“Protect!” I cooed like a father down to my Bidoof. “Pro. Tect!”
“What are you doing?” Akari asked me in a slightly sullen tone. We were on our way to the Obsidian Fieldlands with the professor and I was using the six-hour trip to try and make headway of getting Bidoof to learn Protect. If learnt, he'd would become invaluable in protecting both me and himself in case of Pokémon attacks- not to mention against the Diamond Clan’s Noble.
Akari had seemed to have reverted back to her usual dour self, but she was walking with me this time instead of sulking off behind us. We had no Security Corps escort on our journey. We were going to have to rely on Mai for that. So, perhaps, it was just to keep the trio close together in case of attack.
“Teaching Bidoof Protect,” I replied neutrally. Truthfully, I was still incredibly wary of her.
“Protect?” Akari’s brows slammed together. “Is that a move or something?”
I nodded.
“What does it do?”
I blinked. Was Protect truly not a thing here yet? “It protects the user from attacks, but only temporarily. The stronger the Protect, the longer it’ll hold before breaking. Really strong Pokémon can just break past it, though, so you’ve got to be cautious with it.”
“You want Bidoof to protect itself?” Akari still wasn’t following.
“Yes, for sure.” I replied. “But after a little bit, Bidoof should be able to manifest Protect in front of me or another person or Pokémon.”
Understanding lit up Akari’s eyes. “Ohhh.”
“What a stupendous idea!” I turned to find Laventon scribbling furiously into a piece of paper. It looked ridiculously awkward while walking, but the man was finding a way it seemed. “I’ve just got to track your progress and add the result to my files!”
That had almost made me freeze in place. Had I just invented Protect? What kind of paradoxical nonsense was that?
We were greeted warmly by Mai at the bridge and she apologised for her rudeness but insisted we needed to quickly make our way up to her campsite on Deertrack Heights before dark- the expansive hill that stood tall over the rest of the Fieldlands. It was a nightmare to climb up its steep paths, but the Kricketot's shrill bell-like cries and fluttering Starly above served as a nice distraction to the pain in our legs. There were Burmy hanging from tree branches staring with wide eyes and a Geodude was busy punching some sort of crystallized ore just off-path. I was worried it'd attack us, but we actually made it without any issues in the end.
“This is us,” Mai extended her arm outwards towards the barebones campsite she had erected in a plateau-like recess surrounded by arching rock. Four tents coloured the Diamond Clan’s signature blue were placed close to one another surrounding a well-used fire. A Munchlax approached us with eager eyes. Mai bent down to pet it. “It isn’t much, I apologise.”
“No need, old girl,” Laventon was too busy marvelling at the new terrain to care. “There was so much Pokémon around the hills that I’d have happily slept on the floor!”
“Four years has Laventon tried to convince Kamado to negotiate passage over the bridge,” Akari remarked. She was gazing at me with an odd look in her eyes. Like she was trying to figure me out. “And you manage it in just under a month.”
The night was spent with Mai sat on the highest peak of Deertrack Heights. We were overlooking The Heartwood to the east. With our vantage point, I had realised the Deertrack Heights was surrounded by a snaking river- like its own source of refuge. I couldn’t believe Mai lived here alone. It was no wonder she frequented the bridge so much. The views from up here were amazing, though. The distant river water below glinted in the moonlight and we could hear the omnipresent sounds of bug-type Pokémon from The Heartwood all the way up here. Mountainous terrain rose high behind the trees of the dense forest ahead of us. I hoped we wouldn’t have to scale all that to reach the Crimson Mirelands. “The Heartwood is Pearl Clan territory,” Mai broke the silence after allowing us to take in the scenery for a spell. “Which means we’ll have to trespass in order to reach the valley that will take us to the Mirelands.”
That didn’t sound too fun.
“There’s both good and bad news though,” Mai continued. “Which one would you like to hear first?”
“The bad.” Akari surprised me by actually replying.
A slight smile touched Mai’s lips. “The Pearl Clan keep one of their Noble Pokémon within The Heartwood.”
I took a page from Kamado’s locutions. “Oh, bother.”
“Good news is that it’s guarded solely by a young man who seems not to involve himself much in the clan’s politics,” Mai shrugged. “The Pearl Clan don’t consider the Obsidian Fieldlands to be particularly important. Neither does Adaman, for that matter. That is why I’m the sole protector of this central landmass.”
“So, we’re to sneak past a Noble Pokémon and its Warden?” Laventon sounded quite nervous. He likely hadn’t done anything so bold before. Truthfully, neither had I.
“Yes,” Mai affirmed. She crossed her legs from her seated position and used her hands to support herself. “I don’t know who the Warden of Kleavor- their Noble Pokémon- is… but I do know he’s exceptionally talented and very territorial. We’ll likely get ourselves into deep trouble if he finds us within his lands. He may even set his Noble upon us. Thankfully, he will not chase us into the valley towards the Mirelands. He knows that the Diamond Clan own the entirety of the Crimson Mirelands and won’t risk chasing us into our own territory.”
“How does Adaman get past, then?” I asked.
“He swims south of the continent and circumvents Mount Sinnoh entirely,” Mai paused when she noticed our awed faces. “Ah, excuse me. I meant that he travels atop a Basculegion. Unfortunately, Basculegion cannot fit all of us upon its back. Which means we must take the more difficult route.”
Fantastic.
Mai stood and dusted herself off. “Well, I suppose I’ll be heading in for the night. Munchlax will want his nightly meal before bed and I’ve kept him waiting long enough.”
We bid her goodnight, but the woman hesitated before she set off. “Thank you… for helping us with this. I know things are bad right now with that rift, but… well, Adaman tends to downplay things. We’re desperate and I think he’s secretly panicking underneath all of that attitude. I don’t doubt he feels terrible about leveraging our help to get you to solve Diamond Clan problems, but it’s his duty to put the clan first.”
Her words, grateful as they were, did leave a bit of a sour taste in our mouths. Would we truly be able to help with this Noble Pokémon situation? I wasn’t sure how strong the Diamond Clan were, but they clearly were comfortable with Pokémon companions if Mai was to go off of.
The next day, we descended through Nature’s Pantry and past the many herds of Stantler, swarms of Kricketot, and flocks of Staravia. The Stantler had sort of… watched us from afar. It was actually rather eerie the way they all just looked at us in unison. Kricketot were horrified and hobbled like Eiscue to run away, while Staravia…?
Well, Staravia weren’t at all like their pre-evolved Starly. They were shockingly large and ruthlessly aggressive. They had the same grey-black feathers although had a much sharper look in their eyes accentuated by their pointed beaks. I had Bidoof out practising Protect and Golett to give the little guy a walk, but my own Starly was too skittish for me to trust outside of its Poké Ball when in unfamiliar territory. She was getting better and better with each day, though.
At first, the Staravia swooped dangerously low- just above our heads- as if taunting us. But it soon became apparent that they were planning to use their beaks to peck a few heads. That was when Golett, of its own volition, stepped forward and drew the ire of the flock. The clay-Pokémon’s torch-like eyes slowly switched from Staravia to Staravia and it utterly ignored the clawing and pecking they were swooping in to perform.
It was serving itself up as a decoy, I realised. We quietly snuck past the commotion and I kept Golett out of its Poké Ball since it honestly didn’t look like the Staravia were actually doing damage to it. Then, out of nowhere, Golett flashed out its fist and grabbed hold of a Staravia’s talon. The flying type went absolutely ballistic. It flapped and squealed and pecked. But Golett simply held on tight for a few seconds before letting go. Horrified, the now free Staravia fled as fast as it could. The rest of the flock followed and Golett started to trudge its way back to us.
“That’s a pretty tough Pokémon,” Mai remarked with a really impressed look. “Maybe you are made out of the stuff Adaman needs to handle our Nobles.”
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I should’ve guessed that a Pokémon designed to take on Unova’s Legendaries would be powerful, but it still surprised me at how bulky it was. The thing didn’t even have a scratch on it!
The rest of our journey down was uneventful. A large river cut off our path towards The Heartwood, however, and it seemed the Pearl Clan hadn’t been willing to build a bridge between the two territories.
Fortunately, a small detour to the Tidewater Dam would allow us access over the river. Unfortunately, Tidewater Dam was currently the pet project of around twenty-four Bibarel. We observed the cross-linked sections of wood that had forced a small albeit narrow bridge across the river’s mouth. It would be quite the risky crossing…
“Are you quite sure the Bibarel won’t attack us?” Laventon looked the most worried out of us all.
“Oh, they will.” Mai chuckled. “Nothing major, but… they might start spitting water at you.”
Akari pulled a face besides me. “Gross.”
In the end, I recalled Golett and Mai commanded her Munchlax that he stay close. I would’ve offered one of my two remaining empty Poké Balls to carry him in, but wasn’t sure if doing so would insult the Diamond Clan member. Bidoof stayed out. Our thinking was that he might disincentivise the Bibarel from attacking.
It didn’t work. We all had made it across the makeshift bridge, but had gotten at least a mild jet of water to the face for our troubles. The Bibarel simply looked like bigger and fatter versions of Bidoof with a large flappy tail, but man could they pressurise water!
“Your face!” Akari guffawed and pointed towards my cheek where I’d caught a blast of water during the crossing. “It’s so red!”
“It’s not like your face isn’t the same!” I snapped back without any heat. Akari currently had a mean looking bruise running down the left side of her face.
Mai, also bruised, watched in amusement. But she soon turned serious. “We need to be silent from now on,” she warned us. “I don’t know where that Pearl Clan Warden is nor where his Noble lies. I’ll guide the way. If you see something, don’t say a word. Instead, tap my shoulder or grab my arm. Got it?”
I recalled Bidoof just in case he decided to start a racket for whatever reason. He had a tendency to cry out for seemingly no reason.
The Heartwood was filled with dense foliage covered by the lattice-like shadows cast from the leaves above. Berry trees formed orchards when the terrain was flat, but The Heartwood’s treeline had hidden a surprisingly bumpy terrain. Small, dune-like hills were constantly crested and a shallow but stationary river winded through the valleys. Akari, Laventon, and I shared a look when a Beautifly sapped a berry dry from its tree. I could see Silcoon and Cascoon sat stationary among the bushes. They were round and completely uniform save for their two eyes, but would erupt into spikes if something ventured near. Buneary poked their heads out from behind tree trunks- their fluffy ears twitching at our footfalls. Psyduck stared blankly from the river. It was… quietly loud in a sense. Pokémon cries were constant, but The Heartwood was deathly silent otherwise save for the soft crunch of our footfalls.
Then, a loud caw broke through the quiet buzz of the forest and reached our ears from above. Mai froze. She turned to us with wide eyes and motioned for us to stay deathly still. Her gaze went skyward- looking beyond the trees.
I could hear a distant flapping noise. Something big was flying overhead. I could feel myself tense and resisted the urge to ask Mai what was happening- why she was looked so scared.
We waited. The dull ache in my cheek was forgotten about. I felt my legs coil as adrenaline flooded through my veins. My hairs were raised on end. Something dangerous was around. I could still hear the distant flaps. They sounded like they were right above us. Was something hunting us? Paranoia crept into the edges of my mind and I started to jump at every little shadow.
We kept waiting. Even when the flapping noise faded into the distance.
It took a few minutes before Mai was ready to move again. But just as she motioned for us to follow, an almighty roar echoed through the forest.
It was so loud that the tree leaves shook. Combee and the wide-winged Beautifly took to the air to escape and I watched Buneary scatter all around us. There was a stomping noise coming from somewhere to our left.
I remember thinking to myself, ‘what was going on?!’. There had been so many questions on my mind, but we didn’t have time for answers. The roar shook the forest once more. Mai slowly turned around to us.
A tall but lanky figure burst from the trees and froze when he saw us. White clothes wrapped around a wiry frame, contrasting the muddy large hat he wore atop his head. His brown eyes were wide and his brown hair was rumpled and covered in dirt. His boots had leaves stuck to them. “What are you doing here?!” he exclaimed with a breathless voice.
Mai looked like she was about to faint. “I-. Uh…”
“No matter!” the teenager cut her off. “We need to go!”
“Follow me!” Mai had abandoned stealth and started to run towards the east. After a moment’s hesitation, the rest of us followed.
We sprinted between trees and over exposed roots. Leaves were kicked up underneath our feet and a constant barrage of crinkling foliage accompanied our mad dash through the forest. There were footsteps, too. Bounding and heavy and drawing closer. I thought, at first, that it was the strange teen running behind us- but that notion was quickly shattered into pieces.
“You need to go faster!” the teen bellowed over another roar, but poor Laventon was struggling to keep up. I heard a great clang emanate from the trees. A roar and the sound of snapping bark accosted my ears. What on earth was chasing us?! Had it to do with whatever was in the sky?!
We kept running, but Laventon was at his limits. Mai seemed to realise this and slowed to help him, but the unidentified teenager held up his hand. “Stop!”
We all froze.
The big thing, likely a Pokémon, that was chasing us seemed to have halted as well. It sounded like it was prowling nearby. But I couldn’t see where. I looked all around me but there were nothing but trees.
A low snarl reverberated through the tree trunks. I could hear heavy footsteps. Sweat was pouring down my back and my hands felt clammy. I was breathing so loud that I feared it would hear me. My pounding heart throbbed within my chest. I swallowed. I was mostly confused, but there was a predatorial aura shoving its way through the air that set my instincts on fire. I wanted nothing more than to flee and never look back.
“Shhh,” the teen held a finger to his lips. The once abundant forest was now devoid of all life. Everything had gone quiet. I couldn’t even hear the wind anymore.
There were more footfalls. I faintly heard a sniffing noise and Akari let out a low whimper. I felt a twinge of fear as I realised it was smelling us out.
My hand grabbed Golett’s Poké Ball, but my sweat slickened the round object and made it hard to keep in my palm. I decided to keep it latched onto my belt for now.
The teenager was cringing as if someone was approaching him with a knife. His expression intensified as the seconds ticked by and I saw a tear squeeze its way out of his eye.
A roar so loud I felt the ground shake rammed us and we all collectively screamed. I instantly released Golett and threw my hands up to protect my face, but nothing jumped out at us.
Instead, whatever was hunting us bounded deeper and deeper into the trees.
“Oh, jeez,” the teenager with the hat looked traumatised but otherwise unharmed. “That was a close one.”
“What was that?!” I exclaimed. My exhales were shaky and my hands trembled. I tried to take solace in Golett’s stillness. My new companion was completely stationary, but it was protecting us. We were safe.
The teen turned to me. “Lian,” he extended a dirt-encrusted hand and I tentatively shook it. “Now you all need to tell me why you’re in Pearl territory- especially you, Diamond Clan member. But first, we’ve got to get you all to safety. Where you going?”
“Lian,” Mai bowed so deeply I thought she’d fall over. “I’m so sorry for our trespass, but we have a minor situation that required the help of Jubilife’s research team.”
“Pfft,” Lain waved away her apology. “I don’t care. You think I care? I’m too busy trying not to die each day in this place. But we’ll have to chat later. We need to move before Kleavor comes back.”
Was that actually a Kleavor? It was like a page out of a damned horror movie! I knew it was the Pearl Clan’s Noble Pokémon, but I’d never heard of it before. The fact that it had been chasing us through the woods did scare me enough not to question it. I watched as understanding dawned on Mai’s face. She had come to the same realisation that we had almost died to it. “Yes, let’s. I’ll lead the way.”
But Akari wasn’t moving.
She was bundled in Laventon’s arms and her eyes were squeezed shut. She was rocking back and forth and the professor was soothing her with low words. Her skin was as pale as ice. “What’s wrong with her?” Lian asked impatiently.
“Give her time,” Laventon shot us a look that asked for some space, so the three of us took a step back. I had questions. But Mai and Lian’s low voices caught my attention.
“Why is your Noble hunting its own Warden?” Mai asked even though she already likely knew. I felt a tinge of disdain at that. After almost dying, Mai still was playing politics.
“None of your business,” Lian shook his head slightly. “But you guys need to go. Now. Irida’s near and she will react badly to trespassers on her land.”
Mai nodded. “I know. We heard her flying above us just before you came bursting from the trees.”
“Don’t let her catch you,” Lian warned. “I don’t know what she’ll do if she does. Irida hasn’t been… herself lately. She almost never visits, but she came by last night and was cruel- abusive. Something’s gotten her into a state and I don’t know what.”
“Aren’t you Pearl Clan?” I interjected. “Why are you telling us this about your own leader?”
Lian averted his gaze and stared down at the floor. “Because…” he paused for a moment. “Because Irida’s a nasty human being who sees me as nothing but trash,” bitterness started to creep into his voice. “She could’ve rescued me and brought me home, but instead she left me here to die.”
“Maybe she had a rea…”
“She wasn’t always like this,” Lian cut me off as if feeling the need to justify his small act of treason. “She used to be so kind and so wonderful. But then we’ve been having… problems… lately, and the Heartice ritual’s starting to affect her more and more and she keeps losing control and…”
“It’s okay,” Mai cooed and brought the young man into a hug. “We understand.”
“Mai. We have to take him with us.” I stated.
Mai’s eyes met mine. “I don’t think that’s wise. He’s a Pearl Clan member.”
“So we just leave him here to die?” I hissed back. “Can’t you take him in until it’s safe in the woods?”
“And let him learn all of our secrets?” Mai retorted. “I’d be exiled for doing such a thing.”
“But we-”
“We’re at war, Rei.” Mai deadened. “The Diamond and Pearl clans can never mix.”
“It’s okay…” Lian pulled away from Mai and smiled. “I have a cave I like to hide in nearby. I’ll help you get to wherever you’re going and then collect myself there. Afterwards… I’ll flee somewhere safe.”
“Where would you go?” I asked, still concerned over his fate. The boy was younger than me yet had to endure all this by himself. Where were his parents? I didn’t feel… fair.
A shrug. “Dunno. Can’t go to Diamond Clan territory and my own clan will reject me when they discover I abandoned my post.”
I felt my heart melt for poor Lian. The young man was abandoned by his own leader in the middle of danger and would now have to fend for himself with nobody to keep him company. All because of the clans and their territory.
What a horrible world Hisui was. It just reinforced my desire to escape this place as soon as I could.