Tournament of the Ages
Chapter 2: Voice of a Legend

Not going to upload the next chapter for a bit. That will actually start the tournament.
And now for something slightly different.

"Have you seen Darkrai recently Dialga?"

"Not within ten minutes either side of this conversation. Sorry Cresselia."

Shimmying around the timepiece-laden legendary, Cresselia hurried through the giant hall that made up the Hall of Origins and tried to find the way into Arceus' personal chamber. The door that should have been up a long flight of stairs... Wasn't. And neither were the stairs. Either someone was getting grilled, or Arceus was occupied.

"Everybody through!"
As one body, the legendaries moved towards the doors along the walls, each one fading to nought as they walked past. Cresselia should have been in the same area as Darkrai, but the dark type was nowhere to be seen.

Cresselia, you have a job to do.

"Argh!"
Cresselia turned around at the sound of the creator, who was standing impassively next to what a human would call a bed.

Go down into Orre and look for a man named Ardos. He's just south of the border. Go as a pokemon first, but be careful. Darkrai will meet you in Gaton Port, which is to the north of where you need to go.

"And I have to go why?"

Darkrai. However Mew is allowed to come with you. She will be going as a young human girl.

"Great. OK. I'll get right to it."

Arceus nodded and was not where he had been. Cresselia sighed and took a more modern human look, grabbing a bag as she went. Opening her door, which had turned up again, she stepped out into Gaton Port. Mew appeared a few feet away, holding her own bag and looking around.
"Soooo, you gonna get started on those nightmares or what?"

Five hours later, Cresselia, Darkrai and Mew set off for the south border of Orre, using an old car that someone had left in a state of total disrepair. Mew bounced on the back, watching the world zoom by, as Darkrai carefully negotiated the rock-strewn desert. Eyes covered by goggles, the three drove ceaselessly through the darkening land, aiming to reach their destination as fast as possible.
"STOOOOOOP!"
Darkrai slammed on the breaks, Mew giggling as she flew overhead and landed in the loose sand. She stood up and began running off.
"I've just seen something really neat!"

Trailing after her, Cresselia looked around for the interesting thing. She tripped.
"What the-"
Nursing a hurt ankle, she turned around. A giant iron girder met her gaze.
"Oh sweet Arceus."

"I know! And that's not the best part!"
Mew pulled Cresselia up, pointing behind them.
"Look!"

"A ship..."

"Someone put a ship in the desert..."

A/N: To really get the feeling, play the SS Libra exploration theme from Pokemon XD. It's this haunting tune that feels lonely and sad, and just feels so... Wow.

The trio's feet kicked up sand as they walked, alerting various small pokemon to their presence. Cresselia brushed cobwebs away, leading the group slowly up. Darkrai gazed up in wonderment.
"It's so lonely..."

"This ship... It was very important once." Mew whispered. "It used to take pokemon to their trainers from the other regions.
"Since the land had no pokemon of its own, it was the only way people could become trainers. But this ship..."

"What about this ship?" Cresselia looked back at the smaller pokemon. She closed her eyes.

"Lugia was forced to abduct it by Cipher."

*Clang!*
"We're on the SS Libra?!"

Mew nodded, bending down to pick up the torch.
"Lugia managed to drop the ship in the desert, only for the pokemon to be picked up afterwards while he was being 'fine tuned' by Cipher. No-one ever talks about it, but here..."

Taking the torch back, Cresselia continued on in silence, until the trio reached the top. The bridge loomed up to greet them.
"What happened to the people who were sailing the ship originally?"
Mew didn't respond. Cresselia looked up sadly.
"There's a light on up there!"

Mew grabbed both pokemon by their elbows, only for Darkrai to wrench free and begin running up the stairs. Cresselia followed, hot on his tail.
"Darkrai, wait!"

Darkrai burst into the bridge and caught the person inside's eye. He fainted.
"Oops."

Cresselia ran in after him and groaned.
"Not again!"

A/N: You can stop now if you want.

"Mnahmnah."

"In a time and a place,
"You'll see again,
"So do not cry,
"Be strong my friend,"

"Cress, shush, he's waking up!"

"What... Who?"

"My name is Cresselia. Are you OK?"

"Yes... I have just had the strangest dream..."
The worker opened his eyes. A face which had the most beautiful quality was a little to his left.
"Are... Are you-"

"No I'm not an angel. They're all such huge jerks it's beyond belief, I swear to Arceus if one of them hits on me ONE MORE-"

"Cress, you're ranting."
Cresselia blushed and coughed.

"Right, sorry."

"You're... You're Cresselia?"

"It's just the names we use. We don't have any parents to speak of, so..."
Cresselia bent her head and rubbed her neck.
"What's your name?"

"Oh! I'm Gary. It's nice to meet you."

Cresselia smiled.
"Gary's a nice name. This is Mew, sitting down here, while ol' Spooky Blue-Eyes over there is Darkrai."

Mew bounced a bit "Hi!"
Darkrai didn't say anything.

"Uh, hi."
Gary looked around.
"I see you found where I live then."

"Yeah. We saw a light on and found you passed out in here."

"Is see... Thank you."

"Don't mention it!" Mew replied happily. Darkrai coughed.

"Though, we would be grateful if you could lend us a map or point us to Pyrite Town. We're trying to reach a ranch to the south of the border, and we were told that Pyrite would be good place to start."

"And a compass." Mew added. Darkrai nodded in agreement.

"Well, I don't see why not. I don't need them."
Gary got up and began sifting through a group of files. Cresselia looked out over the broken ship.

"So... How long have you been here?"

"I move around. Pyrite to Phenac. Phenac to Gaton Port. Gaton Port to other regions. Whenever there's a low period for me, I always end up coming back here though. It's so quiet and calm, and the occasional visitor stops me getting bored."

Mew bounced over the human's shoulder, looking through the papers. "Hey, what do these all mean?"

"They're the ships records. Arceus knows why there's maps of the regions here, but you won't be complaining I bet. Here's what you're after."
Gary held up the map, which Mew took in a psychic grasp, startling the human.
"You're a Gijinka!?"

"Yep! Mew, would you believe it! Guess I just got lucky!"

"Oh wow. Oh wow, that's incredible. No wonder you three are so close. You've got to look after someone like you. Oh wow."

Mew skipped over to Darkrai, who spread the map out on the table. Gary walked over, put a stone down where he thought they roughly were, and started looking for a portable compass. Darkrai took a pencil from the depths of somewhere and began making marks.
"... OK, I have it."
Taking the offered compass, he began writing various things down next to the marks.
"We can head straight to Pyrite Town, about a two hour journey from here, or we can go to Phenac first. There's also a town just past Pyrite we could go to, which is a bit closer to the border and a little less criminal."

"I suggest going to the town past Pyrite." Gary voiced, "But Pyrite is so much better now I think it's worth the visit if you want to see the ONBS building or just get that bit stronger."

"I think Pyrite sounds good." Cresselia voiced. "I've always wanted to be on TV."

"Yeah, let's go be on TV!" Mew yelled happily, bouncing a bit. Darkrai nodded and went over some of the stuff again.

"OK, Pyrite it is. Would you like to come Gary?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. Too many crooks for me." The worker waved his hand. "But there's nowhere quite like Pyrite for fun. You kids go enjoy yourselves."

"We will! Thank you for the map and compass." Cresselia curtseyed slightly and began walking to the stairs. Mew skipped down happily, as Darkrai quickly folded up the map and went down before Cresselia.

"See you!"

"Bye!"
Gar waved the children down and walked to the huge window. He sighed.
"Damn those kids are in for hell."

"Hey, miss!"
Cresselia rolled her eyes at the man standing at the town entrance. He rushed over and held out his arm.
"How about you and me go and see the sights of my pretty little town?"

"Oh please, I'd rather spend the night in a police cell."

"Aw, don't be like that-"

"Do I look like I give a damn how you think I should be? Back off jerk."

The guy's face changed to a snarl.
"Alright then, I was just trying to be nice, but if you want a-"

Darkrai stepped in, grabbing the seedy character by the shoulders and staring into his eyes. He talked in a hushed tone.
"Now then, how about you leave my girlfriend alone?"
The guy gaped.
"What's your name?"

"Ca-Ca-Ca-Cail..."

"Well then, Cail, I'll make this simple. The only thing that's stopping you from being on the floor sobbing is my girlfriend, right here. Now, I'm not a nice person to be around without her. You understand me?"
Cail nodded.
"And you understand that I can be very protective of my girlfriend?"
Another nod.
"Then if I find out that you've messed with her or her little sister down there, so help me Arceus you will be righteously fucked up. Get it?"
Cail nodded again. Darkrai released him from his grasp and smiled beneath his scarft.
"Then leave us alone."
Cail fled, leaving the three to themselves. Mew tugged at the pair's sleeves.

"That white building – let's go there! I think it's the TV building!"

"Welcome to ONBS! I'm Megg, and this is Shroomish!"

"Hi!"

"It's nice to meet you!"

The girl at the desk waved her hand behind her.
"Feel free to... to *yawn!* Excuse me, to look around. We'll be open for another hour or so, so take your time."

Cresselia laughed.
"Long day?"

"Up at six, bed at ten. Not that I'm complaining, but it makes me really tired. My brother, on the other hand, doesn't sleep until twelve." Megg rolled her eyes, "But you three go enjoy yourselves. Oh, hey, one of the downstairs studios is in downtime at the moment! Why don't you go look around there?"

"It's soooo white!"

"MEW!"

Darkrai and Cresselia ran off together, chasing after their small companion. All three stopped outside an open door.
Or, at least, Mew stopped, and the other to fell over.
"Oh wow, this is really where they record this kind of stuff! Oh wow!
"Why are you two asleep?"

"Next time, don't stop that way." Darkrai groaned. Mew shrugged and walked into the filming room.

"Watch out for wires!"
Mew turned around to see a young man wearing a light coloured shirt and shorts navigating his way towards her. She stopped walking, letting the guy catch up to her.
"Phew, so many wires!"

"Do you need this many wires?" Mew asked incredulously. The man sighed.

"Sadly, yes. Most of the crew won't trust wireless recording kit unless it's self contained, so we have to do it the old way. I'm Secc by the way. I'm the producer of ONBS."

"I'm Mew! Nice to meet you Secc!"

Secc smiled at the girl.
"Wow, you remind me of my sister. Arceus that makes me feel old. Did you come here on your own?"

"No she did not."
Cresselia managed to reach the pair, closely followed by Darkrai.
"I'm Cresselia. Did you say you were Secc?"

"That's me." Secc grinned. "From kid to adult. I would be right in guessing that those names have less to do with choice, huh?"

Cresselia closed her eyes and breathed deeply. "You... Could say that..."

"We'd rather you didn't flaunt that insight of yours if possible," Darkrai told Secc, "Not that many people would believe you, but all the same."

"I hear you," Secc nodded, "So why are you here?"

"Actually, we were just passing through. We're on our way to the ranch of the man named Ardos."

"Ardos... Ardos... I tell you what, I'll go phone one of my old friends. He'll know where Ardos lives. Meantime..."
Secc looked around.
"Well, why don't you have a go on the stage?"

"Oh! Oh! Cress! Do some singing!"

"Mew... You know I don't like singing for crowds..."

"But you won't be singing for a crowd. There's only four or five people here." Darkrai pointed out. Cresselia sighed.

"Fine. Move over, I need to get through first."
Cresselia navigated the wires and pulled herself up onto the stage.
"So... What do I sing?"

"Do the one about the Knight!" Mew shouted. Cresselia sighed.

"Alright then, the Song of the Soul."
She coughed once, closed her eyes, and began singing.

"Cress! Cress wake up!"

"Whazzat buzzy... Gimme a minute fur mah furrnd."

"Cresselia! You're on TV!"

"What!?"
Cresselia bolted upright in her bed. The walls looked like they had been but together in a rush, and the paint job was peeling. But there was a working television on the wall opposite her bed, and it was on.
And Cresselia was on the screen.
Soft, soothing sounds floated out, which most mortals would never hear. Tale of a man who sacrificed himself for peace, sung in a language older than Time.
And it was on regional TV!
"Oh Arceus, oh Arceus, oh Arceus."

Indeed. Oh me. Oh my.
The TV screen flickered to Arceus.
Go back to the TV studios. Now.
It flickered off

Cresselia checked the door and got out of bed, changing her clothes into something slightly less remarkable.
"I hope no-one's tried anything funny."

"Furret! Use Quick Attack!"

"Protect!"

Cresselia stepped outside to be greeted by Darkrai taking on Cail in a Pokemon battle. She sighed.
"I really can't leave you alone, can I?"

"He insulted you! I will not stand for it! Hit 'em with Comet Punch!"

Darkrai's Pokemon was a Ledian, a spirit of a dead pokemon which Darkrai had called upon. It was a tactic most of the legendaries used when they needed to fight, and the Ledian was so far obliterating the Furret. Cail had no idea what he was getting himself into, and now his Pokemon was paying.

"And the newcomer's Ledian takes out the second of Cail's pokemon! Incredible! Ledian's got barely a scratch!"
The crowd yelled, no-one entirely sure who to go for. Darkrai's hair was shorter than it would normally be, and he wore a black trenchcoat, trousers, and top, with yellow tinted goggles around his neck and a red scarf around his face. Cail was dressed in standard Chaser gear, and more people cheered Cail's name than Darkrai's. Cail snarled.
"Cail's down to his last pokemon! Will this be the thing that saves him?"

"Go, Granbull!"

Cail's Granbull snuffled and roared, baring it's tusks. Darkrai smirked beneath the scarf.
"Maybe if you varied your team a little you'd have a better chance against me."

"Shu- Shut up! Granbull, take down!"

"Fly up and dodge it Led!"
Ledian flew above Granbull's reach, making it stumble and fall on its face.
"Now! No more messing around! Comet Punch as hard as you can!"

Granbull turned around to see Ledian bearing down on him. He skipped sideways, only to meet one punch coming towards him. Ledian threw another punch at him, catching Granbull a critical across the face. His last punch sent him flying across Battle Square into the crowd. Unconscious, Cail called his pokemon back.

"Granbull is down! Cail has lost the match!"

Cail spat on the ground next to him. Darkrai began walking towards the Chaser at a slower pace than usual. Cail noticed and grinned.
"Damnit man, you're one hell of a good battler. And that Ledian ain't to shabby either!"

"I get a lot of practice" Darkrai replied, holding his hand out to shake. Cail took it with a grin.

"Hey, if you're ever in town and need someone to ease the boredom with, I'm your man."

"Come on folks, show's over!"
The crowd turned to watch Johnson walk out into the middle.
"Everyone clear the centre, there's another crowd waiting and you can all clear off to the coliseum. The crowd grumbled and began moving off to do their various things. Cresselia walked over to the pair standing in the middle.

"I though Darkrai-"

"I've never listened to a threat from a person. Freaky eyes by the way, but since it's early morning and you aren't from in town, I figured I'd catch him outside the hotel."

"Not so much caught as reverse pummelled." Darkrai commented. Cail rolled his eyes.

"Yeah yeah, say it to the cops. Aren't you going somewhere anyway?"
Cresselia nodded and began walking off towards the ONBS building, waving. Cail tapped Darkrai on the shoulder.
"She ain't your girlfriend, is she?"

"More like a sister." Darkrai commented. "But I am supposed to be sticking with her..."

"You three. Oh sweet Arceus you three are incredible. One's walking around pretending to be a legendary Gijinka, one's got the voice and looks of a movie star, and the third's got pokemon that'd give Wes a run for his money. Where did you get pokemon anyway?"

"He's dead. Very few people get chosen to continue past life, and they're all exceptional."

Secc nodded. "So the souls of the blessed fight for the gods. I've heard of stranger ideas. Anyway, here's what I wanted to ask."
Secc brought up a picture of a poster on the screen behind him. It showed a pokemon and a gijinka fighting intensely inside an arena.
"We, that is, ONBS, don't just do news. We're currently also on line to cover a tournament that's happening in the next couple of days. But there's been a hitch.
"Not all the MCs who should be turning up can turn up. One of them's taken deathly ill with something, and we need all four MCs.
"We'd be grateful if you could be an MC at the tournament, and while you're there one of the judges you'll see knows Ardos personally. Kid named Michael. You help us, and I'm sure we can arrange for us to help you. Might help you get over that fear of crowds you have too."

"Tournament... Of the Ages? I've heard a bit about it." Mew admitted. "Isn't it financed by an ex-crime-boss?"

"Mr Verrich. Ardos is his son."

"So-"

"It's all above board. But one of the other MCs is Miror B. He's... Odd." Secc scratched this head. "Knows the towns Chief of Police too. I think he's judging."

"This all sounds like the potential for a disaster zone." Cresselia slammed her hand down on Secc's desk, "I'll do it."

A voice sung a person awake. She was tired, and looked like she'd been running. As she walked outside the house, two people watched her from the other side of the street. One smiled. Both vanished.