Three beings were born to bind time and space.
They split up with Mai after breakfast the next morning. Thankfully she had the cooking skills Ash and Akari lacked, giving them something filling to fuel them for the journey back to Jubilife Village.
Mai had to go inform her clan mates and clan leader of the mission's success. She and Munchlax thanked them again and saw them off from Deertrack Heights.
It wasn't entirely a smooth trip back down, although it did go a bit faster thanks to the twin forces of gravity and not stopping to light torches. While there were fewer Geodude they still did have to fight off a few. Akari managed to catch a few to take back to Jubilife.
"These Geodude act way differently than Brock's." Ash mused to Pikachu as the path began to even out and green returned to the landscape around them. "He's normally so helpful but these guys just keep trying to pick fights!"
"Pika…" Pikachu flicked his ears. "Pikachu!"
"Yeah, I guess all Pokémon are different… but this whole group of Geodude is acting the same! Are they doing it for fun?" Ash pointed out, gesturing at a suspicious group of rocks he didn't remember seeing yesterday.
One of the rocks made a rude gesture at them and they glared at it. "Maybe we should show them how we have fun."
"Chu." Pikachu tensed but Akari caught their attention.
"Come on, we can come back tomorrow, but unless you plan on catching more Geodude we need to report in."
Ash reluctantly followed and Pikachu turned on his shoulder, sticking his tongue out at the laughing rocks behind them.
"I've been meaning to ask," Akari started as the bridge came into sight. "Can you really understand Pikachu? Sometimes it sounds like you're having full conversations with him!"
Good question. "Uh, sort of?" Ash shrugged and Pikachu smirked a little. "I can't actually understand what Pikachu is saying, but I think I'm pretty good at getting what he's trying to tell me! Most of the time."
"Is there a trick to it?" She pressed him. "I know you don't care about the technical aspects like Professor Laventon, but would you say it's possible to understand a Pokémon better by studying them?"
"Why'd you phrase it like that?" Ash frowned at her. "I mean, sure you could "study" a Pokémon and learn to understand them better. But I know Pikachu. If some other Pikachu came over and tried telling me something I might be able to figure it out, but they wouldn't be Pikachu."
"...I'm pretty sure they would be." Akari pointed out and his best friend snickered.
"Who's side are you on?" He asked Pikachu. "But yeah alright they would be a Pikachu but I wouldn't know them."
A memory came to him and he blinked. "Hey, I just remembered this one lady I met on my journey. She said she could understand what Pokémon were saying!"
"Really?" That piqued Akari's interest. "How'd she do it?"
"I don't remember how… I do remember Officer Jenny didn't believe it was possible so we had to prove it to her." Why had Officer Jenny been so doubtful about it? That had been a weird day. "So humans can learn to understand what Pokémon say, but it's probably easier for Pokémon to just learn how to talk."
"Pika pika." Pikachu slapped the back of Ash's head with his tail and rolled his eyes.
"Hey! Just think about it! It would be so cool if you could talk!"
"A talking Pokémon?" Akari scoffed. "Now that one I don't believe."
Ash stared at her then shared a glance with Pikachu and they both started laughing.
"What's so funny?" Akari demanded but they didn't respond. "What? Cat got your tongue?!"
That just made them laugh even harder.
Akari couldn't but notice a sense of relief from Captain Cyllene and Professor Laventon as they returned to Galaxy Hall. The two were in Cyllene's office, apparently discussing another matter entirely. They stopped as soon as she and Ash entered but she heard something about a "Kleavor."
The name sounded vaguely familiar, definitely a Pokémon of some sort but she couldn't put a shape to it.
"You've returned," Cyllene stated the simple fact as she observed them, possibly looking for injuries. "Mission status?"
"Success!" She saluted and Ash stumbled a little as he stood at attention and mirrored her. There was something funny to her about him acting like a regular kid. "We worked with Warden Mai of the Diamond Clan and successfully defeated and captured the Alpha Kricketune that was causing trouble."
"You captured it?!" Laventon sounded positively delighted by the news. "That's fantastic! I must study it!"
"Professor." Cyllene didn't raise her voice but her tone shut down his questions before they could begin to spill from his mouth. "You will have your chance to investigate after the debriefing, please proceed Akari."
Akari summarized the mission, even including their preparations before leaving, such as training and gathering supplies. She described their meeting with Mai and her explanation of the duties of a warden.
When she got to the battles she did her best to accurately describe their encounters. Starting from Ash's battle with Mai and Munchlax, the driving off of the Geodude, and finally the fight with the Alpha Pokémon itself.
Ash awkwardly interjected a few times, adding his own observations of the battle. Akari let him, despite his perspective including a few subjective opinions, like Munchlax's Giga Impact being "really strong!" In the end, he had a better eye for battling than she did and noticed something about Kricketune she hadn't.
"The way Kricketune was fighting was… wrong." He frowned, trying to find the words to describe it.
"Wrong?" Cyllene pressed. "Was it already injured?"
"No, not that." He shook his head. "It was… not jerky, that makes it sound like it wasn't good. It was really good and really strong. But it was like…"
Ash grit his teeth a bit and pounded his forehead with his fist. "The way it reacted to attacks didn't make sense. Normally when a strong Pokémon takes a direct hit they know how to brace themselves to minimize damage, but Kricketune barely reacted when we hit it, up until we finally broke its guard."
Akari thought back to how it seemed to ignore their attacks. At the time she had just seen it as a showcase of Kricketune's power, but Ash had a point. No matter how tough a Pokémon was they would want to protect themselves from damage.
"It was like Kricketune didn't know how to protect itself unless it was already being attacked. And then it was like it didn't care. When Kricketune attacked Shinx to knock her off it didn't even look at her. It managed an exact hit without even noticing, and there were a few other times it attacked when it shouldn't have been able to." Ash went on.
"Curious…" Laventon rubbed his chin and Cyllene frowned.
"Worrying. Perhaps I should speak with Captain Zisu about the Security Corps' interactions with Alphas. I wonder if they have had a similar experience."
Part of Akari wanted to keep thinking about the implications and then figure out how to be more observant during battles, but she pushed that to the side and continued her report. Pikachu's Strong Style Thunderbolt managing to knock out Kricketune, and then their encounter with Wyrdeer.
"Well, I suppose it goes without saying but well done. Both of you." Cyllene congratulated them, leaning back in her chair and closing her eyes for a moment. "I'll inform Commander Kamado and the Construction Corps, you may be going back out with them to help scout out the area around the new camp."
"For the time being though, congratulations Akari." Cyllene sat up and folded her hands. "I am promoting you to Four Star rank."
Her heart skipped a beat. "What? But I- I mean-" A sense of shame filled her as she stuttered and lost her professionalism at the unexpected promotion. She struggled to get her emotions back under control. "I'm sorry Captain Cyllene but I don't believe I have earned this rank."
"Haven't you?" Cyllene didn't have eyebrows but she gave the impression of a raised brow all the same. "Indeed, your battling skills did not win the day, but this mission was assigned to you, and through your efforts you managed to see it completed."
"Maybe you couldn't have done it without Ash, but you were the one who realized that and prepared accordingly. Those are good leadership qualities Akari, remember that."
She processed that and Cyllene turned to Ash. "As for you, while you performed well I believe it is far too soon after your last promotion to elevate you further. Although at your current rate of success, I may need to adjust certain parameters."
"Uh, thanks?" Akari wondered how much of that he understood. "Oh, what should I do with Kricketune?"
He pulled out the Future Ball containing the Alpha. Laventon leaned forward, eyes sparkling with curiosity and if Akari didn't know better she'd say Cyllene jerked back with fear. But that was impossible, Cyllene wasn't afraid of anything, the closest she came was extremely cautious.
"You used one of your strange Poké Balls?" Cyllene asked.
"Yeah, with how dangerous Kricketune was I thought maybe I should use one of mine since they're a bit stronger. And the insides work a little differently…" He trailed off, obviously unsure of the specifics.
"Fair enough. Regardless I believe you should keep it with you for the moment. We don't want it in the pasture with all the other Pokémon. Ignoring the odds of it running off to who knows where…"
"I truly must protest!" Laventon straightened and fixed his lab coat. "We've never managed to capture an Alpha before! The best our Security Corps have managed is driving them away! We must study it to learn more!"
Akari somehow knew he'd say something like that. "It's going to be pretty dangerous." She warned him.
"What kind of researcher would I be if I wasn't ready to risk my health for knowledge?"
"A living one?" Ash joked and Akari hid her smile. Also resisted the urge to call the kettle black.
Cyllene considered his request. "It will take a few days to sort out the logistics of the new base camp. I suggest you two speak to Captain Zisu either tonight or tomorrow. If you can bring me a sound plan to study the Alpha that doesn't unnecessarily risk the village I will consider it."
"Maybe if we have a bunch of fire-types…" Ash mumbled.
"Before that, I encourage you to rest, you've earned it. Excellent work." Cyllene dismissed them. "Not you Laventon, we weren't finished."
"Right. I'll speak to you two later." He waved them off his jovial smile fading as the door closed. "What do you think?"
"I think they're our best bet to investigate the Kleavor situation. But we'll need to wait for the Clan Heads before we finalize anything." Cyllene leaned on her desk. "Akari has grown quite a bit since he showed up, and while it's more subtle he seems to be maturing a bit."
"I still don't like sending them into something this deadly." Laventon sighed. "Whatever happened to "Lord" Kleavor… he's no Alpha. He's just a monster."
Akari made the executive decision to let Ash and Laventon deal with the giant monster Pokémon. Battling it once was enough for her.
She couldn't quite understand the battle lust that filled Ash. While she was growing to appreciate working with Shinx to solve problems and defeat opponents she doubted that she'd willingly go seeking out such a battle unless she had to. Whether that be for research or another mission.
There was a bit of worry but whatever plan they worked out with the Security Corps was enough for Captain Cyllene. While they went off to "study" the bug monster, Akari took the good captain's advice and tried to relax.
This lasted for about five minutes before she stood up and threw on her casual apparel. She needed to move around. Maybe there weren't any research tasks to do but there had to be something to help with around Jubilife.
Before leaving her quarters, something stopped her. She looked at the ball balanced on the table.
Part of her tried to talk her out of it. If people saw Shinx they'd be nervous, they'd avoid her, she knew Shinx wouldn't hurt her or any of them but the other residents of the village wouldn't know that.
But…
She grabbed the ball and released her partner. Shinx stretched and yawned a little. "Shiii."
"No real mission today." She explained and opened the door as Shinx inspected her, not used to seeing her out of uniform. "Not yet at least. We're going to find something to do! I had enough laying in bed for a lifetime!"
Shinx blinked at her, and it could have been her imagination but she thought she saw hints of humor in her eyes. "Shinx?"
There was a question there. She could tell that much. But she had no idea what it was or what it meant. "Just don't walk up to anyone, you might freak them out. Most people here aren't like Ash. If a Pokémon comes toward them they might panic."
It was a nice enough day outside, the wind was blowing from the south instead of the east so they didn't have any cold air coming down from the mountains. A part of Akari marveled at the buildings around them as they walked. It felt like just a few weeks ago Galaxy Hall was a one-story mass of bricks and the houses a collection of tents.
In truth that was four months ago. But between her survey missions and being bedridden her sense of time had been thrown off a little bit.
Where to begin though? Maybe she should just walk around the village for a bit and enjoy the fresh air. And she could look for any projects in progress. If nothing caught her eye then she would head to Galaxy Hall and ask around. Surely someone needed an extra pair of hands.
"What is that girl doing?" Despite her efforts to enjoy her walk, whispers reached her. "Doesn't she know that thing is dangerous?"
Akari glanced at a pair of women carrying sacks of grain, their uniforms marked them as Agriculture Corps members. When they realized they had her attention they quickly shuffled off.
Just like she'd thought, people were nervous about Shinx. A part of her had naively hoped that Ash wandering around with Pikachu all the time might have changed some perspectives. Beauregard always had Wurmple out with him now so at least one person had been affected.
Shinx didn't seem to care, continuing to strut beside Akari, occasionally pausing to look at anything brightly colored. She mostly seemed uninterested in the humans hanging around or staring at her.
But the whispers still occasionally reached Akari. Did Ash have to listen to this stuff? Not much of it was mocking, which in a way made it worse. Mostly they sounded concerned. Concerned? For her safety?! After everything she'd done walking around the village with Shinx was far from dangerous.
Eventually, the looks and whispers killed her desire to keep wandering the village. Could she have just returned Shinx to her Poké Ball? Yeah. Probably. But that meant she was giving in. Perhaps it was a matter of pride but she wanted to have her partner out with her and so she would.
With that in mind, she turned toward Galaxy Hall. At least she wouldn't get as many odd looks there.
"Congratulations Akari!" Beauregard greeted her as she approached. "I heard you got promoted to Four Star!"
Wurmple made a squeaking noise that rang of congratulations. She smiled at them, at least some people were brave enough to talk to her face while Shinx was out with her. "Thank Beauregard, how's guard duty with Wurmple?"
"We haven't had any trouble, truth be told it's a little boring. But it's not Wurmple anymore! It's Beaugene!"
"Beaugene?" Akari struggled to hold back a laugh making a snorting sound instead. "That's a… very nice name."
"Thanks! Since Wurmple will evolve into Beutifly someday I figured I should pick a fitting name!" Beauregard seemed very proud of his naming abilities.
"Why nickname at all then?" Akari asked, feeling a tad curious despite her amusement at the Beaugene's nickname. "Couldn't you just wait until Wurmple evolved?"
"I could…" He admitted, looking thoughtful for a moment. "But it felt too… unattached. Beaugene isn't just a Wurmple, he's Beugene! And he'll still be Beaugene when he evolves!"
It sounded simple, maybe even a little silly, but a part of Akari could understand the sentiment behind it. "Well, good look Beaugene, hopefully, you evolve soon! You have two steps to go!"
Shinx and Beaugene exchanged a few sounds that Akari was reluctant to call words and they entered Galaxy Hall. Captain Cyllene's office was closed, which meant she was either meeting with someone or not there at the moment. But she saw Professor Laventon's office ajar.
"Professor?" She looked inside, glancing around the messy room. "I thought you were going with- oh you did."
It looked like Laventon had forgotten to close the door on the way out, he had probably been too excited about seeing an Alpha Pokémon in person. Was it any wonder his Pokémon kept escaping?
She was about to leave when she caught sight of his blackboard, walking up she saw a few requests written down on it. Akari let out a muffled bark of laughter when she saw the notes to the side of the requests. Was Laventon really using his blackboard as a notebook?
There were only two listed, and the start of a third. As she read through she grabbed a paper off his desk and jotted down some notes of her own. Laventon's scribblings indicated these weren't major concerns for the Survey Corps, and he was considering passing them to the Security Corps, but then trailed off as he worried about bothering them with these.
That sounded like these were exactly the kind of tasks Akari could help with today. Just some Bidoof and some Drifloon, that shouldn't be too hard!
"Come on Shinx, we have work to do!" She started striding from the room and then realized something.
There was no one else in the room. That included Laventon, but also Oshawott and Cyndaquil.
"Third mission." She groaned and locked the door behind her. "Round up the missing Pokémon. Again."
"Professor I insist you stand back." Zisu tried to gently guide Professor Laventon behind some makeshift fortifications.
"And Captain, I insist that I cannot properly study a Pokémon I cannot see!" He struggled to escape the safety provided by the Security Corps.
"Maybe wait until after we pacify the thing?" One of the Security Corps members snickered.
Ash frowned at them but didn't say anything, softly tossing Kricketune's Poké Ball from one hand to the other. This felt like a lot.
They were in what could almost be called a grotto an hour away from Jubilife Village, in the opposite direction of the Obsidian Fieldlands. The area was surrounded by steep dirt walls and didn't seem to be home to any Pokémon. Zisu had suggested it while brainstorming, it had been suggested as a camp location early in the survey of Hisui.
There was only one path in and out of the clearing and the Security Corps had set up sandbags and wooden posts. All along the rim of the natural bowl were stationed Security Corps guards with fire-type partners.
It felt like a lot of precautions, at least to Ash. A part of him wondered how much of it was justified and how much was the Galaxy Team's natural nervousness around Pokémon.
Then again, Kricketune had proven itself pretty dangerous, and without Munchlax to hold its focus who knows how much it could hurt the other Pokémon.
Eventually, Laventon glumly slumped behind one of the barriers, setting up an old-fashioned camera on a tripod, evidently still planning on taking pictures. Ash wondered how good a job it would do. He was pretty sure old-fashioned cameras took a long time to take pictures.
At least that's what his Mom told him when he asked why no one smiled in old photos.
"Everyone in position?" Zisu shouted and got a series of confirmations from her men. "Alright kid, I suggest you back up a bit before sending that thing out."
He wanted to say Pikachu, Cyndaquil, and Noctowl would keep him safe but a memory of stabbing pain in his arm kept his mouth shut. "Come on, be ready to jump in." He told his teammates.
Ash had sent all three of them out in preparation. Normally he wasn't one to care about type advantages but Captain Cyllene had been clear that if they wanted approval he needed to have at least two out with him.
Better safe than sorry and all that.
"Whenever you're ready tiny wall." Zisu cracked a small joke. Ash gripped Kricktune's Poké Ball, and with a deep breath tossed it to the center of the clearing.
It burst open with a familiar flash of light. As the shape solidified a few things became obvious. First, Kricketune's time in the ball had let it recover a bit, at the very least it wasn't unconscious anymore.
Also, it didn't have glowing red eyes anymore. Now they looked a much more natural gray, and while the daylight would have hidden it anyway, Ash suspected the red aura that had surrounded it the other night was gone as well.
It let out a cry and Ash gasped. Pikachu perked up too with a shocked exclamation. Zisu noticed their reaction and looked alarmed. "What's wrong?!"
"Nothing!" He claimed and pointed at his latest catch. "Kricketune sounds fine now!"
"What does that mean?" The Security Corps member who snickered at Laventon before asked.
"When we fought it at Deertrack Heights it sounded really weird, like a bad song. But that…" He looked at Pikachu and his partner nodded. Whatever noises were coming out of Kricketune made sense now.
"Captain!" Another guard called down. "This doesn't look like the other Alpha's we fought. It's big enough but…"
Zisu said nothing, staring at Kricketune with narrowed eyes. The bug-type may have been in better shape but it must have been feeling some sort of hurt from the other day. It was tense, and quickly realized it was surrounded on all side.
It emitted another song, not as unnatural as the first one Ash had heard but something about it screamed a warning. He didn't need to understand the exact meaning to know Kricketune was going to attack.
"Get back!" He shouted and stepped forward, waving his arms in protest at the Security Corps members. "Get away from the ridge!"
"Kid!?" Zisu's expression was a mix of furious and terrified, no doubt she expected him to be ripped apart in a moment.
"Trust me!" He hissed and slowly approached Kricketune his hands raised.
"He's going to get himself killed!" Someone shouted and Ash snapped his attention to them.
"Only if you don't get back! Somethings different! Kricketune's afraid now! Just let me talk to it!"
"Captain Zisu, I suggest you listen." Professor Laventon hissed.
"After all this effort I'm not going to pull them all back!" Zisu snapped at him.
"Then just have some of them get back!" Ash told her, hands still up as he slowly turned back to Kricketune.
The ginormous bug-type regarded him, shivering. Out of fear? Or anticipation?
"Hey there Kricketune." Ash started feeling a little silly now. "Do you remember me?"
"Kriiiiikriiikriiii." The musical voice beat in his ears.
"Do you know what happened to you?" He tried instead. "You weren't always like this were you? Something happened didn't it?"
Kricketune seemed confused by the fact he hadn't run and was instead talking. The bug-types eyes shot around the edges of the grotto and saw some of the guards step back. Ash breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the Alpha slowly bring its arms down, no longer set to attack.
"I'm sorry we had to knock you out like that, but you were causing a lot of trouble for Mai, Munchlax, and Wyrdeer." He explained. "But that wasn't you was it?"
"Tuuuuuu-ri-ri-ri."
Ash glanced behind him, Pikachu had realized marching up with Ash would just make Kricketune more on edge, but at his gesture, the electric-type joined him. "This is Pikachu, he was the one to knock you out."
Kricketune tilted its head a little, inspecting Pikachu, almost subconsciously, a narrow arm went to its nose and poked it, the place Pikachu had latched onto to unleash the Strong Style Thunderbolt.
"You seem better now, you're yourself again right?" Ash guessed and slowly reached into his satchel, it was a good thing he hadn't needed to use his potions. "You're still a bit hurt though, aren't you? I'm not a doctor but this stuff should fix up your injuries."
Slowly and methodically, Ash circled Kricketune, dripping the potion onto any scrapes or scorch marks he spotted. Some of them looked worse than others but none seemed too dangerous. "There, does that help?"
Kricketune let out an ear-splitting song. Ash flinched at the volume but not the sound itself, the music was clearly happy, relieved, and even a little grateful.
"Glad you're feeling better!" he smiled at Kricketune and rubbed the giant bug's side. "You can't go back to Deertrack Heights though, I don't think Wyrdeer would like that much."
"Pika!" Pikachu spoke up, jumping onto Ash's shoulder. "Pika! Pikachu!"
"Krii?" Kricketune looked at Pikachu as the electric-type explained something.
"Do you want to come with us?" Ash picked up on what Pikachu was suggesting. "I guess most Pokémon aren't used to that back now… I'm a Pokémon Trainer from Pallet Town! My goal is to be a Pokémon Master! Do you want to join our team Kricketune?"
He picked up Kricketune's Poké Ball and held it up. "This is a Poké Ball, it's how I was able to catch you. I don't want to make you stay in it if you don't want to, but you might be a bit too big for my house…" Ash rubbed the back of his head with an awkward chuckle.
Kricketune leaned in, inspecting the device. "Kri." It decided and tapped the battle, vanishing inside again with another flash of light.
Ash grinned at the ball. "Welcome to the team Kricketune." He turned back to Zisu and Laventon with a grin. "Looks like you can get a closer look at Kricketune whenever you want Professor!"
Zisu's jaw was hanging open, and hers wasn't the only one. At least one Security Corps member looked like they needed new pants. But Laventon had a brilliant smile plastered on his face. "Extraordinary, my boy." He almost whispered. "Truly extraordinary."
Despite the fact everything went perfectly fine, Cyllene still had a rebuttal for him when they returned to the village.
Ash stood next to Laventon and Zisu stood next to Cyllene. The two captains had much more severe looks than either the professor or the trainer. "When I authorized your plan this morning, I assumed you would follow the plan."
"We did!" Ash defended. "I thought it was a lot but we set up all the guards and the barriers and everything!"
"Yes." Captain Cyllene nodded. "You did. And then almost immediately you ignored the parameters and risked your own life needlessly."
"Now Captain-" Laventon started but she held up a hand, not even turning to look at him.
"Let Ash speak for himself. The plan was to observe the Alpha and subdue it if necessary. Not to step up to it directly."
"I had to!" Ash insisted crossing his arms. "If I had just stood there we would have needed to fight it!"
"And we would have been able to!" Zisu snapped.
"Except we didn't have to! Kricketune was scared!" Ash fired back.
"How could you possibly know that?!" Zisu demanded, tapping her fingers on her arm.
"While I wouldn't phrase it like that…" Cyllene eyed Zisu out of the corner of her eye. "How did you know? I want your reasoning for your actions."
Ash swallowed and explained himself. The differences between how Kricketune had acted before and how it acted now. The way he saw Kricketune acting and how he realized if he didn't calm it down then it would start lashing out again.
Cyllene mulled over his words. "If nothing else I'm glad you thought about what you were doing. If this had simply been you throwing yourself needlessly into danger I wouldn't be so cordial. I would have preferred you explained yourself better to those around you, but I also understand that you had to act before it was too late."
"I still think it was needlessly reckless," Zisu claimed. "Maybe you did prevent a battle but we had prepared exactly for that. If you had misjudged Kricketune's behavior then suddenly you'd be injured on the ground while we tried to fight it without harming you further."
"But I knew I was right" Ash muttered, refusing to back down.
"What if you weren't?" Zisu asked, not raising her voice.
"Enough." Cyllene held up her hands and rubbed her face. "I will not let this turn into an argument of what could have happened."
She leveled a glare at Ash. "You've put me in an interesting position. Disregarding orders from a superior is a punishable offense. We are not a military but no member of the Galaxy Expedition Team is allowed to ignore the mission to suit their own ends."
"However, it would set an inappropriate precedent to punish you for taking action to prevent a catastrophe. Given the circumstances, this being our first "contained" interaction with an Alpha, I'm willing to give you a warning and leave it at that."
Despite himself, Ash didn't want to accept that. "A warning against what? Doing the right thing?"
"This is exactly my problem." Captain Cyllene sighed. "What if I didn't give you a warning, instead congratulating you? Then others may be tempted to ignore orders if they believe they are "right." In your case, you have a better understanding of Pokémon than most others and your previous interactions with Kricketune offered you additional insight, but not every case of ignoring orders will be the same."
"So don't treat them the same!" Ash told her, not seeing the problem. "If someone just doesn't want to work then punish them. If someone else does something to get the work done faster then don't!"
Zisu cocked a brow and had an expression somewhere between amusement and frustration. "I'm afraid it's not that easy."
"It should be."
"If I may now interject?" Professor Laventon tried to reenter the conversation. "As you said Captain, this was our first controlled experience with an Alpha Pokémon, situations like this should be less strict with rulings due to the unpredictable nature of the results."
"That sounds reasonable, but if safety precautions are ignored in every potentially dangerous situation then something will happen eventually." She sighed. "My decision is final though, there will be no permanent black mark on your record but if another situation occurs then you will find yourself punished, am I clear?"
Ash crossed his arms and huffed. "Fine."
"Good, now that's out of the way…" Cyllene looked over Laventon's notes on the Alpha. "I'm sure I don't need to explain the gravity of this situation."
"Indeed." Laventon tried to stroke his chin but his stubble pricked his fingers. "The Kricketune recorded by Akari and Ash was nothing like the one that Ash just showed us. Whatever was causing its violent tendencies seems to have quite literally been beaten out of it. While I can't say for sure without further examples, I feel comfortable at least theorizing this may be the case for every Alpha Pokémon."
"Every Alpha." Zisu shook her head. "They're not just violent Pokémon, this is something else. They're literally out of control. We've never been able to truly knock them out before, just drive them away or be forced to retreat ourselves."
"That does beg the question why Kricketune didn't run." Cyllene pointed out. "Or if this really is a unique situation. It goes without saying we need to subdue and capture more Alphas."
"Easier said than done." Zisu scoffed.
"Kricketune was tough, and there were three of us fighting," Ash added. "Munchlax was super tough, and Pikachu used Strong Style to boost his Thunderbolt, and Shinx helped too. But…"
"I said it myself, you're a league above most of my Security Corps." Zisu started pacing. "And that Mai girl was nothing to scoff at either. If you want more examples of Alpha Pokémon Professor, I can't make any promises."
"We'll need to report this to the Commander." Laventon mused. "And share this with the Diamond and Pearl Clans. Assuming they haven't worked it out themselves yet."
"Alpha Pokémon weren't always in Hisui, right?" No one had actually told Ash that, but he was starting to get that impression.
"No, at least not as far as we can tell. If they were here they were extremely rare. It's hard to say when they began appearing exactly, but I'm sure most people can connect their appearance to something else." Cyllene turned in her chair, looking out her window toward Mount Coronet.
And the Space-Time Rift hovering above it.
"I'm really glad I didn't grow giant and start attacking things." Ash gulped and Pikachu muttered in agreement.
"It makes me worry," Zisu muttered, loud enough for everyone. "Do you think the thing thats causing the Alpha Pokémon is also what sent Ash? Don't get me wrong kid I don't think you're out to destroy us. But maybe something else is."
"Uncomfortable thought isn't it?" Laventon chuckled without humor. "I suppose we can only guess at it all. Perhaps this is a natural phenomenon in its own way, and we simply don't understand it yet. I say we keep our heads and carry on."
"Indeed. You two are dismissed. Zisu do you wish to…" Cyllene began speaking to her counterpart as the two other Survey Corps members left.
"That went well." Laventon tried to keep his good spirits. "While the others didn't say it, you did a good job, my boy."
"Thanks, Professor." He thought he had but the captains knew how to make it sound bad. "I wonder where to keep Kricketune, I'm pretty sure he can't fit in my house."
"Ah yes, that is a bit of a pickle." Laventon hummed. "And while it seems to have calmed down, I feel worried about introducing it to the pasture. I'm sure we'll think of something. For now, would you mind coming to Aspiration Beach with me? I'd like to take a closer look-"
As he spoke the main door was shouldered open and Akari stumbled through, Ash blinked at her, almost not recognizing her. She wasn't wearing her Galaxy Team uniform, instead wearing a much more casual kimono and sandals. If it weren't for the hair or the Shinx he wouldn't have realized it was her.
Notably, she had a Bidoof under each arm and her hair was slightly frazzled. As soon as she caught sight of them, the teenager marched toward them. "Professor, you need to close your door when you go out."
"What?" He glanced at his lab and scratched his head. "It looks closed to me."
"That's because I closed it." Her eye twitched. "I also have Cyndaquil and Oshawott in Poké Balls."
"Ah." Laventon winced slightly. "Thank you, my girl. I suppose that saves me the trouble of rounding them back up later."
"Didn't you say you weren't going to keep them cooped up so much?" Ash deadpanned at the Professor and he found himself helpless against the judgment of two children.
"Well, I…" He scrambled a bit. "Perhaps we can discuss it now?"
"No can do." Akari leaned back and closed her eyes. "I need to take these two to Captain Sanqua. I don't know why she wants them but she seems to think they can help."
"Doof." One of the Bidoof honked as Akari turned about and headed for the Construction Corps office.
Ash could only scratch his head. "Seems like she had an interesting day. I wonder where she found those Bidoof."
"She is right though, I have been putting off finding alternative lodgings for Cyndaquil and Oshawott…" Laventon started humming again as Akari moved out of sight. "I wonder…"
"We c-could be in the village right now." Akari bemoaned as she huddled under a tarp in Deertrack Heights. "Nice and warm and dry."
"The S-survey C-corps job is n-n-never done!" Ash stuttered through chattering teeth.
"P-pika." Pikachu agreed, his head peeking out from beneath Ash's cloak.
"You two were clearly not built for Hisui weather," Mai smirked a little at them. "Just wait until winter gets here."
"C-could we get summer instead?"
"This is summer."
"O-o-o-oh." Ash managed and tried to tighten his cloak.
Freezing rain beat down around them. It wasn't sleet or snow but that didn't mean much with the way it easily penetrated clothing, freezing people to the bone.
As Cyllene had predicted, Ash and Akari had been sent with the Construction Corps and Supply Corps to help set up the new Base Camp in Deertrack Heights. They weren't the only ones, a few members of the Security Corps had been posted at the work site as well.
While the Security Corps were meant to guard the camp itself, Ash and Akari's job was to survey the area, as their corps name implied. Marking landmarks that might have been missed in earlier studies, taking note of the Pokémon, and keeping an eye out for trouble.
Of course, Laventon had given them some Research Tasks to manage while they were out here. Some for Kricketot, Geodude, Drifloon, and even Stantler once he learned they lived here. There was no shortage of work to do.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature chose when work was allowed to be done.
"I had h-hoped that the camp would be further along before this happened." Akari managed, glancing at a barebones wooden structure missing a roof. "At least we'd have something to protect us f-from the wind."
"Babies. The lot of you." Mai laughed. "Where's that adventurous spirit that led you to Hisui?"
"I l-left it back in Johto," Ash claimed. "At least it–t-t isn't a blizzard this time."
"W-why doesn't it surprise me you ended up trapped in a blizzard?" Akari managed, rolling her eyes.
"Everything I hear about Johto makes it sound even more ridiculous." Mai shook her head and sniffed at the stew she was stirring, offering a spoon to Munchlax. "What do you think?"
He swallowed, both the stew and the spoon, and tapped his chin. "Muuunch. Munch!"
"Salt?" Mai figured. "I swear I put enough in but alright." She retrieved another spoon from a wooden box filled with them. "Don't worry, this should put some fire back in your veins."
"The blizzard wasn't in Johto actually." Ash managed. "There were a few snow storms, like when I caught Bayleef! But nothing too bad. The blizzard was while I was traveling in Kanto."
Mai made an impressed sound. "You've done a lot of traveling for someone your age."
"Only a year and a b-bit," Ash admitted. "There's still a lot I want to see!"
"T-to be young and full of energy." Akari joked through her shivers.
"Ignoring the fact you're both kids." Mai shook her head. "I'm twenty-four you know."
"Wow, you're really old," Ash told her and Akari let out a bark of laughter.
"Maybe I'll give your portion to Munchlax."
"I'm sorry." Ash squeaked, forgetting the rule of "don't annoy the cook too much while they're cooking."
Deciding his best hope was to change the subject, he looked at Akari. "How's it going with Cyndaquil and Oshawott?" He asked her.
"It's going." She mumbled, pulling her cloak over her face a bit. "I can't believe you two thought it was a good idea to give them to me!"
"They were going stir crazy!" Ash defended. "And you've done great with them so far!"
"I went from having one partner to having three!" She managed without a stutter. "That's a huge difference!"
"At least none of them are bigger than you are." Ash stuck his tongue out.
"Ah yes, the troublemaker." Mai smiled a little. "Is Kricketune settling in?"
"Sort of?" Ash shrugged. "I can't let him out as much as the others because he's too big! And I couldn't bring him here with us because that might upset Wyrdeer!"
"Thank you for the forethought." Mai acknowledged as she stirred. "Although he does seem rather pleased with the current affairs, he's let construction of your base camp continue without disruption."
"That was a possibility?" Akari looked alarmed.
"A small one. I cannot command the great Wyrdeer, merely advise him. I explained your desire to set up a camp here. The fact he didn't tear down the tents the first night means he has accepted your presence here. Perhaps he is wistful for the time our ancestors built here." She glanced at the ruined columns nearby.
"Why didn't you build here?" Ash asked her. "Your ancestors I mean. When your clan came back to Hisui?"
"There weren't many of us in those days, and we were almost as fearful of the local Pokémon as you." She laughed a bit. "Supposedly. At least we had a healthy respect and tried not to step on any toes. Our main settlement is near Lake Valor in the east."
"How many villages do you have actually?" Akari asked. "I know the wardens have tents and houses all over for whenever you need them, but…"
"Not too many. We built up our first settlement rather than spreading out. Of course, the Pearl Clan loves to fill up space. They have "villages" in almost every province of Hisui." Mai sniffed, and not to smell her stew. "Some of them are empty, sitting as a mocking affront to us of the Diamond Clan. But some are inhabited. I believe their main settlement is to the north, in the Alabaster Icelands, but they have a village on the shore south of us, just beyond the Heartwood."
"You two really don't get along do you?" Ash wondered. It was a little weird to think the two clans disliked each other so much.
"Not really. Their false interpretation of Almighty Sinnoh and refusal to compromise makes them particularly unbearable. Although if you think it's bad now then I envy you." Mai muttered that last part.
"I'm g-guessing things weren't always so peaceful?" Akari guessed. "I gathered as much, but I haven't been part of the main negotiations."
"We have been in conflict for centuries," Mai confirmed. "It's only the last fifty years that we've had an unsteady truce. There are still disagreements but after the last war, both sides realized that Almighty Sinnoh wouldn't want this. As wrong as they are about Sinnoh's nature, they at least understand His love of the land and those in it."
She sipped some of her stew and smiled. "Aha! Ready at last! Enjoy you two, it should help."
The two Survey Corps members, as well as Pikachu and Rowlet eagerly slurped down the meal. It worked just as promised, the Figy Berry added just enough of a kick that filled them with warmth and let them relax a bit more.
But as much as he enjoyed the food, Ash wasn't content. The concept of wars being fought over something as silly as what Sinnoh was felt wrong. "Do you know what Sinnoh is?" He asked. "I mean, really?"
"What does that mean?" Mai didn't seem to understand.
"You said Sinnoh is a deity right?" She nodded. "Well… I met a Pokémon once, in Johto. It's name is Celebi."
He watched her, waiting to see if she reacted with any form of recognition. "The locals called Celebi, "the Voice of the Forest" and… it can control time."
That startled Mai. "What?"
"While we were in that forest we met a boy called Sammy, he had been trying to protect Celebi from a poacher. We brought him back to the village nearby and a woman there recognized him. She had met him fifty years ago while he was passing through."
Ash told the rest of the story as the others listened with rapt attention. Pikachu had been there and added a few extra details to the Pokémon, maybe some things Celebi had said that he couldn't understand.
He wrapped up with Celebi returning Sammy to his own time, the road after that had felt a bit different for a few days. Even with Professor Oak's assurance that Sammy would remember them and their friendship.
Mai appeared deep in thought. "A Pokémon with power over time…"
"As soon as you explained Sinnoh to me I've been thinking about it." Ash admitted.
The Diamond Clan warden didn't say anything else for a few minutes, thinking over the story. Munchlax took the chance to take an extra share from her own bowl but she didn't stop him.
"I can understand why you might think Celebi was Almighty Sinnoh, but I'm not so sure." Mai finally admitted. "It's not that I don't believe you. I'm sure you met Celebi and based on what you said it sounds likely it had some ability to travel time, but…"
She looked at the cooking fire with narrowed eyes. "It doesn't sound like Celebi could control time. Merely travel it. A messenger on the winds of ages. Taking a passenger with them but unable to control the flow. If it could, surely the poachers you mentioned would never have even come close to hurting it?"
That… hadn't occurred to Ash. "Huh, I guess you're right. If Celebi could control time then it should have been able to avoid the poachers, or even make it so they never went to the forest while it was there."
"If nothing else, it's an interesting story." Mai patted his shoulder.
"Every story he tells is interesting." Akari pointed out with lidded eyes.
"Perhaps Celebi does have some connection to Almighty Sinnoh though." Mai cupped her chin and her brow furrowed. "I can't imagine Almighty Sinnoh would be unaware of a Pokémon journeying through time. Perhaps Celebi was also blessed by Almighty Sinnoh, while Hisui may be the birthplace of all things, who's to say Sinnoh did not look across the world and see other places to touch?"
"Maybe you're right." Ash looked at his stew. "I wonder if there are other Pokémon like Celebi and Wyrdeer then. Well, and the others you mentioned."
"Perhaps. The next time I have a chance I'll ask some of my clanmates." She snapped her fingers. "That reminds me Akari, Adaman said he'd copy some of our records of the cataclysm and bring them to your professor the next time he visits Jubilife."
"Ah! I almost forgot about that! Thank you Mai!"
"Don't mention it, if anything it's an object lesson that history can be forgotten if not shared." She raised a finger as though a teacher lecturing a point. "And that would truly be an insult to Almighty Sinnoh!"
"Even the boring parts?" Ash remembered several boring history lessons when he had to go to school. Not to mention several history study packets he had to read on the road. Stupid "Journey Education Program." He bet Sammy hadn't had to deal with that in his day!
Wait, he was before Sammy's day. That meant he didn't have to deal with it either! Ha!
"And the embarrassing parts." Mai and Munchlax snickered at some inside joke. "But I do envy you Ash, meeting someone from another time must have been amazing. A true blessing from Almighty Sinnoh. I wonder if I'll ever get that chance…"
Akari gave Ash a resigned look as a devious smile spread across his face. "Well…"
Needless to say, they had a lot to talk about as they waited out the storm.
Even after the rainstorm passed the Construction Corps had to wait for the ground to harden a bit before work could begin again. That didn't affect Ash and Akari as much, even if they had to be a bit careful of the muddy terrain. Neither of them wanted to slip down the ridge of Deertrack Heights.
Ash had taken the risky chance of taking both Starly and Noctowl with him for this week-long mission. He had enough of walking on eggshells around them, if they never became best friends fine, but they needed to learn how to work together.
Besides, Ash knew he needed Noctowl with him if there were Stantler around here. How better to beat an illusionist than with an illusionist of his own?
He and Akari had split up, he was wandering the upper ridge while she followed the trail back down to Deertrack Path. She wanted to give Oshawott and Cyndaquil some on-the-job training and keeping the road clear of rowdy Geodude seemed like a good way to do that.
His own Cyndaquil had joined them, she had more experience and would be able to offer some pointers to Akari's new teammate. Maybe help him avoid some pitfalls she'd encountered in the past. Akari knew she needed all the help she could get and graciously accepted.
Mai hung back and let them work, but she'd occasionally appear, always unexpectedly to check up on what they were doing.
One such occasion happened as Ash was intently focused on the battle between his tree and a sneaky bush.
"Still looking for Stantler?" She asked, the only warning of her approach were Munchlax's heavy footsteps.
"Found one." he nodded at the bush and she cocked a brow before realizing.
"Ah. An illusion?" Mai had spent enough time in the heights to know what Stantler could do.
"Noctowl thinks so. These Stantler are weird. Either they run away, charge us, or try to mess with us." Ash checked his tree and noted it had moved several feet forward. Had the bush noticed?
"That's the odd flying-type you have with you right?" She checked. "It can perform illusions too?"
"Yeah, when I first met Notcowl instead of battling he used his illusions to confuse us. I managed to catch him in the end though." He explained, worried that if he looked away the bush might vanish.
He didn't see Mai's frown but he could feel it. "Perhaps he didn't want to be captured at all?"
"Then he could have flown away after I used the ball." Ash pointed out, wondering how to explain. "I mean, it's not always the case, but when I'm from Pokémon who are interested in traveling with trainers go out of their way to challenge them. Sometimes they just want to get rid of people in their territory, but other times it's a test. If we catch them we pass and they join us."
"I see." There was almost a sadness in Mai's tone. "Poké Balls have become the norm in your time then?"
"Yeah." He risked a glance at her. "I don't know anyone who uses them as prisons for Pokémon, but like I said, they're convenient. Pikachu and Rowlet don't like them, but most Pokémon don't seem to mind at all. They can leave whenever they want to!"
To prove his point, Totodile emerged and rasped a greeting to Mai and Munchlax before returning himself.
The sudden appearance of the water-type forced a chuckle from the woman. "That's something at least- your bush is getting away."
Ash cursed and started running after Stantler, lights glittering around his horns as a fake underbrush appeared behind him. "He's getting away Nocto- oh."
Stantler had glanced back to laugh at Ash but ran straight into an invisible barrier. Or rather, a rock wall that had been hidden by an illusion. The area around them shifted, showing just how talented Noctowl was.
While he had used his illusions to appear as a tree, he had subtly shifted the way the world looked around them. Rotating it ever so slightly minute by minute that Stantler hadn't noticed that he was running the wrong way.
"Impressive." Mai had to admit as Noctowl's tree dissolved and he smoothed his feathers, raising his head high. "I don't think I've seen illusions like that from any Pokémon but a Zoroark."
"Zoroark?" Ash asked as his Poké Ball stopped shaking and spewed smoke, confirming Stantler's catch.
"A Pokémon native to the Alabaster Icelands in the north. They're far better at illusions than any Stantler. I've even seen them disguise themselves as other Pokémon or even humans! Their pre-evolution Zorua can do it as well, but not to the same degree."
"Huh." Ash glanced at Noctowl and saw a glint in his eyes. "I think you just gave Noctowl a new rival."
"What? The entire species?" Mai laughed and Ash didn't. "Oh merciful Sinnoh you're serious."
"I'll ask Professor Laventon and Captain Cyllene about it." Ash decided as he returned Noctowl. "All my missions have been in the Obsidian Fieldlands so far."
"It is a lot farther away." Mai claimed as they walked. "Not to mention a lot colder. If the rain got you then you haven't seen anything yet."
"I might need a warmer uniform." Ash pulled at his kimono. "And some proper boots. I'm tired of these sandals."
"I'm sure you could request it…" She trailed off as the camp came back into sight. "Now what's going on there?"
There seemed to be some sort of argument going on between the Construction Corps members. Ash even recognized a few of the Supply Corps members involved. "Maybe we ran out of something?"
"Glad to see the guards doing their job." Mai glanced at the Security Corps members and one held up his hands.
"Hey we'll step in if it gets violent but right now it's just a kid yelling at people."
"Kid?" They got a bit closer and were able to make out individual voices. Sure enough it seemed like one person was going against all the others, and they sounded young.
"You're making a huge mistake! This isn't going to last!"
"It's going up fast, that's the point. We can build something more permanent after we get settled."
"I doubt that." Ash saw the "kid" in question. He'd seen him before with the other Construction Corps members on the first day before the rain. A boy a bit older than him but younger than Akari. He had round glasses and lavender hair.
"Stop wasting everyone's time runt." A Supply Corps member with gray hair but young features glared at him. "It's not reasonable and the grounds almost dried enough for us to get back to work."
"It is reasonable! Look around us!" He gestured to the ridge surrounding the clearing. "There's plenty of stone here! We shouldn't be building out of cloth and wood! Not with the Pokémon and climate around here!"
"Well that's what you're getting." The Supply Corps member waved off. "Unless you want to take a pickaxe and quarry this place by yourself, 'cause we aren't helping."
"What's going on?" Ash asked, injecting himself into the problem like it was his job. He did that a lot come to think of it.
"Ah!" A Construction Corps member jumped when Ash spoke up, her back had been to him and Mai. "Oh it's the falling kid."
"Brats crawling out of the wood work. I can't fathom why Captain Sanqua sent this one with us, at least that one isn't part of our corps." A Construction Corps member complained.
"If you must know, this screw head thinks we should abandon all our materials and start building the camp out of stone." Someone jabbed a thumb at the fuming boy.
"I didn't say that!" Ash noticed an accent he couldn't place. "I said the main building should have stone brick walls and the other structures need stone foundations!"
"And that's not unreasonable," the first Construction Corps member Ash had heard respond said diplomatically. The six stars on his kimono marked him the highest rank present. "But we don't have time now. Godey you can talk to Captain Sanqua about adjustments to the camp after we get it set up."
"Absolutely unreasonable." The Supply Corps member sniffed. "Just more extra work. There's enough to do."
"That's enough Charm, this argument is over." The six star team member glanced at the boy. "Godey cool off a bit. Sometimes you need to listen to other people but I'm not putting you to work like this."
The boy glared but kept his mouth shut, stomping off as Charm smirked.
"Now back to work! These beams aren't going to go up by themselves." That wiped the smirk off her face and she scowled as the group went back to construction.
"Sounds like someone wants a more permanent settlement than a camp." Mai mused, staring after the boy.
"Let's find out why!" Ash followed after him and Mai weighed her options before deciding watching Ash involve himself in other people's business was too interesting to pass up.
Godey noticed them before he arrived at the large tent the Construction Corps were using as a barracks. "What are you following me for?"
"I wanted to know what all that was about!" Ash answered honestly as Godey eyed him.
"Didn't you hear enough?"
"Maybe." Mai agreed. "But I'm curious, it sounds like you want to build a lot more than a base camp here."
The young Construction Corps member swallowed and put his hands up. "I'm tired of putting ramshackle huts together. Half of them will start falling apart when the winter hits. I'm from Medali, I know what a harsh winter can do to wooden structures."
"So you want something a bit sturdier." Ash figured out. "But no one wants to get the stone you need."
"It's frustrating!" He threw his hands up and turned, look a bit wistfully at the broken columns from ancient Hisui. "Look at those! They were built by people so ancient we don't even know their names! But all these years later they're still there. There's something left of them. I'm not saying we need to build to last as long as they did, but we need to build sturdier now so we don't have to rebuild with a mountain of snow on our heads."
"There's not much left of them though." Ash joked but got a glare. "Sorry, I guess I kind of get it. But aren't you making too big a deal out of this? The other guy said you could make modifications once you had something built."
"Better to do it right the first time," Godey muttered. "I don't like it but Yasuo's right. And Captain Sanqua would probably agree with him. I'm just tired of yelling at the wall!"
"It does seem a bit unrealistic to start building out of stone bricks when you don't have any." Mai reminded him, but not unkindly. "I think that's the kind of thing you need to work out before you get started on a project."
"I was hoping to convince a few people on the way over…" Godey took his glasses off and started cleaning them, maybe a nervous habit. "But no one listened, especially that Charm lady, everytime I suggested anything she said it would be too much work."
"She seemed a little mean," Ash admitted. "How would you get the stone though? The Supply Corps would have to mine it right? I don't think the Gingko Guild or clans could sell you that." He glanced at Mai just in case but she shook her head.
"There are some ancient quarries on Mount Coronet, they're probably where the stone for all the ancient structures came from. In the early days during the First Clan War my ancestors tried to reopen them to build better fortifications but the Pearl Clan had the same idea. During the treaty signing they decided that either side trying to claim the quarries was just asking for trouble."
"So you just gave up?" Godey sounded offended by the notion.
"You have some strong opinions about stonework don't you?" Mai chuckled at him.
"Captain Sanqua told me I need to listen to other people more. Otherwise I'll never get my way. But it feels like even when I do it doesn't work."
Ash glanced at the stone walls around them, there was plenty of stone here, just no way to mine it. Maybe if Godey had a steel-type or a rock-type-
An idea struck him and he grinned, Pikachu saw the look on his face and sensed a coming adventure.
"What's that look on your face?" Godey managed to ask before yelping when Ash grabbed the taller boy by the shoulders.
"The Supply Corps won't help you get stone right? That's the big problem? What if you could get it without them?"
"I wish, but that would take me ages to mine-"
"Sure it would take you ages! Even if Mai and I helped you it would still take forever!" Ash agreed and Mai let out a squawk of indignation.
"Don't go volunteering me!"
"But if you had a Pokémon to help you…" Ash spun Godey around and pointed down the trail. "Like a Geodude? You could get a ton of stone in no time! And Geodude could even help you carve it into shape!"
"Me- a Pokémon-" Godey stuttered, almost seeming horrified by the idea. "That's ridiculous!"
"Sure it's not!" Ash started dragging him along behind him. "Akari went down to look for Geodude already! We can catch up with her! If you prove to others you don't need to do a bunch of extra work for stone then they won't mind building with it right?"
Godey struggled, apparently going through an internal conflict between his fear of Pokémon and his desire to create buildings the way he wanted.
"Alright." Desire won out. Ash could hear the boy's resolve harden. "Let's catch a Geodude."
"That's the spirit! I'll show you how to throw a Poké Ball, do you want to borrow one of my teammates? Or maybe try to convince Geodude on your own? Or…" Ash continued to ramble at Godey as the two boys hiked after Akari.
Behind them Mai couldn't wipe the amused grin off her face. But there was more than amusement to her mirth. "Humans and Pokémon, living in harmony together." She whispered. "Maybe that's why Almighty Sinnoh sent you here Ash."
The Diamond Clan member followed along with Munchlax before they could get too far away. She needed to see how this went.
Akari's Observation Log.
Entry #1: Pikachu
Sex: M
Weight: 6kg
Height: .4m
Ability: ?
Observed Moves: Thunderbolt, Thundershock, Quick Attack, Agility, Tackle, Double Edge(not seen but mentioned by Ash)
Physical Description:
Primarily covered with yellow fur, there are a few spots with black or brown fur instead. Two brown stripes on its back and there is a bit of brown fur at the base of its tail. The tail is jagged, almost in the shape of a lightning bolt, and is used as a conductor to channel electricity. The ears are long and pointed, ending with black fur.
Hindlegs are stubby, and seem to be hidden by the torso above the knees. Long feet ending in three-toes. Forelegs are used as arms are considerably longer than the hindlegs and have five toes or fingers on each.
The face is rodentlike, with a small black nose and black eyes. There is a red electric sack on each cheek that Pikachu can use to store electricity.
Personal Observations:
Pikachu always stays by Ash's side, either on his shoulder or walking alongside him. I honestly cannot think of a time I've seen them apart since Ash's arrival.
Despite saying that Pikachu has attacked him on multiple occasions in the past, Ash seems completely at ease with the electric-type riding on his shoulder. While I haven't witnessed any of these shocks myself I have seen Pikachu use his tail to whack Ash in the head or poke his cheek to get his attention.
The relationship between the two is… odd. I'd almost say it was a sibling dynamic. They display a level of trust greater than any other pair I've seen, even some married couples. I have watched Ash carry out entire arguments with Pikachu despite not understanding any of his words.
I believe Pikachu is also somewhat protective of Ash. A few times when I've made a "snide" remark at his expense and it's gone over his head, I've seen Pikachu glare at me, those cheeks of his sparking ever so slightly.
In battle they are a unit, Ash doesn't need to direct Pikachu's movements and simply calls out attacks or warns him of attacks he can't see. Pikachu never seems to doubt Ash's instructions, even when I do, and follows them without question. As I said, the trust between them is incredible.
In watching Pikachu interact with other Pokemon I've noticed he takes on a role similar to Ash, especially with his teammates. If Ash is focused on one of his Pokemon, and one of the others seems to be struggling, Pikachu will take a break from his own training and focus on them.
Beyond similar roles, they seem to have similar personalities, appearing to share tastes in food, jokes, and conversation. This does not mean they're always in agreement, and will occasionally mock the other in certain situations.
When Ash tried cooking, Pikachu made gagging motions and similar mocking gestures. When Pikachu was having trouble while training, Ash jumped in and pretended to do the move, even flexing as though to show how strong he was.
In a way, they are extensions of each other and part of why I wanted to start this observation log. Our mission in completing the Pokedex is to seek out and study all the species living in Hisui, but here is a single Pokemon that needs deeper observation.
Perhaps studying Ash and his interactions with his Pokemon will help me build trust with mine. Especially since Laventon dropped two more on me I̶ s̶w̶e̶a̶r̶ t̶h̶a̶t̶ m̶a̶n̶ w̶i̶l̶l̶ b̶e̶ t̶h̶e̶ d̶e̶a̶t̶h̶ o̶f̶ m̶e̶
Well that was a chapter!
Lot of things learned this chapter, about Alphas and how they work, some Hisui history, the logistics of building with wood versus stone.
Gotta say with the Alpha, there's a part of me that's laughing to myself. Because I got comments and reviews talking about Ash getting a giant fluffy good boy like Luxio and I'm just thinking "bug"
Kricketune is also a good boy though.
This chapter was a lot of setting things up, building some relationships, establishing that there are rules and Ash can't just do whatever he wants, and preparing for the Clan Heads and more importantly, Kleavor.
The game immediately goes from Wyrdeer to Kleavor, but well travel takes time. Messages need to move and I do not understand what Galaxy Team members and Diamond Clan members would have been close enough to the Heartwood to get hurt by Kleavor.
Seriously, who got hurt? There are no other Survey Corps members-
Anyway, seeing a few more Galaxy Team members, I'm sure you all know Charm, Captain Sanqua is Karen's ancestor but unfortunately canon Ash never met Karen, some nameless folks, one Construction Corps member I named after an architect and Godey.
I hope those of you who recognized Godey started screaming at your computers and if you may I suggest you grab some popcorn and watch a movie. Maybe about a rise. A rise of rai. RISE OF DARKR-
Yeah that Godey. Alamos Town couldn't have existed before the Galaxy Team after all… at least it's highly unlikely. And Godey is based on Gaudi who was spanish so Paldean. It's all coming together.
Like I said, lots of set up. Starting to introduce Pokémon to the members of the Galaxy Team and expanding the world a bit. Hopefully I'm not going too deep with things yet. Which reminds me I need to write it all down so I don't forget anything or accidentally contradict myself…
Also Akari's Observation Log! Kman in discord gave me the idea for that after chapter four. I was lamenting my descriptions of Ash's Pokémon felt a bit awkward. He suggested I do something like that, Akari's observations of Ash's team (and eventually her own).
I meant to include it last chapter but my brain was mush by the time that was ready.
Which reminds me, I might be going back and making some edits. I reread it after posting and there were a few parts that felt… off to me. Either worded weirdly or awkward. Nothing too crazy, things will overall stay the same, just some house cleaning.
That about covers it. Reviews!
Reader: It's not even out yet-
Lablord5: There's a surprising amount about Ingo, a character who I did not recognize when introduced and only realized after the fact he was a character from a different game. I'm kind of confused at the sudden interest in the Subway Bros but I won't knock it. And I will admit I have thought about what Ash's reactions to the descendants would be like even if I'm not sure about the specifics.
LEGOBRICK13: Ash is always excited to meet a new Pokémon! Especially one that evolves from a Pokémon he does know! I will admit I thought of including some world building about a "Poké Ball Lock" feature on the modern Poké Balls but decided against it in the end. It didn't fit what I was going for here. I'm looking forward to Ash meeting the other clanmates and debated ending this chapter with him meeting the Clan Leaders. Looking forward to that. And yeah screw Melli. I despise his existance, why is he ruining one of my favorite Pokémon games by being in it?
Fangs of death: Thanks!
Butterflypuss: Thank you!
Neoblackheart1: Honestly there's a potential sequel about that but I know not if I will have the energy or motivation to write it when the time comes. If it does…
Uber Ghidorah: How dare you say that about opera conductor bug!? You'll hurt his feelings!
Phcgamer: That's not how Pokémon talk!
That about covers it. We'll get to Kleavor either next chapter or set him up and finish it the chapter after.
I will say that trying to play through Legends: Arceus slowly is agonizing. I have to keep stopping to take notes during cutscenes and then I'll just be exploring and spot a Pokémon in x location and thing "oh I should make a note of that" or see a specific landmark and need to write a description. You get the idea.
I'm remembering why this fic gave me so much trouble in the first place. It's not that I don't want to write it, but there's more going into it than my other fics.
But I'll manage, see you guys next weekend!
~FriTik
R&R