…

The battle turned ugly fast.

Arcanine was releasing enough fire so that anyone, Pokemon or otherwise who crossed instantly caught ablaze. Those who made it through were pummeled by Vigoroth or myself, as well as Inoru.

"Save Silver!" I had to order just in time as Umbreon levelled massive stone statues at him.

Arcanine loaded Silver onto his spine and leaped right into the small protective circle we'd built up around the middle of the platform.

"I still think we got a chance here." I wiped the sweat off my brow.

"Same." exasperated Silver.

Alas, we were probably quite wrong.

Umbreon's Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse alone were horrifyingly powerful. Even though Elder, or rather I'd say, Dark Elder Yan was more or less out, his Umbreon was furious for having killed him.

I tried summoning large rings of water to protect us using the Silver Wing, but to no avail. I had no real luck with the sheer number of monks around us, and how powerful Umbreon's attacks were.

"I have an idea. Cover me."

"What?"

"Nico!" shouted Inoru desperately seeing me run forward.

I had enough control of the water to freeze it in place and make a bridge to the temple.

I had dodged the heat off of myself long enough to break into tower where there was something else I needed to collect. Some of Arcanine's Embers had made their way inside, so I was running out of time.

In all her rage, Umbreon had forgotten one of her two kittens were in danger, and I had to rescue them from this place.

With a few water gouts right at Umbreon, I was able to get her attention when I went back outside, where the continued ass-beating we were withstanding told me one thing:

"We need to leave." I said, still carrying the other newborn Eevee in my pack.

"Right."

"Silver, Vigoroth will give you a ride. And let's go!"

Vigoroth helped by lifting Silver onto his back, and then Ino and I both mounted Arcanine's back. Despite only just now getting used to his bigger body, Arcanine was able to bound off at full speed away, making a very fiery exit.

…

Arcanine and Vigoroth eventually made their way back to their Pokeballs, where we began to approach civilization again.

Olivine City, and wow had the world changed, and not for the better.

Police were organized and mobile. Led by officer Jennys most likely, those carrying rifles followed by normal types and the occasional Growlithe were walking around.

Near the town center were homeless families.

They were asking for change with signs written 'Lost our homes in Fuchsia City - Anything Helps'

I gave them a few Pokedollars and they smiled at me, it was a family of three, a mother with a little boy and girl.

"What the hell happened here?" Silver asked me.

"The Great Spirits judged society based on Team Rocket and our lack of spirituality with how technological our world has gotten." Ino told him. "Nico was given the gift to connect with Lugia, saved what remained of Fuchsia City from utter annihilation."

Silver nodded. "I had heard that Ho-Oh had returned."

Crime seemed more apparent, news stations included worried reports about all the fear surrounding Ho-Oh's burning of Fuchsia, and Lieutenant Surge's warpath against anything.

I'll give him this, him and his Surge Squad appeared successful.

"Those monks can jabber on all day about how much prayer works." he was being interviewed after busting another Rocket hideout. "I don't see the holier than thous getting their hands dirty and arresting scum like this." Surge threw a thumb behind him.

"Nico!"

I turned, glad to see my friends.

"Crystal! Gold! It's so good to see you."

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"It's so good to see you too. I-" Crystal paused. "Wait, what're you doing with him?"

"Well we're. We were just." Silver looked at me, the five of us awkwardly in the way of Olivine City's lightly bustling central courtyard. "What are we?"

"Very tense and awkward friends."

"How did that happen?" asked Gold.

I explained faster than the words could come from Silver's open mouth. "There's a dark side to the Monks from Takujimi. I found out the hard way they helped raise Silver. He repaid me by-"

Silver looked guilty.

I wanted to tell them everything. The haunting curse Umbreon could've placed on us over the extremely, deeply, strongly distressing fact that Silver more or less outright murdered Yan with his Bayleef. A testament to its strength in the most dire of situations but still.

"Showing his true colors when it mattered most." I decided to say. "Speaking of which, there's something I need to show all of you. But not out in public."

"Where then?" asked Gold.

"My mom and I live just a few blocks away, we can help."

…

Crystal's mother was a very sweet middle aged woman with hair of the same dark hue of blue and an apron. She made tea for everyone while I revealed what the temple had given us.

Two baby Eevees I released.

Gold choked on the crumpet Crystal's mother served him, Crystal gasped, color rising in her face.

Silver crossed his arms, chuckling. "You actually got them out. Nice."

"I've already picked this one, I was just wondering what to do with the other."

"You could donate it to Professor Elm." suggested Crystal across the table as Ino began to review some monastery scrolls I'd brought him.

Gold shrugged. "Keep both?"

"Why not sell it?" Silver muttered.

Crystal looked at him crossly.

"What? Why do you think billionaires like Bill are the only ones who have them? All I'm saying is that Eevees are worth a ton of money for a reason."

"I'm not selling this Eevee."

It seemed to curl up beside its sibling on the kitchen table. They both desperately seemed to miss their mother, and were conjoined at my side.

I felt very bad for them and everyone's situation. But the abuse Yan inflicted on everyone was so bad that-

It was best not to think on it.

"Actually Silver, why don't you raise it?" I realized who needed a warm show of friendship the most in our group.

"Why not?" asked Silver.

"You're a criminal." Gold and Crystal said in unison.

"Am not."

"Are too." Crystal said.

I sighed. "You have no idea what Silver's past was like."

His complete lack of stuff like mercy, morals and decency was either beaten out of him on the streets, taught to him as correct by Yan, or worse, was removed by-

I had Elder Toji when I came to this world. He had other luck.

Silver accepted the Eevee. "Thank you Nico."

"You're welcome."

"What is wrong with you?" asked Gold.

I shrugged. "You have to want to make peace sometimes."

"Ridiculous," muttered Crystal.

I started to feel less and less welcome by the second as Crystal looked at me disapprovingly. I decided to leave quietly when I had the chance with Ino and Silver.

…

Near the central courtyard, Silver spoke.

"Thanks for you know. Everything." he said in a hushed, low tone.

I wanted to show him mercy. So he didn't have to suffer, his entire life he'd been suffering and that was a big reason he took it out on Yan who was responsible for a decent portion of it.

I turned, looking to the streets.

No wonder crime had gone up in Johto and Kanto. No wonder people were hopeless and scared.

Nowhere was safe from a Spirit attack, Rockets were on the rise, and no one had any answers. Well, I felt the urge to give them.

I looked at the Mew pendant I always wore with me.

Give me strength.

"Please sir," another woman, different than the one I had given a few Pokedollars in charity to spoke to me. "Anything helps, my son is sick."

I sighed, thinking.

"Let me see your son."

The family was living in an alleyway here in Olivine.

The son was still covered in the ashes from Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire. So powerful that the boy was still coughing.

I lifted my hand and used some water from Ino's canteen to heal the boy with the Silver Wing.

"You're, you're a miracle worker!" the woman shouted in shock, seeing her son breathe normally for a change. "Who are you stranger?"

"My name is Nico."

"Tell me, how could things like this happen? My son was lucky, he got to live."

I sighed.

I allowed Ino to pass me some scripture so I could read from it. Old monk manuscripts explaining who the Great Spirits were and why they were so important. I found these from Yan's temple, who even though he was evil, still included Sprout Order texts banned from reading.

"In the beginning of time, man competed against Pokemon for survival. It was a losing battle, but through the grace of Mew. Everything coincided, in a delicate balance through aura."

I continued.

"Aura spun the Pokemon and human lives together on the same destined path. Mew designed the Lake Spirits, as well as other Mythical Pokemon to be responsible for this balance. A Pokemon responsible for the sun, for the moon, for the waves, for time and space, and for a realm outside our comprehension."

The woman looked at me in shock, when I looked up from the scroll other random people on the street were listening.

"But how did you exactly get the ability to connect with people and Pokemon as well as you do?"

"I'm not really certain. But the Sprout Order gives me answers, and after this last ordeal I had out in the woods." Ino smiled at me. "I'll be a monk for the rest of my life now."

An Olivine City man scoffed. "I'm with Surge on this one, as a monk you should've been able to prevent this tragedy. You're a fraud."

"Hey!"

I turned, a little surprised to see how quickly Gold and Crystal had changed their minds about me. But happy to see they had my backs regardless.

"Nico, is a hero." said Gold. "I was in Fuschia city when this happened. He risked his own life to save dozens of others. He even saved Blue's life, the one and only."

"I've seen it too." Silver said as Crystal nodded in agreement.

The man moved on with a shrug, but the crowd listening to me began to swell.

Grown adults were listening to me as if they were children being read a bedtime story, from all walks of life. Those displaced by the fires of Fucshia, to the well off citizens of this sleepy beachside town.

I told them how Mew truly saved humanity from annihilation, that Ho-Oh struck because we strayed so far from Mew's life.

I told them to not obey the lies the current news was spreading, that more hatred and focus on competition and materialism that Surge and his squad spreda wouldn't fix the issue.

I told everyone, to pray to Mew.

And it really almost made tears slip out when I realized how much I'd changed so many people's lives for the better.

There was a group of about fifty to sixty people chanting together to Mew.

It was a little at a time, but I was helping everyone rise up together.

It would take a while to work, but we'd be okay in the long run.

…

…

…