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Chapter 94

Part 1

The wind blew eerily across the empty plain as the two dark birds swooped down from the sky to confront the newcomers.

Never seen these Pokémon before, Char thought.

The one on the left is Corvisquire, and the one on the right is Corviknight, reported Eva. You should probably get used to seeing Pokémon you do not recognize. The species down here are quite different than what you're used to in the Midwest. Also, you'll find that the species diversity here is staggering.

Char looked around himself. He stood in a congregation of Pokémon in the absolute middle of nowhere. Just a rough, light-gray rocky ground extending to the distant horizon. He wondered how close the Black Division was. He wondered how he'd be getting in. Was there an underground passage? A teleporter? Surely this couldn't have been like the Emerald Division, which existed as its own little circle of above-ground civilization. There had to be some trickery going on here. Char could sense it. His feelings didn't match what he was seeing.

I'm not quite seeing a lot of 'species diversity' just yet, Char said oddly.

Just you wait, Eva told him. As it happens, I have, indeed, been inside the Black Division at some point in the past. It has been a while. But I think you will enjoy the experience.

I suppose now we need to decide how to get in, Char figured, his heart flickering as he imagined himself brainwashing these guards. I almost wonder if we should have brought Tallie. But then I don't know who we could have trusted to run the team…

Yes, Tallie would have felt at home here, Eva considered. Too late for that now, unfortunately. Now we need to get in by any means necessary.

"What is your business here?" called the Corvisquire, holding out her wing before Hunter. "The land beyond here is off-limits to civilians, unless you are pre-approved for entry."

"Our business?" said Hunter, striking a peculiar pose and pretending to look offended. "Don't tell me that you don't recognize us? We are Team Ember! Surely you know Char, who has scaled the Temporal Tower and lived? Who has stood against Cepheus and lived?"

The dark birds glared at one another with their piercing red eyes.

"Obviously we cannot discuss confidential matters without confirmation of your identity," shouted the Corviknight louder than Char had expected. "If you are who you say you are, we expect that you understand the necessity of caution."

"We understand," spoke Otto, carefully approaching the birds and showing them several birdlike gestures of respect. "We are well aware of the… the security measures involved. I could if I wanted list you the entire protocol we use in the Gold Division. However, for reasons… of our own confidentiality, we have not followed proper transfer protocol for this visit, as we are avoiding the attention of certain Pokémon. How might we prove ourselves trustworthy?"

The birds did not look amused. "The protocols exist for a reason," sternly spoke the larger bird. "We expect that you come escorted by a team with clearance, or you have previously sent notification of your intent to transfer. If you wish, you may request conferral with a specific Pokémon, but it will not guarantee their prompt presence, nor will it guarantee your entry. But if you give us a name, we might see if they will vouch for you."

Master, they are stalling for you, Eva informed Char. It seems unlikely we can talk ourselves into the Black Division base. They can only keep the conversation running long enough for you to step in.

Ah. Alright, alright, Char sighed inwardly. Ahh… Yeah, I'm still waiting for the, uh… the Call… I haven't even thought of a command to send. I should probably think of one fast…

Char stilled his heart, shut out the sounds of the conversation happening in front of him, and prepared to call for Celebi's attention. He hadn't contacted her in many, many weeks. The last time he'd used the Call was to get a thief to tell the truth about something during one of his missions. It wasn't a very big command, and Char had done it mainly to prove to himself he still had the power, and probably also to convince himself the power could be used for good.

He still felt guilty, though… he kept imagining that Minccino he'd controlled, wondering if just one little command – the command to tell the truth – had a bigger unseen effect on the creature's life. What if the little guy had been cursed to always tell the truth from now on? Or maybe just tempted to tell the truth more than he was used to? Would that make it difficult for him to continue being a thief?

Celebi seemed to be in a good mood today. Of course, there was no way of telling what the timeline looked like from Celebi's point of view. For all he knew, he might have contacted Celebi twenty times in the course of five minutes. Maybe he was contacting her before she began to get overwhelmed with his commands? Either way, he was happy to have her telepathic voice in his mind, and he was as polite as possible in asking for a pulse of the Call for the sake of his covert operations.

The drain on his energy already took hold when the medium-intensity pulse tapped into his consciousness. Char realized, to his dismay, that he still hadn't exactly decided on a command.

He quickly thought about what needed to be done – especially in regards to Hunter – and had a strange idea.

He asked Celebi to make the pulse bigger. She asked if he wanted a full-powered pulse, and he quickly said no, but told her he maybe wanted something at two-thirds power. He needed something that could command an entire city. He felt as the hum intensified a few moments later.

Pokémon of the Black Division , he addressed them with the power of his Call. I am Char the Charmeleon, of Team Ember. We are a four-star team hailing from the Gold Division.

I have come seeking a private audience with your leader, Downfall, regarding important matters which affect the entirety of the great resistance movement. Please allow my team and I unrestricted access to your base.

Char thought again about how to finish the command. He rued the way he only seemed to get the best ideas as he was speaking, and wondered if maybe he should practice his commands before sending them for real.

Was Scythe in the base? Could Char call out to him? Scythe would always come to his Call. Char remembered how Scythe had this whole entire thing where he'd say "I heed your call!" and everything.

But… They weren't just here to find Scythe, he remembered. They were actually tracking Giratina in the end. His mission involved Giratina, Enigma, Adiel, and Scythe. Which is why he was going to need a personal discussion with the Pokémon known as Downfall. Char certainly had a few questions on his mind, questions he felt uncomfortable asking Eva directly.

Even though he could technically just mind-control Eva to tell him the truth, just like he did with that Minccino.

Would that be so bad? She even gave him very explicit permission to mind control her if he wanted…

So what was the problem? Why did he feel so hesitant to turn the Call on Eva herself?

Something didn't feel quite right about it… What if it didn't work? What if Eva was actually immune to mind control? Did she have that power? She had to! How else would she be able to coexist with Enigma?

How was Char supposed to know, anyway? What if he tried to command something of her when she was immune? Would she hear the command directly? Would she pretend to follow it while knowing the truth?

Char caught his mind wandering in the middle of a Call signal. He only had moments left to complete his command…

Do not be suspicious of Hunter the Flareon. He is our ally.

If anyone has any information on the whereabouts of Scythe the Scyther, please step forward and tell Hunter the Flareon what you know. But meet with him discretely and do not let other Pokémon know that you've spoken with him.

The signal ended, and Char felt particularly winded. He endured a wave of dizziness and nausea for a moment without falling to all fours, but he did find himself clenching his fists to an almost painful degree. The muscles in his fingers were starting to lock up and were very difficult to extend.

He remembered it wasn't the Call that sapped his energy; instead it was the power to break the laws of space and time and speak with Celebi that did it. He reminded himself to keep his momentary chats with Celebi as quick as possible, though he didn't know how in the world he could make them even shorter than they already were. What I really need is to think about my commands more often before casting them, Char told himself. Somehow I get the feeling that this is a very bad habit of mine, saving things for the last minute like that. It's going to come back to haunt me.

Eva laughed in his head. You are like the Master in more ways than you know, she said mysteriously. But whatever command you came up with, it appears to have taken effect. Look.

Once he was done, he opened his eyes to a quiet calmness. The dark birds had shifted stature, and Hunter looked particularly pleased with himself, almost as though he thought his own words had swayed them.

"Nevertheless, you've made it quite clear that you are here on official business," said the Corviknight. "Normally, there would be a lengthy initiation process when a Pokémon shows up unannounced at our doorstep like this. Paperwork, interviews, mind-probing… I'm certain you're familiar with the process from when you joined the resistance. But seeing that you have business with Downfall himself, I think it would be rude of us to keep him waiting."

"Downfall…?" said Hunter, blinking for a moment. "Business with… oh yes, important business with Downfall, certainly." The Flareon blinked again and cast a confused glance back to Char, probably wondering exactly what message he sent.

"Medora, I think we should summon for Team Division," said the Corviknight to the other black bird. "Are you comfortable with that? Or would you prefer to stay at post while I go?"

Char saw Medora the Corvisquire fidget with her wings at the question. "Ahh, I've never approached Team Division directly before," she admitted.

"There's a first time for everything," said her sentry companion. "Team Division is quite intimidating from up close. I wouldn't blame anyone for being a little skittish to approach them. But if you trust that our visitors truly have an important reason to be here, and you'll be fine."

Char felt as though the large bird's statement was a veiled accusation towards himself. He sighed deep and steadied his flame, knowing that his mission truly was as important as he expressed in his Call.

"Yes, yes. Of course," said Medora with a deep breath. "Very well, I'll be the one to go. Welcome, then, visitors, to the Black Division. Please step forward. I will be your guide."

Ahh… so it really was that easy, Char said to himself, looking down at his claws with a little flicker of guilt. I don't quite know how I'm ever going to get used to this. I know I have this power for a reason, but… Is it right to just change things like this, to suit my needs? Even if I try to be unobtrusive, or subtle… I still feel like it's unnatural, like I'm cheating and doing things the easy way. Am I ever going to stop feeling so guilty?

You need to think of it like writing a story, Eva advised him. If you have a good story in your head, don't feel afraid to write it. Create the reality that you want to see. That's how the Master operated. He knew exactly what he wanted, and he created what he saw in his mind, and it was beautiful. So when you use your power, just think of it as… you're writing a better story than the random chaos which nature came up with. That's the whole purpose of having immense power in the first place, you know. That's why you have it, and not someone else, because Arceus wanted you to make the decisions about how reality should be. So even though you could make mistakes, or perhaps your ideas won't be theoretically the best possible, it's still good that you're trying.

Char saw the wisdom in that, but his mind caught on another thought.

But I could also be too confident about it, he said in return.

What do you mean? Eva plainly replied.

The ideas I'm bringing to life might not always be the best ideas, Char replied. They could even be evil. Just look at Enigma. I'm sure she thinks she's rewriting Pokémon minds for the better, but clearly she's evil. I don't think I've done anything evil yet… but I still can't presume I know what's best for everyone.

You're never going to know what's best for absolutely everyone, Eva sighed. No leader does. Not even Arceus himself. There are always Pokémon who will be lost, forgotten, erased, no matter what your philosophies are. It's just the truth of reality. There will always be Pokémon who will get the bad ending because you got the good ending. But don't let that stop you from bringing your vision to life. The alternative is doing nothing. Besides…

She cast him a very admiring glance and swiveled her tail at him. The difference between you and Enigma is that you're going to defeat her, because you're a wonderful human, and she doesn't deserve to stand in your way. I still don't know what story you're writing, but I know it's more important than hers.

Char didn't feel as comforted by this thought as he probably should have. He was stuck thinking about one thing Eva said – There will always be Pokémon who get the bad ending because you got the good ending.

Was that really true? Why did it hurt so much to think about? To know that whatever he did, his actions were going to hurt some Pokémon? That whenever he used his power, he was taking away the power of someone else?

He had a sudden flash of a memory, blasting fire at Lily at the top of Temporal Tower, betraying Prince.

Two Pokémon were fighting, he could only save one… and the other got a bad ending. Was that true? Was that always going to be true, even if he did his best as a leader?

Why did he suddenly think of Saura again?

I can tell you how the Master dealt with that, too, if you'd like, said Eva. He chose a few Pokémon – six of them, in fact – and decided they would never get the bad ending. So if all the world crumbled around him, he would at least have six constants in his life. That's why he called us the six eternal truths. He wanted always to believe in us.

Yeah, well… look how that ended up for him, Char said forlornly. Look how that ended up for you six, lost and scattered without him for thousands of years, trying not to go insane… He wanted attachments he would never need to lose, but that attachment became a poison to which there is no antidote. So… what good did that accomplish?

It accomplished a lot of good for a long, long time, Eva said. I think he did the right thing. There's no way he could have anticipated what happened. But look, Master… whether you're all-powerful or not, whether you're immortal or not… you've got to choose something to fight for. Choose some vision of the world to bring into existence, then use your power to do so, and don't be afraid or ashamed. And if there are Pokémon at your side that you care about… fight for them. Fight to keep them there. Others will disagree with you. But at the end of the day… it's your right as a living, thinking being to fight for what you believe in, even if others don't believe in it.

In my mind, that's what makes a human what they are – they get to decide upon fate. And I've always found that to be beautiful.

Again, Char wanted to feel heartwarmed, because Eva had a lot of ideas that he genuinely agreed with, if he wanted to sit and pick them all apart. But Eva's mind had faltered in that moment. There was something strange, something desperate and strained in Eva's mind-voice just then. It flickered like an unstable ember as she spoke about fighting to keep your loved ones at your side…

For the first time, Char realized Eva was hiding something. Something big, possibly as big as Char's own secret about the Call. It had only just shown itself for a fleeting moment. He glimpsed a whole plethora of unfamiliar emotions she'd never shown to him before.

And for that fleeting moment, he actually felt scared of her, as though realizing she was a completely different Pokémon than she presented herself. Char wondered if he actually knew her at all.

You never told me what happened, exactly, Char reminded him. What caused the great fall?

Eva's eyes flashed at him with something hurtful and uncomfortable. I'll tell you about that very soon, she said to him. I'm getting the feeling I can't keep that information from you for much longer.

Char was distracted when the air shimmered like a desert mirage, and the world around him began turning a deep, glowing ethereal blue.