke seven words before she pointed at Harold. "There's no running, from a trainer battle!"
Instantly the Blaziken jumped forward, fist primed and ready to deliver a devastating blow. All Harold could manage to do was fling his clawed hands and arms in front of him and take the hit, before he was knocked back viciously into a tree. "Harold!" Jacob shouted, running to his Grovyle to check on his starter.
The hit had been ferocious, but it was only a minor bruise on his arms that was the evidence of the hit. He had been flung backwards by the sheer force of the hit, not the hit itself.
"Pathetic… you couldn't even take my weakest hit." The girl said, shaking her head in disappointment. "Is this what passes for 'Trainers' nowadays? I had hoped you'd be able to counter attack once before losing."
Jacob looked over at the girl as the Blaziken stared silently at them, awaiting further instructions from the trainer. "We didn't want to battle; we only came here chasing a ghost Pokemon that stole something from me!" He shouted angrily.
"Oh… you came looking for something?" She said, still looking at him through that mask only. "Tell me weakling, what is this 'something' that you are so desperate to look for that you'd chase a ghost Pokemon through unknown territory of perhaps countless Pokemon, with nothing but your Grovyle to protect you?"
"A Keystone!" He shot back as Harold got back up.
"A Keystone… you mean this Keystone?" She asked, standing aside to reveal the box the Mismagius had stolen, still sealed as he had left it.
"Yea!" Jacob said, wondering how she got it from the Mismagius, before comprehension dawned on him.
"No… I didn't send the Mismagius to steal it." She said. "I do not own a Mismagius; I simply found this box dropped in front of me moments before you appeared."
"Well give me back that box; I need to get back to my friends!" He demanded.
"I can't let you have this Keystone." She stated, returning to her previous position and blocking it from view.
"Why not?" Jacob said. "It's not yours, so let me have it back!"
"Indeed, it isn't mine." She said. "But I can't let you have it back."
She took a few steps forward and stood next to her Blaziken, who relaxed its stance and knelt down so it was on her eyelevel. "Keystones are more than just stones to allow trainers to Mega Evolve their Pokemon. They are symbols of status and power to the very Pokemon that depend on them for Mega Evolution. To be trained by one who possess a Keystone is considered the greatest honor and is the highest hope for every Pokemon. To Mega Evolve is an even greater honor and is the closest symbol of trust between Trainer and Pokemon. To own a Keystone is considered a privilege for any Trainer, for only a select few can use them. It is also a badge of power, for you possess the means to strengthen a Pokemon beyond what another could."
"So now you see why I can't let such a weakling possess this Keystone. One who does not even wear the very symbol of power and strength proudly for all to see, does not deserve the privilege to own it, let alone see it. Even Contest Stars wear their Keystones proudly, and they do not even partake in the same kinds of battles you and I do."
"So walk away trainer… turn around with your companion and simply leave this stone where it lies. Let another trainer who isn't afraid to wield this power claim it from me." She said.
"No way, my teacher told me to keep that safe with me!" Jacob said as Harold nodded and stepped forward, preparing himself to do battle again. "That Keystone leaves with me and nobody else."
The trainer looked him over before stepping back behind her Blaziken, who stood up to its full height. "Very well… I will give you once chance to prove your worth." She said. "If you want to take this Keystone from me, you will have to endure one of my tests. There is no other way, your Pokemon simply lack the power and skill to survive against my weakest attacks. Therefore I will teach you these skills, and at the end if you defeat me then I will acknowledge you as the true master of this Keystone."
*What is she talking about…* He thought to himself. *Whatever, if it gets me back that Keystone then I'll learn whatever I have to.*
Her Blaziken smacked its fists together, before bowing kindly toward Harold, who after a brief nod from Jacob, also smacked his clawed hands together before bowing. "The first lesson is taking on opponents that are clearly stronger than you, both in terms of power and type." She said in a clear voice. "Often a trainer battles an enemy that is far superior to themselves, in both power and type advantages. Such foes cannot be easily beaten without proper knowledge and planning, something you will not get in large quantities of, and more often not even that! However such foes can still be beaten, such personalities will be reckless, and will often go for the finishing blow as the battle begins. Such a blow would defeat your companion without even giving them the slightest chance to retaliate. If you and your Pokemon encounter such a foe, the only thing that can truly save your companion that protects you is the faith you two have in each other!"
She stepped over a distance and her Blaziken turned to face her and both closed their eyes. "This basic test of faith is to cast aside your eyes for each other, and rely solely on the trust that you put in each other. The bond you two share will give each of you that power necessary to overcome even the most difficult of trials. To test your faith in each other, the trainer and Pokemon must cast away their eyesight, and rely on their inner senses to detect the danger to each other. The Pokemn must detect and protect their trainer by blocking the attack that would harm them, and the Trainer must have faith that their Pokemon will not let harm befall them."
While she talked, wisps of fire and balls of water suddenly flew out toward her, and she was so oblivious to them that she did not even pause in her rambling. Yet she didn't need to because without even seeing them, since its eyes were closed as well, the Blaziken was jumping around knocking the wisps of fire and water away, not letting a single one touch the girl.
"A Pokemon can avoid taking any damage thanks to this bond, something that goes beyond the physical understanding. With this bond they can even take on opponents that are mightier than they!" She said, as her Blaziken landed and showing not even a single scratch despite being a fire type getting hit by water and fire. "There can be no doubt, for if there is even the slightest doubt, the bond will bend and waver, and the power it gives to you both, is diminished greatly.
Jacob nodded and stood opposite the girl, and turned to Harold. *Okay Harold… I trust you… I know you won't let me get hurt…* He said and he closed his eyes. *I have faith in you buddy… I have faith in you…*
(Harold's PoV)
He watched Jacob close his eyes, and Harold knew that it was his turn. Jacob was putting his faith and safety in his claws. Harold closed his eyes, and tried to feel for the danger, letting his senses tell him what was around him, and not relying solely on his eyes. It was difficult, very difficult to rely on his other senses, but somehow… somehow he managed. It was as his other senses started working that somewhere, in the back of his mind, something told him to jump left.
So he did, and as he did he felt water smack into his back, and drip off to the ground. The same feeling told him again to jump right, and let it hit his back. He did and he felt something hot hit his back where the water had been, but it didn't hurt because of the water.
This went on for a full minute, with him letting his senses guide him to where the water was, and letting that hit him to prevent the fire from hurting him and Jacob. He was worried that perhaps he was missing some, but no his senses were telling him Jacob was safe, so he continued to trust that 'something'.
*I trust Jacob to take care of me… and he trusts me to protect him…* He thought as he went through the routine again of letting his senses direct him. *I have faith in him… I have faith in him…*
(Jacob's PoV)
He stood there for a full minute before something told him that it was over and to open his eyes. So carefully, he opened his eyes and saw Harold in front of him, completely unharmed, though with tiny blots of water dripping from his scaly hide. Harold himself was opening his eyes and looked over Jacob, who had also gone unharmed.
"Thanks buddy." Jacob said with a short laugh.
Harold responded with his trademarked grin, and clawed version of a thumbs up. "Grovyle…"
"Well done… you've passed the first of my tests." The girl said, taking their attention, who's Blaziken had vanished, apparently back into its Pokeball. "Remember young Trainer, the road is difficult, and trials are forever being set against you, only with the bonds you form with those who travel with you, can they be overcome."
Behind her, a pair of purple lights appeared, and Jacob started feeling very sleepy. Unable to stand properly he fell to the floor, eyes closing and everything fading away. "When you are ready, we shall meet again."
He tried to wake up, but just as he felt his mind performing that very task, he felt a thought probing his mind. It felt familiar, very familiar. In fact he could hear a voice in his mind.
(Jacob, wake up!)
His eyes snapped open, and the first thing he saw was a pair of amber eyes looking down on him. Sara quickly hopped off to allow him to sit up properly, and as he looked around he saw they were back in the camp, exactly where they had been before the others had collapsed and Mismagius appeared. Harold was also getting up, shaking his head to wake himself up while Karen and the rest of their teams gathered around looking worried at the two.
"What happened?" He asked.
"We were going to ask you that." Karen said. "One moment you were talking about Kora's bottomless stomach, and then you and Harold just collapsed."
"No way… you all collapsed and Harold and I were still awake." He said.
(No we didn't Jacob, you fell asleep the moment Kora went to eat from the pot.) Sara said worriedly. (You were asleep for a few minutes; we couldn't wake you up until just now!)
"But the Mismagius… the Keystone!" He said, suddenly going to his back and examining the contents. Harold got up and ran over to the bag as well.
The box containing the Keystone was still there, right where he had left it. It hadn't even budged an inch. *Was that all… just a dream…* He thought to himself, Sara listening in on his thoughts and trying to figure out what was going on herself. *But it felt so real… it felt so… was that all just an illusion?*
All Jacob could ask, was who was the girl, what happened to the Mismagius, and of course, those last few words before he had apparently woken up.
"When you are ready, we shall meet again."