Chapter 69 - Welcome to Paradise

Knock, knock, knock.

Celeste pounded on the door with more force than necessary. The wood shook, and she couldn’t help but notice the dark smudges left by her damp, dirty fists on the pristine red paint—cinnabar red. It’s just a door, she reminded herself, teeth clenched as pain shot up her arm. She should’ve taken care not to get herself wet… this was the cast all over. Ignoring the sting, she knocked again, harder.

“Come on, I saw someone in there! It’s an emergency!” Her voice wavered on the edge of a shout. The sign on the door clattered, and the words ‘Coast Guard Lookout Post’ blurred before settling back into silence.

And what a silence it was.

No voices, no footsteps from inside. Lori, Delia, and Aria stood nearby. The sea lay quiet, and the sun beamed on her back, breezeless yet warm. The seasons seemed out of whack (again), and Celeste hated it. Fighting off the creeping uneasiness, she knocked once more.

“Let’s just go.” Delia’s voice almost made her jump. She turned to face her friend’s easy smile. “There’s no one here, Cee.”

Cee.

They were friendly again, apparently. Nearly dying (again) tended to put things in perspective. Life was too short for grudges… or at least, that’s Celeste’s way of thinking. Delia’s sudden friendliness was out of character, but people change… sometimes.

Celeste shook her head, extending her uninjured arm for Aria to climb on. With a sigh, her gaze drifted to the ocean. She’d been avoiding looking there. She half-expected the mist to roll back in, bringing with it the Dhelmise. How could a Pokémon look exactly like the illustration she’d seen? Not just similar—identical, down to the rust patches on the anchor.

It didn’t add up. But she figured she’d replaced some hazy memory with what she saw. Still, there were even more questions. Like how could none of their moves, or more precisely, Lori’s moves, have no effect? Was it really that powerful? And most importantly, where was it now?

Her eyes locked on the gentle waves glistening in the sunlight. Not a cloud in the sky, not a shroud of mist.

“It’s really gone,” Lori said, her gaze following Celeste’s. A small smile played on her lips as she ran a hand through her messy, damp hair, untying it and letting the wavy crimson locks cascade down her shoulders. Seeing Lorelei so relaxed was rare, especially after all they’d been through. “And I agree with Delia. We should get going.”

Celeste turned back to the lookout post door. She was sure she’d seen movement inside—that’s why she came here. Even though Dhelmise was gone, they needed to warn people. Maybe the police, or the gym? Lori probably wanted to rush to the gym. “One more try and we’ll go,” she said, but her arm stopped short of the wood. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

“Celeste?” Lori called.

Her pulse quickened, and for a moment she thought of the dark, wriggly stick-like things she’d seen in the mist. It had been dark and foggy then, and part of her really wanted to believe it’d all been a trick of the light, or something Dhelmise had done. She pursed her lips but couldn’t bring herself to knock. Instead, she just stood there, hand raised, staring at her own shadow.

And talking of things no one else saw…

Her shadow flickered, almost as if its head moved from side to side, like it was saying no. Which… wasn’t impossible. As they’d been reminded a few minutes ago, there were such things as ghosts who hunted and stalked people. The thing was, she wasn’t sure how this shadow thing worked. Her father’s Yamask never got into his shadow, nor did Opal’s Mimikyu. In fact, maybe she should focus on the fact she’d grown up playing with those Pokémon, and never really seen them haunting anyone.

Celeste closed her eyes for a moment, letting her hands drop to her sides. There were nice ghosts and giant seaweed-covered monster-ghosts. In her shadow, though, there was nothing. Just like the wriggly things, it was all…

She opened her eyes, only to see her shadow sitting still, exactly where it was supposed to be.

Celeste sighed in relief. “All a trick of the light.” Aria tilted her head, but Celeste shrugged. “Gym’s probably a better bet to deal with Dhelmise, anyway.” She walked back to Delia and Lori, who were giggling and whispering to one another. Did that ever happen before? She side-eyed the Eevee, who snickered as usual.

“What’s so funny?” Celeste asked both Aria and her human friends.

Lori’s smile widened. “Look at the weather!” she beamed, removing her glasses and allowing the sunlight to envelop her features. “We were thinking about going to the beach.”

Celeste tilted her head to the side. Since when did Lori need warmth or sun to swim? She blinked as Delia and Lori discussed the best beach to visit—reminding Celeste she was the only one who’d never been to Cinnabar before.

“…the one at the end of Obsidian Boulevard? It’s sandy and has a great view of the volcano,” Delia was saying.

Lori nodded cheerfully. “Close to the mall, right? I need new summer clothes.”

Delia lightened up. “It’s been ages since I last went shopping.”

“It’s settled then.” Lori’s smile was Bruno-sized. “Shopping mall, then beach.”

Celeste kept on blinking. “After we register at the gym, right?”

Lori shrugged. “We can do that tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Celeste could only stare at her. Lorelei, who’d been rushing them to get to Cinnabar for days, who jumped into that creepy mist because she wanted to register to the gym as soon as possible, wanted to do it tomorrow? Celeste turned to Delia. “What about finding a place to stay?” she asked, then to Lori again. “Actually, what about going to the centre first? Fractal and Silver weren’t so good after the battle.”

Lori laughed, but it was Delia who spoke with that newfound easiness of hers. “What about we go to the centre, then beach, then mall?”

Were they serious?

“I…” Celeste began, avoiding another glance at the coast guard post. “I was hoping we could tell the gym people about the Dhelmise… you know… before it attacks anyone else?”

Lori sighed, but somehow kept smiling. “It’s gone. We spooked it off.”

Was Lori in the same battle as she was?

Before Celeste could protest, Delia walked past her and knocked at the coast guard post again.

“Didn’t you just say it was empty?” Celeste grumbled, but to her surprise, someone opened the door right away. “You have to be kidding me…”

“Well?” Delia gestured for her to come closer, and Aria, who’d been completely helpless in that whole situation, just tapped her shoulder in a hurrying motion.

Celeste tried to flick away the Eevee’s paws with her shoulder, partly to distract herself from the growing uneasiness as she approached the coast guard. He wasn’t particularly tall or short, not skinny or fat, not buff either. His hair was a dull dark brown, cut short, though most of it was hidden by a cap. His eyes were the same dull brown, somewhat lifeless. He walked past Delia, and the bits of his tanned (but not too tanned) skin caught the sun. There was a hint of an unkempt beard. He seemed middle-aged and probably the most average person Celeste had ever seen.

Was it bad to think someone was average?

Because really, there wasn’t a feature that stood out. Nothing. It was like someone took a book illustration of a human man and made him real.

Huh…?

“Were you the ones knocking?” the guy spoke, then smiled. Just a little with his lips, but not his eyes. “Sorry, I was in the bathroom.”

He… was in the…? Seriously?

His gaze bore into Celeste, though Delia had already begun recounting their encounter with Dhelmise. As impolite as it was, Celeste couldn’t help but stare back at him, agape.

Until Lori bumped shoulders with her.

“Poké Center, then we go out?” she whispered.

Again, Lori, of all the people in the world, seemed happy to skip the gym today.

“Don’t give me that look,” she said more softly. “We’ve been through a lot. We deserve a break for the rest of the day… just… let yourself relax a little, ‘kay?”

“‘Kay?” Celeste echoed. Since when?

Arceus, maybe she was tired, too.

Looking at Mr Average Jude (or just Jude, as his nametag stated) nodding at Delia’s words, replying with all the right phrases, Celeste realised that maybe… just maybe, she was in shock? You’d think that after almost being killed by freaking Articuno she’d be used to weird. But what if it was the exact opposite? She was jumpy, thinking a small heatwave could be Moltres, thinking her shadow was ready to attack her, and that a perfectly average coast guard was some villain in disguise. Heck, even Delia’s one-eighty in their relationship was keeping her on the back foot. She thought she’d been doing a great job ignoring all that… stuff… but maybe not?

Relaxing seemed quite nice about now.

Celeste let her shoulders drop. “Lori… what do you say if we skip the beach and go to the hot springs instead?”

—*——*—

The place they arrived in was Cinnabar’s Southern Harbour. To no fault of her own, Celeste thought it was abandoned. The roads were pristine, and the bushes of wild red roses lining the streets were recently tended, but there was no one around—not a human or Pokémon in sight. Big warehouses stood empty, ships drifted without crews, and even the large waterfront building they passed had empty restaurants and bars, despite the tables being set outside.

Weird. Ghostly. Deserted. Those were the words swirling in Celeste’s mind as they turned onto the street leading inland and reached the Pokémon Centre.

Talk of contrast.

Delia had mentioned the southern centre was the largest in town, and where she’d stayed a few months back. But that hadn’t prepared Celeste for what she saw. Music hit her first—upbeat and funky—completely distracting her until she nearly bumped into a Loudred with a small music player on its head.

Lori laughed at Celeste’s clumsiness and gave her a hand. The Loudred barely bothered, simply moved away, dancing to the beat it was amplifying, and joining a Magmar near a water fountain. Other people, mostly kids and teens, and Pokémon were everywhere, laughing, chatting, eating ice cream and sipping ice-filled drinks. A few Growlithe chased each other at the feet of some girls looking at a flyer, while in the trees—somehow lush-green and fruit-filled—a Pansear and a Chimchar played a similar game of tag.

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For a moment, Celeste could only watch the life and fun happening under the sunlight. It was almost winter, yet it felt like summer had never ended in Cinnabar.

“So…?” she turned to her friends after observing the lively scene. Delia and Lorelei were deep in conversation about the amazing places in town and Delia’s need for a new summer dress. It all seemed so absurdly banal after, you know, being attacked by a giant anchor ghost in a creepy mist that vanished into nowhere. Celeste rubbed the back of her head. “Delia, don’t you wanna…?” she gestured towards the centre, but no one paid attention. Even Aria was out of sorts, staring at the Growlithe playing, clearly weighing her options between joining them or lazing about.

Celeste sighed.

So what if Delia usually took the lead in sorting out their room situation? She began to motion inside, feeling increasingly annoyed that no one followed. Even more so when Aria decided to join the Growlithe. Maybe Delia was doing this on purpose? Making Celeste be responsible as a punishment? Or maybe Lori thought this was some kind of learning experience?

Or maybe there’s something wrong with this island, making everyone act weird.

Inside, the centre was even more packed than outside, and the nice warmth had turned into unbearable heat. Despite the air conditioner being on full blast, it felt like a furnace. Celeste squeezed past trainers, nearly singeing herself on a Charmeleon’s tail, slipping on a Houndour, and narrowly avoiding a Cyndaquil that ignited its back dangerously close to her face as she finally reached the counter.

“The hell—” she sputtered, coughing out smoke.

That’s when it hit her.

All Fire-Types—no wonder the AC was cranked up. Well, not all. Aside from that one Loudred outside, there were a few of the usual suspects: Rattata, Pidgey, Caterpie. One trainer even had an Azurill perched on his head, looking oddly out of place, but probably the smartest one in the room. If these were all trainers gearing up for the gym, why weren’t they capitalising on the type advantage? In Vermillion, the Pokémon Centre barely had any Electric-Types.

“Guess you fight fire with fire,” she muttered, carefully turning back to the counter, steering clear of the Cyndaquil’s flame. Nurse Joy was nowhere in sight, but there was a small reception bell on the desk. She rang it once, twice… by the sixth ring, she felt a wave of déjà vu from all her knocking at the Coast Guard post.

She turned to a boy beside her, who was counting a stack of flyers with a big grin on his face.

“Hey, what’s up with this town?” Celeste asked, noticing the Cyndaquil nuzzling him. Maybe it was his.

The boy looked up, eyes too bright. “It’s paradise, man!”

Right… not the answer she had in mind. Celeste banged her hand against the bell again, wondering if a nap might make everything seem less bizarre.

“Mmhm, paradise, sure…” She glanced at the crowds in the lobby, brushing sweat from her temples. “So… is there some fire specialist convention going on, or… is it a holiday? That would explain why everywhere’s so short-staffed.”

The boy laughed, still counting his flyers. “Not really, but a Fire-Type convention would be awesome. Hey, Rayla,” he yelled, facing a girl nearby with a Charmander on her shoulders. “We should do a FireCon next! How fun would that be?”

The girl beamed. “So fun, Max! When we get back to the gym, we should pitch it.”

Celeste blinked. She looked around at the fire trainers, all laughing, none bothered by the heat.

“You a gym trainer?” she asked the boy.

“Uh-huh! Best work ever!” He flashed his bright white teeth. Gesturing around with his head, he added, “We all are!”

That explains the fire extravaganza. Still… “Shouldn’t you all be… at the gym?”

He laughed again, a weird mix of happiness and emptiness in his eyes. “Oh, Blaine’s gone mad,” he said between giggles. “Kicked us all out. Since some folks ended up staying here, we made the centre our new hangout spot!”

Celeste rang the bell again, a few more times, then turned back to the boy, who was somehow still counting the flyers. “Aren’t you worried the Gym Leader’s gone… uh… mad?” she asked, then it hit her. “Wait, does that mean he’s not having battles?”

The boy laughed again, like none of it mattered. “You don’t have to worry about anything here in paradise,” he said, then stopped. His smile faltered for an instant, and his eyes came alive with sudden clarity. “N-None of us checked… B-Blaine… he was having a battle…” The boy brought a hand to his head, dropping all the flyers. “I… can’t… his Marowak set it on fire.” He closed his eyes, shaking his head.

Celeste reached out to him. The loud chatter abruptly ceased, and people were staring at them, whispering. Glaring.

What did the girl say this boy’s name was? “Max…?” Celeste tried. She touched his shoulders, and he stared, uncertain, deep into her eyes.

“D-Dan was officiating… He stayed back…” he said urgently. “We gotta—” He turned to his Cyndaquil, probably spooking it. Its back ignited again, making Celeste recoil.

Max began giggling at that, and as soon as he did, the chatter resumed.

“What just—?”

“Man, I’m such a klutz,” Max said, still giggling as he bent down to gather the scattered flyers.

Celeste knelt to help. “You’re talking about your friend. Dan…?” she whispered, as if it were a secret.

The boy kept picking up the flyers. “Dan… he has such a cute Litwick. They’re the best. Strongest of us first-level gym trainers.”

“Uh-huh…” Celeste handed him back a flyer as they stood up. “But… you said he stayed back at the gym? With the… the… Gym Leader gone mad?”

Max just blinked at her, looking at the flyer in her hand but not taking it. “Hey, you look worried. You shouldn’t be.” He nodded to the flyer. “We’re having a beach party tomorrow. Lighten up. Enjoy paradise!”

Celeste watched him as he let his Cyndaquil jump onto his shoulders and began counting the flyers again, like it was all that mattered in the world. Then, finally, he waved at his friend with the Charmander and disappeared into the crowd.

“What just happened?” Celeste muttered to herself, turning back to the bell.

She gasped.

Standing by it in absolute silence was Nurse Joy, her eyes vacant and her smile not matching at all. Celeste recalled the Coast Guard and his averageness, but before she could delve into those thoughts, the nurse spoke.

“Welcome to the Pokémon Centre. Here we restore your Pokémon to full health…”

Celeste blinked again. “D-Do you have any room available?”

—*——*—

It took a while for Celeste to find Delia and Lori once she emerged from the crowded Pokémon Centre. Somehow, they had even found time to change. Lori had ditched her warm tights, and Delia had clumsily tied her coat around her waist, also swapping her shirt for something cooler. Meanwhile, Aria was still playing with the Growlithe, and a Flareon had joined the group.

A Flareon!

If Celeste had any doubts that there was something wrong with the world, the sight of her Eevee not trying to Bite, Growl, or attack the Flareon only made things worse. Aria had never played nice with any of her evolutions, after all.

Delia snapped her out of her daze by shoving a flyer in her face. It was the same one she had crumpled in her pocket. “Look how fun, Cee!” She grinned, letting a lock of hair fall over her face as she moved. “A beach party.”

Lori, at least, seemed calmer. “It’s been a while since I’ve been to an actual party.”

Great. They were happy. Like everyone else in this place. Also, their boat party was an actual party, Lori! How dare you?

Celeste sighed, dropping her shoulders. “No room in this centre,” she grumbled. Was it bad that she wanted to ruin their mood? Or was it worse that they didn’t really care? After a long moment of trying to grab Aria, Celeste confiscated the party flyer from her friends and had to drag them away from the “fun Poké Centre.”

The streets around town were bustling, and Celeste had to stop every two minutes to either check the tourist map she got at the Centre or to stop Delia and Lori from wandering off. Was this her karma? Or were they doing this on purpose? Revenge? A lesson? A joke? She really couldn’t tell anymore.

I could be worse than them if I wanted. She thought about it for a second. To just do whatever and enjoy this place like literally everyone. But…

Restaurants were packed, but she saw no one attending the tables. Pokémon took to the skies, Butterfree and Beautifly flying in circles a little too frantically, but not a Rattata scoured the bins or the alleys. When Celeste’s eyes fell on the trees and rose bushes, she even saw a little Bulbasaur sleeping in the sunshine. Maybe it was all designed to look like this year-round? Cinnabar was a tourist spot, after all—was it a stretch to compare it to one of those amusement parks, where everything was set up for your immersion so you never noticed the gears in the background?

She turned to the map in her hands. Despite being the only one who didn’t know the place, she studied it carefully to lead their way. There were three Pokémon Centres in town: south, north, and east—no west, because that’s where the volcano was.

Sort of…

The main trail to the volcano was actually northwest, towering over what the tourist map called one of the island’s main attractions: the Obsidian Boulevard, where people could drive by the giant mansions, homes of the richest people in the world. Names like Stone, Razzo, Glitterati, Kojiro popped off the page. This occupied most of the northern portion of the island, where the best beaches were. The northern Centre was by the trail, northwest rather than north. Though it was closer to the hot springs, it seemed quite isolated and far from both the gym and Cinnabar Labs.

For that reason, Celeste opted to go east. Lori—when she started acting normal again—would be thankful, as this Centre was just by the gym. Which… might actually be a bust considering what those gym trainers in the Centre said about Leader Blaine. But Lori wouldn’t be so easily deterred. Single-focused Lori would stride in there the next morning and demand her battle.

No doubt about it.

Right?

—*——*—

The first Pokémon Centre they tried had been packed with gym trainers. The second one had everyone else—trainers, visitors… and even contest participants! Apparently, a big contest had taken place in town, and many competitors had decided to stick around even two weeks after the event.

“Seriously?” Celeste marched out of the centre, exasperated, only to see someone had handed Delia and Lori another flyer for that damned party. Even worse, they were already talking about heading to the mall to get outfits for it.

Without booking a room.

Without sending their Pokémon to receive care.

Without Celeste.

“What’s wrong with you two?” she snapped, dragging her friends through the streets of Cinnabar. Her usual smiles and cheerfulness had turned into hisses and groans. For a moment, she wondered if there was such a thing as an emotional Giga Drain and if an island could use it on a human.

Not even the usual distractions were working now.

Frustrated, tired, and desperately hoping that a nap and a calming bath in the hot springs would make everything better, Celeste marched north. She barely noticed the pretty houses made of volcanic material, the impressive and unique architecture, the palm trees framing the avenues, or the big blue ocean on the horizon. She even ignored the mighty volcano growing larger and larger as she shoved her friends into a tram—one of those automated ones with no driver—that would take them to the last centre available.

“There’ll be a room there,” she muttered with a nervous giggle, counting the stops. “I’ll release Pat, because also screw what Bruno said, and I’ll sleep hugging him and everything will be fine when I wake up.”

It took them a good half hour to get there.

The northern (but actually northwestern) centre was more like the port than the other places, with a blissfully quiet front yard. It resembled an old manor, probably revamped as a Pokémon Centre. Celeste even noticed some construction materials off to the side.

“Maybe the remodelling isn’t done?” she asked. Aria was the only one who bothered to respond with a shrug. Well, it was this or a hotel, and Lori needed to have her Pokémon tended to, anyway. As they walked in, Celeste noticed the large cliff above them and all the trails leading out from the back. She didn’t linger, though.

Inside, the lobby was empty but impeccable. This centre was a bit out of the way, so it made sense people (including herself) preferred the others. That, or maybe they didn’t like the snobby part of town.

The place was so silent that she could hear the sound of her own footsteps on the granite flooring. The centre had definitely been renovated. She stopped by the reception desk, made from the same black volcanic rock as much of the town, and realised this must be the Pokémon Centre catering to the trainers in those mansions.

Figures.

Like everywhere else, there was no one waiting at the reception. Celeste rang the bell. In that empty lobby, the ringing bounced off the overly clean white walls, reverberating throughout.

It was uncanny, yet not uncanny enough to make her turn back.

Like the Cost Guard Post, and all other bells, she kept bumping her hand against this one. Bruno’s words from a few days back came to mind. “Repeating ‘Water Gun’ over and over until he responded? Firing off commands and hoping one would stick?” Maybe it was time to learn patience and just wait.

She rang the bell again. A few more times.

Or maybe she had had a shitty day, and this was going to the little box in the back of her mind with all her other problems. Because unlike Delia and Lori, she spent their day busy in crowded, sometimes way-too-hot reception lobbies, trying to get them a room. She didn’t have time to change out of her warm, salt-filled clothes. Her hair was sticky, and she was pretty sure there was kelp in it. She really, truly needed a nap to stop freaking out about everything.

Another ring finally did the trick. This time Celeste smashed her hand on it, and though the sound was exactly the same, she smiled with satisfaction, thinking her anger and pent-up frustration had summoned Nurse Joy.

The nurse in this centre was a carbon copy of the others she’d seen today. Because yes, despite their similarities, people could usually tell members of the Joy family apart, but that wasn’t the case. Again, she recalled Average Jude. And the Dhelmise.

Celeste gritted her teeth, shoving the thought aside. Her musings were bordering on prejudice now. Probably.

“Welcome to the Pokémon Centre, here we restore your Pokémon to full health,” the nurse said, with the same dull empty smile as the others she’d met today.

“Do you have a room available?” Celeste asked, forcing politeness. Then, turning to her friends, she added, “Or three?” It would be really good to have some space for once.

“Room available… Three…” Nurse Joy tapped on a keyboard. She never stopped smiling, and her eyes never moved away from Celeste, not even to look at her computer screen. “You have nothing to worry about,” she finally said. “Welcome to paradise.”

—*——*—

It was later in the afternoon when Celeste woke up, the low sunlight peering in through the window. She rubbed her eyes and glanced around, recalling she had the top bunk this time. Somehow, she, Delia, and Lori were still forced to share a room, despite being the only guests she’d seen in this centre.

She moved to the window, stretching. “No nightmares,” she muttered, letting herself feel the breeze. At least one good thing. Outside, the ocean sparkled under clear blue skies. Behind her, Pat tilted his head, watching her. Powder and Aria were still in bed, sprawled out and snoring softly.

Celeste smiled, tracing with her eyes the trails meandering through the backyards of incredibly large mansions all the way to the beach. She craned her neck to see a road leading up to a viewpoint and some traditional Johtonese buildings. Further ahead, the trail disappeared, probably winding its way up to the volcano.

This town was actually right up her alley.

Maybe now, rested, she could stop freaking out about everything and give it a chance.

She squatted beside Pat, watching their shadows stretch long from their feet, and placed a hand on his head. “This could be paradise, huh?” she asked, making a point of ignoring how her shadow seemed to look right back at her.