There was a night when the boy dreamed.

Thundering clouds of dust rolled across the sky, staining it like ink. The torn and beaten ground beneath him looked as if it were shaded by a thick canopy, although there were no trees in sight. What seemed to be a sea of oil licked at the gravel beaches all around him, and each wave reflected a bit of the lightning storm above.

And when the boy raised his arm in the dream, he saw an obsidian gauntlet with three claws.

The Lights in the Sky Are Thunderbolts - II - The Man Who Sold the World

From the spirit of the Earth beneath him, he asked for three things: sulfur, carbon, and saltpeter.

His heart pulsed.

The Earth obliged his specificity, though not in large amounts. More dirt began flowing onto his arm, though in three swirls of different hues. He willed the minerals into the center of the drill, while making the base denser and the drill itself much more brittle. Little air holes began appearing on the surface, but rocks were rocks; at speed, they'd do enough damage.

Three Staravia took his stillness as a sign of vulnerability and swooped down, heading straight for him.

"Sand Attack," Hilbert said.

His heart pulsed.

In a circle around him, as if dictated by a line in the sand, grass was uprooted and loose topsoil was scattered to the wind. It flowed like a river in front of the Flying-types.

Two of the bunch seemed to have an inkling of intelligence and pulled up, blinking rapidly. The third one went all in, choosing to speed up rather than retreat.

Considering it couldn't see a thing, it was more of a surprise that it took as long as it did for them to crash into the ground.

Hilbert's grin widened as he finished balancing the drill. Sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter; the components of blasting powder. He lifted the drill and aimed it at the swarm.

It was at that moment that he remembered he was by no means a pyrotechnic expert.

After remembering this fact, he promptly disregarded it, and at the very center, scratched a bit of flint and magnesium together.

The brittle part of the drill exploded, sending hundreds of tiny, marble sized meteors into the sky-darkening group of Pokémon. It was like he was a stormcloud, and each bit of stone was a bolt of lightning.

The winds were momentarily overtaken by the sound of squawking and wings flapping. Starly puffed up in a cloud of feathers before floating away, having no strength left to do anything but glide. Staravia spread their wings wide in shock before flying away. A particularly large Flying-type, a Staraptor, glared at him but seemed to give a single nod before doing the same as the rest.

There was relative peace. There would be silence, if not for the muted howling of the wind.

Smoke poured out around Hilbert's fist. The plate of rock set on his arm broke apart, showing his skin unmarred. It had been dense enough to tank the explosion's force entirely. When it hit the ground, each shard cleaved right through the earth.

He shook his hand out and looked back at Dawn and the Professor . "So, yeah. That's what I can do."

Before either could reply, a newcomer shouted out, "Lucas, did you see that!?"

"I did, please stop shouting," replied another much more quietly.

The louder boy was blond, wore a white and orange striped shirt, and had a scarf whirling around from his rapid approach.

The more reserved boy wore a red newsboy cap, a heavy blue jacket, and a scarf which remained neatly tucked around his neck even as he struggled to keep up with his friend.

"So, what was that move, dude?" he slid to a stop at the edge of Hilbert's circle, leaning over and getting entirely too far into his personal space.

"Drill," Hilbert said simply, "Drill go boom."

"Drill go boom?" the blond repeated.

"I believe that's what he said, Barry," the other boy interjected.

Professor Rowan and his assistant shared a look.

"Glad that's out of the way," Hilbert said. He clapped his hands to shake off the rest of the dust, though he couldn't shake off the feeling of familiarity that name evoked in him. He recalled running through the backcountry of Sinnoh when he was small, rolling in dirt and getting back up all the same. Childhood. "Do I know you from-"

The blond reared back and pointed a thumb at his chest. "The name's Barry Masuda, don't forget it! Me and my not-quite-as-attractive-or-skilled-or-dashing-"

"You forgot humble," Dawn murmured.

"-or-perfectly-gentlemanly assistant Lucas are the best duo to ever come out of Twinleaf Town, so you should feel honored."

Hilbert, assuredly, did not feel very honored, but that was no reason to be rude.

"Right. I'm Hilbert."

Barry rubbed his chin. "Huh." He looked at Lucas. "Huh." He looked back at Hilbert. "Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuu- Oh, I do know you! Hilby, you're back!"

A jolt ran through Hilbert's spine. In an honorable manner, he slugged Barry in the gut.

"Oh, my bad," he said, shaking out his hand again. "Automatic reaction."

Barry hopped backwards, doubled over with his arms around his stomach. "Yep, yep… even after all these years, you still got that habit…"

He turned to Lucas, ignoring his childhood friend. "I don't think we've met."

"I moved in a little more than a decade ago," Lucas replied, totally ignoring Barry's groans. "He talked about you a lot when we were younger."

"Ah, did he? That's…"

Barry suddenly sprang back up, "Anyway! Hilby," he jumped back before Hilbert could hit him again, "What was that move, seriously? And where's the Pokémon that used it? Are they underground?"

Lucas poked his heart, which Hilbert spontaneously realized was still wearing away at the front of his shirt. He thought that Barry had either not noticed or thought it was unrelated.

Barry blinked. "Oh, I didn't notice that."

Naturally.

"What's up with that?" Barry rapped his knuckle against the chunk of stone.

"My heart." Hilbert cringed at how dopey that sounded.

"No, like, seriously," Barry said.

Hilbert eyed Professor Rowan. "Can we talk about this somewhere else? I have other things to speak with you about, sir." He looked back at the other teens. "All of you, actually."

"Remember I was here, did you? Yes, yes, my lab will do…" the older man said, before turning on his heel and walking away from the four teenagers. "Let's not dally, the sun will set soon."

Lucas pointed at himself and gave Dawn and Hilbert a questioning look.

She shrugged because she had no opinion. He shrugged because the answer was obvious.

Barry, of course, didn't comprehend that he might not be invited somewhere, and charged along after the Professor. Lucas sighed but quickly moved to catch up.

Hilbert and Dawn looked at each other for a moment.

He rolled his shoulder and shot her a smile. "So, pretty cool, right?"

She stared at him for another moment, blinked, then ran to catch up to Professor Rowan.

Much like a benchwarmer trying to catch a hail mary, Hilbert fumbled, metaphorically slipped, tripped, crashed, and burned. There was such a slim chance of him catching the metaphorical ball, that even in a multidimensional labyrinth of possibilities, the percentage chance would still approach zero.

With a quiet sigh, and his heart pulsing sympathetically, Hilbert walked after the others.

Though, he thought, there was something to be said about turning impossible odds into a one-hundred percent chance of success.

He looked back at the shimmering air above the lake. It was some kind of spirit, certainly, but not the kind he was familiar with. His heart pulsed as he reached out to it.

The sky became hazy, as if the shimmer itself had recoiled and thinned out.

The sun's appearance became that of a red ruby, ovaloid in shape. The air itself bled with the light of the mind, burning a bright pink. He felt the spirit's gaze focus on him.

Hilbert drew back in himself, conceding. Whatever it was… he could tell it was too powerful for him to communicate with on a spiritual level. He felt small. Like a Magikarp compared to a Metagross, both in intelligence and strength.

The lake spirit granted him mercy. He felt kindness permeate his being, bringing every memory of peace and compassion to the front of his mind.

He wiped his eyes to keep tears from spilling out, and when his vision cleared, he had returned to reality.

"Are you alright?" he heard. Dawn had stopped and turned half-way to look back at him. Her head was tilted slightly to the side.

He waved her off. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I'll explain everything in a bit."

The lab was still operating, but the daytime aides were heading home for the day. The five of them sat down at a sterile metal table in the middle of the lab.

"So, short version first?" Hilbert prompted.

His heart had shrunk back to its normal size,but his shirt still had a jagged tear over his breastbone.

Everyone seemed fine with that, so that was how he started.

"I died."

"...Eh?" Barry said, hunching his shoulders.

"I got better," Hilbert said defensively.

"That creates more questions, I believe," Lucas said, though he seemed about halfway lost in thought.

"Care to elaborate?" Dawn asked.

Hilbert waved vaguely. "Well, there was this lab in the forests around my hometown in Unova, Nuvema Town, and I stumbled across it one day. I didn't notice the signs that were probably there that said "Hazardous materials," "Explosion imminent. Go home," and "What are you, stupid or something?"

"And you-" Lucas began.

"I went right in."

"And then-"

"The explosion was imminent, yes," Hilbert said with a nod. "Golett was basically the last thing I saw. They felt guilty about killing me, so they fused their spirit with mine and their body became my new heart. It was a real split-second decision, I imagine."

In the same way that lightning strikes quickly, but precisely; exactly the same way, in fact. There had been more to his death and subsequent not-being-dead, but the local legends about Zekrom seemed only tangentially related.

"You… fused your spirits?" Dawn asked.

"Listen, I don't make the rules. But now, I can do some of the things that Ghost-types and Ground-types can do. I can't become incorporeal, but I can channel energy really well. Electricity especially, since I can manipulate concentrations of minerals," Hilbert said with a shrug. "All kinds of stuff. Oh, and I can see ghosts and spiritual energy, though it's not the same thing as that aura and psionics stuff you see in books and movies."

I believe the phrase is, "That's a surprise tool that will help us later."

"Wait, wait, wait," Dawn held up her hands. "I can believe that someone can miraculously wake up from a coma, and that maybe there are some new, really weird cardiovascular aids on the market, but ghosts? Not Ghost-types, but actual ghosts? That's entirely unscientific!" Dawn said.

Hilbert cracked his neck. "I can describe all of your spirits, if you'd like me to. Ghosts are just spirits that aren't tethered to a body, or if we're being specific, a body that wouldn't otherwise exist." There were several species of Ghost-types with physical mass which would fall apart without a spirit to inhabit it. Mimikyu were known to collapse into scraps of cloth after passing on, and the wood making up a Dhelmise would rot within minutes, as if the process of decay were held off by nothing but will.

Dawn crossed her arms. "Try it."

He pointed at her for dramatic effect. "Your spirit is shaped like the one I saw at the lake earlier. Sort of fairy-like, and the center of power is a red disc on your forehead. The rest of your spirit is gray, but slightly reflective. You've got a Platinum Soul."

She looked taken aback at that. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Hilbert crossed his arms and leaned back in thought. "I imagine that there's some kind of Legendary Pokémon in that lake, and that it's chosen you as its champion. Platinum is one of the most conductive metals on Earth, so that's what I call spirits that can channel the power of Legendary Pokémon. Though the residual effects are different…" Hilbert muttered into his fist, trailing off. He turned to the Professor. "Are there other Pokémon like that one?"

"There are, indeed," Professor Rowan said, "Though like the one you describe, they are nothing more than legends. Mesprit is said to reside in Lake Verity, and it is called the Being of Emotion."

Hilbert recalled how he'd felt a surge of empathy within himself earlier. "Right. And there are others like it?"

"Azelf, the Being of Willpower, is said to reside in Lake Valor. Uxie, the Being of Knowledge, is said to reside in Lake Acuity. They're commonly understood to be metaphors for the evolution of humans. Willpower was necessary for humanity to claw its way to dominance, knowledge was necessary to understand the world, and emotion was necessary so that we could learn to coexist with the creatures we call Pokémon."

"But they're real, right?" Hilbert asked. In Unova, Pokémon like Tornadus and Thundurus were Legendary Pokémon, but their existence was an undisputed fact. There were enough cameras around during dust storms and hurricanes to prove it.

Rowan hummed. "It's hard to say."

Hilbert sagged again. "You don't believe me either, do you, Professor?"

"I have seen many things. Great, terrible things," Rowan said. He stopped for a moment to gather his thoughts, closing his eyes to do so. "But I am a scientist. I draw conclusions about the world from primary sources, observations that are agreed-upon reality. If there are no verifiable results, the results theoretically do not exist."

Hilbert drew himself back. No, no use getting upset about that, he thought. There were always going to be people that didn't believe him.

"Fine, fine. But she," he pointed at Dawn again for emphasis, "Is causing some heavy spiritual effects just by being in the room. It's an effect of being marked by a Legendary. Like how I'm sure Barry is thinking about becoming stronger than his father because my presence affects how people think about their ideals. I don't… I don't talk like this normally, and I'm making an effort to act like myself right now, but I'm using words I don't usually care to," Hilbert said. "It's subtle, but there's some kind of intelligence boosting field, neurons are being rewired to be more efficient, or anything really, but it's something to do with the domain of Knowledge, and that's coming from her."

"Hang on! I've never even seen any kind of Legendary Pokémon in person, you're talking nonsense!

Lucas raised his hand, looking somewhat sheepish.

Hilbert and Dawn turned at the exact same time. The tension swelled, then dissipated. It was almost as if the two had more than just a conflict of personalities, but a conflict of principles.

"I've read that Uxie wipes the memory of any who invade its territory," Lucas said. "Maybe you don't remember because, uh, they didn't want you to."

Hilbert and Dawn glanced at each other.

"That's possible," Hilbert said.

"That's fallacious," Dawn said at the same time. "The proof of something happening is that I can't remember it? Get real."

Hilbert grabbed his head. "Oh, wait, give me a second. I'm feeling some psychiatric knowledge coming in, or maybe it's just common sense. People with high intelligence end up isolating themselves because they can't relate to their peers, and end up completely alone if they don't get a clue. That would be a result of Knowledge, right? Professor, is…" Hilbert trailed off.

They were all looking at him, as if they couldn't believe what he was saying.

Hilbert realized what exactly he had said, and promptly shut his mouth tight. He looked down in his lap, feeling as if he'd been doused in ice water.

Dawn's chair made a scraping sound as she left. "Whatever," she said with an explosive sigh. "Professor, I need to feed Turtwig."

"You're dismissed," Rowan said offhandedly.

A minute of silence passed. Hilbert idly folded his hands.

The Professor coughed. "Let's… move on. Hilbert, was there anything else?"

"Yeah, yes, sir, I mean." He clasped his hands in front of his mouth, leaning over the table. "That was the Donphan in the room, but there's some other stuff." He looked at Lucas."You've got a lot of spiritual energy floating around, and it cloaks everything around you like it's trying to eat your surroundings. Not in a malicious way, it seems more curious than anything else. I don't know about training that energy since I'm sort of a special case, but if you find any paranormal specialists, I would ask for help. Were you born somewhere else?" He had heard that Pokémon grew faster when raised somewhere different than their birthplace, or after being traded away.

Lucas looked distinctly uncomfortable. "I… was adopted. I don't really remember my parents, and it's hard to say they existed at all. I grew up here with Barry."

Hilbert lowered his gaze. He thought about never telling people about their spirits ever again, but then he remembered his dreams.

"I'm sorry," he said, shaking his head. "I realize I'm really socially awkward around people my own age. I was bullshitting most of the time until I got here. I don't speak your language, I'm making it up the best I can using my abilities to convey intent. It's a… lack of recent experience too, I guess. I don't mean to hurt anyone, but I'm not really one of you anymore." He wasn't raised like them, either. He could already tell the cultural difference between Unova and Sinnoh was like night and day.

The Professor looked at him with a hard-to-decipher look. "Many veterans of the Conflict feel the same way. Many people were left behind. Many more had gone too early."

A mournful wind seemed to blow into the room. Hilbert felt its depth. Even years after passing on, the ghosts of the previous generation of Sinnohans seemed to linger.

Treating that tension much like a glass window, Barry said, "Hey, Hilbert, what do I look like? Super cool and badass and stuff, right?"

If Hilbert hadn't known to look for it, he might not have noticed Barry forcing himself to speak up. Maybe Barry wasn't all blind bravado, he thought. He looked closer at Barry, reexamining him twofold.

Then he looked closer.

He squinted his eyes extra hard.

Closer.

"You're…"

The blond leaned in, eyes wide.

"...a normal person. Sorry, Barry."

"Aw, man!"

Hilbert smiled as he rubbed at his heart, hoping to soothe the phantom aches as Barry clutched his head and yelled in frustration.

After the blond had sufficiently calmed down, Rowan drew their attention back to him.

"There is something else I would like to discuss with you all," he said, "Though I do wish Dawn was still present to hear it."

"I'm around," they heard echoing down the hall.

Rowan- to no one but himself, really- nodded. "I suppose I should give a speech, but I believe a summation will be effective." He pushed himself out of his seat, bulging with muscle despite his age, and walked to a nearby machine, which presently held two Pokéballs within three slots. "As you know, we live in a world populated by creatures which we call Pokémon."

In other news, water is wet and Groudon is still malding over that fact.

Rowan continued, "There's still so much we do not understand about these creatures. Why do they evolve rather than continue growing as they are? Why do some Pokémon live their entire lives in their first stage, while others can fulfill their potential within months? What is the purpose of Pokémon evolution?" He looked back over his shoulder, arms clasped behind his back. "I'm not as young as I once was. I have my own scars that will forever hold me back. That is my reality, but it isn't yours. You're the hope of every generation before you, one not marred by conflict, even if it took hell for humanity to get this far. That was what your parents fought for." Rowan looked back at his machine. "There may come a time where you are called on for the same fight. But now is not that time. While you're young, so full of hope… I'd like to send you on a journey. I want to see how far your generation can go." His head tilted upwards. "Hm. I suppose a better question is this: why do humans not evolve in the same way as Pokémon?" He turned around fully. "Young Masudas?"

Lucas looked to Barry and shrugged.

The blond stirred in thought for a minute and scratched his head. "I guess it's because we're not meant to be strong like Pokémon?"

"We evolve into better trainers as we age," Lucas said, sounding rather pleased with himself, as if he had solved a riddle.

"Of course humans evolve," Hilbert said. "Some just skip the second stage and go onto the third."

They looked at him as if he was an idiot.

He didn't elaborate, and looked back like they were being unreasonable.

Rowan quirked an eyebrow. "Could you describe each stage?"

"Sure," Hilbert said. "The second stage is becoming a ghost, and the third is passing on. The untethering of the spirit from the body, then the untethering of the spirit from the world. It's pretty simple."

Barry titled his head. "Hilby, did you catch middle-school syndrome when you were in Unova?"

The blond promptly scooted his chair away trying to avoid the death glare.

"I'm not being edgy or some crap," Hilbert said testily, "That's how Ghost-types understand it. What's that Bug-type that evolves into two Pokémon because its shell becomes haunted?"

"Nincada," Lucas, Rowan, and Dawn said at the same time, though her voice was still coming from the other room.

"Yeah, like that, but it's only the ghost left. If you want a Ghost-type, "Just add corporeal mass!"" he said, mocking the commercials for Sea Mankey he had seen on television. "The third stage is when a Ghost-type dies, passes on, whatever. I don't know where they go after, but spirits have to come from somewhere. Maybe there's an afterlife. Maybe there's not." Hilbert shrugged. "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. Actual Ghost-types have a better intuition about these things, but Golett can't really explain it. I imagine that if there wasn't, we'd be seeing a lot more ghosts around. Dead things don't like dying either."

"You mean that you would see a lot more ghosts," Lucas pointed out.

Hilbert shook his head. "When spiritual energy reaches a certain concentration, it becomes visible to the naked eye. That's how some Ghost-types, like Ghastly, are formed. They're not spirits, they're spirits created by spirits. Spirits squared."

"If you say so," Barry muttered.

Hilbert's eyebrow twitched.

"Anyway, can we get on with it, Professor?"

Rowan looked startled for a split second, having been lost in thought, before he regained his composure. "Er, yes, let us continue. I ask the question not so you can stress yourselves over the answer now, but keep it in mind as you travel. Should you choose to travel, that is." The Professor tapped a button on the machine, and a display lit up above it. There were three spaces, though one was empty.

One was a small orange monkey with a swirl on top of its head, labeled "Chimchar."

The other was a similarly small blue and white penguin with a bright yellow beak, labeled "Piplup."

"Dawn is taking care of Turtwig at the moment," the Professor said, "But what I would like is to offer the three of you Pokémon."

Barry leapt out of his seat. "For real? Really?" he asked excitedly.

Lucas began muttering in his fist. "That's a lot of responsibility…"

That was about the time that Dawn ran into the room, lugging along a green, brown-shelled turtle in her arms. "Wait, Professor, you can't be serious! These species are incredibly rare. I thought you were just going to give them a Pokédex and grant money, not the subjects of our research!"

Hilbert raised his hand. "Yeah, uh, if I could butt in? Barry's dad is a Frontier Brain."

There were a few moments of awkward silence.

"I think. Am I remembering that right?"

"Eh, actually," Barry said, rubbing the back of his neck, "He's got a thing about despotism or whatever-"

"Nepotism," Lucas interjected.

"-And since he started out on his own, he figured that I should do the same. No Pokémon in my birthday presents, no matter how much I asked."

"Isn't that still a good reason?" Hilbert said.

"Dude. Don't ruin this for me," Barry said flatly.

"Young Masuda," the Professor said, "Do you recall who the Tower Tycoon was before your father?"

"Eh…"

Lucas suddenly sat up. "Sir, wasn't it-"

"I retired so that I could focus more on my research," Rowan said. "I have met many trainers. Some who are worthy to own Pokémon, and some who are not. Young Masuda, though you are brash, I believe you have potential. I failed your father's generation- my children- and I have a duty to nurture yours. If your father has so little faith in my ability to make decisions, then I may have to take back my title."

Hilbert recalled once again how effortlessly the Professor had backhanded a Staravia nearing its top speed. He almost shuddered at the thought of fighting him.

Barry took an awkward step back. "Right… thank you, sir."

"Professor, I still don't think this is a good idea! Anyone can pass the trainer licensure exams, but that doesn't mean they're qualified to take care of Pokémon," Dawn said forcefully.

"You'll go along with them, naturally," the Professor said, closing his eyes and nodding to himself. "To keep them in line. Getting out of Sandgem and seeing what Sinnoh has to offer might be good for you. I'm sure your parents will agree."

There was a moment where it was clear that she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing.

"What!?"

"Four total… that's a bad omen," Lucas muttered.

"Yeah, I agree!" Hilbert called. "Professor, just a minute. I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but I don't need a Pokémon. I came here because I thought explaining the deal would stop you all from getting any weird ideas. I have a partner already."

The Professor pointedly tapped the side of his belt, where a strap of Pokéballs were firmly attached.

Hilbert sighed. "I don't have a Pokéball because Pokéballs don't work for them, just…" He focused for a moment, drawing on the power of Sinnoh's earth. He then pointed at a window, internally grateful that it was a one room building. "Do you mind if I open that?"

The Professor quirked an eyebrow again but nodded.

Hilbert walked over and fiddled with the lock for a moment before finally getting the thing open.

His heart pulsed.

The grass of the forest outside the window was uprooted as dirt and stone swept upwards and into the lab. He heard gasps of shock but kept his focus. The throbbing in his heart increased in intensity, but became more distant, as if he was imagining someone else's feelings.

The dirt and gravel rose off the ground, forming a mass that came up to a little over half of Hilbert's height. The brown and gray gave way to a washed-out blue. Sections of the bolder caved inwards, gaining definition and shape. Gauntlet-like arms morphed out of the side, and the center of mass shifted upwards as it gained stubby legs. A spiral carved itself into the golem's chest, though it reflected only a dim, pale purple light on the inside. Two blocky eyes appeared on its head, a small outcropping that could have been confused for another rock stacked on top of another.

"Let me introduce you properly."

Golett made a salute.

"This is Golett," Hilbert said, his heart pounding out of his chest in earthen spikes, "Army of One."