Chapter Five
A year ago…
Dave the male Pokémon Pincher yawned, slouching against a large door.
"Will you shut it?!" A female with unkempt light brown hair, stationed at the other side of the door, hissed. "I won't be able to hear anything if you keep it up!"
"Yeah, yeah. Why do you have to be so nosy, anyway?"
"I have my reasons." She snapped, and returned to listening intently, her ear pressed to the door.
"I'll be surprised if you can hear anything…"
Suddenly, a voice sounded from beyond the door. "The prophecy is as follows…"
"Never mind." Dave muttered.
"Ssssh!" the female whispered, desperately trying to catch every word.
After a brief pause, the voice spoke again.
"As your operations begin,
A girl clad in red and yellow,
And an electric mouse will appear,
Heart lit with passion,
Pokémon will be by her side,
When she forms the connection,
And those of legend,
Will show her the signs of a Guardian,
But whether her justice prevails,
Is what you must decide,
Under the gaze of Two,
High in the sky."
Silence…
"What were you saying, Dave?" said the woman, a sly grin on her face.
"Nothing. Not a damn thing." Dave sighed. "I still don't get why you're so interested in what the boss is up to…"
"And you won't get it… See ya!" she began to walk away, waving a hand behind her.
"Wait! Where are you going?"
"Places." She stopped, and threw a smile over her shoulder. "Relax. I'll be back before you know it. See you."
"Huh?" Dave frowned. Just what was she up to? But as another yawn escaped him, Dave remembered that he was just in this for the money, and didn't really care. Besides, that 'prophecy' thing sounded interesting… Dave grinned. Maybe it was time to spread some gossip.
Guardian Signs
Ralph skipped about, dancing in front of Arley and Summer (minus Pokémon) as they walked back to Booker's house.
"So, Summer. What brings you to Oblivia? The 'Pokémon Pinchers'?" Arley asked as they walked along.
"Yes, exactly that. Uh, them. But, yes, the Pokémon Pinchers. It's our first big mission, actually." Summer replied.
"Our?"
"Oh, yeah. My partner, Ben, and I got separated on the way here. I still can't get in touch with him, though…" she glanced at her Styler, frowning.
"I see. Well, I'm sure you'll find him."
"Yeah…" the female Ranger frowned, hoping that she could.
Ralph ran back to them and grabbed Summer's hand, pulling her forward. "Hey! Summer! Come meet Doctor Edward!"
"Huh?" But it was too late to be confused, as Ralph ran into the village plaza, dragging an unwilling Summer behind him. An elderly man with long greying hair and a moustache stood by a group of villagers. He wore a white coat and around his neck hung a stethoscope. A small satchel was being carried in his right hand. As he caught sight of the approaching duo, he gave them a smile.
Ralph stopped in front of the man, who Summer assumed was Doctor Edward.
"Why hello, Ralph. It's good to see you're in such good spirits." Edward greeted. You haven't been ill lately, your mother tells me. I hope that-"
"Yeah, I'm fine!" Ralph interrupted. "But, look, Doctor Edward! This is Summer!" the boy gestured to his companion, who, as always, offered a polite smile.
Summer held out her hand, which Edward shook with a friendly smile. "It's good to meet you, Doctor."
"And you, Summer. I take care of the sick and injured all over Oblivia, just so you know." The older man noticed the state of Summer's clothing. "Are you alright? You look like you've been in a fight of some sort!"
The girl sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Well, yeah… Of some sort… But I'm fine!"
After she spoke, Edward noticed another thing about her clothes. "You're a Pokémon Ranger, aren't you?"
"Uh, yes, sir."
"No need to be so formal, Summer. Well, I'm glad that help has arrived."
"Hm?"
"Well, what with all the ruckus that these Pokémon Pinchers have been causing, I was wondering how Rand could take care of it all!"
Summer laughed. "Oh, I see." She turned to Ralph, who was speaking with another child. "Speaking of… Ralph- I'd like to meet Rand."
"Oh, right, yeah." The boy replied. "That would probably help, wouldn't it?"
"Probably!" The Ranger smiled.
"Let's go back to Booker's first, though."
Arley stepped forward. "And this is where I leave you in Ralph's capable hands, Summer. I'd like to speak to Doctor Edward."
The doctor greeted the large man with a friendly smile. "Ah, Arley. Back trouble again?"
"Afraid so, Edward." The two men walked away from the group, conversing like old friends.
Ralph looked up at Summer, saying, "Come on! We have to take Pichu back to Booker!"
The girl looked down at the Pokémon, which had been following them from the cave looking thoroughly miserable. "Right." She said, worried for the creature.
Guardian Signs
"Yooooo, Booker!" Ralph called out, startling the old man.
Nick jumped up from a workbench he had been sat on, muttering something along the lines of, '…what if they… but then… oh no, no, no…' to himself. He rushed over to the two. "Ralph! Summer! You're back safe! Oh, thank goodness! I was beginning to worry that maybe the Pinchers had done that thing to you instead of Arley and you were both going round like Pokémon, you know, and-"
"Nick!" Summer clapped her hands in front of the young man's face, shocking him out of his ramble.
Booker walked over, looking quite relieved. "I was beginning ta worry as well, lass, but not like Nick."
Summer grinned. "I don't think anyone worries like Nick." The comment earned her a, 'Hey!' that was promptly ignored.
"Anyway, Summer. Did you find Arley? Did you stop the Pinchers?"
"Yes and no. Arley was fine, but the Pinchers broke and took part of the Monument in Rasp Cavern."
"Great… Honestly, what do they plan to do with that?"
"I have no idea. But, and this is interesting, Raikou showed up."
"Raikou? As in, the legendary electric beast, Raikou?"
"Yes, that's the one. Based off of what Arley told me, I think that Raikou guards the Monument there."
"Hmm…" The master shipbuilder looked down, catching sight of Ukulele Pichu. "And what's wrong with the little guy?"
"Ah. Well, the Pinchers broke his ukulele."
Booker suddenly became furious. "They did what?!"
Summer turned to Ralph, who was getting the broken pieces out of his pockets. After he was certain that he had gotten every piece, the child put them down on a workbench.
"Right. Well, I'll need the wood…"
The automated voice of the Styler sounded. "It seems like there is a person with a problem. Listening to someone's problem and solving it for them is what Pokémon Rangers call a 'Quest'. You can always check the content of the Quests you've taken on in the Quests part of the Styler menu."
Nick whistled. "Wow. Fancy equipment, huh."
Ralph looked worried. "So, Booker, you can fix it, right?"
The old man nodded. "I can, but the materials I need are on Dolce Island. You can find this special wood in a big tree trunk- Summer, you remember passing that, don't you?"
Summer nodded.
"Good. If you don't mind, could you get it for me?"
Another nod.
"Excellent. Thank you, Summer. You see, Ralph, you need wood with a nice, straight grain-"
"Oh, would you look at the time! Geez! Wow, this day has gone so fast! Well, I gotta run, so, seeya!" Ralph dashed out of the house before Booker could say another word.
Nick folded his arms, his face serious. "I think I should go and get the material, boss."
Booker looked surprised. "What?"
"Well, you never expect anything of me, boss. And I reckon Summer should probably try to find Rand as soon as she can, right?"
"Well. I see. That, um, is, I-"
"Boss. C'mon." Nick folded his arms.
"Alright. But you've never been ta Dolce Island, so Summer will go with ya."
Nick sighed. "Fine."
Summer glanced between the two, afraid to get in the middle of them. "Um. Well, let's go, Nick!" she walked out, throwing the two a worried glance over her shoulder. After a second, Nick followed her.
Booker sighed. "I do wonder about that boy, Pichu…"
"Piii!"
Guardian Signs
Outside, Nick was frowning, chewing his lower lip.
Summer turned to him. "Are you alright, Nick?"
He looked up, surprised. "Oh, yeah. It's just, I like working with Booker, you know? I like making boats, it's great. But I'm not the best apprentice in the world, and I just want him to trust me."
"Oh. I see." Summer smiled at him. "Well, I don't know either of you too well, so feel free to just ignore me, but I think he cares about you more than he lets on."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Nick smiled, the happiness returning to his face. "Thanks, Summer."
"Anytime. Now, to Dolce Island…"
"I think there's a boat there that you can take. The fisherman's on good terms with Booker, so…"
"Oh, I see."
Summer went over to where Nick had pointed out and a jovial man with a fishing rod in hand greeted them. "Well, hello there, kids! Something I can do for you?"
Summer nodded and explained the situation to the man. Afterward, the man led them over to a wooden boat with a smile. The boat bobbed along the waves with a slow rhythm, and they all climbed in.
"My business would have failed without Booker, you see." The fisherman smiled. "Makes the best boats, that man."
"Yeah." Nick said, simply. The boy's hand trailed in the water, aimlessly waving about. With a sigh, he withdrew his hand and looked at Summer. "Do you really think Booker likes me?"
The Pokémon Ranger gave him a look that said 'honestly…'. "That's what I said just a minute ago, right?"
"Oh, I know what you said and when you said it." He scowled at the bottom of the boat. "I'm just having trouble believing it."
Summer frowned, curiously studying the boy's face. Why did he have such a hard time believing in himself? "Listen to me, Nick." The boy looked up at her with such a dejected expression that she resisted the urge to give him a hug. "You might worry a lot, but I think you're really great and hardworking. And from what I've seen, Booker really does care about you. So believe me when I say it, 'cause I'm usually right about this stuff."
Nick sighed and leaned back. "Right."
Summer stood up as the boat gently bumped into the pier on Dolce Island. With a gentle smile she held out her hand to the boy and said, "C'mon, Nick." Gratefully, he took it and clambered out of the boat.
"I'll be right here!" The fisherman called out to them as they walked down the pier.
"We won't be long!" Summer called back, and went ahead of Nick to run up the stairs leading to the forest.
"Wait up!" Nick shouted, and hastily followed her.
A minute later, Summer had found the tree trunk the Booker had talked about. It was huge. It was circular in shape and very tall- both her and Nick had trouble seeing into it as they were too small.
"Okay." Nick said, giving Summer a grin that she was glad to see after that moment in the boat. "Watch and learn, Miss Ranger. You might need this skill someday!"
"What skill?" But the words were barely out of her mouth when Nick stepped back from the trunk with a face of amazing concentration. Suddenly, he ran forward… and jumped.
"Nick!" the girl ran forward, doing little hops to see over.
"I'm okay!" he replied, and Summer stopped her terrible attempts at jumping. "I even landed on something soft! Ahahahaha- it tickles! Oooh, actually… It feels a bit rough. Weird. Anyhoo, where's that ukulele material? Ah, I found it!" Two hands appeared on the top of the trunk, shaking. One was gripping onto a large piece of wood. Slowly, Nick's head appeared, followed by his shoulders. With a gasp, he put his elbow over the wood. "Hey… Little help, Summer?"
"Oh. Sorry." She laughed, and took the wood from Nick's hand.
"Hey! More heeeeeeeeeelp!" Nick's hands slipped and he fell backwards with a crash. As he landed, there was several squeaking noises.
"Uh, Nick? Did you squeak?" Summer frowned, putting the wood down and stepping forward.
"No, I did not squeak, Summer!" He reappeared, this time climbing out of the trunk easily, as if spurred on by something. Nick fell to the ground, breathing heavily. A shaking finger pointed to the trunk. "Things! Horrible, scary thingsssss! In there!" Unprompted, several black and yellow Pokémon flew out, surrounding Nick.
Summer felt the urge to laugh again. "Wow, a Sunkern's real scary, isn't it? But, wait, there's six of them! Oh nooo!" She did a slow, sarcastic run away from Nick.
"Summer! They're angry, come on!"
Walking back to him, she activated her Styler's Capture Mode and aimed. Despite there being six of them, the seed-like creatures were mostly harmless, and the Capture was over incredibly quickly. With a sigh, Summer turned off the Mode, released the Pokémon and offered Nick a hand. For the second time that day, he thankfully took it.
Nick grinned. "Wow. Can't believe I was scared of a few Sunkerns." He laughed, adjusting his bandana as he did so.
"Neither can I. It's like the funniest thing to happen since I got here."
"Don't you dare tell anyone!"
Summer chose not to reply, instead just offering a grin.
"I mean it!"
Minutes later, the duo arrived back at the pier. Nick stopped walking suddenly, and waited for Summer to reach him. When she did, he said, "Thanks."
"For saving you from the ever so deadly Sunkerns?"
"No. Well, yes, but… I meant thanks for what you said earlier."
"Oh." She smiled. "No problem!"
"Hey!" the fisherman called out. "You heading back?"
Guardian Signs
Later that same day a year ago…
A man and woman stood in a dimly lit bathroom, both facing a wide mirror that was set behind a row of sinks.
"A prophecy, huh? You're sure?"
"Yup. Got it on record, if you'd like." She held up a small electronic device, winking.
"Hard to believe they're that desperate for this whole thing to work. It's so ridiculous- I mean, could not just do it? There's complications with every plan, so why drag poor psychic Pokemon into this?"
"Yeah, I know. Nutters."
"Chuck us the dye, would you?"
"Sure." A bottle of blonde hair dye flew across the room, thrown by the female. Her friend caught it, smiling. "You keeping an eye on them?" the woman asked, leaning against the sink.
"Yup." Said the man, carefully applying the dye. "Haven't moved in the past hour."
"Nice. Hard to believe this'll work, though."
"Well, yeah. But those idiots don't even communicate with them face to face, so…"
"Still…." She smiled at her partner, eyes filled with worry. "Can't stop being nervous."
"Relax." He walked over to the woman, putting a hand on her head. "We'll be fine."
"Hey!" she jumped back, grinning. "You got the dye in my hair!"
"You'll need it, won't you?" the man frowned, but his smile was playful.
"Well, sure, but now it's gonna be uneven."
"Oh, well let me help you with that."
"Hey!"
Guardian Signs
"And this is the how you cut through wood when you want to curve it, Ralph…" Booker was saying to a bored Ralph (who had returned), who sat on a worktop with his chin cupped in his hands, watching the old man with an expression of utmost boredom.
"We're back!" Nick called out, bursting through the door of Booker's house, arms swinging. Summer followed him, carrying the piece of wood.
"Nick! Summer! Thank the heavens!" Ralph cried out. Booker frowned as he turned around, placing a tool in a drawer. "I mean, oh wow, you're back, huh?" he quickly added.
"Yeah." Summer said, holding out the wood to Booker. "And we only had a little trouble finding this. It's funny, Nick-" The boy in question pulled the Ranger girl backwards, stepping forward in her place.
"She's just joking, we had absolutely no trouble getting it." He glanced back at Summer with a look. "Right?"
She shrugged. "Right."
"You've obtained ten Ranger Points!" Summer's Styler said all of a sudden. "Quest complete! Congratulations! When you clear a Quest, you'll receive Ranger Points just like clearing a Mission."
"Except I can't use those points, because you're broken…" she muttered to her Styler, annoyed.
Ralph overheard, and looked at Booker. "Why don't you fix her Styler?"
The old man shook his head. "Because I don't have a clue how any of these new-fangled electronic thingies work."
"Oh."
"But electronics aside, you and Nick did a mighty fine job, so thank you. So let's fix this ukulele!" Booker started to walk over to where Ralph had placed the pieces of the broken instrument, but then stopped and turned back to the group. "Nick? Would you like to give it a try?"
The apprentice looked shocked. "Really? Me?"
"Of course." Booker gestured to the pieces. "Do your best."
Summer smiled at the exchange. See?, she thought, Of course he cares about you.
Guardian Signs
Eleven months ago…
A man dressed all in red with blonde hair (except for a bit at the front, which was dyed red) stood next to a woman dressed in light blue, again with blonde hair. They both stood straight, looking ahead of them to wear a dark figure sat in a chair.
"It's a pleasure to meet you face to face at last, Red Eyes, Blue Eyes."
The man and woman glanced at each other, then back ahead. "And you, sir." They said together.
Let this work, the woman thought.
I hope we make it through this, the man thought.
"Excellent." Said the figure. "Now, to business…"
Woooo! It's about 700 words shorter than the last chapter, but has key plot points that I hope make up for it! Oooh, who are our mysterious duo from a year ago? And what does that prophecy mean? And was Nick really afraid of adorable Sunkerns? Of course he was!
Uploaded on: Monday 30th March 2015