Chapter 41: Lore dump?

Nexon Journal: Legends.

Legendaries. That was obviously a topic I was passionate about because, of course, I would. Now that they were all the more real I had all the more reasons to. But it also put into perspective that not all legendaries were the same.

First, you had the legendaries. It seems weird but they are not truly legendary. But at the same time, they were. It is easier to showcase by example. In this group, you have Pokemon like Latias and Latios or even the different Regis(Without Regigigas). They are basically legendary Pokemon as I know them, but they are also several members of the species, just incredibly rare. I would also place Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres in this group given that several individuals have been seen, and event regional variants. Also ‘minor’ legendary like the Lake Guardians

Then have Mythical. Powerful, and even rarer than legendaries. Some are even supposed to be unique. Here it is basically the same as in the games I know of Victini, Mew, and the like. Note that Darkrai is technically here too, mainly because of how elusive they are.

Then we have the Legendaries, with capital L. These are the ones we know as ‘box art’. God-like existences that are pretty much the embodiment of a concept. Here we have the obvious, Dialga, Palkia, Zekrom, and others.

Then finally we have Arceus. Yeah, he is the only one in his tier. I will not elaborate. No way is he a Mythical.

***

The sound of my footsteps echoing down the hall was the only noise as I followed behind the floating Musharna. The pinkish smoke coming from the psychic type’s orifice seemed to be contained by the power of her mind alone. The floating psychic type bobbed up and down as if taking step in synch with mine. It was only a bit before the psychic voice reached out once more.

‘I see you are the one Caity talked about last time you are much like her.’ The voice that reached me seemed relaxed and reminded me of Caitlin because of the lazy tone. ‘You remind me much of her when we first met. So young yet full of potential. Maybe too much even.’

I wanted to ask what she meant about that, but before I could we stopped in front of a door that slid open revealing a slumped Caitlin. Her golden locks were draped over the table and flowed below it. I absentmindedly wondered how much time it took her to wrangle them under control. Probably sensing our presence, the mound of gold slowly shifted as she rose.

“Mmmm~” with a muffled yawn and stretch, she tiredly opened her eyes before truly seeing me. “Mornin~”

She mumbled and I once more contemplated if she was the same Caitlin I knew of. “Good morning”

She gave a small nod. “That was a good match. Congratulations on reaching the semi-final. Now as much as I would like to catch up, it sounded urgent, so I am guessing it is important?” she asked.

The fact that she was still rubbing the sleep out of her eyes made it hard to take her seriously if you didn’t know better. She looked like a doll with how flat her features tended to remain. Hearing her words, however, I was brought back to the present.

“I wouldn’t say it is urgent but…I think it might be important.” I said while trying to keep my voice firm. “First off, what I have to say is a bit hard to believe so I would like if you could have one of your psychic types verify what I have to say.”

She raised an eyebrow at my statement but left me to continue as she nodded. Only a few seconds later, I felt a mind reach to mine before withdrawing. There was a moment of silence as Caitlin shifted her eyes between her Pokemon and me before her mouth formed an “o”. It was only when her Gothitelle teleported that I remembered the protection that she crafted. I guessed it made more sense to have her scan for the truth than Musharna. Each psychic type has their own way of doing things, after all. Again, a mind reached out to mine and this time it stayed there.

‘Hello again. It has been a while.’ Gothitelle said to me. ‘Now please just relax. I am only checking for surface thoughts so just relax and tell us what you want to say.’

“Let me preface this by saying that I don’t know if they are dreams or what they are but I saw some things regarding different regions. Some have already happened but some haven’t yet…I am not sure which are which.”

I waited for Gothitelle to nod indicating to Caitlin that what I said was true. Prefacing by saying that I didn’t know if they were dreams was my way of justifying my knowledge without fully explaining how I did. And it wasn’t a lie either, since I genuinely didn’t know or care much about how I remembered that knowledge. The cover of dreams was the perfect one since I would hardly be the first psychic to have glimpses into the future. I also tested it with Nike and even Jeanne. The Gardevoir had been curious but didn’t ask questions, which I appreciated.

“I am guessing it didn’t start now. So why offer what you saw now?” Caitlin spoke, definitely more awake.

“As bad as it sounds… I met Emmet last time in the city…”

“Ah. You saw it.” She nodded sadly. “I am curious to know how that was linked but first, tell me one of the things that already happened, please. While you may believe what you say to be true, we need to know the credibility of your information.”

“I don’t know when most of them happen, only that they will at some point. But I at least know one that has already happened and it's also one that involves Unova. Team Plasma tried to use the Legendaries Reshiram and Zekrom to oppress the region. Their Leader Ghetsis wanted to use the group ideal of ‘liberating all the Pokemon’ to rule the region as the only one with Pokemon. He also-”

“Wait. Stop here.” Caitlin interrupted me.

It was only now that I realized that her eyebrows were gradually making their way to her hairline. Gothitelle also seemed surprised by what I just said. Yet they believed me, or rather they knew what I said was true and different from the official version of events they publicized. That seemed to be enough to at least convince them that what I said was true.

“Give me a moment. Gothitelle.” Caitlin said, and for once she looked fully awake.

In a flash, I was left alone with Musharna as the Elite 4 member disappeared. The silence hung in the room as half of its occupant Teleported Arceus knows where. After a few seconds, I spoke up.

“Can I release one of my Pokemon?” I asked the dream eater.

Once she nodded her ascent I released Nike from her white capsule. I knew that she had been paying attention to the conversation but the opportunity for me to let her out didn’t present itself.

‘Sleepy lady?’ she asked while looking around.

A chuckle resounded through the room and Musharna spoke up. ‘Sleepy lady is a good name young one. She is to come back soon. Now you remind me of her even more.’ She said as she turned to face me.’

“Can you explain what you meant by that?” I asked him.

Silence greeted me as the Pokemon seemed to be considering her answer before she announced her decision. ‘Don’t worry I am sure she will tell you about it soon. It isn’t a secret after all. Just know that you have great potential and that too much potential can be dangerous. It is true for the both of you but more so for the young one.’

That was quite the extensive answer to a seemingly simple question. Then again I guess if it is related to Caitlin it would be better to ask her directly. And it seemed I wouldn’t have to wait for long since she reappeared after a few more minutes. Only there was one more person with her.

My mouth hung open of its own accord as the person who joined the little impromptu meeting was someone that anybody in the Unova region would recognize at a glance. In front of me stood a mountain of a man, age doing nothing to diminish the muscle built over the years. His scraggly beard only made his face feel more ‘grandfatherly’ in a way. Yet despite the apparent passage of time, his hair kept its fiery red color and showed no signs of greying anytime soon.

The champion of the Unova region now stood in the flesh in front of me. Alder looked at me with a serious expression, yet a smile was still plastered on his face.

“Well, young lad, it seems you have some interesting tidbit for us? Gotta be honest, when Caitlin told me that you had potential I wasn’t expecting you to be so quick that I wouldn’t get to retire, gahaha!” The Champion guffawed.

“I..huh… it’s a pleasure to meet you.” I managed to choke out.

Standing knowing of the Champion and standing in front of him were two different things. While he seemed like a jolly old man, there was an intense air around him.

“Now don’t be so stiff lad! Why don’t we sit down so we can continue where you left off? Don’t worry, Caitlin already filled me in.” He said while giving me a slap in the back so strong that it knocked the air out of my lungs.

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I stood dazed, but Nike broke the silence.

‘Sleepy lady!’ she jumped toward Caitlin who caught her before taking her into a hug.

Seeing Nike act so relaxed also calmed me down enough that I could think clearly. Having Alder in front of me definitely wasn’t part of the plan, but I had considered that he would be informed of what I said if I was taken seriously. The only difference is that now I am the one doing the talking.

“Now Nexon, please continue. You can skip over the event of the Team Plasma since it has already been dealt with.” Caitlin said while Nike returned to my head.

I nodded.” Well, Team Plasma isn’t done. The last time you asked me how I knew of Neo-Plasma. That’s how. Ghestsis will make a return soon, only this time he won’t mask his intention. Do you know of Kyurem?” I asked and both of them nodded.

“Ghetsis intent on using it and fusing it with Reshiram or Zekrom. He wants to freeze the region over…”

The atmosphere of the room shifted as his objective was revealed. Alder was the first to speak up.

“What do you mean fuse Kyurem?” he asked in a somber tone.

“This is only my speculation, but the legend of the Original Dragon being split in two and leaving the husk behind is the correct one. Neo-Plasma found a way to make Kyurem absorb one of the Twin Dragons to recover some of its original power. We have you to keep them away from the dragons.”

“Even if we wanted to, we only know the approximate location of one of the dragons. I doubt Neo-Plasma is further along.” Alder said while scratching his beard.

“Are you talking about the one with N?” I asked and their eyes widened.

“So you even know about N. It seems your dreams are quite accurate. But yes, I am talking about the one who decided to watch over the boy.”

I hesitated for a bit but spoke nonetheless. “I don’t know where the other dragon is, but I saw where Kyurem is.”

Both of them froze when they heard me say that. Caitlin in particular seemed extremely surprised but didn’t speak up. Alder simply seemed to stew on it for a while before he answered.

“In that case, we will take the necessary measures to secure the location if you reveal it to us. Although Caitlin, we will need to act discreetly.”

“I will ask for Shauntal’s help for that. She far more suited for covert missions.”

“Do that. I can also ask Grimsley if I have to. Now lad, go ahead.”

“Kyurem can be found in a cave in the Giant Chasm north-east of Lacunosa. The actual location definitely doesn’t match the one I saw based on previous experience, but it will be there.”

There was no way It lived in a cave less than 5 minutes away from the closest town without so much as a rumor about it. Both trainers nodded seriously as if they had already somewhat guessed that something was there. That also made sense since there was no way an area this large would be covered in mist all the time without a particular reason why.

“Thank you for what you shared with us, boy. We will investigate based on the information you gave us and take the necessary measures. Also, you have my word that you will get the reward for what you share with us. The simple fact that we now know the aim of these lunatics is enough to reward you.” Alder said with a laugh to ease the tension.

Wait, a reward? Maybe…

“I am sorry if that’s greedy, but if possible is it possible to have a Larvesta as a reward” I asked eagerly and I wouldn’t let anyone fault me for that!

Alder also burst out laughing while Caitlin gave me a small smile. “ Of course you would. I can’t guarantee it, but I’ll let you know. For now, you should go back to the tournament.” He shooed me out.

I, however, did my best to quell my excitement and remained seated there was another, more pressing matter.

“Wait that is only for Unova. Other regions are also at risk.” That took them by surprise for what seemed like the umptieth time today.

Alder let out a big sigh and gestured for me to continue.

“First of all, the most urgent ones are probably Sinnoh closely followed by Hoenn. Sinnoh because some maniacs decided they wanted to play Arceus and will try to control both Dialga and Palkia to create a new universe.” I lift my eyes expecting a doubtful look only to have them exchange an awkward one. “What?”

“Ahem. He tried to. Champion Cynthia took care of that recently.” Caitlin clarified.

“Oh. That actually might explain the presence of a Hisuian Lilligant.” I muttered to myself.

That however caught their attention.

“What do you mean?” The champion asked.

“This is just my speculation but I would think it would have something to do. If the incarnation of time and space has nothing to do with an ancient species of Pokemon appearing, then I don’t know what could do it.” I started. “Also I saw similar events happening in Hissui but I would like to focus on what we can do now.”

They both nodded but it was clear they had many questions. And judging by how Gothitelle, who was still truth-checking, widened her eyes, I might have gone overboard.

What followed was a discussion of what I remember from the games. I explained how Magma and Aqua planned to control Groudon and Kyogre respectfully for their own ambitions. The presence of the Red and Blue Orbs also had quite an impact. The possibility of two already powerful Legendaries becoming even more powerful through Primo Resurgence seemed to have them on high alert.

After that came the one ‘less dangerous’, as in only region-ending instead of world-ending. Kalos was one they had trouble believing due to the public personality that Lysandre was, not to mention his ties with the regional professor and the Champion. In the end, they decided to wait until they could verify some of what I said before telling Diantha that her childhood friend was a raving lunatic. That was not my preferred solution, but I also knew little of the politicking in this world.

Then I explained the issue with Solgaleo, Lunala, Necrozma, and all the Ultra Best shenanigans that will happen in Alola. I took care to mention that I ‘saw’ two different versions of what would happen, just to be sure since I couldn’t confirm which one would happen.

Then came Galar, and we were pretty much in a similar situation with Kalos, where they couldn’t afford to accuse the public personality, Rose of wrongdoing based on what a kid in a different region dreamt about. That one however was somewhat fine given that Leon and hopefully Hop could take care of that if the worst came to pass.

Talking about Hop, that was an issue I was quickly faced with. Things didn’t line up. Cynthia recently beat Team Galactic, while Ash already appeared in Unova. That didn’t make sense based on the timeline I knew of. Not to mention the absence of some character. For instance, Hilda and Hilbert were real. They took the conference by storm before continuing their journey even if they are off the radar right now.

On the other hand, there was no mention of Nate or Rose from the sequel of black and white, nor Selio and Selene in Alola. Or most of the protagonists for that matter. Even stranger, Dawn was a top Coordinator already, having finished the same year Ash lost to Tobias even though they were supposed to be the ones who helped Cynthia catch Team Galactic. No mention of Lucas, the male counterpart to Dawn.

In other words, everything seemed a mess to me. And slowly but surely, that put into question the reliability of the information I provided.

“Some of the things you said might not make sense, but I would be a fool if I simply disregarded it because the involvement of some people is absent or not. As I said we will look into it. With that said, I have to make some calls to Cynthia to check on some of the things you said already. Since that was all the urgent one, Caitlin will tell me the rest if I need to know anything.” Alder said as he stood up. “ I really hope what you said is true, because that would let us stop some of these idiots before they do too much harm.

He offered me his hand and I grasped it before he was teleported away by Musharna. That left four individuals in the room. Caitlin and I and our respective Pokemon. Nike fell asleep halfway through the discussion and quietly lay on my head. After a few seconds of silence, Caitlin spoke up.

“I have to say that what you see is quite extensive. But I noticed you didn’t mention anything of Kanto, Johto, or Paldea. All the other regions you mentioned are part of the league after all.”

I shook my head. “ My memories of Kanto and Johto are too blurry. All I can recall is the involvement of Team Rocket and the name of the legendaries. As for Paldea… I didn’t see anything that even suggested the region existed. The last I saw was Galar, or I guess Hisui technically.”

“What happened in Hisui then?” she asked cocking her head.

“Much like what happened in Sinnoh recently.” I sighed drawing the parallel now that I vocalized it. “People trying to mess with forces they shouldn’t meddle with only to endanger the entire world around them. Notably, there were distortions in time and space that plagued the region and caused Pokemon from more recent times, like Porygon, to appear there. I just didn’t think it would happen in reverse too.”

She nodded. “The hisuian Lilligant of you ranger friend?” She asked and I half nodded before registering what she said. She chuckled. “ I was the one who insisted for him to keep her. I saw that it was the best outcome at the time without knowing why. I guess it is part of why you came forward with it?”

I couldn’t lie that I didn’t consider the presence of Lilligant an anomaly of some kind. Now, however, that made sense if Caitlin insisted on it. Although that begged the question of if Mathew knew and if so, he had some questions to answer too.

“It is part of it. But it wasn’t all. Those distortions? They didn’t bring only Pokemon from our time but also people …”

“People?” she asked.

I nodded. “The Lucas I asked about previously, I saw him getting sucked up, but he also met someone else. Ingo.”

Realization lit up her face. “So when you met Emmet…” She didn’t finish the sentence, but I simply nodded. “Well thank you for that, I will inform him of what you saw. It is better than nothing after all.”

“If that’s okay, I would like to tell him myself. And if possible, show him the Lilligant as proof.” I suggested.

“You will have to see if the owner agrees but I don’t see any problem. For now, the story is that she is just a variant from a distant region so there will be no problems. Then again I guess you want to tell him the whole truth?”

I nodded and she shrugged.

In the end, while I provided them with some information, I also came out of it with more questions that I wouldn’t be able to answer. The only solace I could find was that some of the information would be useful.

---

Back at the refurbished League headquarters, Caitlin appeared to find the other members of the Elite 4 assembled with the Champion leading the briefing. Her own team had been the one to assemble them in the background to share what they had learned. By now Alder should have caught them up and she only had to add what they discussed after he left.

“And are we sure that what he said is true? I mean not even Caitlin can predict the position of legendary and anything legendary adjacent, let alone Legendary.” Grimsley questioned.

Alder was the one who nodded. “ Caitlin’s Gothitelle was checking the whole time.”

“That only means that he really saw those things, not that they are real,” Marshal interjected.

None of those present could deny those words. That was one of the issues that checking the truth on the surface had. If a delusional person was convinced that their perfectly ordinary Fearow was a Zapdos, a psychic wouldn’t be able to say that he was lying. Because it was the truth in his mind. Deeper check could circumvent that, but it was judged too invasive, not to mention dangerous, and banned unless strictly necessary.

“I say with the information he gave us we have ground for a deeper check. Maybe seeing the memories of the dreams for ourselves.” Grimsley insisted.

“No.” Caitlin shot that reasoning down instantly and with finality. “It is uncalled for, and wildly overstepping our authority given that he volunteered the information himself. We also have easier means to verify the information that doesn’t involve turning a promising trainer and psychic into a vegetable”

“Caitlin is right,” Shantal spoke up. “From what I saw it also stemmed from a good intention. Submitting him to that is not only overstepping the authority we have, but I would argue that even suggesting it is straddling the line.”

“I am also against this method.” Marshal declared.

Grimsley could only scowl and retract his opinion. With 3 of the 4 Elite 4 vetoing the process, the Champion didn’t even need to open his mouth.

“Well, I will ask the Swords about this hidden fourth member. That should give us an idea of the accuracy of his Sight before we go poking our noses into the lair of a Legendary.” Alder announced. “ If that is proved to be correct, I want Grimsley and Shauntal to covertly secure the area. Caitlin and Marshal will keep on sniffing out the rats that snuck into the league's rank. This information cannot be leaked.”

There was severity in that statement. Some of the trainers that were marked as promising reported that they had been approached by some sort of organization. They promised them powerful Pokemon and sponsorship in exchange for joining them. That in itself wasn’t unusual since corporations always wanted to be close to promising trainers. The issue stemmed from the fact that all the Pokemon offered were powerful dragon types, some too powerful for newbies. The fact that only trainers they had assessed internally as being the most promising in this circuit were approached was what raised the flags.

A quick check also managed to find that some of the employees of the different gyms were in on the actions, which was concerning. Caitlin herself was busy tracking them down, but now with Marshal’s help, it would be faster. Which also meant more time to sleep.

As for the organization, Drayden, the dragon type gym leader was tasked to look into it, and how they had so many dragons at their disposal. He even passed the management of the gym to the young Iris. The young girl was already managing the gym about half of the time so she could train with Alder, but with Drayden busy it had taken a backseat, much to her annoyance,

Caitlin made a note to take out for ice cream to help ease her mind.

When the meeting was adjourned, Caitlin found herself too curious and decided to ask Alder a question. “Will you truly get him a Larvesta?”

The old man chuckled. “ I planned to as soon as I confirmed his info. Unfortunately for him, however, Sunny took interest in him.”

Hearing the childish nickname of the Ace of the strongest trainer in the region always brought a smile to Caitlin’s lips, something that didn’t escape his notice.

“Ugh shut it. I already told you I was young. Anyways, he decided to give him an introduction instead.” He said and fished for something.

That sentence alone froze Caitlin’s laugh. The pouch Alder retrieved however froze her entire body.

“This is…” she trailed off.

Alder smirked. “Yep. Some of his scales. It seems your little protégé knows how to make himself interesting.”

Pokemon, obviously, didn’t deal with letters of recommendation. But that pouch containing scales from the wings of a Volcarona was the closest thing that any trainer could get for the species. What’s more, the Pokemon would be able to tell that it came from Alder’s, which was already influential in all the nests she knew of.

That meant that Nexon wasn’t just guaranteed a Larvesta, but one of the best if not even a Volcarona right off the bat.