The first sign of morning was the smell.
Before the sun could be seen over the horizon, before the chatter of birds could be heard in the distance, the first sign of morning was the smell. It wafted through the air, the scent that could gently stir a whole city awake, day after day, for forever: The aroma of freshly baked bread.
Fresh bread was prepared only hours before it was baked, and it would be eaten only hours after. It wasn't just bread though, pastries too. The light and buttery smell of croissants, the chocolate tones of bomboloni— just a hint of the confections could bring anyone to their feet with a hunger to start the day on. Today was no different.
The city stirred to life, not with a jolt, but with a gentle calm sigh after a good long rest.
Before long, it wasn't just the smell heralding the morning. Soon the sound joined it— The pitter-patter of feet on stone walkways, the gentle sloshing of gondolas through the water. It all mixed and mingled into the ambient background— Even the airy chatter of the people itself joined in, the good mornings and how-do-you-dos, the morning check-ins and a few unfortunate good nights.
Under it all, under the chatter and pitter-patter, barely noticeable, was a hum. If someone in that city, the city of Alto Mare, took a moment to listen, they could just about hear it. They might even see the light red streak that was trailing across the sky in time with it.
That hum, it was like that of a plane.
In a quiet section of Alto Mare, where the canal waters remained calm long past sunrise, the day seemed to finally begin setting in. The sun had risen high enough to bring some direct light to the inner streets and tight alleyways. A spot of that light even managed to make its way to the underpass of a canal bridge, right onto the face of a sleeping Pokémon.
Stirring from his slumber, a groggy Sableye muttered and groaned, looking up at the rising sun with a glare of contempt before he sat up. Guttural clicks underlied his voice, with the hint of a petulant whine as he stretched and yawned.
Yet, his confusion drained away after a few moments, when something else entirely caught his attention. Up there, in the sky just by the sun, was a moving streak. It certainly wasn't a cloud. Even ignoring the fact the sky was completely clear, clouds tended not to be red, like this streak was.
As he looked on at the sight, another resident of the canal underpass stirred awake. A Mawile, awoken by the Sableye's open-mouth ramblings, groaned and stood up, making her way to the canal to rinse off her face.
Noticing his companion had awoken, the Sableye began pointing out the odd streak, jabbering with his gremlin-like voice and pointing at the sky. Yet, despite his best attempts, the Mawile ignored him, kneeling at the edge of the canal and scooping up some water to splash into her face.
Grumbling, the Sableye went to grab his companion's attention. Surely she'd find the sight of the streak as odd as he did. However, just as he approached, she turned, swinging her massive second mouth behind her in the process. Without even trying, Mawile smacked Sableye across the side of his head, nearly knocking him into the canal, all by accident.
Sableye barked loudly in frustration, finally earning his companion's undivided attention as she yipped back at him. What was he even going on about, she said. Jabbing his fingers at her second mouth, Sableye spoke quickly and harshly, pulling an offended gasp from Mawile.
Snarling back, Mawile half threatened Sableye with another near dip into the canal, pulling her mouth forward and brandishing it like a weapon.
The fight between the two grew louder and louder, until their full attention was entirely devoted to each other. The outside world was barely registering to them now, let alone the tiny things off in the distance.
For example, take that odd streak, the one the Sableye was pointing out to begin with. Neither of them could even notice how it seemed to suddenly turn in midair, and then begin growing larger.
Mawile dodged a scratch from Sableye, before smacking him once then twice. She didn't start this fight, but she was certainly going to finish it. Who cared about some dumb streak in the sky, anyways?
Meanwhile, it was quickly becoming apparent that the odd reddish streak wasn't growing. It was approaching.
Sableye slapped Mawile's second mouth, snickering to himself as she yelped in surprise. A few more of those, and he'd win this—
Before another blow could be struck, the whole underpass was blown clear with a sudden torrent of wind. It separated Mawile and Sableye, sending the latter flying to the other side of the canal. Standing at attention, Mawile growled, looking for what just attacked them while Sableye rubbed his head from the impact.
Then, a shrill cry filled the canal underpass, freezing the two of them in place.
Turning, the two of them faced the source of it all— The source of the cry, the source of the gust that had blown them apart, and the red streak that began their altercation.
The two of them turned and faced Latias, Guardian of Alto Mare, floating above the canal.
An air of silence stood for a moment, with Sableye and Mawile turning and looking at one another. Then, before another thing could be done or said, accusations began to fly. With desperate gestures and jabbering calls, the two quite literally pointed fingers as they looked to Latias in hope to curry favor.
Snorting, Latias ignored them, leaving them surprised as she floated over to Sableye. Without a moment's hesitation, she plucked him up from the ground and carried him over to the other side of the canal. Plopping him down next to Mawile, Latias gave the two a stern, yet kind, look. Her message rang out to them loud and clear: Stop fighting.
With a nod from the two of them, Latias gave a smile and happy chirp, before jetting out of the canal without another word. Mere moments later, she disappeared from view.
Staring out at the canal, Sableye and Mawile could only begin to wonder— How long had it been since someone saw the elusive Latias, the quiet guardian of Alto Mare?
The details of the buildings and canals faded away as Latias gained altitude, returning to her perch high above the city, where she liked it. It wasn't that she had a problem flying near the ground, no sir. She just had a better vantage point up here is all, and she could see the whole of Alto Mare from this high. It just made her patrol easier, that's all!
Honestly.
Latias let out a bored sigh as she approached the south end of the city, the last section she needed to check out for her patrol today. It was an antsy kind of boredom, the kind that couldn't wait for chores to be done with. Even a high speed roll through the air couldn't help to get her heart beat going for the task.
The temptation to skip out, like she used to do for years when she was younger, was overwhelming. It was just one part of the city after all, what could there even be there for her to help with?
With a shake of her head, Latias put that thought out of her mind. She knew better than to shirk on her responsibilities. She had a duty to her home, her city, her family.
As the southern corner of the city began to pass under her, Latias huffed with a pout. At least this'd go fast. It always did.
After all, nothing ever happens in Alto Mare.
The sound of old metal tools grinding away at wood filled Lorenzo's ears, as decades of muscle memory guided his hands to work. It was relaxing in a way, how his body just moved through the motions, carving and smoothing wood, turning a mighty oak from some far off land into a gondola fit for his home. It let him forget the little things that ought to be forgotten.
Pulling away from the unfinished ship, Lorenzo reviewed the design again. It was jotted down on a napkin to his right.
"Ah, this is for Roberto." He muttered to himself, before moving closer to the nose of the gondola. "Roberto is a spindly boy, barely 150 pounds. I should shave down more weight here."
Gondolas were peculiar things. They needed to be weighted and balanced for their specific driver. You couldn't mass produce them in some factory somewhere— Which was good for Lorenzo, otherwise he'd be out of a hobby.
Deciding he needed a different bench plane for this job, Lorenzo slid over on his swivel chair to his work bench—
—And discovered a croissant, waiting for him.
"Ah, right," he mumbled, scratching the side of his head and staring at the product of his own forgetfulness. The croissant stared back at him. No forgiveness from this pastry, it seemed. Lorenzo had left his breakfast there to cool while he got some work done, just a few minutes at most it felt. But, it seemed time had gotten away from him. "Welp."
Grabbing the tool he was looking for, Lorenzo quickly left his mistake behind. It was cold already— he might as well finish this.
His mind went back to the gondola, to the next few steps in the process. After he finished shaving and balancing the frame, he would need to start lacquering and laminating the hull, a contemptible task if there ever was one. One day he'd remember to ask Bianca to bring in a respirator from the mainland, if inhaling the lacquer vapors didn't kill him first.
As his mind turned to his granddaughter, Lorenzo turned to grab his wood chisel—
—Before he froze.
Floating before him, frozen like he was, was his granddaughter, Latias, with his breakfast half way down her gullet.
"Uh, hi?" The sound of Latias's voice came clearly in his mind, despite the pastry occupying her mouth— a trick Lorenzo had never quite grown accustomed to. With a mighty chomp, Latias bit through the croissant and swallowed the first half whole. "Right, finished!"
Latias's celebratory tone at managing to eat his breakfast could do nothing less than send an infectious hearty laugh through Lorenzo's belly, as he hopped off his seat to go give the girl a hug. She resisted for only a moment before giving in with a giggle and hugging him back. Her short draconic arms barely wrapped around his frame.
"It's good to see you out and about, Latias. Sometimes it feels like you only leave the garden once a day," Lorenzo commented, sitting down at his workbench across from Latias, passing forward the second half of his croissant to her.
"Hey, I get out way more than that!" Latias whined with a pout, as she took the rest of the pastry and began nibbling on it. Still chewing, she continued, her eyes traveling across the workshop. "My patrol was booooring, so I thought I would check up on what you were doing!"
Swallowing again, Latias chirped and gave Lorenzo a cheery grin, one he returned with a snort. A thought crossed his mind as he rubbed his chin.
"Boredom, eh? Well, there's no better cure for that than a little hard work and adventure!" he asserted, making Latias smile awkwardly at the prospect of work somehow being the cure for boredom. "If you're so free, perhaps you could take a quick trip over to the mainland, pick up a respirator for me?"
Where Latias had apprehensive interest moments ago, now all she had was apprehension. Her head pulled back and her eyes fell to the floor, as her sunny disposition seemed to drain away.
"I'm sorry, I— I can't—" Yet, before Latias could finish the thought, she was interrupted. The door to the workshop slammed open, making her jump from her seat and disappear in a flash. "Eep!"
Just like that, Latias had gone invisible, leaving Lorenzo to sigh as a boy entered.
"Zio, Zio Lorenzo! My apologies— This door has always been so light." The boy gave a sheepish apology as he gently shut the door behind him, a comical sight considering how he stood nearly as tall as the entryway itself. His clothes were tight, and the working overalls he wore were a size or two too small. He often apologized for that as well. Always apologizing that one was. "My apologies for my tardiness as well, I'm ready to work!"
At that word, the boy bowed his head down, making Lorenzo laugh and get up off his seat.
"Marco my boy, you're quite alright!" he assured, helping him stand straight and patting his back. Despite how much Marco towered over him, Lorenzo still seemed to make the boy jostle a bit with each pat. "We won't be getting any work done today anyhow, not until we get a respirator in."
"For lacquering the gondolas, Zio Lorenzo?" Marco asked, earning a nod from Lorenzo as he hummed in thought.
"Actually, perhaps you could go pick one up! It's just a quick ferry ride to the mainland and back," he suggested, separating from Marco and facing him head on. "Do you think you can handle that, my boy?"
Nodding, Marco repeated the instructions back to himself to confirm. Assured he knew what needed to be done, Marco bowed one last time before leaving. With a smile, Lorenzo shut the door behind him.
"You can come out now, Latias," he said, turning just in time to see Latias reappear from thin air. His smile slipped as he saw how she fiddled with her hands, nervously looking back at the door Marco had just left from. "Latias…"
Returning to the workbench, Lorenzo pulled Latias's attention back to him.
"Marco has been working under me for years now, he's practically family," Lorenzo asserted as Latias floated over her seat and settled down. "When are you going to introduce yourself? This hiding routine surely can't last forever."
"Eventually! Eventually," Latias assured, pursing her lips and shaking her head. "I am just— you know."
Sighing, Lorenzo reached forward and ran his fingers through her feathery down. In an instant, she calmed.
"I know, I know," he reassured her. "It's just so heartbreaking, seeing how skittish you are, ever since—"
"I am not skittish!" Latias shouted in protest, shaking her head before she crossed her arms and pouted. Yet, despite her very convincing argument, it seemed to only earn a chuckle from Lorenzo. Huffing, Latias helped herself to the last of his croissant. "Do you know when Bianca will be back from school?"
The question caught Lorenzo's attention just as he turned.
"It's funny you ask! She just called in this morning, going on and on about her finals and things," he answered, rubbing his chin while he recalled the conversation. "You wouldn't believe it, but she's finally started talking to her roommate, this late into the semester! What a peculiar girl she—"
Latias giggled as Lorenzo began rambling aloud, recounting all the things from his call with Latias's best friend.
"Grandfather," she interrupted, snapping Lorenzo out of his stupor.
"Ah right." Laughing at himself, Lorenzo continued. "She said she should be done soon enough. But she's considering taking on some apprentice work over her break, get some experience under her cap."
Latias frowned, the answer registering in her eyes for a moment.
"I don't blame her," she said, looking down at the empty plate she'd left behind. There was nothing left for her there. "Nothing ever happens in Alto Mare."
From her spot above the north ports, Latias looked on with a mix of apprehension and curiosity, watching boat after boat enter Alto Mare. The city had never been a quiet place, but this was an unusual amount of activity, especially for ships which weren't native to Alto Mare. She could feel it, in all the people in their pristine and clean boats— Not a single one of them had stepped foot in Alto Mare before.
Slipping out from her hiding spot, Latias paused, taking only a moment to glance back. She gave the statue of Latios a strong look before sneaking off. It was time to investigate.
Following the line of boats overhead, Latias tracked them to their destination, the Alto Mare Amphitheater. Bianca had brought her here a few times, it was a place for plays, movies, and sometimes even speeches. What was going on now, however, was something new entirely.
It was a sight to behold in a way, the way the workers unloaded and carried off crates from the dozens and dozens of incoming ships. No one moved that fast in Alto Mare— There'd never been a need to. So watching all these workers absolutely dashing to get their job done, it sent Latias's curiosity into overdrive.
That being said, it didn't ease Latias's frantic worry, instead only confirming what she knew— These were all outsiders.
Getting in as close as she could, Latias tried her best to suss out what exactly they were doing, trying to read some of the labels or signs they were handling as they stacked up boxes on the amphitheater stage. However, it was to no avail.
"It'd help if I weren't a hundred feet up," she grumbled to herself, before rolling to the side and descending down, double and triple checking she was truly invisible. Had she ever forgotten before? No, and she certainly wasn't going to now.
Slipping down far from where the most activity took place, Latias could finally start digging in, picking up a crate and curiously looking over the litany of labels, logos, and other markings that covered the simple box.
"It's like every shop in the world has their name on these things," Latias muttered, turning the crate over and over and even sticking her head down under it to get a look. Soon, however, one logo, larger than the others, stood out to her. Holding the box up, Latias floated out a few feet to get some better light. "Pokémon Contest League?"
"Hello? Is someone there?" a voice called out.
Latias froze, the sudden presence of another startling her in place, as footsteps rounded the corner. Realizing that to an outside observer, it would look like a crate was floating in mid-air, she did the only reasonable thing she could think of in that situation.
Put the box down?
No, of course not.
Without a moment's hesitation, Latias dropped her invisibility and transformed, curling the light around her until her appearance had completely changed. In just a few seconds, the legendary dragon holding a box disappeared, and what was left in her place was a simple local girl—
—holding a box.
Finally coming around the corner, one of the foreign workers arrived, pausing in surprise at the sight of Latias in her human disguise standing there.
"Hey miss, you can't be back here," he said, approaching and making Latias jump and turn away. She couldn't exactly talk out of her mouth after all.
"S-sorry! I was just curious and—" Latias looked down at the box she was holding and handed it over, still keeping the front of her body faced away. "You, can have this back now."
After an awkward moment, the man reached forward and took the box from her hands.
"Ah well, thank y—" The man was double-taken at the sheer hefty weight of the box he'd been passed, before he set it aside. "—you. Anyways, though, you should get outta this place. You don't belong here."
Latias rolled her eyes at the suggestion, still faced away. If she were more feisty, she'd fire back with how it was them who don't belong there. Still, she definitely didn't want to cause a scene. The sooner she could get invisible again, the better.
"Apologies," she threw out. Spotting the closest exit, Latias jetted off, pausing only moments before disappearing from sight. With her back still to the man, she called out to him. "Hey! Can you tell me what a Pokémon Contest is?"
The man didn't respond at first, looking at the odd girl who didn't want to face him and scratching his neck.
"Huh? Wow, the boss was right about you guys really not knowing much about the rest of the region, huh?" he muttered, earning a huff of annoyance from Latias. "Well, I'll admit I don't really watch 'em much myself. They're big shows Mr. Contesta puts on, so trainers and their Pokémon can show off and battle and junk. Harmless fun, ya know?"
That didn't seem like a big deal, Latias thought, pacing in place and fighting the urge to just go. It certainly didn't seem like something to get in a tizzy over. Yet, despite that, she still felt the need to investigate more, make extra super sure. It was her job, afterall. What else would she do if she couldn't make sure Alto Mare was safe?
Glancing back, Latias spotted the man still standing there, watching and waiting on her to do something, leave probably. That sounded good to her.
"Thank you." And with that Latias jetted off.
Day turned to night as Latias watched the construction continue, keeping her distance and letting her anxiety slowly drain away into curiosity. These foreigners were weird, she told herself. They were always moving, always working— A stark contrast to the slow methodical work of the artisans of Alto Mare. Had these guys even taken a break today?
That thought broke Latias from her stupor, making her realize just how late it was getting. Had she even taken a break today?
"How long are these guys going to be at it?" Latias whined, as it began to set in that the whole day had been spent on her little stake out. Pouting, she floated down from her hiding spot— About fifty feet off the ground and completely invisible —And approached the workers, watching them shuffle about. "What're you up to?"
Their focus seemed to be on the lighting, as long cables bearing lamps were being hung from the walls of the theater to a stone pillar in the center stage. A worker was even standing on top of the pillar, precariously securing the final cable in place even as his perch shook under him.
Latias shuddered at that. Not the dangerous position the worker found himself in, not at all. Heights weren't one of Latias's fears. No, what made her shudder was the attention. Despite keeping busy, nearly all of the worker's in the amphitheater had their eyes on the pillar climber, watching as he struggled to get a metal hook through a loop to secure the lights. He wasn't just visible, he was seen, like a lighthouse in a stormy night.
Dipping to the side, Latias groaned, running her hands over her face and shaking her head. How did she get like this? How did she get so scared?
"It's not me up there, it's not me. No one can see me," she told herself, the words coming out in mumbles. As long as she could hear it, she could somewhat believe it. Stealing herself, Latias got closer. "Let's just wait until they finish this, then we're done tonight. We can go back to the garden!"
The garden brought some calm to Latias's nerves, as she took a deep breath in and let the shudders leave her with the exhale out. Just a bit longer, and she could go home.
"Home," she repeated, watching along as the worker struggled to hook the cable through the loop again. He just needed some more slack on the line, something none of the other workers wanted to help with it seemed. It was then that Latias had an idea.
Floating over to the stretch of lamp-bearing cables, Latias gave the set up a once over. Then, with only a moment's hesitation, she pulled on the cable—
"Got it!"
—and gave the worker the slack he needed.
A round of cheers filled the arena, giving Latias a moment's pause as she floated back and looked over her work. The workers were celebrating finally getting the last of the lighting secured. The pillar worker seemed especially happy, standing tall atop his perch despite how much it shook underneath him. His work was done, and now so was Latias's.
See, that didn't take that long at all! Latias didn't know what she was so worried about. Letting out a happy chirp, Latias rolled through the air before backing off, congratulating herself for a job well done. Now she could—
Latias paused then. Now that the worker atop the pillar had stood straight, she could finally get a good look at him. It took a moment, but it clicked. This was the same worker she had spoken to earlier!
Well, at the very least now she had repaid him for answering her question. She had helped him finish his job safe and—!
Dramatic irony was not lost on the universe today, a stark contrast to the sounds of the cracking stage, which were lost on Latias.
The stage under the stone column crumbled, sending the pillar careening to the side and the other workers into hysterics. The pillar worker, who stood so proud on his perch moments ago, dived to his feet and held onto the stone column for dear life—
—Until it jerked to a stop.
Despite the stage beneath it being shattered from age and wear, the pillar hadn't completely fallen. It was just about held aloft by a handful of the light-bearing cables.
"Ah jeeze, ah jeeze!" Latias orbited the sight, watching as the worker held on for dear life. Grappling, he was grappling for his very life. "I've gotta—"
Latias rocketed forward and stopped a moment later, freezing and then backing off. She couldn't, she just couldn't. If she caught him, or moved the pillar back, rumors would fly. An invisible Pokémon saved a worker? In Alto Mare, it'd be obvious it was Latias.
"Let go, I'll catch you!" a worker called out, running up to the base of the pillar and holding his arms out.
See! Everything is fine, these guys can handle—
"Get back you idiot, the stage is falling apart!" Another worker screamed, forcing the first to freeze and jump back. In time with that, the ground beneath his feet gave away, as the wooden stage collapsed further and sent the pillar careening again. Now the cables were stretched to their absolute limits, nearly close to snapping.
"Please! Someone help me!" Squeezing the pillar tighter, the lone worker cried out, desperately trying and failing to pull himself up.
"I can't save him, not without being seen." Latias panicked, flying faster and faster around the scene as she tried to think.
Even while invisible, they'd all know something saved him, and it would surely be tied back to—
The pillar jerked another few inches— A cable had snapped.
"Please!" the man screamed, forcing Latias to jet forward again, barely stopping herself from intervening. As she backed off, another cable snapped in her hesitation.
She couldn't, she can't. If anyone even suspected Latias was in Alto Mare, it would attract attention.
Another snap sent the pillar tipping even more.
Attention would attract danger, danger to Alto Mare!
Another cable was gone.
Danger, to herself.
Only a single cable remained now, the one she and the worker had secured together. It was the only thing keeping him from falling a very, very long way down. Latias could only look on in frozen horror, constantly on the edge of flying in and flying away.
As the final cord began to tear, a thought entered Latias's mind. It was a nasty, cowardly thought, one that made her recoil at just the consideration.
This worker had nearly caught her earlier, and he seemed suspicious even after she left. Maybe… maybe it would be better if she let—
The cable snapped.
"NO!"
"Greninja!" A flash of blue filled the air, grabbing onto the man and disappearing all in one motion. Before anyone could even realize what was happening, it appeared again— Touching down onto the ground mere meters away.
As the stone pillar crashed to the ground and shattered, the onlooking workers exploded into a round of cheers, celebrating the successful rescue and the dauntless rescuer— Greninja, a Pokémon Latias had never seen before.
After nodding to confirm the man was okay, Greninja leapt up, back in the direction they came from. There, the Pokémon's trainer now stood.
"Three cheers for the foreman for saving our butts!" a worker called out, immediately identifying the tall woman who owned the Greninja in question. She had a hard face, one Latias could tell wasn't easily amused. Despite all the cheering being done in her honor, she certainly wasn't a fan of having to save the day.
Save the day.
As Latias looked upon the scene, at all the smiling faces celebrating the lack of any real injuries, all she could see was her own cowardice. Glancing one last time at the man she met earlier, the man she nearly let die, Latias became too overwhelmed to remain there any longer.
Turning, she jetted off, leaving the clap of a sonic boom in her wake.
"What was that!?" the foreman screamed.
By the next morning, the talk of Latias's departure would be lost in the larger discussions of the amphitheater accident. Then, by lunch, that too would be long forgotten. Alto Mare was a quiet town. Even when things happened, they very rarely disturbed the people's peace.
The adage was true because people believed it.
Nothing ever happens in Alto Mare.
End of Chapter 1