Chapter 2: Lifelong Dream

The sun was already vanishing behind the horizon when the duo reached the huge city. The first sight of this place seemed to be the first event that actually excited Kel in this world.

"You have such big cities in this world? How do you build such things? Where I come from we needed huge machines for that!"

Aurora thought for a moment before having to admit that she herself didn't really know how the largest of these buildings were created.

"Well..., when I got here, all the buildings were already standing. I've never seen anyone build anything like them. It's probably the work of big Pokemon and their elemental powers. Otherwise, I wouldn't have any more ideas."
"Does that mean that all these huge buildings are ancient too?"

The ice-type felt pretty offended by this question.

"What's that supposed to mean? Just because I wasn't there yet doesn't mean that these buildings are ancient! I'm only 22 myself!" "Where I come from, that's quite old, at least for buildings like that. I wasn't any older myself, and yet I saw the creation of most skyscrapers in my area!"

These last conversations made Aurora suspicious. Hadn't Kel claimed at the lake that he remembered almost nothing about his old life? How could he then tell her so many things about this human world all the time? But ultimately, what difference did it make for her? As soon as she could be sure that this Growlithe was somehow managing himself, she would at most meet him again on the street, nothing more.

"Is this building the office you've been talking about the whole time?"

A huge tower stretched out in front of the two Pokemon.

"Yes. I know my way around here well enough, just come with me. I'll take you to Aurorus and Tyratrum, if they can't help you, then all hope is lost anyway."
"Well, thank you, that gives me a lot of hope."

Without answering, Aurora stepped in front of the glass door, which opened immediately. An elevator door was to her left, a white staircase to the right. She immediately headed for the elevator, with Kel following closely behind. A whole bunch of buttons decorated the wall, each number represented twice, once low down, the other higher up so that Pokemon of different sizes could all use the elevator. Aurora pressed the lower 47 without hesitation, the fourth highest floor.

"If the two of them are running this whole league, why isn't their office like on the top floor? Wouldn't that make more sense?"

"Maybe. Some say that Aurorus is afraid of heights and therefore couldn't stand the glass walls up there, but I don't know if that's more than just gossip. In any case, they built a battle ring in this glass dome at floor 50. A special battle field that can only be used on special occasions. The private chambers of the two are on floor 49, which is why this button glows red. You can only get there with their key card. Both have lived there since the tower opened, or at least that's whats said. As I told you, I wasn't in this town when the tower was built, so I can't say for sure. On the 48th floor... no one really knows what's there. Apparently not even Aurorus. It's Tyrantrum's secret. But knowing him, there's nothing there and he just wants to make himself look interesting and mysterious."

By the end of these explanations, the elevator had already reached level 47, so it was only a matter of seconds before a bell rang and the door opened. A long corridor stretched out before the two of them, with only a few doors. The floor was completely covered with a red carpet.

"Let me guess, that big door at the end of the corridor is the office?"

Without waiting for an answer, Kel stood right in front of the door and knocked. Without saying a single word, Aurora just left him waiting. Kel knocked again. And again there was no answer.

"Are they not here right now?"
"If they were not, there would be a sign on the door. However, I am not surprised that you do not get an answer when you knock on the door to the storage room."

With an amused look in her eyes, she knocked on one of the other two doors in the corridor.

"Who is it?"

Aurorus had already thought a little further than his colleague.

"Aurora, if that is you, you can go right away. Twice in one day is excessive, even for you!"

The still slightly embarrassed Growlithe looked questioningly at the Vulpix addressed, but she ignored him for the time being.

"Yes, it's me again, but I'm not here because I want to join, but because of another Pokemon."

A brief whisper could be heard from the room behind the door, followed by a quiet clicking. Aurora knew immediately that the door had been unlocked, and opened it. Kel followed her, somewhat uncertainly, into the impressive office. Several large tables were spread out in the spacious room, each of them made of a different type of wood. Three large cabinets full of different folders decorated the walls, various trophies on top of them. Free spaces were decorated with framed photos, all of the two friends who once founded the Berelos' League.

"What is your concern now?", asked Tyrantrum.
"So… it's about Kel. Tell them your story. I just brought him here. I suspect that his story is connected to the Plothole from earlier."
"You're really not here for yourself this time? You're making progress, Aurora, we might soon be rid of you if you keep learning."

The Moon addressed sensibly decided to simply ignore this comment and let Kel tell his story.

"...and now I went to this place because I'm looking for explanations about what exactly happened." The disbelief in Aurorus' face was clearly visible.

"I've heard of humans, but never of one coming to world. You look like a normal Growlithe as well! But maybe that's normal for you humans though."
"It's not. But that probably has something to do with the fact that I lost my human body."

The more Kel talked, the more Aurora got the feeling that Aurorus wasn't buying a word he was saying.

"Plot holes only affect this world! So why should it affect somebody from a completely different world?"

However, his partner seemed to believe the former human's story more.

"The Plotholes are getting stronger, you know that yourself, Aurorus! And if this guy really did die in his world, then it's possible that his soul somehow ended up here and was influenced by the Plothole. I think it's at least possible."

Aurorus' questioning look revealed a lot about his thoughts.

"You believe him? I thought you were the one who didn't even believe in the power of Plotholes in the first place?" Not believing in Plotholes? Aurora had never heard such a crazy thing. However, she decided not to voice this thought.

"I wasn't comfortable with them at first, but how can I deny something that is so obvious?"
"Yes, I always asked you the same! But well… I doubt that we can help you in any way, Kel… whatever you want help with anyways."

"I already said it: Above all, I need information. I don't know this area at all, just like the customs of this world. And I want to know why I am here. What these "Plotholes" are."
"Don't you have any plot holes in your world?"

The thought alone seemed absurd to Aurora. Plotholes were a part of life, like the sun or the moon.

"You're talking shit, Aurora! Plotholes are not natural, you should know that well enough! And I doubt that there is an Epsilon in another world!"

Once again, this statement didn't help Kel at all.

"One more thing though... how can I join the league? It would probably make sense for me to learn to fight."

The two founders of the league exchanged knowing glances.

"Well, for that you need a team partner, or multiple. And then you register here with us.", stated Aurorus.
"And boy, you're lucky!. We happen to know a Pokemon that has been annoying us for months because she can't find a team partner for shit!"

Both of the leaders' glances fell on Aurora.

She immediately realized what the two fossil Pokemon were implying. If this Now-Pokemon really wanted to be part of the Battle League, she could join him and finally fulfill her dream of forming a team! On the other hand, she still didn't know what to think of the Growlithe. But were these worries really important enough to pass up such an opportunity?

"Oh, is that why you're so well-known here, Aurora? I mean... I don't really care who my team partner is, it's not like I know many Pokemon."

For a moment, the Vulpix looked back and forth between the founders and Kel.

"Fine... I'd be up for it. I've really been waiting far too long to miss out on an opportunity like this."

Amagarga sighed a sigh of relief, obviously aware that from now on they would no longer be annoyed every few days, maybe more often.

"Fine, but let's wait until tomorrow. We'll be here from sunrise, just come over and we'll take care of the formalities. Our shift is over for today. It would be best if you thought of a team name until then, so we won't need much time tomorrow."

"You're dismissed for today! Now piss off!"

Without waiting to be asked again, the two guests left the office. The team hadn't been officially formed yet, but Aurora was euphoric nonetheless. The next day she could finally join the Battle League! She left the tower happily, while Kel didn't seem particularly moved.

"So... do you have any idea where I can spend the night? Is there a hotel or something around here?" "Well, there is, but I'm pessimistic enough to assume that you don't have any money on you. Correct?"
"Well, how could I? Do you have any other idea where I could stay?"

Once again, Aurora was torn between the possibilities. Technically, she could just go home and let the rest be his problem. On the other hand, it wouldn't be particularly smart for her to make herself unpopular with her new team partner right away. Besides, they still had to find that team name.

"So... for now, you could take a free room at my place, I guess. I can't let you sleep on the street after all."

An absent nod was the only answer Aurora received. Somewhat annoyed by this ungrateful behavior, she followed a few branching streets until wide open spaces soon came into view. Kira Town ended and the transition to a wide meadow and the endless sea on the horizon began. Little houses adorned this border area, many of them much closer to nature than the large residential complexes in the city center. It was one of these houses that Aurora was heading for. A wooden house, a decent amount larger than Kel's old apartment, which had a few windows as the only wall decorations from the outside.

A small, fenced-in garden area surrounded the house, a small gravel path led from the fence gate to the front door. Without wasting another thought on it, Aurora opened the fence gate and unlocked the front door. Wordlessly, Kel followed on as they entered the building. After everything Kel was used to from his old life, the sight of this house was truly something special. A small gray carpet decorated the entrance area, a large picture of a starry sky immediately caught the eye on the wall. Underneath the picture stood a wooden table. A staircase in the same room led to another floor, three open doors in the main floor led to Aurora's bedroom, a small bathroom and a kitchen. Above the stairs was another open door, behind which there seemed to be yet another bedroom. The bright wooden walls shone in the glow of the evening sun, which fell directly through the largest of the windows, right beside the wooden table. Otherwise there were two smaller cupboards filled with various books.

"This is my humble home. If it's too cramped for you, there's nothing I can do about it. I rarely have visitors over anyway. You can take the room at the end the stairs. There is another door in that room, but I doubt that my dirty attic will interest you, so you don't need to pay attention to that."

Alright, so we somewhat know a few of the characters now and the team is about to be formed. But there might be a lot of questions for you. The biggest of them... what exactly are these Plotholes now? And what is that "Epsilon" Tyrantrum mentioned? Well, if you want to know, stay tuned for the next chapter! Thanks for reading!