"Recording an entry on a spirit I met at…"
There was a pause and a sound like a campfire crackling.
"Fuego Ironworks. Couldn't read the signage. The Pokédex reads them as a Ceruledge, which is a 'mon usually from Paldea. This one formed out of the residual spirit energy in scrap metal that was being melted down and accidentally set the place on fire."
Another pause.
"They said they're sorry. Hey, no one died, it could've been worse." He seemed to be speaking to someone else. "Anyway, there are some differences between them and the average Ceruledge. The big one is that they can change their Ghost TE into Psychic at will, which makes the Pokédex register them as a Pokémon called Armarouge. They can use telepathy and they tell me it helps them think more clearly. They call it Light of the Mind, which is what I'll record as their ability."
Hilbert laughed.
"Yeah, I'm probably too far gone if this kind of situation is normal for me. They want to build a legacy that won't be thrown away, so they're going to be one of my frontrunners in official battles. Which… is really good, honestly, because as much as I like Sinistea and Shuppet, they're not the greatest direct attackers. I don't know much about Drifloon yet, but they're looking to be a ranged attacker as well. Ceruledge-"
He paused, before muttering.
"Okay, they want to be called Fuego, since they're not definitively either species. I'll remember that. As I was saying, Fuego is going to be a melee fighter for sure."
Hilbert hummed.
"You know, Mon Quixote wouldn't have been a bad nickname either, y'know?"
The Lights in the Sky Are Thunderbolts - XV - Sleep in the Snow
They had reached Eterna Forest with good time and were able to set up camp without much issue.
Stirring simmering water into his trainer meal bag absentmindedly the next morning, Hilbert pulled his Pokédex away from his mouth and looked over his campsite once again.
Fuego stood with their arms crossed in the fire pit, which was in the center of the clearing and beneath open sky. Even fifteen or so feet away, Hilbert could feel their heat occasionally brush across his skin despite the winter morning air.
The Fire-type desperately wanted to battle, as that was the most direct way to earn honor and glory. However, they had very little control over their TE, which made them unsafe to use in battles without Psychic-types present to project barriers. As it was, they needed to learn control.
He had read that Ceruledge and Armarouge both evolved from a pure Fire-type species called Charcadet, so he made an educated guess that the spirit would have learned control naturally if they hadn't formed in their second stage of evolution.
That they formed at all was strange, Hilbert thought. They weren't particularly vengeful, they certainly didn't have the raw and intense emotion that Machamp had, and their spirit should have remained scattered for months or years. But they pressurized and formed anyway. They mentioned something about having had a Dream which granted them awareness, but that shouldn't have had anything to do with their spirit; it just wasn't the same domain.
The spirits that had visited him in his sleep did say that there were others like him, though he didn't expect that to become clear so soon.
He chewed on the thought for a bit while watching his other Pokémon train.
Sinistea was practicing their energy draining moves on the ground. Grass TE tended to shape itself like roots when used, and in the same way Sinistea could drain the spirits of those that drank from their cup, they could also conduct other kinds of life energy. Hilbert hoped that if they mimicked plant forms, they could gain sustenance from the minerals in the earth like most plants could.
Machamp and Golett were sparring as usual with the usual spray of dirt, gravel, and half-fossilized charcoal. They were a little further away from the center, if only to avoid hitting anyone else, but their speed and intensity was still clear as day.
It really was a shame that Hilbert couldn't use them in official battles. Golett's data couldn't be quantified and Machamp was averse to potentially killing something.
Shuppet's quartet was a bit scattered. Teri was near the campfire ring chirping and shooting off puffs of smoke, in hopes of showing Fuego how to control their energy better. It was slow progress, but he could already notice a difference. The quarter-spirit's Fire TE protected their plush exterior from catching fire, which was quite fortunate, since Hilbert didn't know how to sew.
Well, that wasn't necessarily true. He didn't know how to sew well. Learning how to patch up clothes took up multiple class periods back in trainer school.
The rest of them were in their usual routine. Tedd tried to hit Pouty with a Moonblast, quickly charging and recharging the attack to increase their reaction time, and as apparently suicidal as the Poochyena doll was, they didn't want to be melted by magic moonbeams.
They would be fine. Spirits could recover in weird ways.
Zealy was working on their illusions, projecting images of themself as a white-furred Zoroark that was as tall as Hilbert, though the button eyes gave it away. He had heard that the species once resided in Sinnoh, but had locally gone extinct a long time ago.
Drifloon…
He still didn't have a good handle on Drifloon. They were raised by the Wind, a spirit which Hilbert still couldn't understand. There was 'wild Pokémon' alien and 'raised by some kind of demigod' alien, and he wasn't sure how to bridge that gap with his second-newest team member.
The Flying-type seemed to be meditating in a quiet corner of the clearing, silent except for the way they seemed to inhale and exhale. Looking closer, Hilbert watched them funnel their spirit energy back into themselves in a flow shaped like a donut, condensing it and seemingly stockpiling it.
They were on board with protecting people and hadn't disagreed so far with extending that to the entire region, so unless an issue arose, he didn't feel like pushing it.
Due to all the noise they were making with things such as falling rocks, whooshing fires, and a constant stampede, it made perfect sense that they had drawn the attention of wild Pokémon. He'd often heard the scurrying in the underbrush just as often as he'd seen the spirits of Bug-types through the trees.
There was an oddity he'd noticed. He wasn't surprised to see people walking by, even if he was somewhat off the beaten trail, but there had been one person which was accompanied by a massive blob of Normal TE, a Blissey or Chansey by his guess based off of what he'd seen in most Pokémon Centers.
By itself, it was nothing of note, but when they had started walking in circles, Hilbert started having questions. Maybe they were lost?
He was a few minutes away from just getting up and going to guide them back to the trail when they cautiously wandered into his campsite.
Green. Very green.
His heart pulsed. Golett told him not to be an idiot.
Mentally shooting back that it was accurate, Hilbert focused back on reality.
The newcomer was a woman who might have been a bit older than him, though he couldn't be certain. Her hair hung in a heavy braid over her shoulder. It, her mantle, and her heavy dress were varying shades of green, though she wore brown boots and there was a diamond of wool-like brown cloth on her chest.
There was probably a word that better described the ensemble, but as Hilda would say, Hilbert didn't know jack shit about women's clothing.
She peered out from beneath her leaf-like bangs. "Um, hello. I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm a bit lost. Do you mind if I rest here for a bit?"
All of Hilbert's Pokémon had turned to stare at her as she entered.
Given they were all Ghost-types and some were more intimidating than others, it was reasonable that she shrunk somewhat back at their attention.
"Hey, none of that," Hilbert said. "Be polite."
Most of them turned back to what they were doing, though Machamp floated upwards as if climbing a watchtower. Really, the Fighting-type's dedication to protection only grew with each passing day.
The woman walked over to where he was sitting. Her eyes had stopped flitting about when she was halfway to him, though the Chansey that was following her kept looking around nervously.
"I apologize for the intrusion," she said, placing a hand on her heart and bowing. "I am Cheryl Kusanagi, and this is my partner, Chansey."
The Normal-type chittered nervously, though they seemed to be forcing some enthusiasm into it.
Golett, Hilbert thought, do I scare people?
His heart pulsed.
Really?
Shoving away his internal anxiety, Hilbert let a small smile slip onto his face. "I'm real sorry about that, I'm actually a Ground-type specialist but I just ended up training Ghost-types."
"Oh, it's no trouble!" Cheryl said quickly. "My grandfather taught me that it's important to have respect for the spirits."
Hilbert nodded. "A little goes a long way. Also, you can call me Hilbert Kuroiwa. Nice meeting you."
"You as well," she said, "May I sit?"
Hilbert gestured to a dried-out log. "You don't gotta ask me permission for anything, I just found the spot."
After sitting down, Cheryl held her hands up to Fuego's fire, which was still warming even at a distance. As Chansey began mimicking her, she said, "My grandfather once told me that adventurers can be territorial about their resting spots."
Hilbert's eyebrow twitched. "I'm more of a spirit medium than an adventurer." Realizing how quickly he had killed the conversation, he added, "What about you?"
"Oh, thank you for asking!" She was practically beaming at such a simple question. "I'm an adventurer, just like he was! He always told me, "Cheryl, I might be strong, generous, and extraordinarily handsome, but I believe you can outshine me regardless!"" She paused. "He would always tell me to avoid boys immediately afterwards, though. I'm not quite sure why…"
Hilbert thought of commenting on it but didn't. Irony? What's that?
"Sounds like a good man," Hilbert said, stirring his trainer meal as he waited for it to finish.
"He was," she said with a sigh. "He died a few weeks ago."
Hilbert was glad he wasn't drinking anything, as he would have spit it out from the whiplash he'd gotten from the conservation's sudden shift.
"I'm sorry to hear that," he said, being honest but feeling rather awkward.
"Thank you," she said, folding her hands in her lap. "That's actually why I'm here. Our family's ancestral home is somewhere in these forests, though no one has lived there for half a century. He told me that I should seek it out if he was unable to take me on an adventure himself."
"Ah," Hilbert said.
Come on, you can do better than that, he thought to himself.
"Where did you live, then?"
Whatever-god-of-your-choosing damn it.
"Oh, I lived over in Solaceon Town," she said. "I'm actually a little stunned at how big the western cities look in person."
Hilbert recalled a travel pamphlet from his flight. Luckily, it had been printed in a language he could read, and it mentioned that Solaceon Town was an agricultural center with a series of mysterious ruins in the surrounding wilderness. It was on his to-do list, because that description practically shouted "misunderstood spirits."
"I grew up in small-town Unova, but I get what you're saying," Hilbert said, nodding along. "I think I was ten the first time I went to Castelia City and saw a skyscraper."
"My grandfather told me about Castelia City!" she said cheerily, "Relic Castle is between there and Nimbasa City, isn't it?"
Hilbert didn't disguise his confusion. "Well, it's supposed to be, but that's a legend like Pokéatlantis."
Cheryl rapidly shook her head. "My grandfather went there, too! It's near Pewter City in the Kanto region, but he told me the entrance has been sealed off since he's been there."
Golett reminded him that there were, in fact, things he didn't know.
Hilbert reminded them not to be a smart ass.
He considered flat-out denying the truth of Cheryl's statements, since she seemed a little bit naive, but he realized that would have made him a hypocrite. He'd practically given a speech to the other lab trainers about believing things you couldn't prove.
Maybe he wasn't as well-adjusted as he thought…
He pushed the thought away and said, "Alright, cool. I mean, hell, I work with Ghost-types and spirits no one else can see, I don't have the right to call Bouffa-shit on anyone."
"Language," she chided.
Hilbert paused and looked at her oddly for a moment. "...You don't get out a lot, do you?"
She at least had the decency to look embarrassed. "There weren't a lot of children in my age group growing up, so I helped other parents with babysitting or ranchers with their Pokémon more than I spent time with people my own age."
"You don't have any siblings?" Hilbert asked.
She shook her head. "No, my parents died before they could have any more children."
Hilbert winced. He really needed to learn how to stop putting his foot in his mouth. Her grandparents raised her, and by the sound of things, they had passed away as well.
The fact she had the will to carry on despite all of that loss was admirable, Hilbert thought.
"So, you're looking for your ancestral home?" Hilbert asked, trying to change the subject.
Cheryl nodded, immediately mimicked by her Chansey. "Yes, I decided it would be my first mission as an adventurer, but, well…" her voice dropped, "It's somewhat harder without a map."
"How old is it?" Hilbert asked.
"I believe it was built shortly after my family first arrived in Sinnoh," she said, tapping her chin in thought. "They were some of the first Kalosian settlers in this region, though I have more ancestors that are Sinnohan than those that aren't. Isn't that neat?"
Her clothing did have a certain style to it, but he wouldn't have guessed that by looking at her.
"So it's old," Hilbert confirmed. "That means that there's probably a house spirit residing there, in some form."
She tilted her head to the side. "I'm… not sure I follow."
Hilbert wagged his finger in a circle. "Basically, people and Pokémon leak spiritual energy over time, and when that spiritual energy reaches a certain concentration, it becomes an independent spirit, usually based on the shared characteristics of the location it formed in. For a house, it can become a poltergeist if the spirit doesn't like its new owners, but sometimes they become lares; house gods. Not Legendary Pokémon, mind you, that's just the closest translation."
"So my family's home might have a spirit?" she asked.
"Maybe, maybe not. Spirits like to be free, so they only concentrate under certain circumstances. I can see spiritual energy even if it hasn't taken a corporeal form." He waved his hand in front of his face. "If the house has lingering spirits or energy in it, I can probably help you find it."
Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she practically jumped off the log she was sitting on. "Really?"
"Yeah, dealing with spirits is kind of my thing," he said blankly, suppressing the typical teenage boy reaction to her sudden movement. "If there is one and it's violent, I need to make it pass on or calm down."
"That's fantastic!" She pumped her fist. "Thank you-"
Suddenly, a deep rumbling echoed through the clearing.
Cheryl turned pinker than her Chansey. "Um… I suppose we have been wandering for quite a while…"
Chansey nodded with a chirp, patting their stomach.
Hilbert quietly sighed, passed Cheryl his cooked trainer meal, and unzipped his bag to start making another.
Hilbert cleaned up his campsite after breakfast and set out into the forest with Cheryl. He had recalled most of his Pokémon, but Machamp insisted on remaining at attention.
It was likely that Cheryl felt the odd currents in the air, but she didn't say anything about it.
He trusted Golett to keep him from tripping over, since he was walking with his eyes closed.
Grass TE absolutely saturated Eterna Forest. It fell from the tips of tree branches like rain and drifted through the air like leaves. It clung to the ground and rocks like moss like a canvas of snow. If there was a Pokémon that needed a boost to evolve, he was certain that this was the place.
"I'm actually a bit afraid of traveling alone," Cheryl said bashfully. "When I was getting directions for the forest, I heard that there were strange people trying to steal Pokémon around." She tapped her chin in thought. "They said something about jumpsuits and blue hair?"
Hilbert's blood roared in his veins.
"If we do run into any of those people," he said carefully, "I will keep you safe."
She smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. Chansey is a great partner," the Pokémon chirped cheerfully at that, "But they aren't the best battler."
"My partner is sort of the same way," Hilbert said with a shrug, "I can't even use them in official battles."
His heart pulsed with annoyance.
"Oh, that's too bad," she said. It would have sounded like sarcasm coming from anyone else, but somehow she sounded entirely sincere. "Are you hoping to compete in the conference this year?"
"Maybe, maybe not." He stretched his arms above his head and made a few cracks. "I collect badges if it's convenient because it helps me look more credible. I can help more people if it looks like I'm strong enough to help, you get it?"
"That's admirable," she said with a nod, holding her hands together as she walked. "You're sort of a guru, then?"
Hilbert considered what he'd said so far. "Ah, no. I fix problems by punching them with drills or talking to them until they stop being problems."
She looked doubtful. "Is that the best way to treat spirits?"
He shrugged. "It's worked for me so far." He didn't want to try and explain his nightmares, though Cheryl seemed strong enough to handle the weight of them. Fighting off the end of the world was his responsibility, and she just wanted to explore.
Maybe he could introduce her to the other lab trainers?
At a spot where the conservation died and the path branched, Hilbert redoubled his focus.
They'd been walking for a good few hours, meaning the sun was beginning to set behind them, making that direction west and the widening path ahead of him east, the thinning path to his right south, and then heavy underbrush to his left north.
"You said no one has been there in fifty years?" Hilbert asked.
"Since my grandfather was a child," she confirmed.
Hilbert pointed north. "There's a really faint trail of human spirit energy through here, and Golett is telling me that the ground is only a little bit disturbed. Should we check that way?"
"I don't see why not." She paused and looked at the sprawling plant life covering the forest floor. "On second thought… there could be poisonous ivy hidden beneath the knotweed."
"Is that what that is?" Hilbert asked, turning to look at her.
"It's often confused for local weeds," she rattled off distractedly. "It's an invasive species in most regions and can grow from tiny bits of root. My grandfather often complained about how clean he had to keep his equipment when traveling abroad.
"Huh," Hilbert said eloquently. "How quickly does it grow back?"
"I believe ten centimeters a day? Though I may be thinking of kudzu…"
Hilbert didn't comment on the totally incorrect units of measurement as his heart pulsed.
The earth rumbled for a split second as Golett tumbled a length of forest floor over itself, exposing loose dirt and roots while burying vines and ivy.
Hilbert took a step and his shoe sunk straight into the ground. "Should be fine now, right?"
Her eyebrows shot up but she smiled and started walking with him again, Chansey still in tow. "That's amazing! Your partner must be very intelligent."
His heart pulsed.
"They like to think so," Hilbert replied, ignoring the prickly annoyance that followed. "We're very close in spirit."
"The bond between trainer and Pokémon really is something else," she said with a wistful sigh. "Sometimes, it's like I can feel exactly what Chansey is feeling. Is it like that for you, too?"
That gave Hilbert pause. A Normal-type with that kind of spiritual connection? It could be delusion, but also could be something greater. He couldn't say for certain.
"Yeah, sometimes," Hilbert said.
The path continued churning in front of them in chunks as they walked. Eventually, they came upon a wrought iron fence that had been rusted away in places.
Hilbert looked past the fence and saw a manor covered in vines. The stone foundation held up the rest of the towering abode, though it was clearly cracked and broken in some places. Wooden walls had their paint long since stripped away, and parts of the roof had lost their tiles' color and sagged inwards.
Looking past that as well, he saw spiritual energy tinged blue blowing around like an icy wind, seemingly bound by the yard's barriers.
They were on the western wing of the manor, and to their right was a path that would lead around the corner.
"Is this what you were looking for?" Hilbert asked.
"It matches the photos," she said, before blowing air into her hands. Steam rose from her breath. "It seems to be much colder around here. We should look for a front entrance."
Hilbert nodded and they began walking along the fence. The iron seemed to have rusted from the inside of the property, despite being more or less upright. Was there a hidden pond or some other reason for the humidity?
Around the corner there seemed to be a much heavier beaten path, and he could see more knotweed in front of what looked like an entrance. As they approached, he could see that the design was more intricate than the rest of the fence, with spirals, etchings, and detail apparent in the bits that hadn't rusted away.
A sign hung on the gate. At least, Hilbert was pretty sure that it was a sign, since the characters written on it looked like some kind of Sinjohan-Japanese script.
There was a minute of awkward, freezing air.
"I can't read," he said.
"This residence is being preserved by the proprietors of the Eterna Gym," she read aloud without missing a beat. . "Speak with the current gym leader if you have a claim to the property."
"Oh." He looked back at the house just beyond the gate. "I'm guessing we shouldn't break in, then?"
"Well, adventurer's do sometimes have to take risks," she said, though she looked somewhat doubtful.
Hearing "do" flipped a switch in Hilbert, as it meant he could do something other than talk. He reinforced the gate's frame and had Golett keep it in place as he pulled himself onto the upper row of bars.
"We should talk to the gym leader first!" she insisted.
Hilbert looked back at her as he climbed higher. "Eh, what's a little breaking and entering?"
He looked towards the house and saw spiritual energy begin concentrating on the walls of the house and begin to shift in color, becoming icy blue.
"Huh," he said, just before a foot-long icicle drove through his forehead like a lightning strike.
AN:
Holy shit, guys, I cannot focus when I write right now, I'm sorry. Antibiotics are kicking my ass, for real. Got an ear infection halfway through writing this chapter, so the quality has dropped off a bit, my apologies. Let me know if there are any really obvious errors.
Anyway, Cheryl's surname comes from the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, or the Grass-Cutting Sword from Japanese folklore. Yes, weebish, but her given Japanese name is literally "rice," according to Bulbapedia.
I've also decided to characterize her like Bell Cranel from DanMachi, mainly because I thought it would be funny. I'm ambivalent towards the series, but I like the protagonist well enough.
I'm sure the Old Chateau was expected to come up by everyone who's played a gen 4 game, but I'm sort of going parallel to how it's handled in the games. I'm hoping you all like it.
This might be the last chapter for a while, gotta adjust to university schedule. Thanks for reading!