CHAPTER 153

I inhaled sharply at the news. Trainer or not, people didn't just leave their rooms at four in the morning. If he'd been out there beforehand, we could have brushed it off and said he was training, but who started training at four? It was a possibility, but it sure as hell was suspicious. I didn't even care if I was just confirming my inherent biases, I just wanted something. Some definite proof would actually cement this thing. We were certain that the tournament was being rigged for Harry Rodriguez and that the Hunters were shady, but we had nothing linking the two.

Nothing yet.

"What does he want us to do?" I asked.

"Come join him for backup," Denzel said, his voice steady. "His Cutiefly can battle, but they're not the best."

"Backup?"

"In case things go… south," he added. "With what we learned about the Hunters today, I understand completely."

I clenched around my pajamas and had to stop myself from taking a step back. I was ready. I was ready. I couldn't be a baby forever.

"Let Cece and I get dressed," I sighed.

—

It was the dead of night. A cold wind brushed past my hair as I walked toward Solaceon's desolate city center with Cecilia, Louis and Denzel in tow. We had wanted to get everyone involved, but Luca had said that more than four would alert Harry. In a large city, people would have still been out in about, but here? It was like we were in a ghost town. Only the dim street lights illuminated the street, and the dim light of a nearby Pokemon Center could be seen in the distance.

Harry's Pokemon Center.

"Took you long enough," Luca whispered as we reached him. "I've got the bastard skulking around a few blocks away. He's been walking really slow. It's like he really doesn't want to get seen by anyone, so he makes sure every street is empty before he crosses."

I frowned. "How do you even know that?"

Luca lazily pointed back toward the sky. We squinted and noticed a bright light zooming across the horizon.

Cece scoffed. "Is that your—"

"One of my Cuties, yeah," he said. "The other's a lot closer to the culprit himself, and she's just relaying his position."

Louis hissed. "But the light—"

"Calm down, you bunch of amateurs. This ain't my first rodeo. My Cutiefly are special. Those are fairies you're talking about. If they don't want you to see 'em, you won't. Not without a psychic, and Mr. Rodriguez over here doesn't have one of those."

"So what do we do?" I asked.

"We follow. From afar."

We nodded. Since we were here for backup, we each released one Pokemon. Cecilia released Slowking to sense any people approaching. Denzel surprisingly released his Lopunny, and I released Electabuzz in case we needed his Protect. Togetic wouldn't be good at shielding all of us at once if an attack got through. After quickly bringing them up to speed, we slowly followed Luca's Cutiefly which was signaling high into the sky. We could never approach too closely. No, that would be too obvious, especially when Harry was being as cautious as he was. For now the goal was to see where he was going, and it didn't appear to be the Hunter's mansion, which was miles away from the city center. He seemed to be going deeper in.

We followed Cutiefly for around ten minutes, but then Luca's head snapped up and he stopped us with a hand. The fairy type flew in repeated patterns that I recognized as… letters, but it was too quick and too far for me to figure out what it was saying.

"Fuck! Harry's gone," he cursed.

"What?" Denzel exclaimed.

"He turned a corner and teleported. That confirms your theory at least," he said, nodding toward me.

"What Pokemon? What did he use to Teleport?" I quickly asked.

Luca motioned to his Cutiefly, and in just a few seconds, she was in front of us. The other one followed quickly after. The fairy type executed a bunch of acrobatics in the air and spelled out a Pokemon's name.

A.

B.

R.

A.

"Today's a bust," Luca groaned. "Abra used Teleport to get in and out of the street. It barely took five seconds. Luckily with how fast it was, I don't think it noticed my Cuties… hopefully."

"Damn it, that could be bad," I clicked my tongue. "But at least we got something. One, we know that he's getting outside help. Two, we know that he doesn't want to be seen, which is shady as hell. Even someone who was training wouldn't take that amount of precautions, and if he was, why even hide the Abra? This is something more sinister."

"But we still don't know if he's linked with the Hunters," Louis said.

"It's only a matter of time," I said. "Thank you Luca. You've been a great help."

"Pay me?" He said before grinning. "I'm just pulling your leg. I don't mind working for free if we uncover whatever the hell is going on here. That information you got about them from that Isaac guy? Makes them sound a lot more cultish than I'd like. I'll keep tabs on him."

Well, we hadn't gotten what we wanted, but at least we'd gotten something, all while avoiding a fight in the middle of the street with no rules or protection. I had never been in a battle where targeting the trainer was a possibility aside from with wild Pokemon, but humans doing it disturbed me to no end.

But if they did it to me? Well, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to stop my team from killing them.

"One more thing," Cecilia said, raising a finger. "That Abra… has to be from here, right? To Teleport in the middle of an alley like that means that it's been there a lot of times before. Pokemon need to be very familiar with their environment to Teleport somewhere that quickly."

"Especially for an Abra," Denzel added. "If it was a Xatu or even a Kadabra, I would have given it the benefit of the doubt, but… yeah, this feels like it's from here. No way to be one hundred percent sure though."

"Damn, you guys are good. I know nothing about Teleportation," Luca said.

"Meeting that Abra anywhere closer to the Center was probably too high of a risk, which is why he went all the way out here," I muttered. "Now all that remains is: where the hell did he go?"

"Hunter's mansion would be my guess," Denzel said. "But that's just an assumption, and it doesn't explain what the hell their connection would be. Think he's dating one of them after all?"

"Maybe. Maybe not," I said. "Thanks for the help Luca. I'd say that we should confront Harry with what we've got, but that'd be dumb and dangerous. Let's just lay low for now. Maybe the Poketch Company will figure something out."

"I'll bow out then," he said as his two Cutiefly circled his head. I found it hard to stay focused on any of them. "Next time he does the same thing, I'll call again. I'm not about to get beaten half to death in an alley or murdered."

"Fair," I said. "Good night."

"See ya."

—

I woke up tired the next day. It'd be worse for Louis, who would have to actually battle, along with the majority of our friend group. I wasn't going to watch, however. Today, I was going to do something that could be stupid. I didn't consider myself much of a risk-taker, which I'm sure all the people I knew would scoff at. When something caught my eye, I couldn't stop myself from getting it or at least trying to, like Sunshine. Other than that? I'd say I operated on the side of safety and not recklessness. Reckless was someone like Pauline.

That thing I had said about laying low? I had changed my mind.

I was planning to visit the Hunter's mansion today.

It's not like I was going to break in. That would be tremendously stupid and I'd probably get arrested for trespassing or worse if the cult stories were true. Since their home was more than a thousand year old, they often ran tours there for revenue.

Yes, more revenue. It's not like they were swimming in cash already, they needed more money. Arceus. Anyway, with the influx of trainers and people that had come to the town for the tournament, they were running more and more tours, going as much as doing them all afternoon.

Cecilia and Denzel were of course coming with me. They would never let me go alone. That meant that we had to wait for Cecilia's battle to conclude before going to the tour, and needless to say, she handily won against another girl with four badges. Zweilous and Talonflame wiped the floor with the opposition, although she didn't use the Heat Wave, Tailwind and Fire Spin trick this time because she wasn't fighting just rock types. We didn't want to go in too large of a group to avoid attracting attention, but the others knew what we were doing, even if they had their battles to fight.

The last person that would come was Luca, who wasn't going to miss an opportunity like this. The goal was to send his Cutiefly to figure out if something in the mansion was suspicious, but we would also be keeping an eye out. I doubted that they'd have anything out of order on the fixed route they'd keep us on though.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

We stood among a group of fifteen. I was surprised to see how small it was, but they probably didn't want that many people on their property at once.

"Welcome to the Daycare, everyone!" A man smiled. He looked relatively normal. He was an average-sized man in his early to mid-forties. The unique thing about him was his grey eyes. "My name is Reggie," he continued, pointing to the nametag around his collar. "This is my sister, Lane."

Lane smiled softly at us, and she also had grey eyes. I was starting to realize that this was actually the first time I'd ever seen a Hunter in the flesh despite them being so influential. The stories about their isolation were no joke.

"The guide will last thirty to forty minutes, and we'll be starting with some of the Pokemon," Lane said. "Then, we'll show you some of our home."

Reggie cleared his throat. "First, we have to go over some rules. No Pokemon allowed on the premises. We don't want them disturbing our Pokemon or any of our family members."

His Cutiefly were floating high up in the sky, and we were the only ones that could see them, but it seemed that he wanted to wait until we reached the mansion to send them spying. It was too risky.

"Second, no pictures or videos. Third, no petting or calling out to the Pokemon. Fourth, always stick with us and don't go off on your own. Lastly… enjoy your time!"

The group cheered, and they led us toward the huge enclosure where the Hunters raised all kinds of Pokemon. Denzel shot a look at Luca, who shook his head. I couldn't even see where it ended. I could see a few employees in the distance tending to some Squirtle and other water types next to a lake.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Lane said, seemingly catching onto the group's awe. "We've owned this land for a thousand years, and we've preserved it all this time. It's bigger than Solaceon itself, you know?"

Reggie laughed. "When we were kids, we'd get lost out there for hours. We were practically raised by Pokemon, and so were all of our family members."

"I have a question," Luca said.

I froze. It was too early.

"Go ahead!" Lane said.

"What's your favorite Pokemon?" He innocently asked.

"We get that one a lot. I'd have to say Shiftry. What about you, Reggie?"

"You know the answer. It's also Shiftry," he laughed. Something about the way he'd said it was… disturbing. I couldn't place what bothered me about it.

They both moved on to another question from someone else, and Cecilia pulled Luca aside.

"What are you doing? I thought we needed to be discreet," she angrily whispered.

"I am being discreet! I'm blending in! It'd be more suspicious to stay quiet the whole fucking time. You have to act your part. We're supposed to be interested in this stuff, remember?"

She bit her lip and nodded. The Hunters led us to multiple enclosures within the huge enclosure, and we saw plenty of Pokemon. Bulbasaur, Lotad, Deerling… it seemed like they were allowed to roam free here. I might have found their family shady, but I couldn't deny that the Pokemon looked happy, at least. Sometimes, we would come across another Hunter, and they almost all shared those pale, grey eyes except for the ones that had married in from the outside.

Along the way, we learned about how even Pokemon from the same type with a similar body structure could have vastly different needs to thrive. Deerling and Skiddo were a good example. The former was actually quite aggressive and they fought with each other often, while the latter was one of the most docile Pokemon you could get. Deerling actually needed berries to survive and changed throughout the seasons, while Skiddo could live entirely off of grazing.

It was interesting. I hated to admit it, but I was genuinely enjoying myself. Of course, the Hunters didn't actually take us to meet the rarest Pokemon they raised, but they did explain to us that breeders needed special approval from the League before they could raise some of the more dangerous Pokemon, like Gible or Slugma. I was sure that they were hiding them somewhere. Apparently, they had created every single biome in their enclosure, and I caught a glimpse of a manmade desert in the distance before we turned back.

It was time to explore the mansion now. I eyed Luca, who discreetly motioned to his Cutiefly. They followed us as we entered the building and immediately dispersed in order to not be seen. As I stepped inside, my eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the dimly lit interior. Even during the afternoon, this place seemed to be darker than it should have been. The second thing I noticed was the smell— it was an earthen, musty smell that seeped into every corner of the mansion and filled my nostrils to an uncomfortable degree. People lived in here? The air felt cold, although a fire had been lit in the foyer.

The foyer itself was a grand affair. The walls were lined with intricately carved wood paneling, and a staircase led to the second and third floors.

Lane noticed me staring. "You won't be going to the second floor today," she smiled. "Only the first is open to the public. This way, if you will?"

We followed Lane and Reggie to the left, and the old wooden floors creaked under our feet no matter where we stepped. The two guides, however, seemed to know exactly where to step to be silent. I was surprised to see the mansion so empty. I had almost expected it to be bustling with other Hunters, but no one was there. They must have all been working out on the field. It was good news for us since it meant that fewer people would be able to spot Luca's Cutiefly, who had already made their way to the second floor.

"This over here is a painting of the founder of our family, Ediva Hunter," Reggie fondly said, nodding toward the painting. I recognized the name from one of the graves in the Lost Tower. She had pale grey eyes like all of her descendants and brown hair that reached her ankles. She was dressed in golden clothes and was covered in jewelry. I assumed that was an artistic choice.

"All of her life, she wanted to create a safe haven for Pokemon, but she died before being able to accomplish her goal. Her twins took over and realized her dreams," he continued, pointing to another painting. "Siward and Leomer Hunter. The second generation. From then on, the family grew and grew, slowly expanding our lands so that we could take care of more Pokemon."

"Without Ediva, we would never have come this far," Lane softly added. "Let's continue."

The two guides showed us multiple old musty rooms that looked like they hadn't been used in decades. Supposedly though, people frequented this place every day, they just didn't sleep here. They slept in the hundreds of cabins that lined the Hunter's enclosure.

"What's the point of having a huge mansion if you don't use it?" A girl said in a haughty tone.

"We use it, the majority of us just don't sleep here," Lane smiled.

"Who does?" Luca quickly asked.

"Well, the head of the family for one," Reggie said.

I clenched a fist. The Elder that Isaac had talked about. Was he here now?

"But that's not what this tour is about," he continued, pointing to a… Pokeball enclosed in glass. It looked odd. The surface was uneven, and it wasn't made of metal. "Up next, we have the Siward's very own Pokeball that we've preserved all these years. As you can see, it looks different than what we currently use. Back in the day, these weren't mass-produced like today. They were made by specialized smiths that worked with Apricorn trees!"

"Hard to believe, right?" Lane smiled. "They don't use those anymore to make Pokeballs, although some still cling to the old ways in Johto, I've heard. Up next…"

As Reggie and Lisa took us further and further in, I was beginning to grow anxious. Sweat accumulated on my palms that I constantly had to wipe on my jeans. Luca's Cutiefly weren't back yet, but it wasn't like they could just show themselves. They'd have to wait outside until we were done with the tour. After making us look at more paintings, heirlooms and even a statue, the tour finally ended and they began to lead us back outside.

An old man and a Shiftry awaited us in the foyer.

My hands instinctively went to my Pokeballs, but they only hovered there for a second. For being an elder, this man wasn't actually that old. He looked to be only slightly older than Reggie and Lane. In his fifties, maybe? He was balding and on the thinner side, although his stomach stuck out a little bit. He sported a thin, greying beard, and the usual silver eyes. Shiftry was beautiful, and I didn't say that lightly. Every inch of its wooden body was carved with beautiful, flowery imagery, and its white hair was braided into thick locks adorned with a golden hairpiece. It stared at us with cold, yellow eyes.

"Elder!" Reggie and Lane both exclaimed, bowing.

The group stared around confusedly, but we knew something had happened.

Where were Luca's Cutiefly? I expected him to be panicking, but he looked calm. He was acting his socks off, and we'd better do the same. I took a deep breath and stared at the Elder.

"At ease," he laughed. "No need for that in front of the guests."

They both stood up straight. The Elder's voice was raspy, but soft. It was an odd thing to hear. He was possibly the most soft-spoken man I'd ever heard.

"Shiftry told me of a disturbance in our home, and we quickly found the source," he said, stroking his beard. "A Pokemon snooping about."

Reggie and Lane paled.

A single Pokemon?

"We apologize… we were careless," Lane said.

"Do not fret. Everyone makes mistakes," he said. "Now, if the trainer that owns the Cutiefly steps forward, we can all go along with our day. No harm was done. Shiftry stopped it before it could disturb our home."

That meant that it hadn't found anything of note. I restrained a curse.

No one said anything. We all stood, and a heavy silence filled the air. It weighed on us. For two minutes, the Elder said nothing. Why had he only found one? That meant that the other was safe, at the very least, or maybe he was just bluffing.

"Well, no matter," he smiled, staring straight at Luca. "I know the answer already. I just wanted to give you the opportunity to come clean."

Luca's mask slipped, and he snarled. "What did you do to my Pokemon?"

"Reggie, Lane, lead the other guests back outside, will you?"

"Fuck no," Luca said. "Why? If you're gonna do something, do it with them here."

"I won't do anything," he sighed. "I just thought that it would be better dealt with in private, that is all. Shiftry—"

"Elder!" Lane called out. "Not in front of the—"

"Silence," he hissed. She shrunk down like a wilting flower. "Shiftry, release it."

The grass type nodded silently and sliced the air apart with his leaves.

My eyes flickered and the air grew so thick that it was as if I was underwater, yet I could still breathe fine. From the cut, darkness appeared and expanded. It wasn't darkness, exactly. It was like I was looking at the absence of light. A void. The abyss. There was nothing there, and the longer I looked the more I felt like the darkness itself was staring back. A sense of wrongness overtook me and I shivered. It was cold, but it bordered on the valley between manageable and uncomfortable. I couldn't even feel my own heartbeat any longer, and the colors at the corner of my vision faded to black and white. There was a gentle pull toward the abyss, as if it had an effect on gravity itself.

I had never seen a powerful dark type before. Chase's Houndoom was nothing compared to this.

The entire process had barely lasted a second. One of Luca's Cutiefly flew out of the darkness and circled around his head. He breathed a huge sigh of relief. At least one of his Pokemon was fine.

Weren't fairies supposed to resist the dark?

"How…?" Luca asked in disbelief. "No one's ever spotted my Cutiefly before without a psychic, much less trapped her."

"You may take the guests outside," the Elder said, ignoring him. "As an apology for the inconvenience, your visit fee shall be refunded. Lane?"

"I will see to it," she said.

The older man nodded and watched as we were led out of the mansion. We were safe, but we had learned nothing apart from the fact that the Elder truly existed and used an incredibly powerful Shiftry.

Luckily for us, Luca's second Cutiefly joined us shortly after. I didn't know how it had escaped detection, but according to him, he had quickly run away as soon as he felt something was wrong, while his sister wanted to keep exploring to not disappoint their trainer. She got captured, and he got away.

"Guys," Luca said. "I think I'm out."

I frowned. "What?"

"It was fun, don't get me wrong, but that Shiftry…" he muttered. "I'm no battler. It was nice while it lasted, but I'm not fucking around with that family anymore. My Cuties could have died. The Elder knew about me. How else would he have known that Cutiefly was mine?"

"That's…" I started, then sighed. "Okay. Thank you for the help until now."

"The money was nice, but I'm ditching this town. The more I stay here, the more unsettling this place is. If someone told me before I came that the most disturbing city in Sinnoh was Solaceon, I would have laughed at them, but it's true. The Hunters are entrenched here, and there's no stopping them, corrupt tournament or not."

"Wait!" Cecilia exclaimed. "Before you leave, can you ask your Cutiefly if they saw anything?"

"Didn't he say that she didn't?" Denzel frowned. "And the other one just escaped."

"Cutie?" He asked.

The fairy type spelled out a name.

H.

A.

R.

R.

Y.

Harry Rodriguez had been on the mansion's second floor along with that Abra. We had proof now. They were linked. It explained how they found Cutiefly so easily, although answers about Shiftry's powers still remained unknown. That void… it was like a black hole— or at least the visual effects was. The light around it had been distorted. There was also the fact that Abra might have sensed the second Cutiefly before he could escape.

Luca exhaled sharply and clenched his hair.

"Argh… Fuck it, I'm staying," he said, biting his lip.