-DreamSequence#003-
The cold, night air nipped Moxy's senses to life. Waves crashed into the craggy bank far from her perch. She could taste the salt in the air, and bells chimed from the moored ships along the foggy docks. The girl overlooked the city from a lighthouse balcony, and her gloved hands gripped its railing tightly. She wore her Team Magma outfit, her hornless hood donned.
She was in Slateport City. As per its name, it was a city well known for its large port and oceanic endeavors. A place where merchants and sailors made a living by importing exotic wares from other regions. The cobblestone buildings and streets reminded her of Rustboro, but the dark sea that was Route 109 sent chills down the girl's spine.
The south wind raging through her hair, the inky expanse of the water, and the hazy void that was the horizon gnawed at her mind; If she were ever pulled into the abyss below, she would probably die from panic lest she didn't drown.
Suddenly, a shift in the wind caused the girl to spin. A tall man stood beside her, his forest green eyes gazing out into the ocean. His hands rested in the pockets of his thin, black trench coat, and his black hair swayed against the ocean breeze.
Instead of surprise, there was only an angry contortion on Moxy's face as she spoke, "What was so important that you had to be this late?"
Aiden nodded in satisfaction. "Your sixth sense is improving."
"You know how long I've been looking at the stupid water for?" she seethed, pulling up her sleeve to display her yellow watch to him. "Two hours!"
Aiden crossed his arms and leaned over the side of the rail, his expression unchanged as he looked out into the ocean. "You're going to need patience if you want to succeed in this job."
"What are we even doing here this early?!" she ranted with raised arms. "I'm trying to sleep at twelve, and all of a sudden you wake me in the middle of the night, drive me to Slateport, and tell me to wait in this lighthouse. And now, TWO HOURS later, you show up. I'm cold. I'm tired. I had half a mind to call it quits, but wait! You're my ride back to the base! Your 'guild' gave me quite the list of chores to do in the morning. Not to mention the hours of target and battle practice you had me do, which are completely unnecessary. Those grunts don't know the first thing about battling, and I'm certainly not carrying a gun with me. I am literally at my breaking point!"
Before she could say anything else, Aiden interrupted her with his soft voice, "Firstly, it's our 'guild'. Second, don't belittle your team members like that. They were never given the same training you received in the academy. And third, everything I teach you is completely necessary. It's important to be fluent in all types of trades, whether that be fighting off a horde of Skorupi with Sylveon or putting a bullet in one of them to save her. If you're stressed now, then just wait until we start getting into field tactics and communication."
Moxy sighed and slumped her head on the railing. "I'm… sorry. I'm just tired."
"C'mon. It's time." Aiden beckoned her inattentively before disappearing down the lighthouse ladder.
"Time? Time for what?! Wait up!" she exasperated before descending after him.
They ran through the city, cutting through alleyways and zig-zagging between the narrow cobblestone streets. On occasion, the moon would peek its cratered head before it was obscured once again by the clouds boring through the sky. The air was heavy with the smell of fish, and their clopping footsteps broke the silent night.
They reached an entrance to a neighborhood of big houses that she thought cost way too much to live in. Farther from the port, this part of the city had much more flora.
However, the street to enter was closed off by an iron gate. A residential area separate from the city. Aiden went first, clasping his palms around the bars and climbing the gate as fast as a Chimchar. When he reached the pinnacle, he vaulted over the gate, making sure to lift his legs high so as to not get his coat caught on the spikes at the top. His boots barely made a sound upon landing.
Moxy copied him, albeit a little slower. When she landed, she had to steady herself from tipping over.
"Someone isn't following their diet," Aiden joked. Moxy glared daggers at him, but he just grinned like he won a bet against her.
Aiden motioned Moxy towards a dainty, two-story stone house located just a little way through the street. Unlike the rest of the upper-class houses, this one was smaller and much less intimidating. Unlit lanterns were hanging from the roof of the porch, and a tiny, Sitrus berry tree grew in the tiny garden by the front stairs. Moxy couldn't help smiling at the sight of such a well-tended place. Aiden peeked around the house, where a red sports car was parked in the stone driveway. There was an open window at the bottom level, which Aiden pointed at for Moxy.
"The reason we're here is to test you. I know it's a little early for a test, but I want to get a feel for your natural skills," Aiden explained in a whisper, his green eyes darting towards each window.
"My skills as a thief," she clarified.
Aiden acknowledged her with a nod. "Before you go in, you will have a companion to help you with your test."
Moxy eyed the red and white pokeball Aiden pulled out from his coat. He crouched low before clicking the button in the middle, and a tiny flash of light released a pokemon right in front of him.
The pokemon's green hair cascaded down to the shoulders of its pure-white tutu, and its slender, green legs crossed as it bowed courteously in greeting.
"This is Kirlia," Aiden continued, the Kirlia cooing as he stroked the back of its neck. "She won't get in the way."
Moxy was filled with adoration, and her voice involuntarily turned high-pitch. "Hey there. I'm Moxy," she greeted.
Kirlia sized her from head to toe, and one of her eyes was scrunched in disgust.
"Why is she looking at me like that?" Moxy asked Aiden, concerned with Kirlia's reaction.
"Your first test is to steal something of value from that house without being caught," Aiden started. "Jewelry. A safe. Anything that looks like it can be sold for a good price. Kirlia will help you, as well as make sure you don't cheat. Do you understand?"
Kirlia shared the same concerning look as her trainer, her red eyes awaiting a response from Moxy.
"Isn't this a little risky? It hasn't even been a week since the museum," Moxy muttered, still wary of Aiden's pet.
"That's why we're in Slateport. Police presence is lax here, so you shouldn't have too much trouble." Aiden assured.
"Hm, alright. Whatever you say..." she agreed hesitantly. With that, Aiden gave her a thumbs up.
Moxy crept towards the open window Aiden pointed to. She crouched low, trying her best not to alert anyone. Reaching the window, it looked like it led into a hallway. Moxy slid it open, slow enough to hear for creaking. Moxy glanced at her rear for Kirlia, but she wasn't there. Aiden had also disappeared from the street.
'I guess it's just me,' she sighed. As she faced the window, she was greeted by a pair of large red eyes barely an inch from her face. Moxy had to stifle her yelp as she stumbled onto the stone driveway, and her face turned as red as her hair. Kirlia was sitting along the windowsill, her legs flapping back and forth childishly as she brought her white, two-digit hands to her giggling mouth.
"Did Aiden put you up to that?! That isn't funny!" she whispered angrily while peeking her head through the window to make sure no one had awoken.
Kirlia jumped down from the ledge, and the red horns on the sides of her head began to glow. She placed her hand on the middle of the driveway, and the air around that spot began to shimmer and distort.
"You better not use that unless we're in trouble," Moxy glowered, still flustered. Kirlia just stayed silent, waiting for Moxy to do something. With a grimace, she opened the window and crawled through.
Her boots pressed against the smooth, beige carpet. Moxy scanned the hallway she had just entered. There were two, evenly spaced doors to her right, and a portrait of a woman hung on the left wall. Moxy examined the photo. The woman in the portrait wore a plain, black suit, her bright, wrinkled face smiling cheerfully next to a smug-looking Grovyle. It was nice to see how happy the two looked in the photo. Kirlia tugged her finger, rousing her from her stupor.
Okay, something valuable… Moxy repeated a few times in her mind, continuing onward. Exiting the hallway, she was led into a living room connected to a kitchen. Everything she found was either worthless or too large to carry out. She dangled a seashell necklace between her fingers, a pained expression on her face when she thought of bringing it to Aiden. This woman was broke.
Moxy looked to the staircase tucked away at the corner of the room. She had hoped she could find something in the living room and avoid having to go up the second level. Alas, Moxy made her way to the carpeted staircase. She tried the first step. It began to creak and she immediately lifted her foot off. Moxy looked to Kirlia, but the pokemon was playing with her digits in ignorance.
Moxy skipped the first step. The wood railing kept her steady, and she sighed in relief when it made no noise. She continued this game of pick-and-choose until she reached the final step. Moxy glanced behind her, and she was aghast when Kirlia simply used her telekinesis to float to the top.
Kirlia tilted her head as if wondering why Moxy took so long on something that was a piece of cake. A vein popped in Moxy's head. She wanted to kick Kirlia back down the staircase.
Moxy continued into another hallway with two doors. One door was shut tight. The other was open by just a crack. Moxy crept towards the open door, peeking from around the side. Her heart flared upon seeing a curvy lump snoozing under a large, blue blanket. She tiptoed towards the other door.
With a hand on the knob, she twisted her wrist and carefully opened the door. About a quarter-ways open, Moxy peeked inside. A dead silence rang throughout the dark bedroom, not even the slightest sound of breath making it to her ears. Opening it further caused the door's ungreased hinges to let out a high-pitched creak. Moxy gulped hard before swinging the door wide open, making the creak brief and silent. There was no response. Not one she could hear, anyways. Moxy crept inside, Kirlia at her heels.
Moonlight penetrated the clear glass of the single window at the other end of the room. A flashlight clicked in Moxy's hands as she assessed her whereabouts. There was a closet next to the window and a dresser that rested against the wall to her immediate right. Adjacent to the dresser was a clean, two-person bed.
Dust collected on the tip of her gloved finger as she ran it along the top of the dresser. There were a few dull-looking objects on it, but the one that caught her eye was a framed photo. The washed-out colors revealed the woman from the other pictures standing next to a kid smiling like he was about to explode with laughter. As Moxy pulled open the drawers, she found them filled to the brim with button-down shirts and slacks of various colors. Judging by their small size, it was likely they belonged to a boy or young man.
"I should just take all these clothes. You think Aiden wears tiny boxers under that trench coat?" Moxy whispered before her quip was reciprocated with a sting in her left leg. She winced, pointing her flashlight down to see Kirlia glaring unblinkingly at her. It would have been intimidating were it not for the pokemon's short and cute appearance. Just then, something glinted in the corner of Moxy's eyes.
"Score," the girl muttered. Kirlia's eyes lit up curiously as Moxy's hand extended past her to grab a gold ring that lay on the carpet floor beside the dresser's legs. After wiping the dust bunnies off, Moxy admired the emerald resting in its gold socket. She slid the ring into her back pocket, a delighted smile plastered on her face.
Moxy knelt to meet Kirlia's height. "Is that good enough, boss?" she said quietly, slurring the last word in sarcasm. Kirlia just rolled her red eyes and pointed towards the window of the room. Moxy walked up to it, and after a few seconds, she managed to unfasten the windows lock.
"Tommy, is that you?" a light but elderly voice called from the other room. "When did you get back from your journey?"
Moxy's head rang with danger as she scrambled to open the window. However, it was too secure, and there wasn't much time until the woman would catch them. Moxy glanced at Kirlia, and her heart sank. The pokemon's eyes were shut as her red horns began to glow, the air around her shimmering like water.
No! Moxy thought. In a desperate attempt, she reached her arm out towards the pokemon, but after a snap of light, all she grabbed were the fragmental remains of the Teleport's residue. It felt like sharp confetti, and she gritted her teeth while balling the fragments in her palm, crushing them.
The footsteps drew closer, and with not a second to lose the girl dropped to the floor and rolled underneath the bed. A second later, lights in the hallway beamed through the open door, and she was met with a terrible sight.
Never has Moxy felt so threatened by a pair of Skitty slippers. Instead of bringing her joy, all its cute, cartoony face seemed to be good at doing was rattling her bones. Her heart thumped so hard she could hear it, and she covered her mouth as to not let out a slip of her heavy breathing.
"Tommy?" the woman called out through the darkness. A drop of sweat trickled down the side of Moxy's head as the woman's feet passed her a mere few inches. Moxy's nose inhaled a dust bunny, and her nose burned with an alarming sensation. Moxy pinched her nose, and her eyes began to water from trying to keep herself from sneezing.
The woman moved to the other side of the bed, and Moxy saw the woman's rough hand pick up a piece of the purple dust on the floor.
"This is the third damn Ralts," The lady grumbled. There was a moment where the woman stood there, most likely thinking to herself of what she needed to do to keep the green menaces from invading her home again.
"The window…" she sighed before stomping away. The room was once again swathed by the snug cloak of darkness as the woman closed the door behind her.
Moxy crawled out from under the bed as quickly as she could. She hurried towards the window again, using all her might to slide the glass pane open. The fresh nip of cold wind greeted her, and the girl began to scan the backyard. Kirlia's figure was revealed near the edge of the house, the pokemon simply admiring the woman's well-kept grass.
"Psst!" Moxy sounded. Kirlia jumped before making a casual turn towards the window where Moxy was. Her horns glowed bright, and Moxy held her hands out before her to see red energy envelop them. She could feel her body being tugged on by some sort of psychokinetic tether as she was pulled out into the freezing air. She descended slowly, and as soon as she felt the thin grass beneath her feet, the energy around her body dissipated into red beads.
Without a moment to lose, the two crept around the side of the house where the woman couldn't see them through a window. Moxy was expecting to find Aiden standing right where they parted. However, the street was dead silent, not a soul under the moonlight. She hurried down the street, and once she was out of the house's line of sight, she whirled on Kirlia.
"What the hell was that?! Do you know how lucky we got back there?! If that lady didn't have a Ralts problem, I would have gotten caught!" she whispered loudly. Kirlia made an impudent snort and spun the other direction.
"Out of all the Ralts in Hoenn, Aiden had to catch the smarmiest, stupidest one," she grumbled.
"Khetesse!" Kirlia hissed from her teeth. Moxy was glad she didn't speak pokespeak because she would have kicked the pokemon's teeth in had she understood. The two reached the iron gate again, and like before Moxy clambered up and over the gate. Obviously, Kirlia levitated over it, not a droplet of sweat on her.
They strolled down the cobblestone jungle that was the heart of Slateport. Kirlia led the way, albeit slower than Moxy would have liked. About a dozen, lifeless blocks later, they turned a corner.
To her surprise, there were quite a few people about, all hanging around the bright pokemon center across the street from her. Some sat directly along the wall of the center; most likely trainers unable to afford a room anywhere in the city. Their arms covered their tiny pokemon as they slept, shivering under the cold breeze.
The scene revealed something to her. It was an opportunity to look into a dark future that had come close to surpassing. Specifically, the future Ryker had warned her about. It reminded her of Sylveon, who was sleeping safe and sound in the base at the moment. And Moxy was happy she was there.
One of the last things she had told Walter was that everyone should experience a journey. Thinking back on it, she had only said it in a desperate attempt to travel with Charles. While it was a good thing, in some retrospect it was also a bad thing. Some pokemon trainers are just not cut out for the lone-road lifestyle. The cruel truth of life. As fate can save a person at a given moment, it could also ruin them, no matter how much they believe they'll become a hero, or more accurately, a champion. Moxy wondered if her dreams were forever ruined because of her actions and if fate could ever save them again. Perhaps, after she was finished with Team Magma, she'd find some solidity in life to continue her path on becoming the greatest pokemon battler in the world.
In her stupor, Moxy didn't realize Kirlia bouncing around joyously as they neared an alleyway. Before the girl had a chance to ask what was wrong, the pokemon had sprinted into the alleys inky darkness.
"Wait!" Moxy called out, stumbling after her.
Below a flickering lightbulb stood Aiden, his trench coat swaying against a breeze so convenient she thought it was planned. Kirlia hid behind one of his legs, and she gave Moxy a playful but ominous smile.
"So," Aiden started, his hands in his pockets as he walked out of the light. "You have something for me?"
"Yes, give me a second." Moxy walked up to him before reaching into her own pockets to pull out the ring.
It wasn't there.
Her heart skipped, and she frantically searched the rest of her pockets. Her mind flipped through the scenarios of the robbery. Entering the house, finding the ring, pocketing it, and then rolling under the bed. She gave herself a mental facepalm, knowing the ring probably fell when she was hiding from the lady.
"Um…" she tried to string out an apology or excuse, but Aiden's expressionless face fumbled her mind. Aiden drew his hand slowly out of his pocket, and Moxy froze in fear. She had failed. She shut her eyes and braced herself.
Nothing happened for an awkward amount of time, and she peeked out from one of her twitching eyes. Aiden's hand was held out in front of her, and there was a gold ring flat on his palm, its emerald glare reflecting into Moxy's green eyes.
Kirlia made what sounded like laughter, and the sides of Aiden's mouth creased into a smile. "Kirlia picked your pocket on the way here. I'm sorry about her behavior. She can be a bit of a prankster. Though, you could really learn something from her."
Relief washed over the girl, but it was quickly replaced by a fit of fiery anger directed at Kirlia. "Learn something? The second we were in trouble, she just teleported away and left me to rot. I was lucky to get out of there! If-"
"As I said, you can learn a thing or two," Aiden cut off her ranting. "Escape should always be your first option in dire situations, no matter what. Did you have an escape plan, or did you wing it?"
Moxy thought back. She entered the house and saw a window on the top floor, but she didn't think about how hard it was to open. In hindsight, she should have tried that first before looking for jewelry. After all, she needed Kirlia's help to get out.
"I'm guessing you winged it," he finished her thoughts for her. "On the other hand, Kirlia created a teleport marker just in case. She created an escape route for herself, and only herself. And that is the second most important rule we have. Look out for yourself, and no one else. Not even me."
Moxy wanted to protest, but she couldn't deny some of his points he'd laid out. Kirlia gave her a silent, wide-eyed stare, but the hint of her guile beneath made Moxy red hot.
"Well, you saved me when I needed it most," she countered, trying to ignore Kirlia.
"That's... different. Besides, who's to say I didn't have an agenda saving you?"
"I..." she stopped, lowering her eyebrows in confusion. "Did you?"
"It doesn't matter. Despite everything, you passed with flying colors. You did exactly what I told you."
Moxy's suspicions were washed away by her joy at hearing that. She succeeded. But, most importantly, she was done. Now she could go back to the base, see Sylveon, and take a nice, long-
"However," Aiden disrupted her musings, "that was just the first test. You have one more."
"O-one more?" Moxy asked incredulously. Kirlia's horns began to glow, and she and Aiden began to ascend to the roof of the six-story building behind them, leaving Moxy gawking at them from the ground. Aiden gestured Moxy to follow, and the two disappeared from her view.
Moxy turned to see the fire escape that led to the roof, the ladders latches unhooked.
"I just want to go home," she expressed her exhaustion out loud before climbing up.