Cherrygrove's Winter Knights
…
-Welcome to the Pokemart
Aubrey lamented not being the top student of her class, if only because she was also not the bottom of the barrel. If she were legitimately the dimmest bulb in her classmates' box, then she could excuse herself for not being the smartest one there. This was far from the truth; Aubrey could do the work, but perfection was an impossible standard for her to achieve. Aubrey had to live with the printed paper that came home every six weeks, decreeing in cheap blue ink that she was destined for mediocrity. Aubrey usually didn't detest things like words on pages, but her grades were an exception, though not for the same reasons as her friends.
Ryan was angry that his 'C' in Earth Science kept him from going to camp in the Sevii Islands over spring break. Destiny's 'A' in Gym meant she could go to Goldenrod City this weekend and buy her very own bike, complete with the new Mach and Acro gears. Aubrey already had everything she wanted. She simply hated knowing that, in a world where the very best become legend and the very worst at least get a free pass, she resided in the no-man's land of unremarkable existence.
And yet, Aubrey mused, she didn't have to be the top student in her grade to know that something was very wrong in Cherrygrove City.
As Aubrey and Rory first walked down the narrow Cherrygrove sidewalks, the girls excused the absence of people as a side effect of the snow. After they noticed a distinct lack of Pokemon, Rory suggested that the Pokemon were hibernating. Aubrey knew better; Pokemon that hibernated lived further up north. This part of the country was home to critters and other small wildlife. They were small, cuddly, and definitely not the kind of Pokemon that would be completely absent in a human population center like Cherrygrove City.
While it had started out as nothing more than a hamlet, Cherrygrove expanded shortly after New Bark Town found its unparalleled fame. Whereas New Bark Town changed itself to become a tourist trap, Cherrygrove City became a center of culture. The University of Johto at Cherrygrove was the flagship campus of Johto's education system; the Museum of Modern Art attracted travelers from all walks of life; the coast was now lined with small stores and street vendors. Running into the occasional Sentret or Hoothoot on the street was only part of the Cherrygrove experience.
So as Aubrey and Rory traversed an utterly barren city, they both slowly felt the same sensation: that very same experience had seemingly died, replaced with a barren winter wasteland.
The girls stopped as they passed the first city directory, situated on a street corner and in a cherry-red metal case. Rory brushed the frost off of the glass and studied the orange 'you are here' dot. Aubrey noticed that her new company looked more than a little confused. "You haven't been to the Pokemon Center before?" Aubrey asked.
"I have," Rory had to raise her voice against the wind, "But I usually come at it from the Violet City entrance. Now, let me see..." Rory began to trace an invisible line with her finger. Her petite frame jumped as she tapped on the Pokemon Center's image.
"I've got it!" She said. "We're about ten blocks away. Thank you, Mister Directory!"
Aubrey rolled her eyes as Rory flashed a thumbs-up. The girls started back down the barren sidewalk as the temperature continued to drop. The snow that at first wafted gently from the sky now pelted them in vengeful clusters. Wind chill only exacerbated the biting cold at their exposed faces. The Chikorita's breathing had slowed and evened, but if the weather got any worse, Aubrey worried that the jacket might not do enough.
Without traffic, the ten blocks took a tenth of the time to traverse that they otherwise would have. Aubrey and Rory would first pause and wait for the streetlight to change, but after the first three instances of waiting to cross streets with less activity than unmarked graves, the pair took to crossing the streets at their own discretion. The glacier-white buildings hovering over them made Aubrey grow uncomfortable, as though they were obelisks watching her with skeptical eyes. She watched the doors pass by: each one was either locked tight or had a metal gate pulled down.
"It's like a ghost town," Aubrey noted. "Was it like this when you came through from Violet?"
Rory shook her head. "I came through like...two days ago? And believe me, it was nothing like this. For one thing, there were signs of sentient life-forms."
Aubrey let a lone giggle escape her chapped lips.
The Pokemon Center loomed just down the road. It occupied an entire city block; the renovated building had rooms for Trainers, multiple dining halls, global link terminals, and probably more things that Aubrey's friends just hadn't heard about. Rory walked into the middle of the street and trotted toward their destination.
"I told you I'd get you here!" She said. Aubrey wondered which one of them Rory was trying to convince. "Never doubt the skills of a Junior Leader!"
Rory's bright smile waned as they neared the front entrance. As the red-haired girl approached the glass doors, she examined the noticed plastered from the inside. Aubrey stopped short of the entrance; she had a hunch she knew what the situation was.
"Weird," Rory said. She turned back to Aubrey and pointed to the sign with an outstretched finger. "According to this, Cherrygrove's been shut down for the week."
Correction: Aubrey had no idea what the situation was. Snow began to melt from her eyelashes; she blinked rapidly. "That can't be right. Pokemon Centers never close. And there's a lot more than just Trainers that come through here, too."
Rory examined the sign a second time. "That's what it says, though," she lamented. "I guess we're out of luck."
'Out of luck' wasn't an option. Aubrey's mind raced, her heart beat accelerating to at least three times the speed of the Pokemon in her arms. What else could she do? Violet City was at least a week's walk away. They were too far now to turn back to New Bark Town, and while her parents' Day Care was much closer, they didn't have healing facilities.
"Wait a minute!" Rory started again. Her face hovered centimeters over the window; Aubrey wondered what they would do if Rory got her face stuck. "There's something else here."
When Aubrey didn't speak up, Rory continued. "So...Get this! 'The Pokemart will remain open for the duration of closures. Please direct your questions there.' That's bizarre, though. Why would they close the Pokemon Center but leave a store open?"
While it didn't make any sense, it was something. "Where is it?" Aubrey asked.
"You want to check it out?"
"If it's open, then I can buy something that will help," Aubrey said. The Pokemart here catered to rookie Pokemon; they would certainly have cheap Potions for sale.
Rory got the message. She nodded and waved her arm down the street to her left. "I remember how to get there from here!" She said happily. "It's not far. Come on!"
Aubrey followed, her spirits only slightly revived. She and Rory walked again in silence, this time more because of the growing cold than lack of anything to say. To the contrary, questions piled up in Aubrey's mind at a clip. Only one underlay all others: what would cause an entire city to shut down suddenly?
"Hey, there's people out!"
Rory pointed to the lone figures behind them. They were easily ten, even fifteen years older than the two girls. Aubrey couldn't tell if the handful of figures were men or women, but she decided that didn't matter. If people were still around, then perhaps things were not as grim as they looked.
The Pokemart, a short blue building with the iconic rotating sign out front, welcomed the girls with the bright lights that glistened behind the glass doors. Aubrey had forgotten how hungry she actually was. While they wouldn't be a toasty sandwich like she had been looking forward, a few candy bars or some toaster pastries would more than calm her appetite. The girls entered the building and were instantly met with warm, soothing air.
"Welcome to the Pokemart," said the man behind the counter. "How can I help you today?"
Aubrey wanted to race to the counter and set the Chikorita down, but decided against it. She had the horrible feeling that the poor Pokemon might get worse if she let it go for even a second. "My Chikorita got lost in the cold," Aubrey repeated the half-truth. "The Pokemon Center's closed, and—"
"You want a Freeze Heal and a Potion, kid," Rory said nonchalantly as she meandered along the isles. She pointed upward, "third row on the left."
Aubrey nodded, then bolted for the row in question. She would wind up spending all of her emergency money on helping the Chikorita—whom she still had no idea what to do with—but felt that her parents wouldn't mind.
"How may I help you?" The shopkeeper asked. He looked no more than thirty, but his voice was raspy like sandpaper.
Rory stretched her arms wide over her head. It felt good to move around without snow getting everywhere. "It's not us; just that Chikorita over there," she pointed to Aubrey. "We were gonna hit up the Pokemon Center, but it's closed. Which is pretty weird."
She paused for a moment. "Can I ask you a question?"
The man at the desk didn't move.
"What's up with this town?" Rory asked. "Like...I've never seen anywhere just go dead like this. What's the deal?"
The man continued to remain motionless. A concerned Rory walked closer to the desk, and an eerie shock disturbed her system. The man held still as a statue. His chest didn't even move; it was as though he were a picture-perfect sculpt of a man.
"Um," Rory raised a hand. "Sir? Hul-lo?"
"Welcome to the Pokemart. How can I help you today?" The man's delivery was exactly the same as before. This time, Rory watched the movements carefully. The lines around his mouth were too fine; his hair didn't move the way a normal person's would. Rory had never seen anything like this.
Was it a robot or something?
Whatever answer it was, Rory didn't want to find out. She knew what this man wasn't. Besides, this place was weird enough already.
"Aubrey?" She called out, her gaze still fixed on the not-man behind the desk. "Call me a loony, but I kinda think we should get out of here. Like, now?"
Aubrey stepped out from the isles. Her one free hand held two Potions and the expected Freeze Heal, both in store-brand boxes. "I still need to pay for these first," she said.
"How about not?"
Aubrey's eyebrow went up. "I'm not going to steal."
"You're not going to pay for anything either," Rory said fast. She fought and failed to keep the panic out of her voice. She pointed shakily to the front counter. "That's not a person, Aubs."
Aubs?
"...You are mental."
"I'm dead serious!" Rory pushed the envelope. "Like a heart-attack! That guy is not human."
Aubrey brushed past Rory and made her way to the front desk. She didn't have time for Rory's ridiculousness; the Chikorita needed these items as fast as possible. Aubrey set the boxes on the counter and reached for her wallet—
"Welcome to the Pokemart. How can I help you today?"
Aubrey froze. Words moved to leave her cold lips—
The doors swung open behind them. The gust of ice wind made the girls jump. They turned around quickly; Aubrey recognized the figures from earlier. For the record, they had both been men. Men with goggles and red scarves, at that. They towered at six feet, their limbs almost painfully lean. Aubrey felt even more hungry just looking at the two of them.
"How are we doing tonight, ladies?" The one on the right said. From the moment he opened his mouth, Rory's body had tensed. Aubrey noticed that she had changed: she was suddenly calm. Prepared.
"We're fine, thanks," Aubrey said.
"Uh-huh," said the one on the left. "What's that you got there?" He nodded to Aubrey's arms.
"Nunya!" Rory ccalled back. "We were just leaving, so get out of the way, if you don't mind."
The men looked at one another before breaking out into laughter. "Yeah, that's not going to happen," the right one said. "Here's how it's going to be: you're forking over the Chikorita and any other Pokemon you have, and then you're coming for a little walk outside with us."
Aubrey squeezed the Chikorita tight and quickly ran behind Rory, who already had a Pokeball out and held at arm's length. The deathly-fierce grip had returned in full force. Aubrey knew when a battle was about to happen; Trainers held their Pokeballs out like they were combat-weary swords.
"You don't want to get on my nerves," Rory said, her words surprisingly firm. "Not if you know what's good for you. Get out of the way, or else—"
"Or else what, little girl?"
"Or else you'll have to answer to me! I'm a Junior Leader, you know! Serving under Falkner, JL number four! Rory White!" Aubrey thanked the stars that Rory didn't finish her introduction with a pose. It wouldn't have helped; the men simply smirked. They looked from one to the other, as though something were being said without simple words.
Pokeballs came from one menacing wristband—
Aubrey shut her eyes against the punishing white glow—
The powerful roar of fearsome, beastly Pokemon echoed through the walls and cast fear into Aubrey's core. She had never seen anything like it: a blue, almost teal creature made of stone. The white 'X' on its face and the four legs made it much more alien than even the weirdest Pokemon that had come by the Day Care. It dug its spiked feet into the floor, cracking the tile and digging through to the gravel below.
"Metagross!" The man called out. The Pokemon barely seemed to listen. "Teach these babies a lesson. Then we'll get their Pokemon."
Despite her overflowing bravado, Rory was frightened. She was used to fighting rookie Pokemon, if not evolved forms of those creatures. This was no amateur's combatant; she had never seen this type of Pokemon before. Aubrey was only slightly better off: she knew that owners of that Pokemon usually had all eight Johto badges and were ready to take on another country, if not already halfway through conquering Kanto.
In other words, this was one scary enemy. Aubrey watched as Rory drew her own Pokeball back shakily, already seeing an outcome in her head—
A final breeze came from the front door.
"Don't throw out that Pokeball," said the girl that walked through the glass doors. Her smooth gait and confident strides made the men take heed instantly. "That is not what you think it is."
The Metagross's owner scoffed. "Just who do you think you are? Another nobody?"
Rory pursed her lips. The new stranger shook out her arms. The sleeves of her dark green jacket rustled slightly, but against the tension of the room, they might as well have been explosive.
"I'll have to make this quick," the girl said. The doors closed behind her with a solid 'ding'. "Before this gets too out of hand," she added to herself.
Aubrey had never seen a person like this before. The girl must have only been one or two years older than them—sixteen years old at most—but her strong, unwavering demeanor belied her years. Her round face ended at a decidedly pointed chin, framing her deep black eyes. Only her curves—not yet those of an adult woman—undermined her sheer presence.
The girl pulled back her hood: black curls fell to her shoulders in a cascading midnight waterfall.
"This is ridiculous," the right man said. He was impossibly faster than his associate: the Pokeball was out, against the floor, and a canine whose veins flowed with electricity—Electrike— lunged for her. Aubrey gripped Rory's jacket tight, and Rory braced for a gruesome sight—
The girl only sighed.
The Electrike soared through the air, fangs out and hungry. In response, the girl simply held up her left arm. What came next was unbelievable: the Electrike's jaw clamped onto the arm and hung there like a magnet. The girl whipped her arm quickly to her right, and then violently across her entire body. The Electrike crashed against the wall of the Pokemart, leaving an indent in the wall and a Pokemon struggling to stand up.
Aubrey and Rory held their breaths. The two men understood their new opponent; Metagross turned and faced the other way.
"You don't get it, do you?" The Metagross's owner boasted, this time with a hint of hesitation. "You can't stop what's happening. We're Team—"
"Team Cipher, twenty-eighth brigade in the Johto region," the girl recited. "And if I'm not mistaken, these are Shadow Pokemon.
"You must feel great about yourselves," she scolded.
Aubrey let the words silently cross her lips. What was a Shadow Pokemon?
And when Aubrey glimpsed the torn sleeve where the Electrike had bitten into the girl's arm...what was that silver plating that shined so brightly underneath?
"Like I was saying, I'll make this quick," the girl reached toward her back pocket.
The man remained unfazed. "Oh?" And since you know so much about us...who might you be?"
Aubrey and Rory felt the air grow thin—
"The name is Marie Green, Agent No. 24 of the Covenant of Light. Consider this a warning shot."
A/N: I'm hoping that with this chapter, the overall direction of where the story goes is becoming a little clearer. As always, thanks a bunch for reading, and if you like what you read or have anything helpful at all, please review.