Thanks to anyone who is bothering to read this or has this story secretly bookmarked.

The pokemon fandom certainly isn't the same as it was when I first started writing for it all those years ago.

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Chapter Three: Calm before the Storm

Solaceon Town hadn't changed since the last time he had visited. It was still the same old sunny farming village inhabited by people with strange accents. Barry considered writing down a glossary of their funny words just so he could be better prepared in translating them the next time he visited, but right now he didn't have the time.

A local competition was about to take place between up and coming trainers passing through, and Barry and Lucas had earned the best spots on the new and improved café. They were seated on the balcony right in the middle, giving them the best viewing point. Lucas had received tickets to the annual Solaceon Tournament which included a full three course meal.

It would've been the perfect night if they weren't one person short. Dawn. Unfortunately, Dawn was caught up with league business and couldn't attend tonight which was a shame because he hadn't seen her since her the wedding. Every week she'd send him letters telling him that everything was fine, but it just wasn't the same.

His thoughts revolving around Dawn were confusing – he had been away from her for longer before, but now just being away for a few weeks was difficult. He missed seeing her smile. He missed teasing her and receiving witty replies. He missed listening to her voice and hearing her laugh. What the heck was wrong with him?

"What's up, Barry? Please don't tell me you're coming down with something – the battle has yet to start," Lucas said, raising a concerned brow.

Barry cracked a grin. "I've never felt better." To prove his point, he helped himself to some orange juice and tried to scull it but ended up choking instead. Lucas's laughter filled the air. Barry recovered from his choking fit then grinned back. "Why don't you have a go?"

Lucas shook his head. "I'll pass thanks."

The laughter died down and it was back to a dead conversation again. The chatter of other surrounding people caught his ears, but he ignored their voices, turning his attention back to the third chair. He liked Lucas, but Lucas wasn't Dawn. "Dawn would've loved to have been here tonight," he said softly.

"The league has to be her top priority. Even her parents haven't heard from her in awhile." Lucas filled his glass with some water, took a few sips and cleared his throat. "It's tough, isn't it? But Dawn won't forget us even if she has her new duties. We're her friends. You're her childhood friend. Nothing could ever change that."

If only he could be more than that… Whoa, where did that thought come from? Barry thought, alarmed. No way did he just think of Dawn as being more than a close friend. Not possible. That would just be… wrong. He would've slapped himself if he wasn't in public. "Yeah, it's just… This was the last time we had a major battle against each other. Dawn defeated me and claimed the prize."

It felt like they had only battled just recently, but the reality was, a year had since passed. They were both now fifteen and far more experienced than they had been since the tournament. Dawn had gone on to defeat Team Galactic, reunite with her father in the Distortion World, then went on to become dual champions with Cynthia. How many fifteen-year olds could claim that?

He on the other hand had only managed to claim all eight badges but turned down the opportunity to take on the league. Dawn deserved it. She had defeated Team Galactic after all. Without her, the world probably wouldn't still be around. Her newfound fame had earned her interest from people who had never paid her any attention before. There was a guy called Pete who was a superstar athlete from Johto. There was another guy called Liam from Orebugh. They were on her friends list now. It was sickening.

"Barry, are you there?" Lucas said, waving an arm around in his face, peering at him as if he had suddenly grown an arm out of his head.

"Yeah, I'm here. Just thinking, that's all," he replied then turned his attention to the battlefield down below. The preliminaries, quarters and semis had already taken place throughout the week – tonight was the big one. The winner would receive an Eevee egg, and also obtain a special card giving the trainer discounts on participating stores.

A slow smile spread across Lucas's face as if he could somehow read Barry's thoughts. He felt his cheeks start to burn and hoped the lack of light shielded his face. Fortunately, Lucas didn't say anything about Dawn – rather, he changed the topic. "What do you think of the challengers? I think Serena is going to win."

Serena looked to be a promising trainer. She was a bubby girl with long light brown curls and hazel eyes who had a penchant for wearing short skirts and high white socks. The girl's primary pokémon was a Rhyhorn, and the two seemed to have a close bond already. She could be no older than twelve.

Barry was grateful for the change in topic. At least it would keep his thoughts from returning to Dawn, and his newfound confusing emotions towards her. His mother often did say the mid-teen years would be the most difficult. "I think Serena has what it takes to win. Michael's lucky he actually reached the final."

Michael had a Charmeleon, and the fire-type had been fortunate to recover from poison in the last dying stages of the battle. If he had lost, Serena would be fighting against an Ivysaur, and that battle would be challenging to overcome. Still, it would make for a fun battle to watch. Ever since Dawn had become Champion, Barry had done little battling himself. The only person he practiced against was Lucas, but Lucas wasn't that interested in battling.

"Hmm, I think Michael might just surprise us. He might be at a type-disadvantage, but never say never. Hey, I think they're starting now." Lucas stood up from his chair and walked over to the railing, letting his arms hang over the side. Barry soon joined him, a glass of cold water in his right hand. "Let's place a bet."

"Sure."

Lucas beamed him a smile. "If Serena wins, I'll buy you lunch for the rest of the week. But…"

"But?"

His grin widened. "If Michael wins, I'll tell Dawn about your obvious feelings for her."

"Hey, that's not fair!"

Lucas sniggered. "Oh come on, it's so obvious."

"Can we not talk about this now?"

His chuckling continued. Gasping in between breaths, Lucas said, "All right, all right. We'll watch the battle then we'll talk."

Now he was glad Dawn wasn't here to witness this.

.

"Why are we even doing this?" a female with long black curls exclaimed, standing next to her partner, who was kneeling besides a headstone. "We're going to get caught and then we'll find ourselves right back where we started!"

Her companion, a lean male with blond hair, brought a finger to his lips. "Could you keep your mouth shut for a few more minutes? I'm almost done here." He picked up his shovel and continued to dig a hole in the ground, having removed the tiles several hours ago with the help of some pokémon. Surprisingly, no one had come up to the top level to check – but then again they had gone to great lengths to ensure no one would come checking.

"The sleeping potion stuff won't keep them down for much longer," the female complained. "Oh, if only Cyrus was with us still… he'd know what to do…" she murmured, bringing a hand to her mouth to gnaw on the nails.

Cyrus, the betrayer. Once he was their glorious leader, but the man who claimed he didn't feel, had abandoned them to their dooms in the name of emotion. When Cyrus departed, Charon took over, but he too had left them here while he travelled to Stark Island to carry out some business. The man never returned.

"Sharon, we have to do this. We said we'd carry out the task. Just imagine what sort of money we could make by selling parts of the dead? People go crazy for stuff like this."

"And then what? We are without a leader; we have no purpose, no direction anymore! If we get caught… We'll rot behind bars, Raymond!"

His friend did raise a fine point; ex-Galactic grunts were being hunted down from all corners of the region as the authorities hoped to interrogate them for answers. Many of their friends had been captured and were now sitting behind bars, but they had managed to evade capture by changing their overall appearance. Their other friends hadn't been so smart.

He stopped digging and turned to look up at her. "This is our life now, Sharon. This is how we survive."

"By robbing the dead? This isn't going to end well. Haven't you heard the stories?"

He wiped his forehead. "What stories?"

"It's said if you dig up a grave within the Lost Tower that a dark evil will arise and haunt our minds at night. Eventually, we die of madness."

He couldn't help it; he threw his head back and laughed. "That's just a myth, Sharon. Those stories are told by old people to keep young people in line, so they don't break the laws." Raymond returned to digging up the grave again then stopped when his shovel hit something hard. A smirk crossing his face, Raymond laid his shovel down then kneeled over.

"What is it?"

"The coffin." At least, he suspected it was. He wasn't quite sure what happened to pokémon who perished – were they buried in coffins like humans as well, or was their flesh turned into ash and kept within a container? He was about to find out. Using both hands, he brushed the dirt off the hard surface then examined his prize.

It was a coffin, but unlike any he had ever witnessed before. There were strange engravings on the black surface – druidic perhaps – but he wasn't concerned. The druids were no longer around, and their 'magic' couldn't harm anyone. "It's a coffin, all right. Help me open it, won't you?"

Sharon remained still for a couple of moments before climbing down into the grave with him. Her face was pale, and he could clearly see the fear in her eyes. She really did believe those wild stories. Poor girl. "This is such a bad idea…"

"Hey, relax, why don't you? What's the worst that's going to happen? Just think, this is gonna make us rich. We can make enough money to leave this place and the awful things behind, right? Are you with me?" he said.

She pulled her hand away from her mouth and nodded. "All right. I'm with you."

"I knew you'd come around. Now let's take the lid off." Hunching down, he placed his hands on the sides of the coffin lid, placing his thumbs on the underside. Sharon did the same, and on the count of three, they lifted the lid. He expected to see bones – but instead saw nothing. No bones. No body. Not even a container or anything. It was just… "Empty."

"What on earth…" Sharon murmured. "Where's the body?"

"I don't know… maybe it's beneath the coffin?" he said, speaking to himself rather than his companion. Who would place an empty coffin within a grave? It wasn't like anyone else had dug up this grave before, so why an empty box? Something didn't feel quite right, but he ignored the feeling, and jumped inside the coffin. Perhaps there was a hidden flap.

He moved his hands up and down the coffin's base, but his fingers found nothing that would suggest a hidden flap of any kind. With a cry of anger, he rose to his feet, climbed out of the coffin then kicked it. "Raymond… I don't like this…" Sharon said, looking around the room, her eyes wide with fright.

"This is just some sick joke…" Raymond muttered. He hopped back into the coffin again, lifted a foot and brought it back down. It was pointless really, but a small part of him hoped that perhaps the coffin would break and reveal the reward he had desperately wanted to find. He stomped his feet for a few moments longer then stopped realizing the coffin wasn't going to fall apart. Bringing his hands to his head, he let out a frustrated sigh.

"Raymond! Look!" Sharon shrieked, pointing a finger down at the coffin's base.

Glancing down, Raymond noticed there was something trying to break through the coffin. Whilst most people would run, Raymond was curious to learn more, and so kneeled to get a better look. He moved a hand towards the crack. The crack parted open. Before Raymond could understand what was happening, a black hand emerged, claws curling around his wrist.

Pain soon followed. The claws dug deep into his skin, tearing away at the fragile flesh. Raymond tried to pry his arm free, but the arm would not let go. Its grip tightened, as if encouraged by his attempts to escape. Sharon jumped down and tried to help him yank his arm free, but her attempts proved futile.

"Oh god, it hurts so much!" Raymond cried through clenched teeth. Sweat beads clung to his forehead. His heart was racing. He could feel the skin being torn from his arm. An anguished cry burst from his throat as the black hand snapped the bone. Sharon's screams mixed with his cries. Pain. It was paralysing, crippling, and it wouldn't go away. With his strength fading at a rapid rate, Raymond didn't bother trying to free himself. He didn't have a chance anyway.

Sharon released her grip and backed away into a corner, her high-pitched wails filling the air. He wanted to reach out to her and tell her that everything was going to be all right, but he lacked the strength to do so. "Feed… Hunger… Freedom…" Raymond heard a voice; it wasn't his own, and it wasn't Sharon's either. Was it possible that it was coming from the owner of the arm? But that couldn't be right – the dead couldn't speak. But the dead couldn't rise either. None of this was making any sense. "Freedom… Feed… Hunger…"

"…Run…" Raymond managed to gasp out, before his eyelids closed.

.

Picnics were strange. That was Cyrus's immediate thought the moment he saw a blanket laid out on the grass. His grandparents were already sitting down on a checkered blanket-type thing, whilst Johanna was busy tending to Julia's needs. Cyrus looked around, taking in their surrounding environment. They were currently located within the Hearthome's botanical gardens sitting beneath a tall oak tree, giving them some brief respite from the blaring sun.

Being surrounded by colourful flowers wasn't exactly his idea of a good time, but it was nice to get out of the house for awhile. This is what normal families did. They had picnics. Cyrus felt out of place – he'd rather be inside a nice fancy restaurant than be sitting on the grass cross-legged. "How is the Battle Frontier project shaping up?" his grandfather said, helping himself to a banana.

"We'll be having the official opening ceremony within a month," Cyrus replied. This was something he could easily talk about. Battle Frontier was shaping up to the Sinnoh's biggest project yet. "You are welcome to come along if you wish."

His grandfather took a bite out of his banana, chewed on it for awhile before swallowing, and placed the skin into a plastic bag. "It is a tournament, isn't it?"

"Competitive battling arena grandpa, only open to those who have obtained all the eight badges." It was originally supposed to be opened to only trainers who had conquered the league, but that would see an exceptionally low attendance rate. Trainers who obtained eight badges would sail over to Stark Island's resort to compete in the elite training facility.

His grandpa nodded. "And you are going to be running this operation?"

"Yes, of course," Cyrus answered. It wasn't like there was anyone else capable of running a triumphant business after all. He had enlisted the help of Saturn and Jupiter to carry out administrative duties, but he was the one who made the decisions and enforced them. Johanna had a role within the frontier as well though she was more interested in helping trainers settle in rather than worry about the finances and such.

"I'm glad to see that you're happy," his grandmother commented, peeling the skin off an orange. "But I hope this business doesn't cause you to lose focus on what's most important," she added. She handed the orange over to her partner them picked up another one and started skinning it. "I don't want you to make the same mistakes of the past."

She was obviously referring to his stint with Team Galactic. The woman didn't speak of it much, but he could see the disappointment in her eyes whenever it was mentioned briefly in the media or news reports. "That's in the past, grandmother."

"Well, that's good to hear. I only want what's best for you."

Cyrus glanced over at the picnic basket. There were various pieces of fruit in there such as bananas, grapes and apples, but it was the chocolate-chip biscuits that caught his attention. He was starting to feel a little hungry now and having them just sitting there in plain sight made it a little difficult to avoid temptation. Keep the mind distracted, he thought to himself.

"Oh, that reminds me… have you read this article?" his grandmother said, digging a hand into her handbag to pull out an article from a magazine. She handed it to him to read. He took it, glanced down at it, and felt a flood of embarrassment pour through him upon taking in the first few lines of the headline. It read: Healthy Sexual Relationships.

"What is this, grandmother?" Cyrus replied, somehow managing to keep his tone calm and composed. Healthy sexual relationships… Really? That wasn't his grandmother's business! It wasn't for anyone else to know for that matter.

Cassandra smiled. "You are keeping her happy, aren't you? Johanna?"

Cyrus folded up the article, his cheeks burning red from embarrassment. This was such a typical Cassandra move to make – it was no secret Cassandra wanted more great grandchildren to fawn over and he was her key. She was the traditionalist type after all and having and raising families was her idea of success.

"That really is none of your concern, grandmother."

"When your grandfather and I were your age, it was common practice to do it at least once a week."

He frowned. "Why are you telling me this?" At a picnic of all places!

"We both wanted more children, but I was advised against having more than one."

And with both his parents dead, that duty fell on him. "We've already had this conversation before." It was not a conversation he was keen to repeat. Besides, weren't two children enough? "Julia is a only a few months old – do you honestly think having yet another child is of top priority?" It was difficult. The crying. The horrible squeals. The interrupted nights. And the worse – the diaper changing. She might have his blood running through her veins, but it was still very gross.

"If you ever consider changing your mind, there are certain positions that help conception better."

That was far too much information. He considered himself a curious sort of a person who was always interested in learning new things, but a line had to be drawn somewhere. This was one of those times. "I assure you, grandmother, I do not need information on such… trivial acts."

The smile on his grandmother's face widened. He then realized his chosen words had probably given her the impression that he was quite experienced in that department. He knew coming to this picnic was going to be a bad idea. "Oh, that is good to hear."

"I didn't mean… Nevermind." Cyrus resigned. What was the point? This was the reaction she wanted. Unable to remain seated near her for much longer, Cyrus climbed to his feet. "I'm going to find Johanna. I'll be back." Anything was better than listening to his grandmother ramble on about stuff she shouldn't be talking about. He could hear her chuckling as he left. Pushing thoughts of that awkward conversation out of his mind, he walked to the opposite side of the gardens where he found her standing before a flower bed. A statue of a Pikachu stood before them in amongst a bed of red and pink roses.

Johanna turned around, Julia cradled in her arms. "I want you to try something."

"Hmm?"

"Hold her for a moment." Despite Julia being his own daughter, holding her in his arms still took time getting used to. Most of the time he was worried she'd start crying (since that's what normally happened to him), but surprisingly Julia was content this time. She seemed relaxed. "She made her first vocalization today."

"I don't think she likes me very much," Cyrus said. Julia was currently just staring up at him, looking a little bewildered. Julia was nervous, but then again, so was he.

Johanna shook her head. "You know that's not true – you just need to spend more time speaking to her, so she grows accustomed to your voice." Johanna faced Julia again and started speaking, raising her voice an octave so it sounded higher. "Come on, show daddy what you showed me earlier," she cooed.

"I don't think that works, Johanna," Cyrus replied. "Does pitching your voice higher actually make a difference?" But perhaps it did since a lot of people did try that. He saw it happen on many television shows and saw it in the streets when he walked past young parents. He had never actually tried it himself – and didn't plan to either. He just couldn't imagine himself doing that.

Johanna ignored him and smiled down at Julia. "Show daddy!"

"Johanna, I'm not-" he stared, but stopped when Julia made a lopsided smile. It was the first time he had ever witnessed her smiling. Truth be told, he didn't feel quite connected to Julia as Johanna did. While she fawned over Julia, Cyrus preferred to keep his distance, and only step in when said.

It wasn't that he disliked her – after all, how could he dislike someone he helped create – but he found it hard to 'love' Julia in the same manner Johanna did. Johanna had already been through all this before with Dawn, but this was all so new to him. It was daunting and challenging in ways he didn't think was even possible. He was fortunate enough Johanna and his grandmother were there to help.

But then, Julia smiled. He never would've thought something so simple could be so… powerful. It was just a smile, a basic human expression, but it brought tears to his eyes. She was smiling. At him, and not at her mother. After all the sleepless and interrupted nights, the endless wailing and crying, the messes and the stress, finally something had come out of it.

The moment was cut short by a bloodcurdling scream coming from within Hearthome City. Julia started to cry, scared. "Ssshhhh, it's all right," Johanna whispered, taking Julia back into her arms, holding her close, doing her best to calm her down.

Julia's cries became louder. Cyrus raked a hand through his hair. This was not supposed to be happening. A moment of peace and now this. Whoever had caused this was going to regret this poor decision as soon as he found the culprit responsible. No one interfered with his plans and got away with it.

"I'll find my grandparents. Wait here," he ordered. The last thing he needed was his grandparents wandering off. Either the city was under attack, or something else had happened. Whatever it was, he didn't want to stick around to find out. A few other picnic-goers hurried past running towards the source of the noise. Idiots, Cyrus thought.

Johanna nodded. "Don't be long."

He gave her one last look then headed back towards the picnic area, hoping his grandparents hadn't walked away to investigate.