Dendemille Town is a quiet little town that sits to the northeast of Lumiose City. Bordered by frigid mountain weather to its north and the peaceful plains of Kalos to the south, the town acts as a gateway to the wildlands of the mountains, in which there are no settlements known. However, being summer, the snow is currently nowhere to be found. Instead, a peaceful sense of comfort has enveloped the town, the mountains preventing a lot of the brutal heat and humidity from affecting them.
For most residents of Dendemille Town, it was an ordinary day. The fletchling were chirping, the occasional fennekin and chespin would run down the street, and people went about their normal routines. For most, it would remain this way. For some, they may never experience it again. However, a group of four outsiders decided to spend their newfound peace doing something very important.
"How the fuck did we forget about money?"
Richtofen and Dempsey held their faces in their hands as Takeo and Nikolai walked with their eyes thoroughly analyzing the ground. It had all started when they arrived in the morning. Upon realizing they had run out of rations, Nikolai and Takeo had taken it upon themselves to get the group some food. It wasn't until they were ready to check out of a local grocery store that they realized they didn't exactly arrive in the world with money. Thus, they were promptly asked to leave.
"We can pick up odd jobs or so. Maybe go and ask around, see what we could do?" Takeo suggested, finally looking up to look around the town.
"Ja, that's probably the best action here." Richtofen blankly admitted, fletchling giving out an exasperated "fletch" from the German's shoulder.
"Hey! I heard you boys said something about needing money?" A woman's voice cut through the group's collective misery.
Dempsey turned to see a young woman approaching. The woman was somewhat tall, maybe reaching Dempsey's chin. She wore a dark blue outfit, a simple sundress and blue leggings. Her hair was blue, and much to everyone but Takeo's shock, was natural. She walked with a sense of grace and pride, clearly someone with a lot of confidence and willing to flaunt it.
"Yeah, we are. What, you looking for help lady?" Dempsey asked rather curtly, his eyebrow raising slightly.
"Hmmm... rather brash are you." The woman noted with a smile. "For your information, I am. You see, I'm a Pokémon performer and a pâtissière." At the group's confused looks, the woman balked. "Wait? You don't know what that is!?"
"Sadly, we do not." Nikolai spoke up. "You see, we all were forced to live outside of society for a little over a decade now. Due to this, we are rather ignorant of the modern world." Nikolai gestured to the group as he explained, inwardly sighing in relief at the woman's concerned gaze. "Except for him-" Nikolai pointed to Takeo. "He knows more than us, since he would occasionally make trips to distant villages for supplies and hear the news and gossip."
The woman looked rather concerned for the group. "I'm sorry that happened to you guys." The woman bowed slightly. "Regardless, my offer is still there. But..." the woman took glances around the plaza they were in. "We should probably go somewhere more private. Here, follow me, my house is this way." The woman gestured for the group to follow her, to which they did.
Once inside the house, the group of men sat down at the kitchen table. Fletchling, who had been quiet, hopped down from Richtofen's shoulder onto the table. Once settled, the woman grabbed a few water bottles and handed them to the men. The woman then sat down at the head of the admittedly somewhat large table.
"Well, I feel that introductions are in order." The woman said, before standing up.
"My name is Miette!" At the woman's name, Takeo stilled. "I am a Pokémon performer, a trainer who focuses on a more showcase style of training. Instead of battling, I use Pokémon attacks to create beautiful pieces of art and scenes for dances." The group nodded, Takeo rather tense to which the rest of the zombie slayers noticed.
Miette sat down, and Dempsey stood next.
"Name is Tank Dempsey, I'm from eastern Unova and I was a soldier at one point. When shit hit the fan and we all had to leave, I joined them." Dempsey introduced, while Miette nodded and turned her head to Richtofen.
"Hallo. Mein name ist Edward Von Richtofen. I am from western Unova. I am a scientist und doctor. While I am a specialist on humans I unfortunately am not a Pokémon physician. I seek to learn more about the modern world and open my own laboratory." Richtofen introduced himself in his usual fashion.
"A doctor? How did you become one in hiding?" Miette asked, to which Richtofen raised a finger.
"I occasionally went to the village that was close to our home and learned underneath their resident physician. It is through the literature he gave me and allowing me use of his laboratory that I was able to competently treat people. I am not licensed, but I plan to fix that." Richtofen explained, Miette nodding her head as he spoke. Satisfied, Richtofen sat down and Nikolai stood.
"My name is Nikolai Belinski. I am from northern Galar. I was a soldier of the local militia before I left." Nikolai curtly introduced himself. Sitting down, Takeo finally stood.
"My name is Takeo Misaki. And I hail from the Kanto region. My father was a samurai and I am the same. I am seeking to return home with my friends here. It is nice to meet you, Miette." Takeo introduced himself, bowing low before rising again.
Miette had a troubled look on her face. Standing, she walked up to Takeo. "Say... you look familiar..." Miette stated, which caused the entire group to tense up. Luckily, Miette was too focused on the Kanto native to notice the group's reaction. "Have you been to Kalos before?" Miette asked, her eyes narrowed.
"Yes, I have. But that was when I was but a small child. I was with my family and we lived her for a few years before returning to Kanto." Takeo explained, desperately hoping his lie would work.
"Mm..." Miette hummed, seemingly accepting the story. "You just look familiar. You wouldn't happen to be related to an Ash, would you?" At the mention of Takeo's true name, everyone became more tense.
"No, I don't believe so. Ms. Miette, you are making me uncomfortable here." Takeo stated uncomfortably, seemingly snapping Miette out of her questioning state.
"Oh! My goodness I am so sorry!" Miette apologized before turning to the rest of the group and extending her apology.
"It is fine, Ms. Miette. But how about you talk to us about your problem?" Dempsey steered the conversation back to the main topic.
"Oh. Yeah. And also, no 'Ms. Miette.' I'm only 23 for God's sake." Miette glared at the group, who simply nodded. Sighing, Miette began to explain.
"As I mentioned, I'm a Pokémon performer. What I didn't mention, is the fact that I'm rather popular. I'm no Kalos Queen, but I have a pretty sizable following and a lot of fans." The group nodded along as Miette explained, seeing she had their attention she continued. "While that is great, it's also a double edged sword of sorts. Basically, I can get the attention some pretty big weirdos. And there's been this one guy who's been basically harassing me." The group nodded, a picture beginning to form in their heads. "He's been constantly messaging me and leaving threatening messages and was saying some very disturbing things. I would block him, he would simply make a new account and go right back at it." Miette now had the full attention of the men.
Miette took a second, letting out a shaky breath and dropping her confident attitude.
"When I came back home from a performance in Shalour city, someone had broken into my house. When the police came through and cleared the home, my Magnemite had let himself out of his pokéball and freaked out. He ended up finding hidden cameras that the weirdo had placed around my house." At this statement, the faces of Takeo and Nikolai darkened. "Turns out, it was the weirdo from online. He had sent me a message saying, 'like my gift?' I felt so disgusted and insecure in my own home. I was actually on the way back from staying the night at the police station when I ran into you guys." Miette explained, the group nodding seriously.
"I see. So, what do you want us to do? Ice him?" Dempsey asked, his tone serious and cold.
At the man's statement, Miette's eyes widened. "NO! God no! I just want you guys to escort me around for the next few days while the police investigate the guy online and find him." Miette hastily explained, causing Dempsey to apologize while Richtofen slapped him in the back of the head.
"That, we can do." Richtofen looked around to the group. "What do you guys think?"
"I'm in. You've been kind to us, something that is a rare commodity from where we come from." Nikolai voiced his agreement.
"Yes. I would hate to see a young woman get hurt by such a despicable person." Takeo added his agreement.
"Got it. Sorry about the 'ice' thing, I grew up rough." Dempsey bowed his head in apology, Miette responding with her acceptance.
"Fletchling!" Fletchling piped in, causing the group to chuckle.
"Oh thank you guys so much! I'll pay you guys well for your troubles. I make a good living from my career, so how does 50,000 pokédollars a day for each of you sound?" Miette spoke with relief in her voice.
"FIFTY THOUSAND!?" Nikolai and Richtofen shouted in shock.
"Yes? Do you want more?" Miette asked with confusion.
"No! That is completely fine. I was just shocked at the amount you were willing to pay us." Richtofen explained, Miette nodding.
"Oh. Okay. Once again, thank you guys so much!" Miette smiled brightly in relief.
Once everyone had settled down, they got to work. The shift in attitude of the four men shocked Miette. One minute, they were introducing themselves in ways that seemed like a comedy sketch. The next, they had completely cleared her house and created well thought out patrol routes around and in the house while arranging shifts. Their joking mood had turned to one of complete seriousness. Dempsey in particular seemed to be taking her plight more seriously than everyone else. When asked why, Dempsey let out a sad smile.
"Had a younger sister. Some creep followed her home from school one day when I was at the gym. The prick attacked her and killed her in some alley. Seeing her body... it sticks with a man, ya know?" Dempsey explained, Miette immediately regretting the nuclear landmine she just stepped on.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to bring back old wounds." Miette sincerely apologized, something Dempsey appreciated.
"No worries, you couldn't have known. Guess I just don't want that thing to happen to anyone." Dempsey gave Miette a chuckle, before moving over to Nikolai to discuss something about defending her home.
Eventually, nightfall came over the home. The group was gathered around, eating dinner and swapping stories. Once the food was finished and dishes washed, Miette decided to go to bed. As part of the plan, one of the group would stand outside her door while Miette's Pokémon would sleep and stand guard in her room. Inside the two story home, one would patrol the first floor while the man who stood at the door acted as the second floor's guard. One of the four men would patrol outside the home, walking around the perimeter and keeping watch. The last of the group would sleep. Additionally, fletchling would circle the home from above, only coming down to rest before taking flight.
For the first shift of the night, it was decided that Takeo would stand guard at the door. Meanwhile, Dempsey would patrol the first floor and Nikolai outside the house. Richtofen would rest for the next few hours before being replaced by Nikolai. Miette bid the men goodnight, before retiring to her bedroom.
The Next Morning...
Miette awoke with a yawn and a stretch. Looking around, she smiled at her Pokémon resting around her bed. The young woman was in a great mood, truly feeling safe in her own home since the break in. Getting up, she lazily shifted to her bedroom door. Opening the door, she was a bit startled at the sight of Dempsey standing at attention in front of her door. Turning around, Dempsey observed the newly awoken woman and stepped aside for her to leave her bedroom.
"Morning." Miette lazily greeted, Dempsey responding with a curt greeting.
After a quick shower and change of clothes, Miette made her way to the kitchen. Upon arrival to the kitchen, Miette found Richtofen standing in the center of the room.
"Good morning, Miette." Richtofen greeted.
"Good morning, Richtofen." Miette had learned the previous night that Richtofen didn't like being referred to by his first name. "Where are the others?" Miette asked the scientist.
"Nikolai entered the house from outside a couple hours ago, when the sun first rose. He then joined Takeo in the guest bedroom to get sone rest. As far as I know, they're both sleeping. I'm sure you saw Dempsey this morning?" Richtofen asked Miette, who nodded.
"Did you guys see anything?" Miette asked, an anxious tone entering her voice.
"Nein, we did not. We think that he is either lying low to avoid the police or that he was scared of us and did not try to approach the home." Richtofen explained, Miette nodding and allowing her shoulders to shag in relief.
"Well, I'll make you guys breakfast and let you all sleep for the next couple hours." Miette looked at a nearby clock, which read '9:00AM.' "I have a press conference at three o'clock today and then a performers conference at six. A performers conference is an event where all the performers meet with each other the day before the showcase."
Richtofen nodded before leaving the kitchen and heading to the guest bedroom upstairs. Entering the room, Richtofen prepared for bed and entered his sleeping bag in a bid to get some more rest. Dempsey entered the room as well, preparing to get a quick nap. Fletchling, who had woken up from his own slumber decided to circle the house to stretch its wings and to watch out for any suspicious activity.
Miette was cooking breakfast while checking her phone. It had been an interesting last few days, so she hadn't been able to check her messages and social media. While she was waiting for the bacon to fully cook she scrolled through her instagram and twitter, looking at posts from friends and reading messages. She put her phone down when she heard the bacon sizzling and began to plate it. Miette contemplated waking up the four men she hired to help her, but she decided to let them sleep. She had just met them, but they were quickly growing on her. Hopefully they can stay in touch as friends.
Miette kept thinking about the strange group before a 'ping' from her phone interrupted her. Once she finished plating the food, she quickly washed her hands and picked up her phone. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw that it was a text from Serena, she almost never texted her.
Serena: "I heard what happened, u ok?"
Miette smiled slightly before responding.
Miette: "yup. Police are trying to catch the creep. I'm oh so glad the great Serena decided to come out of her hole and text me."
Serena: "Oh, the fantastic Miette just can't handle my greatness. Anyway, I'm glad ur ok. Are u staying in ur house still?"
Miette: "Yeah. I hired these four buff dudes to stand guard around my house. Weird bunch, nice ppl tho."
Serena: "That's good. Better safe than sorry!"
Miette: "Yep. U coming to the showcase?"
Serena: "No, not that one. I've gotten all the princess keys I need for the eventual Kalos Queen tournament so now I'm waiting for the announcement. Plus, I have some things I need to take care of anyway."
Miette frowned as she read Serena's latest message. Ever since Ash disappeared (she refused to believe he was dead), Serena was devastated. She blamed herself for what happened but Miette and other friends did their best to help her. Eventually Serena returned to a somewhat normal version of herself. However, there were periods where she would just... shut down. Miette missed the competitions she would have with Serena. They may be rivals, sure, but they were also friends.
"Maybe I should visit her." Miette thought as she prepared her response.
Miette: "Oh ok. Would you like for me to visit you soon?"
Serena: "Of course!"
Miette: "Ok. We'll plan this tonight."
Miette smiled as she put away her phone. Perhaps another intervention was in order. Serena had spent too long being a hermit and needed to get out more! I mean, come on, twenty three years old and still no boyfriend? To be fair to Serena, Miette knew her heart was stolen from the very beginning by a certain Kanto boy.
"Greetings, Miette." A voice from behind caused Miette to jump, startled out of her thoughts.
Turning around, Miette saw Takeo entering the room wearing a different set of clothes. It was still a military uniform of some sorts, but this one was green and the sleeves were ripped. Due to the ripped shirt, Miette was able to see the very visible biceps and triceps on the man's arm. There were a few tattoos on his arm, in what looked to be in the native Kanto language.
"Holy shit, he's ripped! Are his arms fucking tree trunks!?" Miette thought to herself as she stared at his arms.
"Miette?" Takeo asked with concern, causing Miette to jump slightly. "Are you unwell? Should I inform the press that you are unable to attend the interview?"
"Oh no! I'm fine!" Miette hastily reassured the Kanto man. "I'm guessing Richtofen informed you guys about my schedule?" Miette asked the question in a desperate attempt to bring the conversation back to normal.
"Yes. We are all prepared and ready. They should be down any moment."
As if Takeo's words summoned them, the rest of the group plus fletchling entered the kitchen. They all seemed to be wearing similar outfits to yesterday, except Takeo. Seeing that breakfast was ready, the group quickly sat themselves at the table and dug in. Miette, who had eaten her breakfast before the guys, went to check up on her pokémon and feed them.
For the next few hours, Miette trained while the zombie slayers simply observed. They had never seen actual pokémon training before, well all of them except Takeo. Takeo, or Ash Ketchum, simply watched with a somber longing. Takeo knew that he needed to get back to his pokémon, but then what? What would he do next? One thing he knows is that the group isn't gonna disband, they quite literally are soul-bound to one another due to the elemental shard.
So what will they all do? Will they travel around like this? Getting pokémon and helping people wherever they can? Richtofen expressed an interest in investigating any more 'leftovers' from their world if they exist. Should they go after them? Takeo shook his head, these questions would be answered later on. For now, he needs to focus on keeping Miette safe.
"Phew!" Miette exclaimed, wiping sweat off of her brow as she chugged a bottle of water. "I feel a lot better about tomorrow now, good job guys!" Her pokémon all shouted happily before going to rest. Miette decided that she should get ready for the press conference, which meant getting a shower.
"Alright guys! I'm getting a shower! Don't burn the house down while I'm in the bathroom!" Miette jokingly exclaimed, to which the group simply waved her off.
"She seems in a better mood today." Dempsey gruffly stated.
"Da, she seemed more relaxed than yesterday." Nikolai responded, cleaning one of his pistols.
"Well, she probably hasn't slept well ever since that stalker showed up. I would assume that she was finally able to sleep properly last night since we were guarding the place." Richtofen reasoned from behind a large book on pokémon and their anatomy.
A few minutes of silence hung around the group. Most of them occasionally watching Miette's pokémon relax and play. The pokémon had never really approached the group, and some even seemed to avoid them. The four zombie slayers weren't surprised, Takeo had explained that pokémon seemed to be able to sense things about a person more than other humans could. Miette's pokémon could clearly sense that something was off about the group, but the fact that they didn't attack them meant that they at least felt that they were good people.
Speaking of the pokémon, they all seemed to be talking amongst themselves while taking occasional glances at the group. More accurately, the fletchling posted up on Richtofen's shoulder. The pokémon seemed to have a small argument, before a flareon timidly stepped out of the huddle. The flareon slowly walked towards the group, whose attention was now solely focused on the fire type. Seeing that the quartet were not going to harm it, it silently observed all the members before eventually reaching Richtofen. Once the flareon got to Richtofen, it sat down and looked up at the fletchling, who was glancing curiously.
"Flare? Flareon flare?" The flareon seemed to be asking fletchling a question.
"Fletch." The fletchling shrugged its shoulders. Well as well as a bird could.
"Flare!? Flareon flare-flare? Eon?" The flareon seemed alarmed while gesturing in a random direction.
"Fletch." Fletchling nodded, before noticeably perking up. "Fletch! Fletchling fletch!" At fletchlings proclamation the flareon seemed stunned.
The flareon then smiled and went back to the group of pokémon. Eventually, Miette's pokémon turned to the quartet and seemed to voice their approval. Some of the pokémon even moved their food and water bowls closer to the group of zombie slayers before going back to playing.
"The fuck was that about?" Dempsey asked, confused.
"It appears that the Flareon was asking your fletchling about us, Richtofen. Miette's pokémon seemed to have wanted to know if they could really trust us." Takeo explained, to which the rest of the group nodded in understanding.
"I see. Make sure that we could really protect their trainer." Nikolai added on, to which Takeo nodded.
"Hai, and it seems that we passed." Takeo smiled before returning to cleaning his katana.
The performance center of Dendemille town was built five years ago as the demand for pokémon performance contests long overwhelmed the local gyms. The building was first of its kind in Kalos, a modern building that was a coliseum like design. In the center of the building, lies a massive space for numerous activities and performances. The lower seats could move and the floor itself could move to accommodate for different events. When there were no performances, there were usually basketball games or concerts held. Around the interior seating area in the building was the concessions and restrooms. The building was very modern for the sleepy town, looking more appropriate in Lumiose City.
One of the sections of the building housed the press rooms. They were all located underneath the seating in the numerous tunnels that eventually led to center stage. The press room that Miette had been assigned was rather spacious, allowing for many journalists to attend while also not feeling cramped. At the front of the room was a big desk with numerous chairs and microphones.
It was approximately thirty minutes before the press conference began and the quartet of zombie slayers, plus Miette, stood in the center of the room.
"Okay. Well I think the best thing is for you guys to sit next to me in the chairs. They probably won't ask you anything so just let me do the talking. If they do ask you guys anything feel free to answer or deny to answer. Just, I don't know, sit there and look intimidating." Miette explained, to which the group nodded.
Suddenly the door opened and a man in a suit peeked his head in.
"Ms. Miette, the journalists are about to be let in. Get ready." The man then left the room, closing the door behind him.
"Right! Let's go boys!" Miette commanded.
"Yes ma'am." Dempsey snarked while rolling his eyes.
They all got ready and sat down. Miette sat in the middle of the table, with two of the group flanking her right and left side. Sure enough, only a few minutes later, journalists from all over flooded into the room. Sitting in their assigned seats, the cameramen got into their places. For the next ten minutes or so there was idle chat amongst the journalists and the group at the table.
"Alright! We're ready!" One of the cameramen announced, and everyone silenced.
"Rolling!"
Miette immediately sat straighter and adapted a much more professional expression. Leaning down, she tapped the microphone to make sure it was on, before speaking.
"Hello! Good to see all of you here today. My name is Miette Perigold, as you may know. Before we start I would like to introduce the gentlemen sitting around me." Miette gestured to her left. "At the far left there is Tank Dempsey, the one to my immediate left is Nikolai Belinski." Miette then gestured to the right. "To my right is Edward Von Richtofen, and Takeo Misaki to the far right over there." As she finished a young woman in the crowd raised her hand.
"Yes? You there?" Miette pointed to the woman.
"Hi, Ms. Miette, Cindy Bowers. Nice to meet you." The woman introduced herself, to which Miette nodded. "Why do you have these men with you?" The young woman asked.
"As you may know, my house was recently broken into. And no, I will NOT be answering any questions related to the break-in." Some journalists' hands fell at that. "This group here is my personal protection detail." The young woman nodded in understanding, writing something down in a notebook.
"I see. Do you mind if we ask them questions as well?" Cindy asked, to which Miette turned to the guys.
"Well?"
"We are open to taking questions but you may not get answers." Richtofen spoke up, the journalists in the room perking up at the interesting accent the man had.
The press conference went as expected. The journalists mainly asking Miette questions regarding her performance plans, what pokémon would she feature, how does she feel about the competition, etc. There were some interesting moments where the journalists would ask the rare question to one of the four zombie slayers. But, the answers that they gave were vague and rather short. Some moments of the press conference though...
"Ms. Miette!" A younger man got the performer's attention. "Is there any update on the situation regarding your stalker?" At the man's question a few of the older journalists shook their heads, one even facepalmed.
"Let me tell ya one thing." Surprisingly, Dempsey answered instead of the blue haired woman. "Dude's a creep, that much is confirmed. Ms. Miette is a nice lady, not surprised that many people like her. But that guy? He went too far and that's why we're here. I ain't one for drama, but we got a job and we'll carry it out. And that means that no questions regarding that prowler will be answered. We have the situation under control." Dempsey was dead serious as he stared down the young man.
Miette idly nodded, a bit flustered at being complimented by the usually straight edged soldier. Nikolai, meanwhile, smacked Dempsey on the head.
"You could've just said 'we have it under control' and not the whole spiel." Nikolai gave Dempsey a glare.
Meanwhile, the whole room chuckled at the antics. After a few minutes, the press conference continued as normal. After that incident it was largely understood to not question Miette's situation.
Miette entered the small meeting room, flanked by her four bodyguards. Finding a seat and taking it, the zombje slayers found spots in the room and took positions. The meeting room had chairs scattered all around small tables, which allowed for the performers to interact in smaller groups instead of having a social free for all. The competitors made small talk. Miette, as big in the scene as she was, had to actively engage in conversation as a lot of the participants were almost afraid of her talent.
After the two hour performer's conference, Miette decided to depart. As she was gathering her things, the quartet also got ready to leave with the woman. Once ready, the exited the conference room and walked down the hallway. Reaching a large set of double doors, Nikolai quickly opened the doors to allow Miette outside. What the group didn't expect, was a large crowd filled with flashing cameras and rather intrusive questions.
"Shit!" Miette cursed, Dempsey and Nikolai getting in front while Richtofen and Takeo flanked her sides.
"What's going on!?" Nikolai asked hurriedly.
"Fucking paparazzi, I should've known they would be on my ass after the break-in!" Miette's contempt for the paparazzi carried clearly in her voice.
"This is dangerous! The stalker could be here!" Richtofen yelled, as the group began to push through.
Miette could barely see. Her vision constantly blurred and blacked with the obnoxious flash of cameras. Her ears ringing as the loud voices of so called 'journalists' assaulted her brain. The four men had put her in the middle of their formation and were making headway. Miette could barely process her surroundings.
She could barely make out the mask a man was wearing before a gunshot rang out.