PARAGON
Hisui Incursion Arc [4]
Chapter 56 : Alpha Pokémon
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To his credit, Kamado didn’t flinch. However, a look of utter disbelief overtook Cyllene’s face, and she recoiled. Ash had to stop himself from looking amused. He may have reacted the same way if he’d been in her shoes.
“The future…” Kamado rumbled.
Cyllene glanced over at him with a look of half incredulity, half scorn, as if bothered that Kamado seemed to be seriously considering the possibility. Nonetheless, she stayed quiet, deferring to her leader in this situation.
However, her reaction was telling. Her surprise meant this was her first time hearing it. Which meant Riley and Sabrina had both lied. Ash’s blood ran slightly cold, but he kept his composure.
“Riley told me that you three had attempted a Guardian ritual gone wrong,” Kamado said. “Sabrina said she couldn’t remember anything just before falling from that hole.” He grunted and shook his head. “And you say you’re from the future. Three different stories. And yet, I sense that you are the one being truthful.”
“Leader!” Cyllene said. “This is ridiculous! That couldn’t possibly—“
“Couldn’t it?” Kamado interrupted. “We know next to nothing about that rift. Who’s to say it is not a gateway to other times? Think of their clothes. They looked like foreign nobility in that garb. Not to mention those metal rings around Miss Natsume’s wrists.”
Cyllene scowled but held her tongue.
“I’m the one telling the truth,” Ash said. “I’m sorry. The other two must have said those things because they didn’t want to rock the boat. It’s like you said. We had no time to come up with a cover story. But we’re not here to deceive you or hurt you in any way.”
“Then why are you here?” Cyllene snapped. “Out with the truth. What reason would Guardians from the future have for meddling in our primitive affairs?” She crossed her leg.
Ash pursed his lips. Although Kamado looked on the confrontation neutrally, Cyllene leaned forward in challenge.”
“One thing first,” Ash said. “We’re not all Guardians. Just Riley is a Guardian. Sabrina and I are just trainers.”
Cyllene’s eyes twitched but she let him continue.
“As for why we came to the past…I wish I knew. I don’t know exactly what Riley said, but part of that is true. We didn’t mean to come to the past.”
“What was the ritual you attempted?” Kamado asked, his voice like iron dragged across stone. It was impossible to discern where he stood on the matter.
“There was no ritual. We used a Guardian artifact called a Time Flower which allows one to see into a memory of the past. We didn’t know what memory the Time Flower contained, but before we knew it, we were falling out of the sky.”
Despite his candor, Ash had no intention of mentioning Sir Aaron or the Plates. Sir Aaron was supposed to already be dead, so dropping his name would only cause confusion. Also Ash wasn’t sure what his involvement in the recent Great War would mean for the Hisuians’ attitude toward them. And then there was the concern about creating a potential time paradox if these people were to somehow learn that Sir Aaron was still alive. Ash wasn’t sure on the specifics, but he’d seen enough movies as a kid to know the basics, and as fantastical as it sounded, he certainly wanted to touch base again with Riley before divulging too much about the future, even if they asked.
Kamado stayed silent, absorbing his explanation. He and Cyllene glanced between each other.
“Leader?” Cyllene asked cautiously.
“Hmmm,” Kamado rumbled. He furrowed his bushy brows. “I believe him.” He turned to Ash. “Tell me. What is the future like?”
Ash hesitated. “I don’t think I can say too much.”
Kamado nodded. “Understandable. But, at least tell me if it’s good or bad.” His dark eyes gleamed, hungry for knowledge.
Ash took a deep breath as he arranged his thoughts. “It’s good, but it could be better. Instead of pokémon being the biggest danger, power is held in the hands of a secretive few, and there’s no telling what they’ll decide to do with it.” There are Platebearers like Sir Aaron, who sought a path toward peace and unity, and then there were Platebearers like AZ…who wiped an entire kingdom off the map in a single day…
Kamado smirked. “It sounds like you have it even rougher than we do.”
Ash cracked a wan smile. “I guess, in a certain sense.”
“Well, that clears that up then.” Kamado straightened and began walking toward the door. “I appreciate your honesty, Ash. I’ll release Laventon and the children, as well as your friends. But…” He turned around. “I can’t feed and house you in our Sanctuary for free. Since you arrived in our time by mistake, I can’t imagine you’ll leave so easily, so I suspect you’ll be needing our continued hospitality. And if you stay, you’ll have to work.” His eyes glimmered mischievously. “Cyllene. I leave them in your care.”
Cyllene bolted up and raised her arm after him. “Leader! What do you mean?”
Kamado smiled. “Welcome to the Survey Corps, Mister Ketchum. I look forward to seeing your contributions.”
“Please wait, Leader! We can’t possibly trust these people! Even if everything he said it true, to so quickly incorporate them into—“
“You’re always lobbying me for more recruits to the Survey Corps, yet when three stellar candidates fall into our lap, you balk?” Kamado raised a brow. “Think of it, Cyllene. This is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for.” He glanced Ash over, then down at Pikachu.
Ash frowned.
Cyllene relented, lowering her arm. Her eyes flicked around, deep in thought. As Kamado moved toward the door, her head jerked up. “Where are you going, sir?”
“I have to speak with Sanqua,” he said nonchalantly. “Professor Laventon needs a new house.”
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Riley looked the least out of place in his Hisuian clothes. Like Ash, he was bundled in thick dark cloth, but instead of his Guardian’s cap, he’d tied his hair into a spiky ponytail with string.
Sabrina, on the other hand, if it was even possible, looked even more meek. She had the same clothes as them, but her feet were pointed awkwardly as she stood in her winter sandals. Her gauntlets jittered erratically, and like Riley, she also wore her jet black hair in a ponytail, exposing her pale neck.
Ash thought she looked cute.
“Haaaaah, well…”
Laventon sighed as he stared at the ruins of his house.
“I’m so sorry, Professor,” Ash said, and Pikachu cooed in remorse on his shoulder.
“Don’t be, young lad. ‘Twas just a house, and houses can be rebuilt. Plus, we all know how Leader Kamado is. I’d do it all again if I knew you three would be joining the Survey Corps in return.”
“Hell yeah!” Rei pumped his fist. “Welcome to the team, guys! We’re totally unstoppable now!”
Akari opened her mouth, presumably to scold him, but even she couldn’t stop the smile tugging at her lips. “Have you heard from Miss Cyllene about your first assignment?”
“Not yet,” Riley said. “I believe she’s redrawing some of her previous plans to incorporate us.”
“It’s gotta be that!” Rei said excitedly. He spun around and pointed up at Mount Coronet, which towered above the walls of the Sanctuary in the far distance. “Miss Cyllene hasn’t let us get anywhere near it, but with you guys…”
The rift looked dull some afar and easily could have been mistaken for dark clouds if one didn’t already know about it. Yet staring at it long enough, every now and then, it seemed to flash, glinting through the frosty haze above the mountain’s peak.
“Now, now, we’re not going to send them on a suicide mission,” Laventon chided.
Akari tugged at Rei’s ear, and the boy wailed mockingly.
“A-Are you guys alright?” Sabrina asked. “Last night…”
The three Hisuians looked over at her in sync, and she shrunk slightly.
“Oh, yes, not a problem,” Laventon smiled.
“They just stuck us in our usual…room,” Akari said, blushing slightly.
“Not the first time we’ve gotten in trouble!” Rei grinned. “Probably won’t be the last either.”
“But to think they knew the whole time about our secret entrance…” Laventon moaned. “I was quite proud of it…”
“It’s ‘cause the pokémon we brought in were always so weak,” Rei smirked. “They knew we could handle it! And they’d never admit it, but we’re doing valuable research for them!”
Akari nodded in agreement, smiling.
“Well, that’s the end of that, I suppose,” Laventon said. “But, a new opportunity has presented itself. For now, let’s get away from this place while the Construction Corps does their job. I say we go get some potato mochi to celebrate our new friends, and after, we can show you around the Sanctuary!”
The two kids cheered and ran ahead, and with no other choice, Ash, Riley, and Sabrina followed.
Per Kamado’s instruction, they were not to mention a word about the future to any others besides Cyllene and himself, or even that they’d fallen from the rift. For now, the story they’d told Laventon would remain. All three of them were Guardians from Rota, practiced in the powers of Aura. They’d been searching for a Guardian relic left behind by their hero Sir Aaron, and had accidentally botched a Guardian spell, causing them to teleport all the way from Rota, into the rift above Mount Coronet, leaving the rest of their pokémon, and their ‘homeland’ behind.
Kamado said he didn’t want to cause panic within the Sanctuary, though he hadn’t expanded on why it would have. To that end, he’d also given Ash an empty pokéball.
“Your pokémon cannot walk within the Sanctuary.”
He’d seen that coming a mile away, and Pikachu must’ve too because he hadn’t even protested. Surprisingly, it worked, despite Pikachu already technically having a pokéball, though it wasn’t really that surprising since this pokéball was a different kind entirely. Like he’d seen on Rei’s, this one was lined in steel and made of a different material Ash couldn’t immediately place. It was also notably heavier.
For now, they’d have to make do here. They had no leads on where Sir Aaron’s Plates could be, and even assuming going to Rota would help them, they had no way to get there. And if the rift above Mount Coronet was their ticket out of here, leaving Hisui behind to brave a voyage across the ocean on a wisp of hope didn’t sound like a wise idea.
Ash hoped that everyone in Paragon was doing fine and wouldn’t twist themselves into knots over his and Sabrina’s disappearance. Ironically, they’d just been sworn to a similar such team. Despite himself, he was getting flashbacks back to his first assignment for Paragon, when he was tasked to retrieve the Electric Plate.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Twenty five hundred years in the past and we’re going after Plates again… Maybe they really do run the world.
After walking through the wide streets of the Sanctuary, stopping seemingly every few houses so Laventon could exchange pleasantries with the residents, they arrived at their destination: a quaint shop with an outdoor eating area beneath a deep jade awning.
“That was gross, Professor! Did we really have to see that old guy’s nasty foot just before eating?” Rei wrinkled his nose.
“I promised Mister Yamada I’d bring him more salve,” Laventon shrugged. “Beni! The same as usual, but double it this time!” He turned back at the others and grinned.
A short middle-aged man pushed his way through the curtains over the doorway wiping his hands on a cloth. “Professor. I heard the news and thought you might want a pick-me-up.” His eyes narrowed upon noticing the newcomers.
“Oh, this isn’t that kind of affair, Beni. This is a celebration!” Laventon cheered.
Rei and Akari had already rushed over and seated themselves at a table that would fit all of them.
“Friends, this is Beni, the genius behind the Sanctuary most delectable consumable,” Laventon introduced. “Beni, this is Ash, Sabrina, and Riley. Guardians.” He raised his brow proudly.
Beni nodded. “Yes, word has already spread of our new neighbors. Welcome, Guardians. Any friend of Laventon is a friend of time. Please, make yourselves comfortable. I’ll bring some tea out in a moment.”
Ash and the others nodded their thanks and sat down with the rest, three per side.
Soon after sitting down, Ash caught sight of something on the outside wall of the restaurant and flicked his head at it, frowning. “Where did you get those?”
The three natives turned around.
“Ah, the masks,” Laventon said.
There were four of them, one green, one red, one blue, and one gray. All bore a twisted face, carved from wood and painted in vibrant colors.
“Beautiful, and frightening, aren’t they? Mementos from Beni’s hometown, an island village near Hisui.”
“They aren’t mine,” Beni grunted, wielding a tray of teacups. “I’m not so sentimental. Those belong to Leader Kamado,” he said as he distributed the tea. “He and I come from the same place. Those are replicas of a mask worn by a local oni. The reason why he selected those of all things to bring here eludes me, as does why he chose to hang them on my shop. But, admittedly, the man is an enigma.” He smiled curtly then headed back inside.
“I’d assumed Leader Kamado was born here,” Riley said.
“He came here with Beni when he was about our age,” Akari explained. “I think his village was running out of food or something…?” She frowned, as if trying to remember.
“I thought it was because it burned down,” Rei said.
“An enigma,” Laventon said. “Beni told it true. Yet, Leader Kamado keeps us safe. That, for a certain, is no mystery.”
“Yeah, ever since he became Leader, not one pokémon has breached the walls of the Sanctuary,” Rei said.
“Not counting the ones we brought in,” Akari muttered with a guilty smile.
Ash took a sip of the tea, a warm comfort for this chilly noon. “Are pokémon attacks a very big problem?”
Laventon and Akari’s expression dampened, and surprisingly, Rei’s did too.
“Not for the Sanctuary…” Laventon said grimly. “But venture too far… The untamed frontier is unforgiving.”
“Every survey we go on lately, we have multiple casualties,” Akari said flatly. “The Fieldlands used to be relatively safe for us, at least for us who are used to wild pokémon. But now, we have to treat even the Fieldlands like some of the more dangerous inland regions…”
“The Fieldlands are the region south of the Sanctuary,” Laventon clarified. “It’s supposed to be the tamest region in Hisui, but ever since that rift appeared, it’s like the pokémon have become more wild than usual.”
“After the rift opened, that’s when the Alpha Pokémon started to appear,” Rei said.
Riley frowned. “Alpha Pokémon?”
“A title we’ve bestowed to pokémon of great strength encountered in the wild,” Laventon said. “Utterly unchallengeable. They may as well be deities to us. We’ve found several in the Fieldlands, and avoiding their respective territories is absolutely essential.”
“It makes the surveys a lot more difficult,” Akari said. “Lots more time to go around them.”
“There was a giant Rapidash…a crazy Snorlax…and then a purple Gyarados in Lake Verity,” Rei murmured.
Laventon’s skin crinkled as he smiled sadly. “Those three alone have cut the Survey Corps’ numbers nearly in half over the past few months. Captain Cyllene has been hesitant to authorize any more surveys beyond the Fieldlands for fear we’ll find even stronger Alpha Pokémon than the ones we already have.”
Ash gripped his cup, though his fingers felt cold. “That must be why she doesn’t seem to like us. We came from that same rift that’s caused so much death.” That must be why Kamado doesn’t want us connected to the rift.
“Oh, I wouldn’t think that way,” Laventon said. “It is true that the rift is a symbol of fear for many in the Sanctuary. But for us in the Survey Corps, it is yet another mystery to illuminate on this vast continent. Those who fell…I’ve no doubt every one of them did not regret their choice. Unlike all the other Corps, the Survey Corps is dedicated to a purpose beyond the cramped borders of the Sanctuary.”
Rei smiled proudly.
“And I don’t think Miss Cyllene doesn’t like you guys,” Akari said. “She fights more fiercely against this ruthless world harder than any of us, and she’ll do whatever’s necessary to increase her odds. I bet she’s actually ecstatic that you three arrived. Honestly, I think she was getting close to her wits’ end with all the casualties lately…”
Ash smiled. “Battling super powerful pokémon happens to be our specialty.”
As promised, Beni’s potato mochi was delicious. Over their meal, Laventon and the others told them more about Hisui, a land divided into subregions. The Obsidian Fieldlands where they’d first discovered the Alpha Pokémon were comprised of sweeping plains and crystal rivers and lakes. The Crimson Mirelands to the east were a land of thick bogs and weedy knolls. The Cobalt Coastland was a haunted stretch of beach infested with water and ghost-types, while the cold Alabaster Icelands to the north served as a home to some of the most powerful pokémon on the continent. And in the center of Hisui, surrounding Mount Coronet, were the rugged Coronet Highlands, rife with its own enchanted caves and mystic ponds.
Ash had a basic sense of Hisui’s layout since he’d journeyed all throughout Sinnoh already, but Hisui was a different place than the region he knew, and he reminded himself to remember that fact. They were far closer in time to the Age of Carnage, and the pokémon of this era reflected it in their beastly behavior. Just at a glance, he could tell that there was something off about Akari’s Staravia and Rei’s Hisuian Growlithe. Or, not off, but different. They held none of the mirth that animated Pikachu or most other pokémon from modern times.
After lunch, Laventon, Rei, and Akari walked them around the Sanctuary for a couple of hours, introducing them to the market district and the many vendors that lined each street. There, they saw plump fruits, dried meats, bolts of thick cloth, and much more all up for barter. After a while, they excused themselves to go shopping for items to replenish what they’d lost in Kamado’s attack, and although Ash tried to go with them to help, his offer was flatly denied. They refused to bring him along on such menial errands.
“Go on, explore our Sanctuary! No one here’s ever seen a Guardian, and many could do well to have their eyes opened ever so slightly more to the outside world!” Laventon sang as they walked away.
Left in the shadow of the Church, Ash, Sabrina, and Riley watched as they walked away. Others milled about around them attending to their daily duties, not paying them any mind. It seemed that they blended right in now that they had the local clothes on. Not even Sabrina’s gauntlets earned a second glance. Clearly, living a life of survival was different from their comparably comfortable existence in the present. It was like the villagers couldn’t afford to distract themselves with passing curiosities.
“We’re being watched,” Sabrina murmured.
As Ash and Riley looked over, she nodded back at the Church.
“Leader Kamado, I think.”
“Figures,” Riley sighed. “Well, let’s put on a nice performance.” He began walking toward one of the streets heading away from the Church.
Ash and Sabrina glanced at each other before following.
Torches and small bonfires danced periodically, providing light and warmth in the sullen winter and infusing the air with the scent of smoke. The street they’d selected was a bit narrow, with various signs and cauldrons and shelves full of wares set up just in front of the buildings. Most of the buildings looked to be two stories, and every now and then, they saw someone peeking their head out a window to observe the chaos below.
Ash rubbed Pikachu’s pokéball as they walked, wishing he could release him.
“So, should we try to go back up through the rift?” Sabrina asked as they turned a corner down into a quieter, more residential part of the Sanctuary.
“As much as I’d like to, we have no idea if it’d take us back where we want to go. We used a Time Flower to get here…” Ash shook his head. “There’s something we’re missing. Why would we fall out of that rift?”
“Plunging into that rift, assuming we survive, may just spit us out at a different point in time and space,” Riley added. “A rift above the Spear Pillar… One would think it’d have something to do with Arceus, but there are so many legends tied to those ruins, I couldn’t say with confidence what could be responsible.”
“Back when I was on my journey through Sinnoh, a group called Team Galactic summoned Dialga and Palkia to the mountain’s peak, and inadvertently called in Giratina as well. My guess is Dialga or Palkia, or both.”
“The Spacetime Dragons, right?” Sabrina said. “I think Zinnia talked about them some time…”
Ash nodded. “From what little I know about them, though, I don’t think they’d be responsible for those Alpha Pokémon they were talking about. And I’m not sure what Arceus would have to do with them either.”
“With luck, Captain Cyllene will send us after one of them and we can investigate ourselves,” Riley said.
They weren’t heading anywhere in particular, but the quiet from the houses around them made the conversation easier.
“I really hope the time we spend here isn’t passing in the present,” Ash said. “If we end up spending weeks or months here… I can’t even imagine what Paragon’ll do.”
Sabrina grimaced, her gauntlet’s flickering. “What if the time we spend here translates to even greater time in the present…? What if a few weeks or even minutes here means years in the present?”
The houses opened up into an area of open fields where several people worked diligently without even looking up at them. Presumably, this was the domain of the Agriculture Corps.
“No sense in worrying about that,” Riley said. “If we begin stressing over every little second, we won’t have the headspace to use to find our way home. For now, let’s trust that King Aaron created his Time Flower while accounting for possible mishaps like the one we find ourselves in now.”
“Riley, what do you think of Sabrina’s idea that Sir Aaron may have already revived?”
Riley chewed his lip, his brows knit tightly. “I thought about it some more last night. The assumption is that the King Aaron of roughly this time period created the Time Flower. Considering we ended up here in Hisui with King Aaron nowhere in sight, I have to think that he doesn’t know about the rift. If he is alive, he may be just as confused as we are.”
Ash frowned. That did make sense. If Sir Aaron created his special Time Flower with the intention of pulling its future users to his location in time and space, then by now, he must have assumed the Flower had failed. He may not even be looking for them.
“But, if he is around, word of the rift will eventually reach him for a certainty,” Riley said. “It’s anomalies precisely like this one that the Guardians are tasked with investigating. So for now, let’s assist our new friends with a helping hand from the future.”
He smiled, sun and shadow shining on his face.
Optimism was their only hope now.
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Sanqua, a tall, gray-haired woman, and her Construction Corps had completed Laventon’s house before the sun went down. When Ash, Sabrina, and Riley returned, Laventon, Rei, and Akari had also just arrived back with clothes, furniture, supplies, and a host of instruments needed for the Professor’s research.
This time, Ash didn’t bother asking for their opinion, and for the rest of the day, they helped them move and clean everything inside. Laventon’s neighbors offered their help as well and introduced themselves to the newcomers. Some seemed more wary than others.
Also, apparently Kamado had agreed to allow Laventon to open his doors to them once again, so tonight and all nights going forward, they would all be together under the same roof. Akari and Rei didn’t seem to mind at all, and Laventon was acting like he’d just won the lottery. He seemed to think having “three” Guardians stay with him was more than worth his extra room and three additional mouths to feed.
By the time the moon had fully risen over the horizon, the house once again looked livable, nearly as cozy as it had the first night, minus the clutter. That was a plus of the Sanctuary’s minimalism.
Afterward, they’d returned to Beni’s for dinner.
“Ahhhh, that hit the spot as always,” Lavention said with a smile, rubbing his substantial belly.
“You said it,” Rei groaned, hanging his tongue out.
“Hey, Ash,” Akari said, glancing left and right before continuing. “Will Pikachu be alright? He hasn’t eaten anything since this morning, right?”
“Oh, yeah, he’ll be fine. Maybe a bit grouchy but tomorrow, I was thinking I’d let him out somewhere out of the way or something, if that’s okay.”
“Our pokémon are kept in the pastures near the eastern wall,” she explained. “I think Leader Kamado is slipping you guys into the register, so you should be able to get some space from the Security Corps if we ask.”
“Hmmm. I don’t think Pikachu would like a pen very much, plus I like to keep him with me at all times, if possible. Maybe I can head back to the beach where we met and let him stretch his legs a bit.”
Laventon pointed at him. “Ah, that reminds me, Ash. Cyllene gave me a message earlier. She wants you, her, and me to return to the beach and tell our stories again on-site, so she can add a visual reference to her report.”
“Just me?” Ash asked.
“Any one of you is fine. She’s been rigorous in her documentation on anything even remotely related to that rift. I assume this exercise is a part of that. Most likely, once she squares that away, she’ll be ready to begin our next survey.”
Thoughtful as ever, Laventon had gotten them each several changes of clothes and toiletries, and once they returned, they changed into yukata with simple patterns. Though Rei had wanted to stay up and keep talking, once Akari reminded him of how tired Laventon must be after walking and shopping all day, he agreed to an earlier turn-in. He and Laventon each had a futon in the main room, Ash and Riley were in one of the side rooms, and Sabrina and Akari were in the other. After bidding each other good night, the wooden doors slid closed between them.
At this time tomorrow night, the walls of Jubilife Sanctuary would already be breached.
Next — Chapter 57 : The Volo Company
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