The Doomed Sprout
Chapter 15
« I don't understand, weren't you trying to train me ? »
Up in the sky, two glowing lights could be seen traveling at great speed. One purple, one pink. As they soared through the land, no one seemed to notice their heated discussion.
« I am, and I'm telling you, that's suicidal ! », Alpha hissed, before shaking their head. « Fighting one of the Archons is one thing, but there's two more in there to worry about. You're not ready for that ! »
Beta huffed. They hated being refused a fight, even if they did trust Alpha's opinion. « I could just isolate one of the Archons. I'm not stupid »
Alpha flew right up to their face, grabbing it and stopping both of them's momentum. « Yes, you are ! The other two aren't Archons ! There's that pesky detective there, and something else I'm sure she's responsible for… Celebi's been biding their time to mess things up, I knew it ! »
Beta shooed them away, hovering in silence, though noticing how strange their behavior was. It's not often you see such a bubbly Pokemon appear so mad. Maybe it'd make sense that someone working behind the scenes would despise a detective, but that seemed more personal.
Alpha shook their head, still frustrated. « Whatever. We'll come back to the Erratic Jungle once they're both gone. For now, how about we take out the flying Archon ? »
« You could just tell me where each Archon is and leave », pointed out Beta.
« And miss out on the battles ? Have you forgotten the big problem in this world ? At least, until you take control, I'm sure~ ». Alpha giggled, returning to their usual self. « We've wasted enough time, cmon ! »
« So… I see you know who I am ». Celebi's voice was devoid of any clear emotion, making Fen unsure of how to reply.
She replied with a hesitant nod. « Celebi, the Time Traveller. Why are you here ? »
Celebi took some paper from behind them. Was it always there ?
« I've found what I was looking for, but it seems like I've got more to learn here. You're not bowing, why ? », the Pixie said, floating above the group, a clipboard and pencil having somehow joined the piece of paper in their hands.
Fen seemed distressed, looking around and seeing Lumin standing still, perfectly calm. Sera, on the other hand, was hiding behind a tree. Neither of them were bowing either. « It's my first time meeting a Pokemon such as you, I didn't know what to do ! »
« I don't recall Pokemon being so talkative… Nor talking back to me. You're definitely a strange one, ain't you ? ». Celebi chuckled, before flying in front of the Nidoran's face. « You're not even a Shiny, even if you sure act like one. Wonder if the Lake Trio's been experimenting again... »
They snapped their finger, before levitating Sera out of her hiding spot, making her yelp in surprise.
« And you're… plain boring. Seriously, what's with every Shiny trying to hide, if you're scared, just run away, you're asking for trouble staying here ». Sera was unable to answer, trying her best to fight off the telekinetic grasp she was now stuck in, causing Celebi to sigh and leave her free. The Eevee promptly ran off, disappearing from sight.
« Y-you still didn't tell me why you're here ! », Fen yelled, grabbing their attention back. She wanted to follow Sera if only to make sure she was okay, but Lumin was worrying her even more, he wasn't reacting to anything !
« Oh ? Right, I was told of a leftover that was stolen, back at the Tempest Caves, turns out you troublemakers ran off with something that really shouldn't be toyed with, and so they've sent me to investigate ». Celebi smiled, giving an eerie mix of satisfaction and threat. « Now, why won't you tell me what some Pokemon were doing with a human tool, and how did you activate it ? »
Fen took a deep breath and started explaining her story, though hiding any part about her origins, from the conflict with Lumin, to the mysterious bench, and ending with their run into the jungle. Eventually, the Pixie was satisfied, even if it was clear to them that some elements were missing or still unexplained. Sera had also come back, observing from a distance, much to Fen's relief.
« So… Uhm, Celebi ? », Fen asked hesitantly.
« What is it, young Nidoran ? »
« Can I know why my Shinx friend is acting like that ? », she said while pointing at Lumin's direction, who seemed to just observe the moon through the trees.
« Heck if I know. Usually, Pokemon just lie down and wish me well or something up until I leave. I think. Been a while since any of us have actually come down here, there really wasn't any point ever since the Humans went extinct »
Fen froze for a second. « T-the Humans ? Can you tell me more ? »
Celebi smirked, before hovering around her. « I could, but why are you such a curious Pokemon exactly ? Getting a predator's protection, claiming you're friends with them, and mingling with Shinies despite how much they struggle usually to remain even among their own species… I'm pretty sure I should be the one asking questions, you know ? »
« B-but you've already asked me about the tool ! I deserve some answers too ! », Fen replied weakly.
Celebi flew right at her face, staring her down. « You deserve nothing more than what you've been given. Even if you are an oddity of nature, you still follow the same rules everyone does, and one of those rules is that you don't ask questions unless I permit it ». Their sudden harsh voice took Fen by surprise, though she felt more anger than fear. She's been stuck in this place for weeks, without any knowledge of what was going on. She isn't passing up that chance just because someone is on their high horse, especially if they scare off her friends !
« I've been trying to live my life in this stinking world that doesn't care to explain anything about everything, barely surviving on sheer dumb luck because nature decided to make me this ''oddity'', and now I gotta respect the rules ? What rules, the one that Lumin should've eaten me ? The one that Sera should've died since she's a Shiny ? Screw that ! ». Fen went from talking to shouting, pushing against the Pixie's skull while doing so. « I've been doing well following my own rules, and so has Lumin ! He was happy before you messed him up, and if you bring up nature again I'm going to show just how much I love this world by fricking burning it all up ! »
Celebi and Fen stood there, butting heads, before Celebi's frown grew into a wide grin, laughing heartily and teleporting away. This left the Nidoran stunned, who was wondering if she was baited in some way. Seeing as nothing was happening, she presumed that the Pixie wasn't coming back and waved at Sera to come closer, before observing Lumin. He seemed to have regained his senses, pawing at the ground to bundle up some leaves together, most likely for his bed. Fen decided not to press on further, just happy to have him back, though she did give him a quick nudge, much to the Shinx's confusion who then returned it awkwardly.
« W-what happened ? », asked a familiar voice behind her.
« I don't know, Sera. I guess Celebi isn't actually a stickler for rules either ? Or maybe she likes arson ». Fen briefly considered the idea of a forest guardian with a flamethrower, giggling at the thought. « We should go sleep. I think they got what they wanted, whatever that was »
Lumin was the first one to get back to their shack, carrying around a large bundle of humid leaves, as the others followed suit and laid down. Sera, of course, decided that her bed just so happened to be on a blue spiky Pokemon's hide. Fen grunted but said nothing, and they finally let their thoughts to rest, if only for a while.
As a new day began in the Sprout, our trio has gone back in to learn more skills and do their assigned tasks. Lumin was told to accompany the rescue team for this day, much to the fright of the rest of the team, especially Ethan. Fen had planned a meeting with the Honorable, having told the others about her goal of using the illuminant gems as a cheaper light source than burning torches each night. This left Sera, who was given free rein on what tasks to get for the day, since she had not shown any particular talent yet, aside from her evasiveness which could only be useful for scouting. The cream Eevee was now lost in thought in the middle of the town, staring at the statue of a gigantic tree.
« You curious about it ? ». The voice came from Sera's left, making her jump in surprise. The Pokemon, a shiny Teddiursa, giggled at her reaction, a big smile plastered on his face. « Sorry, guess I should've warned you »
Sera shook her head vigorously. « N-no, I'm just not used to people sneaking up on me. What were you asking? »
« If you were curious about the statue », the Teddiursa asked again, pointing at it.
Sera appeared confused, before noticing what was right in front of her. « Oh... oh ! Yes, I've never seen a ''statue'' before ! What is it ? »
« It's just a rock », he answered flatly, before grinning. « Well, a rock that's been cut down very precisely. I'm the one who made it, even got my signature on the bottom ! »
The Teddiursa pointed his paw at a small scribble, before blushing. « Ah, of course, you can't read. It says ''Matt'', that's my name ! »
« Mine's Sera ! », said the Eevee, still ecstatic over seeing more Pokemon with proper names. « What is the statue for ? »
Matt looked proud, resting his arm against the sculpture before explaining : « It's for multiple things, really. It's a way to show where the center of the town is, for meeting or not getting too lost. If you can find your way from the statue to someplace, then you can easily keep to that path. Of course, we're all used to the town by now, but you're a new face, so here you go »
« Another thing it's good for », he continued, « is that it's hecking pretty ! The Honorable told us all about arts, and how we could create things in order to make our life more interesting and happy. We've started with doing that sign at the entrance to welcome Pokemon in the Sprout ! Though most of us don't even leave, only the gatherers and the rescue teams, so it's not seen much ». Matt's head hung down, which Sera mimicked in empathy, making the Teddiursa embarrassed. « B-but it's still really appreciated by those who do see it ! And the tree I made is super popular too, since it's the first statue we have around here ! It, uh, represents the Sprout, and how it'll grow into a big tree someday, just like our town will grow… »
Matt stood still for a few seconds, before grumbling « A-anyways, I'm just trying to make the town more lively, and I'll need to make more art stuff for that. There has been stories that a member of the gathering crew found cloth, so expect to see even prettier things around ! »
« What's cloth ? Can I see ? ». Sera's eyes sparkled with curiosity, having found her next topic to obsess over for the day. Matt's nod only further increased her excitement, as she followed suit. So many new things, between that and art !
In a different space and different time, a faint shimmering appeared, revealing a giddy Celebi who quickly sat down on a grossly oversized sofa, smiling at the thought of their recent conversation. A large Pokemon near them noticed their presence, turning around to confront the Pixie
« You seem uncharacteristically happy today, Celebi. I presume you have found a solution for this world ? ». The voice was both deep and friendly as if they'd known each other for eons.
Celebi's mood changed instantly as they bore a grimace. « No. Sadly that's still going to happen. I did find out who was behind the event the grumpy dragons asked me to investigate, though ! »
« Ah », said the Pokemon, disheartened. « Well, is there a reason why you come to me, then ? »
« Can't I visit my old pal-kia without a reason ? », smirked Celebi, though Palkia's unamused expression made her sigh. « Fine, I do have something to report. The first thing is that there's someone bringing humans back to our world »
Palkia's expression darkened. « This cannot be known to others... », they started before Celebi waved them off, rolling their eyes.
« Come on, you should know that no one would snitch. They've all got something to hide. If anything, it means there's just going to be a bit more chaos in the world, which is perfect, don't you think ? ». Celebi's grin frustrated Palkia, but they didn't retort.
«How did you find out they were human, exactly ? I highly doubt they physically appear as such, that would be foolhardy »
« Having a Nidoran scream at you about the world being unfair and them refusing to respect the rules set by Legendaries is a pretty interesting experience », they sarcastically answered. « It's been so long since anyone's done that, it's so Arceus-damned refreshing ! »
Palkia tried their best to remain serious, though a small giggle still escaped their mouth. How they'd wish to have seen that.
« Now, though… You do have some explaining to do, you know ? »
Palkia looked at the now serious Celebi in confusion, as they flew up to see each other eye to eye.
« There were traces of your power on them. Mind telling me what you're up to ? »
