Chapter 5: Galaxy
None of the three Trainers had bikes of their own, even after they won the Coal Badge. So the only way to get to Eterna City from Oreburgh was to loop back to Jubilife and go through Floaroma Town. A longer route, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing on a journey like this. At least, Lucas didn't think so.
Besides, the fact that they had to return to Jubilife meant that they were around to stop three strangely dressed people from taking research from Professor Rowan. They called themselves 'Team Galactic' and tried to intimidate the Professor...which ultimately failed. Professor Rowan had greeted the three as easily as if they were just passing each other on the street, and even admonished the Grunts for interrupting them. The Grunts took it personally, and they were quickly challenged and defeated in a battle.
As Lucas watched the Grunts run off, though...he couldn't shake an unsettling feeling.
"Lucas?" It was only when he felt a hand on his shoulder that Lucas was able to snap out of his thoughts. The sensation startled him. He jumped, and Professor Rowan retracted his hand at the sight. Surprise was clear in the Professor's expression and his Aura. "Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing's wrong, I just-" Lucas knew he was talking a little too fast for that to sound believable. After a breath, he took a moment to gather his thoughts. He may as well voice his concern in a way that made sense.
"Their uniform," he finally said. He hesitated before explaining, "I can't place my finger on why...but something about it strikes me as familiar."
Lucas really hoped that he wouldn't have to explain what he meant by that, because he would've had no idea how to answer. Thankfully, Professor Rowan spoke up before anyone else could question it.
"Now that you mention it," the Professor mused. There was a moment of contemplation before he said, "Perhaps it's the yellow emblem? I believe the Galaxy Team had a similar logo, before they disbanded."
When Professor Rowan mentioned the Galaxy Team, it clicked in Lucas' mind. Of course there was mention of them in Trainer's School. It was due to their efforts that Sinnoh had become the region that it was today. The Survey Corps in particular were praised, because of two member's efforts to save Hisui in a time of crisis. There were conflicting stories of what crisis it was, and how they solved it...but the impact the two heroes made could not be denied.
Thinking about it that way, it made a lot of sense that this 'Team Galactic' would get some inspiration from the Galaxy Team. The names were similar! How did he not think of that?
"That makes sense," Lucas admitted. "After seeing them so often in history books, it's a little jarring to see something similar."
"So, what? This team took inspiration from that team?" Barry questioned.
Dawn nodded. "With how crucial the Galaxy Team is to Sinnoh's history, I doubt Team Galactic would be the first."
"Yeah..." As he nodded his assent, Lucas couldn't help but wonder if that really explained why he felt so unsettled.
( It wasn't until they were halfway to Floaroma Town that Lucas realized that he had forgotten to ask Professor Rowan about the Arons in Oreburgh Mine. He promised himself he'd ask next time. )
Lucas could barely believe what Barry had decided to drag him and Dawn into. This was a fairly common occurrence for him and Dawn - Barry always dragged one or both of them into whatever escapade he could think of - but this was an entirely new level of unbelievable.
See, there were times in a Trainer's journey - specifically those traveling through Sinnoh - when one can come across a reporter from Jubilife TV. These particular reporters act as hosts for a small quiz show, which promises a fabulous prize for the winner.
Lucas honestly didn't think he would ever come across something like this. And yet here he was, plunging headfirst into a quiz whether he liked it or not.
"Barry, I don't think I can do this," Lucas protested as the three approached the reporter and cameraman. "I'm getting nervous just thinking about it-"
Wrapping an arm around Lucas' shoulders, Barry responded, "Are you kidding? Luc, you totally got this! You know Johto. You've lived there. Who better to take part in this than you?!"
The theme caught Lucas' attention. While it was true that he had lived in Johto for a few years...that was really the most time he spent outside of Sinnoh. His knowledge of Johtoan-related anything was shaky compared to Sinnoh...but he may as well give it a shot. For Barry's sake, at least.
"What he said," the reporter said. It was clear from her Aura that she did not want to be here. She didn't even try to hide her boredom in her expression. "Answer five questions and you get a fantabulous prize. If you three are ready, we can do this now."
Lucas pursed his lips. As nervous as he was at the thought of taking part of this kind of thing, he shouldn't have too hard of a time with the quiz...right? He did have a fair amount of knowledge when it came to Johto...
"Come on," Barry pleaded, seeming to sense his best friend's hesitance. "With all three of us here, that prize is as good as ours! So there's no pressure, right?!"
"He's got a point," Dawn supplied. "I don't know about you, but any chance to get free stuff is a good one."
Lucas sighed; with Dawn taking Barry's side, he felt outnumbered. But they did have a point...if the three of them all did this, they'd probably get the prize no matter who won. What harm could there be, really? "Fine, I'll do it."
With that, the show started. Barry was quickly left in the dust; between Lucas' experience and Dawn's knowledge, the two were tied. Lucas was having a little more fun with it than he expected; some of the questions seemed downright nostalgic, given his childhood.
And then came the final question: "Is Tohjo Falls located in Kanto or Johto?"
Lucas could all but feel his brain short-circuit. Tohjo Falls...that name rang a bell. He must have heard the name a handful of times while he lived in Johto. Cherrygrove and New Bark were close to that place, wasn't it? Kanto itself was supposed to be pretty close too, right? Of all the questions that could have been asked, why did it have to be a geography question?!
As he wracked his brain to think of an answer, Dawn stepped in; "It's in Kanto."
"Correct. And we have a winner. Woo." The reporter really didn't want to be here, did she? In fact, it was easy to tell that she was relieved that the show was over. "Congratulations, here's your prize."
None of the trainers knew what to expect, but it definitely wasn't an egg. Dawn was handed an incubator, within which was a blue egg with red and yellow spots. The three trainers stared at it with wide eyes as the reporter and her helper made a hasty retreat.
"An egg," Barry breathed, almost awestruck. "I wonder what's inside?!"
"Given the color, I'm gonna guess it's a Water-type," Lucas answered. It wasn't just the egg's color that tipped him off; he could see the flicker of an Aura in the Egg, and it reminded him of water. At the very least, it was a safe guess.
Dawn seemed very pleased by this; both by her victory and Lucas' deduction of the Egg's type. "In that case, I think I'll keep it. If there aren't any objections?"
Lucas and Barry did not; they knew that Dawn had a mile-wide soft spot for Water-types, and far be it from them to take the Egg when she was the one who won it in the first place.
Dialga remembered the Galaxy Team. How could he not, when Rei and Akari had such a central role in the crisis that endangered Hisui? During his and Palkia's time with the two, they had gotten to know each of the other members of the Team.
That said, the humans dressed like astronauts were nothing like the Galaxy Team. The emblem on their uniforms may be similar, but that did not mean they were the same. The Team had disbanded decades ago...or at least, the Survey Corps did. Dialga cared little for the groups outside of the Survey Corps (seeing as that was where Rei and Akari were situated). If there was any trace of the Galaxy Team within this Team Galactic, Dialga was not aware of it. Perhaps he should look into that the next time he was in his dimension. He always did learn more from looking into the past, anyway.
But that wasn't his issue right now. His issue was the little girl that had approached him - the one who brought him into this train of thought in the first place. This 'Team Galactic' had taken her father hostage and kept him in the Windworks on the road ahead of them. Apparently 'Aevus' was the first 'person' she saw while looking for someone to help...? This is what he got for traveling around this world in his human form, he supposed.
In short: all Dialga wanted was to find his way to Lake Acuity without getting help from Palkia. He got turned around, and this was the result.
Dialga sympathized with her plight, he truly did. While it would be easy for him to freeze time and rescue the girl's father while time was frozen, there were several complications that he could come across. The biggest of them being; how was he to know that he wouldn't give himself away in the process? Most humans would jump at the chance to obtain a creature of legendary power, after all.
"Apologies, but why ask me?"
"What do you mean, why?" the girl responded, as if it was obvious. "You got an eyepatch, so you gotta be a pirate! A pirate can easily beat up a few spacepeople, right?!"
She seemed so enthusiastic about her logic that Dialga had no idea what he was supposed to do. Talking with Lucas and that Interpol fellow in Jubilife was stressful enough, how was he supposed to talk to a human child?!
His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice calling; "Aevus?"
Dialga was surprised to see Lucas and his friends here. Were he not a deity of time, he would have thought the timing seemed a little too perfect for it to be a coincidence.
"You know this guy, Luc?" his blond friend questioned.
"Yeah," Lucas responded with a nod. An odd expression crossed his face as he took in the situation. "I'll explain later."
The three then approached, with Lucas glancing between Aevus and the little girl. Dialga watched his expression carefully as the little girl explained her situation. It was strange how it shifted from curiosity to irritated. Perhaps it was because of Mesprit's influence that the boy was so easy to read. His friends matched that energy; apparently the three children were familiar with this 'Team Galactic' as well.
"We shouldn't leave the situation alone," the Akari-lookalike (apparently named Dawn) said. "Besides, we've confronted Team Galactic before."
"Yeah! Just point me in their direction and lemme at 'em!" the loud blond responded. Before any of them could say anything, he ran towards the Valley Windworks to confront the Team Galactic member in the nearby area. Dialga was immediately reminded of Azelf.
"He is...certainly energetic," Dialga commented. "Do you suppose he'll be okay?"
"He should be," Dawn responded. "Like I said, we've fought them before. Going off the Pokemon they had before, Barry's definitely got this."
True to Dawn's words, Barry returned within minutes. However, he was pouting as he walked back. "I beat the Grunt that was outside, but the coward locked himself in the Windworks. So not fair!"
"You can still get a key! I saw some spacemen go into Floaroma Town before I met Mr. Pirate," the little girl supplied. "They still gotta have a key to get in!"
"I was just going to say we should check town," Lucas responded. His gaze flickered towards the little girl. "...Although, I'm hesitant to leave her alone to do that. Safety in numbers, right?"
"Ohhh, yeah," Barry responded. "This is why you're an important part of the team, Luc; that keen attention to detail!"
Lucas chuckled sheepishly before the three children played a quick round of janken. Barry lost, so he was to stay and keep an eye on the little girl while Lucas and Dawn went into town to get the key.
As for what Dialga was going to do? After a moment's consideration, he decided to follow Lucas and Dawn. His goal was to find his way to Lake Acuity, but Mesprit had asked him to keep an eye on Lucas whenever he got a chance. She had told him about Lucas' encounter with the man called Cyrus, and it piqued Dialga's curiosity. If nothing else, he could pick up on something that Uxie would be able to help elaborate.
Author's Note: When I said Dialga was going to play the role of deuteragonist, what I really meant is that I was going to throw 'Aevus' into certain in-game shenanigans.