Dead.
Dead, dead, dead.
That single word plays on a loop in my addled mind as Brock tears down the streets of Pallet Town like a pack of hellhounds are hot on our heels.
"You doing okay back there, Ash?"
I grunt out an affirmation. The pain in my leg has subsided somewhat, but the one in my heart? Still as agonizing as ever. It feels like someone has taken a blade and impaled it into my chest.
Chest.
"My Chest," I whisper. "We have to get my Chest!"
"Don't worry, we're reaching the house soon."
I sag back in the seat, squashing down my nausea. The Chest that is locked away in a secure cupboard in our house contains my Inheritance – everything that is left of Orra. Personally prepared by the Elders, each of us nine Ordained were bestowed a Chest with contents that our Wardens would eventually teach us about. Brock actually hasn't gotten around to that part yet, insisting that I'm not ready to learn about my Inheritance.
"Wait in the car," Brock orders, unbuckling his seatbelt.
I nod resignedly, thinking of the little knick-knacks that I've collected in my room, the leftover donuts from yesterday I was planning to eat later, the clothes that are still unfolded in a pile on the sofa… Having to leave everything behind and flee to a new place is something I will never get used to.
Brock is back in less than a minute, placing the chest in the backseat, and I switch to the front seat. He hands me a peppermint candy and I chew on it.
"Better now?"
"Mm."
He pulls out of the driveway and then we're speeding away. I watch our home for the last two years shrink in the rearview mirror, swallowing the thick lump in my throat.
Brock tosses me a thin stack of papers.
I glance down at the identity documents, forged a long time ago in preparation of a situation like this. My messy raven hair and onyx eyes stare back at me, alongside my new name: Ash Ketchum. According to the document, "Ash Ketchum" is from Mauville City, Hoenn, and his parents are deceased after getting into a car accident.
"Ash again?" It's very similar to my current name – Ashton Bailey, but pretty much everyone calls me Ash.
"I figure I'd accidentally slip up and call you Ash, so why not make it easier for both of us?" Brock says. "For the record, I'm no longer Brock Sanders but Brockert 'Brock' Harrison."
I crack a small smile. It's nice to have some familiarity in whatever foreign place we're going to, even if it's just our names. Speaking of which…
"Where are we heading toward?"
"Vermillion Harbor. We're going to Kalos."
My eyebrows fly up. "Kalos?"
That's further than I expected. We mostly stick to Kanto and Johto, because Brock fears that the Varyas will attack us when we're stuck like sitting ducks on a ship or airplane.
He nods tightly. "A new region will do us some good. I've gotten too complacent, too used to constants…" His hands clench around the steering wheel. "We can never be too cautious. Going to Kalos will be a clean start. There's definitely no one there who can recognize you."
I accept his explanation without any more questions. I trust Brock with my life; if he says we are going to Kalos, then that's that, though I believe his decision was largely influenced by Three's death.
"Also, you'll be enrolling in Lumiose High. You can read up on their syllabus in the meantime and choose your electives."
Gee. Sounds like a bore.
As we speed down the rolling hills and serene countryside, the view does nothing to distract me from the somber thoughts about how the Varyas will expend every bit of their energy into hunting for me.
The Orric charm that was placed on us by Shananet had two qualities – it required the Varyas to kill us in order of our assigned numbers, but in return, the charm would only hold so long as the nine of us were apart. In a twisted, morbid way, the lives of One, Two and Three are what kept me alive for so long. The price of me surviving until now is their deaths. When one of them dies, a scar is burned into our calf as a warning, and perhaps a reminder.
For those of us who may have lost our way, lost sight of our goal… The scar is a reminder that we can never escape our destiny. It's a desperate wake-up call every time we delude ourselves into believing that we're just normal humans and there isn't a horde of monsters out there who want us dead.
Now, the charm will no longer protect me.
The thought does not scare me. Rather, a strange energy surges through my body – the willpower to live, to fight, to avenge my fallen comrades.
We slowly approach the stretch of glistening sea, so vast and ubiquitous that it takes my breath away. We have no time to sightsee, though, as Brock quickly unloads what little of our belongings we have brought with us and leads me to the S.S. Suzanne, a behemoth of a ship that sends a shiver of thrill through me.
Now is totally not the time for it, but it feels like a new adventure is about to begin.
A new region.
Excitement flares in me, which is quickly doused by my mental reminder that Three has literally just died.
The trip to Kalos takes four days, and Brock is on pins and needles, paranoid that a Varya will pounce on us at any time. He sticks to my side like glue for the entirety of the journey, even following me to the bathroom, which makes me feel like an infant. When he isn't attached to me at the hip, he's hovering protectively over where we have stashed the Chest under our bunk bed, one hairy eyeball fixed on it like it's going to grow legs and run off by itself.
Now that's a sight I'd pay to see.
No matter how much I try to understand him, it's still suffocating. We keep to ourselves, not engaging in small talk with the other passengers and spending most of our time in our cabin. It's a testament to how dire our situation is that Brock doesn't even flirt with the other girls on board like he usually does. He's utterly focused, and that level of intensity is almost terrifying.
I feel like I'm on house arrest, and nearing the end of the journey, I get so restless that I just want to punch a hole through my cabin wall for no reason other than to release some pent-up energy. And considering my enhanced strength due to being an Ordained, that's not too far-fetched either.
Brock must sense it too, because he finally relents on the last day.
"If the Varyas were going to attack you, they would have done it already," he concedes. "You can go stretch your legs on the deck or something for the next hour. Come back soon. Shout if anything happens. If anyone suspicious approaches you, make a big scene. Never be alone –"
"I know, I know," I say in a rush, already out the door. "Be back soon!" I holler over my shoulders. I see Brock shaking his head at me, arms crossed and forehead creased.
I hate worrying him, but right now, I'm loving my freedom even more.
I stroll to the upper deck, where there are only a few people around because most of them appear to be sleeping. The fresh air feels like heaven after being cooped up in my room for days, and I let the breeze run its salty fingers through my hair, letting out a blissful sigh. I let my hearing stretch out, on guard for any unusual conversations.
Nothing is amiss, though, except…
"I've decided! You're a keeper! Won't you please take care of my brother?"
What?
The voice came from a young girl somewhere to my right, and I slowly approach it.
"Excuse me?" Another voice, this time coming from an unamused girl.
"I'm so sorry!" And now a third one, sounding very flustered and definitely male. "Bonnie, I told you to stop doing that a million times! Ugh."
A blonde-haired boy rounds the corner, towing a pouting younger girl behind him who shares a strong resemblance to him. Siblings, if I have to guess. The boy looks to be about my age, while the girl is probably around ten. She turns up her nose, saying petulantly, "I don't have to do that if you'll just man up and get yourself a girlfriend!"
"I don't need a girlfriend! Or your interference!"
"Pssh, everyone needs some love, even more so you, my nerdy and uncool and lonely brother."
"I am not – Oh."
He stops short when he sees me, adjusting his glasses. His sister untangles herself from him, and peers up at me.
"You're not a girl," she says disappointedly.
I bend down so we're at eye level. "No I'm not," I agree, smiling, "but I'm Ash. Nice to meet you."
She brightens. "Hey, you're nice! Can you be my brother's boyfriend?"
"Bonnie!" He sounds mortified.
"Sure."
"What?" both of them exclaim at the same time. Bonnie sounds thrilled, and her brother, less so.
I shrug. "It's no big deal, right?"
Bonnie narrows her eyes, squinting at me dubiously. "What do you think a boyfriend is?"
"Uh, a friend who is a guy?" I scratch my head.
She facepalms. Her brother heaves a sigh of relief.
"No, I meant boyfriend like a girlfriend but a boy instead!"
The realization hits me too late. Now I feel like facepalming.
"Ah, sorry, but I don't swing that way."
Being an alien gives me some leeway, including having horrible social skills… right? It's not like I have many friends. In fact, I'm not sure if I have any friends at all. Brock is my Warden first and foremost, Gary is closer to a frenemy than a friend, and my relationships with everyone else have always felt so shallow. Superficial.
"Don't sweat it," Bonnie's brother says. "I'm Clemont. Clemont Greene."
I stand up so I can shake his hand. I'm surprised by the calluses on it, given his delicate appearance.
"Wow, you must really live under a rock, huh?" Bonnie interjects curiously. "Most people get shell-shocked or awed when they hear my brother's name."
"Bonnie!" Clemont shushes her embarrassedly.
"Why? Is he famous?" I ask, curious. I don't really keep up to date with celebrities, but he really doesn't look like one. In fact, he looks like the personification of geekiness. Maybe that's the trend these days, though.
"Yep!" Bonnie puffs out her chest proudly. "He's only the youngest genius inventor of our era and so brilliant that he got interviewed by Kalos Regional News twice before! Plus he just won the Interregional Mechanical Science Competition! That's where we came from, actually. It was being hosted in Kanto."
"Incredible," I say, looking at Clemont with newfound respect.
He just flashes me an awkward, sheepish smile. "So where are you going?" It's an obvious attempt at changing the topic.
I open my mouth to reply, but –
Where am I going? I just realized I forgot to ask Brock.
"Uhhh…" I drag out the note. My mind latches onto the information Brock gave me. "Lumiose High! I'm a, um, transfer student."
"Hey, what a coincidence! That's where I'm studying as well. Do you want to exchange contacts?"
At times, I feel like the universe really hates me, but right now, I can give it a thousand kisses. There I was, wallowing in loneliness, and poof, I've made a new friend. A friend who seems to be a whizz in all things science and can hopefully teach me a thing or two about staying one step ahead of the Varyas, who constantly hound the Internet searching for us.
I grin at Clemont.
"Sure thing."
A new region, a new school, a new friend.
As we exchange phone numbers, I feel in my bones that whatever awaits me in Kalos will be nothing like I've ever seen before.
And maybe it is time for me to embrace that change.
A/N:
Thank you so much for the reviews, favorites and follows!
When I was writing ATPS, a lot of people were sad that Clemont was sort of written out. Here, I decided to give him more focus. Also, Serena will appear in the next chapter, so stay tuned :)
I haven't decided on an update schedule yet, so I'm just posting whatever I have written and refined. Any suggestions?