Quiet murmurings run through the room as people chat in low tones.
"I still can't believe it," Misty says numbly, seeming to have regained back some semblance of her usual self.
Alain isn't quite sure whether she means she is in disbelief over Brock's death, or Lance's declaration, so he remains silent.
She answers his unspoken question, "I can't believe Brock is gone. I can't believe we are supposedly the 'Arcana' who will 'save this doomed world'. I'm half-inclined to think that Lance has gone bonkers."
Or both, Alain thinks.
"Only half-inclined? I'm convinced that they have all gone crazy," Drew jokes. At least, Alain thinks he's joking. He doesn't know the boy enough to deduce whether that was a joke.
May smacks Drew's head. "Be serious."
She has calmed down somewhat after Lance's revelation and checking in with her brother.
Ah, it's nice for Alain that all his silent questions keep getting answered on their own. Mairin notices the smile playing around his lips, and decides to engage in a conversation with the other Kalosian.
"What's so funny?" She whispers.
He shakes his head mutely.
She pouts, and turns to talk to Serena.
Serena herself is very unsettled by all these events. She is by no means a sheltered girl, but surely anyone would have been afraid if they were in her shoes. She kind of wants to call her mother, but it's also awkward trying to wrangle herself out of this discussion since she's wedged between Mairin and Dawn.
Oh, Serena is excited to meet Dawn, of course, but her excitement is overshadowed by what is at stake. Which is a lot, given how May's parents have been taken by the portal thing. They really should give that thing a name.
Serena glances at Ash, who is conversing with Gary.
That guy… She's almost positive that it's him.
Yet he doesn't seem to recognize her.
That is a blow to her confidence – which she never had much of in the first place – so until she's absolutely certain, she will just wait and see how it all plays out.
Serena's mind wanders to what Lance had told him – which wasn't a lot.
They are, according to Lance, the "Major Arcana", and there are twenty-two of them. Once in every few thousand years, or something like that, an apocalyptic situation will strike Parelle and the Arcana will have to save the world.
That's all he knows, but even that is unimaginable in itself.
Most of the people assembled here seem to be of the opinion that the Parelle League has lost their marbles and don't seem to be taking Lance that seriously.
They're waiting for Cynthia to wake up and confirm that the league has become unhinged.
Serena isn't sure what to expect. At times like this, one should rely on the adults, but those around her certainly don't trust their judgment.
Misty untangles herself from the conversation and walks down the steps. A few curious gazes follow her.
Misty stalks over to where Professor Juniper is standing, and asks tightly, "may I have a few words with you?"
Professor Juniper breaks away from where she has been discussing their next step with Diantha and Lance. Alder had tried to join the conversation but was given the cold shoulder by Diantha.
"Is something the matter, Misty?" Professor Juniper inquires.
"Who discovered Brock's body?" Misty braces herself for the answer.
The professor blinks, then says in a gentle tone, "Misty, you seem like a smart, young lady. From what I've heard, you're also a capable Gym Leader. It may be best for you if you don't hear all the details."
Misty shakes her head and says in a voice like steel, "I have to know. Brock was –" here her voice cracks but she soldiers on "– my closest confidant. I deserve to know how he died in Unova when he was supposed to meet me in Kanto hours before his demise."
"Very well, since you insist." Professor Juniper says with a sigh. "I've warned you – the details are morbid."
When Misty doesn't budge, the professor goes on, "regarding what you're wondering… that's because he didn't die in Unova."
Misty is confused. "But his body was discovered in Unova, wasn't it…" She trails off.
Then she stumbles back a step. "No."
She shakes her head fervently.
Whoever killed him couldn't have done that. They couldn't have been so evil.
"The perpetrators killed him in Kanto, and brought his desecrated corpse to Unova to dispose of it. Actually, while the autopsy isn't out yet, crime scene investigators believed that he was dead a few days ago, and the one who was texting you all those messages wasn't even him." Professor Juniper reveals, her fists clenching at how sick those bastards have to be to do that to his corpse.
"I think they didn't expect us to find the corpse so fast, but an unlucky fisherman stumbled across it in the ocean, you see. I suspect they wanted to delay us by having us concentrate on finding him…"
Professor Juniper's eyes have taken on a faraway gaze, and she seems to have forgotten that she is talking to Misty – a sixteen year-old who shouldn't have to hear such gory details.
Lance grabs the professor's arm and gives her a slight tug. "That's enough, June," he says meaningfully.
She realizes her mistake and says to Misty flusteredly, "forgive me, I talked too much. Your friend's funeral will be held four days later. But um…" She glances at Lance and continues sympathetically, "you may not be able to attend it because of… you know." She gestures awkwardly. "The Arcana business."
Misty's heart sinks, but she takes the news in stride, all things considered. "Thank you," she says stiffly, and walks away.
And this is when reality sinks in for her, too.
She feels like she's walking away from the future she has always known and strived towards – a future where she, Ash and Brock are together forever.
Now that dream has finally shattered, and she is awake, and so very lost.
Twenty minutes of aimless mingling and panic on May's part regarding her parents transpire, and then Cynthia strolls in briskly with Steven in tow. Cynthia's complexion looks infinitely better, and her condition feels better as well.
Before coming here, she has confirmed with the other Elite Four, who were originally supposed to have come, that they would be staying behind in their home regions to deal with the incoming crisis, yet to be given a name. Cynthia had called Lucian and told him plainly that he was now acting Champion while she was away, granting him temporary authority over the whole of Sinnoh.
That felt more refreshing than she had expected; it was like a large weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
"Apologies for the delay," she says, taking the center spot. "We've dawdled long enough so I'll cut straight to the chase.
"Based on my extensive research on Sinnoh legends and myths, I have managed to scrape together more information about the Arcana than what has been passed down from Champion to Champion. I'm sure all of you know the legend of Arceus. The one where Arceus saved the world. Well, I think there's truth to that tale, except the Arcana were involved as well."
Hushed murmurs run through the gathered teenagers. Most of them are sixteen, so their fear-stricken faces cut into Cynthia's heart. She doesn't want to thrust these children into such a dangerous mission.
But she has no choice.
"I'm not sure why, or how it happens, but when an apocalypse – that's the only way to describe it – hits Parelle, the Arcana awaken and become the world's saviors. But from records of survivors in the last ascendance of the Arcana, many of them perished in this mission." Cynthia needs to let them know the severity of the situation.
"As you can see, one of your fellow Arcana is now deceased. We don't know who is targeting you all or why, but we suspect that there is a powerful force trying to stop you – at all costs."
She lets the information sink in.
Mairin raises her hand tentatively. "You mentioned that we are Arcana, but how are we different from normal humans? Um, not to be overly critical, but why do we have to be the ones to do the saving the world thing? Isn't that kind of your job…" She adds, cringing at the last bit.
Now that she has mentioned it, a few of the others secretly agree.
Dawn snaps her finger. "Perhaps… Does it have to do with the mark?" She displays the one on her left palm.
Cynthia nods in response to what Dawn said. She turns to Mairin and smiles mirthlessly. "And when did I say that you guys were normal humans?"
Mairin gulps. "We are not?"
Gary snorts. "I knew it, those two Grassheads are probably aliens."
Drew takes offense at this, while Cilan doesn't realize that Gary was talking about him. He's processing the term "Grasshead" literally, and puzzled over who has grass sprouting out of their head.
"I've talked to you for all of two minutes and I can tell your inflated ego is abnormal as well," Drew fires back.
May is about to tease him about being a hypocrite when Dawn rolls her eyes. "Pot. Kettle. You know the drill."
"Were you talking to yourself by any chance?" Drew shoots, knowing first-hand how confident Dawn can get at times, which is too confident.
Dawn purses her lips and pretends to think deeply. "Hmm, that sounds like someone I know. 'Drew, you got this. You're gonna win this competition because you're Drew, and Drew is me, you are the Drew, and you have, like, fifty ladies cheering for you in the –'"
"Shut up." Drew growls out. Based on how red his ears are, something similar probably did happen.
Dawn laughs.
Drew flips her off.
May swallows.
The two seem very comfortable around each other. And before she can question herself, she finds herself blurting, "so Dawn, how did you know Drew?"
Dawn opens her mouth, about to speak, when Drew says roughly, "don't answer that question."
Iris's mouth pops open in an O shape. She's not exactly good at disguising her emotions unlike some of the others; case-in-point, Serena is doing a very good job of searing a hole through the carpet with her gaze alone as she tries not to look too nosy.
Dawn and Drew have a stare-off, and then the former cocks her head, glancing from Drew to May thoughtfully.
"Alright, I won't then. But you better tell her someday," Dawn warns. May seems like a nice girl, and she doesn't want any unnecessary misunderstandings to crop up between them.
Everyone is rather thrown off by that exchange, left out of the loop regarding whatever they're talking about.
Drew dips his head. "Yeah, I know."
"Guys, how about we get back to what Cynthia was saying?" Cilan suggests, the only one who is keeping tabs on the Champion's mood.
"Thank you very much, Cilan," Cynthia says. Trying to handle a bunch of kids is tough. Their attention slips so easily.
"Oh, right. Stage's all yours," Drew quickly changes the topic, but May is still suspicious. One good thing out of that unusual conversation is that it has taken her mind off her parents.
"As Arcana, each of you have unique abilities." Cynthia resumes, but is promptly interrupted again.
"Oh boy, I know, Ash, your unique ability is either oversleeping or accidentally shaving off your eyebrows." Gary snickers. Ash grits his teeth. Misty swallows her laugh.
Cynthia has just about had enough.
"Mr Oak, the next time you have something amusing you wish to share, kindly come over here and I'll hand you the mic." She says, her voice deathly calm.
Right, Cynthia isn't the type to scream, unlike her mother, Dawn thinks with a grimace.
Gary mimes zipping his mouth.
The older members – essentially Alain and Cilan – of the bunch wonder what exactly is so difficult about staying silent and listening to the Champion talk. Who knew two years could make such a big difference in maturity.
Cynthia continues, trying to wrap up the conversation quickly as she feels most of them getting restless from staying here for so long, "you have to find your cards to activate those powers. Each of you should feel a pull towards the card which is somewhere in your home region. I believe one of you will unlock memories that will guide you towards the path of restoring balance to Parelle."
Iris frowns. "But we are from different regions… Ah, hell no!" She complains.
Steven takes up the mantle. "Right, you will have to go to each region and find the cards. We don't know which of you is the Arcana who possesses the required memories, though, and some of the Arcana are missing from this room, but we have to make do with what we have."
"You said there were other Arcana besides us in the past, so do the cards have names or something?" Cilan asks.
Steven nods. "Yes, and I'll read them to you in order." He begins to list off the twenty-two Major Arcana.
"Arceus, there's even an order?" Gary mutters. Misty jabs him painfully at the side to shut him up.
When Steven is done, most of them admittedly have already forgotten the earliest Arcana.
"We believe that the Hermit may be the one to have the memories, so finding his card will be rather useful," Cynthia adds from the side.
"What if the Hermit isn't amongst the twelve of us here?" Dawn asks. It's a sound question.
The adults exchange grim looks.
"Then we'll have to hope that he is one of you." Cynthia replies just as bleakly.
"Wait, how do you know the Hermit is a guy?" Drew asks.
Steven shakes his head. "Actually, we don't. Because the card depicts a guy, so we just refer to the Hermit as a guy."
"You guys have seen the cards?" Mairin perks up.
"Not really, but we've read records of their descriptions, left behind by the previous Arcana." Steven explains.
"I know this is a lot of information to take in, especially when we're asking you to leave everything behind and go on a journey that can be potentially perilous, but the league has no choice." Cynthia emphasizes, her eyes dimmed with guilt.
"You probably need some time to inform your family or loved ones, and while you can always decide to opt out, on behalf of the Parelle League, I sincerely implore you all to undertake this task. I know this is selfish and unfair to ask of you, but I'm desperate, we are all desperate, and unless you want to just sit by as your world comes to an end, then please assist us."
"How much time do we have to consider?" Alain contributes to the discussion for the first time.
"I can only give you until tomorrow. You need to leave as soon as possible, preferably by dawn." Cynthia says.
Given how half the afternoon has almost flown by, that's not a lot of time. Most of them can't even see their families physically and make it back in time, and those who can don't want to – specifically, Dawn. She has no desire to see her mother anytime soon after their latest argument.
"Question: are we going alone? Like, only the twelve of us?" Iris clarifies.
"Actually, we were debating that, too. Some of us think it's better for only the Arcana to go, but others, including myself, agree that you are too young. However, given the current international crisis, none of the Champions nor Elite Four will be able to accompany you. Lance has mentioned that he can afford some G-Men to go along, though."
Dawn's eyes widen with horror. Hell no, she has had enough of adults tailing her every moment and essentially being under their control.
"I think it's fine if we go unaccompanied," she says quickly, but Misty frowns, pointing, "most of us are underaged, so shouldn't we have at least a few adults tagging along?"
"How old are you all anyway?" Cilan asks. "I'm eighteen."
"Yeah, me too." Alain says.
Most of the others say that they are sixteen, and Paul grunts out that he's seventeen. Despite him being so silent, his sheer aura has made the others unable to forget his presence, even if they try to.
And try they did, with little success.
Mairin feels a bit awkward when it's her turn, so she mumbles that she's fifteen.
"Fifteen?" Ash exclaims. "I thought you were twelv – oomph."
Misty gives him a hard jab, and smiles warmly at Mairin. "Don't mind him. He's old and his eyes are failing him."
Gary chuckles at that.
"You guys can decide if you want Lance's G-Men agents to tag along or not. It needs to be unanimous, though. But you'll be given communication devices so we can update each other, though those can break down or get hacked into, so don't rely on them too much." Cynthia states.
"And for those of you who are staying, come back to this room at 5 am tomorrow. And for those of you who wish to opt out, you can approach any one of us –" here she nods at the other Champions " – and we'll bring you back to your family and give you maximum protection.
"There are rooms prepared for those who wish to retire, but I suppose you lot have a lot to contemplate and discuss about so you can also freely use this room. Oh, yes, traveling bags have been prepared for you guys so please bring only essentials since you'll be doing quite a fair bit of moving from now on."
When Cynthia is finished, she looks at the other league members, who nod their heads.
"Alright, then Lance will be staying behind for the first watch." She turns to him. "We'll be at the conference room," she informs him. "Someone will replace you in two hours, is that alright?"
"Yeah, sure." He replies, settling down.
The others file out of the room, leaving behind only the Arcana.
Cilan decides to spearhead the discussion.
"Alright, first order of business: stand up if you want the G-Men to tag along."
Exactly half of them stand: Cilan, Misty, Drew, Serena, Ash and Mairin.
Which means the other half – Gary, May, Dawn, Paul, Iris and Alain – has taken an opposing view.
Great.
This is going to be a long discussion.
But looking at things now… Cilan just prays it won't turn into a dispute instead.
Thirty excruciating minutes later, they're still stuck on the first order of business.
"I'm telling you, having those G-Strings or whatever follow us will just be damn troublesome!" Gary is arguing impassionedly.
Lance glances up briefly from where he is typing on his laptop. "Excuse me, but the head of the G-Men happens to be right here."
"Eh, sorry." Gary shrugs insincerely.
"Anyway, imagine having a bunch of adults being right there whenever we try to do stuff. They'll say it's too dangerous or we need the permission of the Champions before we can proceed, and we all know how insufferable and backwards the Parelle League can be!"
"I think you're the only one who thinks that. Mind you, but most of us here haven't interacted with the Parelle League until today." Drew points out.
May glares at him. "Your brother is an Elite Four!" She retorts.
"I wasn't referring to myself," Drew replies back just as hotly. "Besides, May, didn't you hear Cynthia? This mission is potentially perilous. Perilous. I thought you of all people would have learned to exercise more caution since you're the only family Max has left!"
"My parents aren't dead!" May yells back. A few tears spring free as she whispers fiercely, "they aren't."
She glares at Drew.
"I wasn't implying that," Drew amends, but the damage has been done. Guilt eats away at him, seeing May swipe away her tears roughly. Dawn unexpectedly holds her hand and squeezes it. May is touched by her gesture, especially when none of the other girls know how to react since they aren't that close yet.
Silence descends upon the once rowdy group.
Lance wonders whether he should step in when Cilan proposes, "why don't we go one round and each explain why we want or don't want the G-Men to accompany us?"
Lance eyes Cilan with interest. That lad… may make a good leader for this group of unlikely heroes. He has the skills and sense needed to keep them in check.
The others agree with Cilan's suggestion, so Misty decides to start.
"I just think it won't hurt to be more prepared. We're twelve children, except for Cilan and Alain, I suppose, and what if some emergency arrives? Do you guys know how to treat people?" Misty's voice catches as she thinks of Brock, who would have been the group's medic, but forces herself to continue. "And can you guys cook? Or do laundry?"
"We're going on a journey to save the world, not to sightsee and tour," Gary snides. "And you seriously think Lance's people are going to cook and do laundry for us?"
Cilan cuts in before another argument can occur. "Ahem, thank you for your inputs, Gary, but please only speak during your turn. Which is now, coincidentally."
"Well, I've pretty much said everything. I think we're wussies if we drag some random dudes along with us."
Since Ash is seated beside Gary, it's his turn.
"Uh, I guess, I just, I don't know, for safety purposes? Like, what if we're attacked by a wild boar or something. Or like Misty said, what if someone gets injured." Ash isn't the best at this kind of debate, so he fumbles.
"Then we die," Paul mutters annoyedly.
Gary snorts. "And just where will we encounter this wild boar?" He mumbles under his breath, quiet enough that he can pass it off as talking to himself, but loud enough that everyone can hear him.
"Ahem." Cilan coughs again, this time warningly.
"And now, it's me." Cilan says in his usual warm tone, trying to rectify the situation. "Hmm, actually, I can cook – I run a restaurant with my brothers – so you won't have to worry about that aspect, Misty."
"Didn't you vote for having the G-Men come along?" Misty can't help but to remind him.
Cilan blinks. "Indeed I did!" He remarks almost in wonder. "Ah, the passionate flames of Gary have managed to burn even my icy refusal and blinded my sight, leading me down another path all the while unsuspecting of anything amiss."
"What is he even saying?" Mairin whispers in bewilderment.
"He is drunk, clearly," Gary drawls. "But thanks for the support. I think."
Dawn is trying to decipher the Cilan Code. "So… you don't want the G-Men to come along?"
Cilan nods. "I suppose I changed my mind."
Iris brightens. "Hey, then you guys are outvoted!"
"But Cynthia said it has to be unanimous," Misty says, her words pouring a bucket of ice water all over Iris.
"Damn." She deflates.
Dawn hesitates, and then decides to speak out even though it's not her turn yet. "Can I say something?"
"Aren't you already?" Paul says snarkily, earning him a glare from May.
"Yeah, sure." Iris says, propping her head on her hands.
"I've actually been guarded by the G-Men before." Dawn begins. This intrigues several people. Even Paul is paying attention.
Lance stops typing, but no one notices.
"It was two years ago, when I was going to attend a press conference." Dawn still recalls that day with such vividity. "I was about to walk into the venue when someone tackled me from behind. I recognized him as one of my numerous stalkers. He was immediately pulled off me and arrested."
May remembers that incident. It blew up all over Parelle, and even in Hoenn it was trending everywhere. Because of the sympathy from the public and her widespread recognition, Dawn gained the nickname "Sinnoh Sweetheart". From there on her popularity skyrocketed, and so did the stocks for the Platinum Group.
"Afterwards, when I was at home, I overheard a conversation between my mother. With Lance."
Dawn turns her gaze onto the Champion.
Lance is scarcely breathing.
"It went a little something like this: my mom thanked Lance, thanked him, for helping her in orchestrating the whole thing. There was no stalker. The press conference was a hoax cooked up by my mother. The culprit was allowed to go off scot-free, and he left for Alola and never returned again. The G-Men were all in the know. It was all a stunt that was pulled to increase my reputation."
Dawn is shaking now. "So I trembled in fear for nothing. There was nothing to fear, because that 'stalker' wouldn't have done anything to me anyway. He didn't even know who I was until he was recruited for that purpose. But I spent an entire year afraid of him only to find out everything was fake. And do you know why Lance helped my mother?"
She pauses.
"Why?" Iris ventures.
Dawn's voice is cold when she replies.
"To cover up their mistake. You see, the Viridian City Gym Leader was the head of a syndicate called Team Rocket. The league would do everything to circumvent the backlash the league would have gotten from appointing him as the Gym Leader. A media company got their hands on the scoop and wanted to publish it. My mom somehow found out about it and approached them with an offer: she would bribe the CEO of the media company, so in return, Lance would owe her a favor that she could cash in anytime."
Dawn glances around, and stresses, "the G-Men will not care about us. We are not their priority, nor will they answer to us. Behind them is the Parelle League. When push comes to shove, we will be left in the dark while they pull all the strings. We will become their puppets."
Absolute silence.
Misty turns to Cilan and says with renewed vigor, "I take everything back. Let's just do it ourselves, the twelve of us."
She eyes Lance critically. "After all, the alternative is working with scumbags."
Lance can't defend himself from that, so he only wishes that two hours can fly by faster and he can get the hell out of here.
Who knew that the gazes of twelve children filled with loathing could be quite this unsettling.
A/N:
Don't worry, Drew is not in love with Dawn, neither is Dawn in love with Drew. Okay, now that we've gotten that out of the way… Thanks for the reviews/kudos! (Since I use both FFN and AO3). There's a lot of talking in this chapter, but things will pick up in the next chapter onwards and we'll see more action.
Thank you to everyone for their reviews.
Jeonjjkie: Thanks for the encouragement! If you're curious about the concept, I highly recommend checking out the wikia/fandom page for "Arcana Chronicles", the series that I was inspired by.
Tyuo: I feel bad for Brock as well LOL but don't worry, this isn't the last we'll hear of him since Misty won't let his murderer(s) get away with it.