Several days later, Alec was back in the mirelands.
Legendaries Above, thank goodness this is my last time here, he thought with a grimace as he scraped a bit of hardened mud off the bottom of his wooden shoes. By now, he’d almost gotten used to the fetid stench—a notion that greatly displeased him. He’d already spent way too much time here.
There was just a bit more ground he needed to cover before he could officially report back to Laventon that he was finished with the mirelands. He was fairly certain he’d already encountered all the flora it had to offer, now there was just the issue of making sure he’d caught all the Pokemon he could.
There wasn’t any real pressure on him to “finish” an area in one fell swoop, though. Alec figured Rei, Akari, and he would have to make a final sweep over Hisui once the Pokedex was in its final stages to ensure a reclusive species hadn’t eluded them. If he missed one or two, it wasn’t a big deal.
He’d mostly stuck to the northern side of the mirelands—the hilly area—since it was where Lilligant’s domain, Solaceon Village, and the Temple of Space were. Today, he’d chosen to follow the Gapejaw River southward, toward the area labeled “Sludge Mound” on his ratty map.
He wandered around without any clear direction for a few hours, keeping his eyes peeled for any species of Pokemon he hadn’t caught yet.
He’d crossed paths with plenty of Pokemon throughout the day, some requiring a brief battle to ward off, but nothing new. He disappointedly tossed an empty Pokeball up and down repeatedly to fidget.
Eventually, he came across something.
There seemed to be a Pokemon in one of the large lakes of mud he’d usually navigated around. Smack-dab in the middle, a huge mass of green and brown that perfectly camouflaged with the tan of the mud. Despite the midday heat, it seemed to be asleep in the mud.
He soon recognized it as a Hippopotas, a massive species that lived in arid climates like the mirelands.
I don’t think a regular Pokeball will cut it for this, he thought. Heavy ball it is, then. He pulled one of the polished black Pokeballs from his satchel, noticing his supply was running low and making a mental note to buy more. They were expensive, so he resolved to not miss.
He grunted softly as he threw the ball. His aim was true and the Pokeball struck its target, transforming the Pokemon into white energy and sucking it inside.
It landed on the surface of the mud. It wobbled once, twice, then thrice, before releasing its celebratory sparks. Alec pumped his fist when he heard the sweet crackling sound.
But then he realized he’d have to wade through the mud to get to it.
The ball was definitely too heavy for Auster to carry, so there was no easy way out for him to take. He groaned as he shrugged off his satchel and pulled off his hoodie.
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On his way back home, he saw the Temple of Space off in the distance.
The magnificent building caught his eye, stoically keeping its secrets within its illegible inscriptions and marble pillars. Alec knew that there was more to that building than Calaba, that strange lady he’d met inside it, had told him.
And so, his curiosity got the best of him. He checked his necklace watch and judged that he had sufficient time for a detour.
Maybe he’d find something interesting within it today.
The walk was completely silent since his Pokemon had opted to make the journey within their Pokeballs. The excitement and constant action of Alec’s finishing touches on the mirelands, combined with today’s boring pace, quickly tired them out.
And just as he crested the hill, he caught sight of something unexpected.
“Calaba?” he muttered under his breath, his voice a combination of confusion and exasperation. He was hoping to explore the temple without her there, because he knew she would talk his ear off with her twisting riddles.
And then he saw the hulking brown and gray Pokemon next to her.
He reflexively took a step back, intimidated by how it towered over Calaba—even as a quadruped. Even from his distance, he still felt a tense feeling of discomfort in his arms. He didn’t recognize the species at all from back home.
But the Pokemon wasn’t attacking Calaba, nor was it doing anything that indicated danger. It was simply standing there, occasionally sniffing the air and looking around. Waiting, it seemed. Even Calaba, whom he knew had no means of defending herself, seemed perfectly okay with it.
And so, he walked forward, more out of curiosity than anything else, determined to know what was happening.
The Pokemon noticed his presence, and Alec saw it faintly huff in Calaba’s direction to get her attention. Her expression broke into a wiry grin when she saw him.
“Ah, hello there, boy,” she said once he was close enough. “Awfully rude of you to keep me waiting for so long. These old bones can’t handle such things, you know.”
Alec sighed. He definitely wasn’t in the mood to deal with a conversation like that, especially considering the lingering stench of muck in his nostrils. He ignored her statement entirely and replied as dryly as he could. “What kind of Pokemon is that?”
Calaba grinned. “Ursaluna, Lord of the Valley and Noble of the Pearl Clan.”
Alec’s shock betrayed his attempt to appear collected. A few half-formed words spilled from his mouth as he incoherently looked between the two.
“And you must be wondering who its Warden is,” Calaba said with a self-satisfied smirk. She was clearly enjoying herself as she dramatically revealed her status. “That would be me. Your generation, always disrespecting their elders.” She jabbed a bony finger at him. “You probably thought someone my age would be unfit for service.”
Well, at least she isn’t speaking in riddles anymore, Alec thought.
Calaba crossed her arms. “You should be thankful that I’m a Pearl, because the Diamonds would have you exiled for wasting this much of a Warden’s time. Those fools,” she chuckled. “I’m your elder, and I know that you’re in the exact space Sinnoh intended for you to occupy.”
Like a statue, the Noble Ursaluna beside her bore into Alec like the other Nobles before. All of them seemed to have a penchant for unnerving him with their imposing size and strength. No matter how hard he tried, his eyes kept unwillingly flitting back to it. Maybe it was his human instinct as the weaker species to be wary of a predator.
A moment later, Ursaluna slowly looked over to Calaba and bayed softly, a low tenor note. She nodded as if she’d suddenly remembered something, her face twisting into melancholy.
As if a spirit had come upon her, Calaba’s tone shifted. No longer did she speak like she was insecure and trying to prove her worth.
“Don’t believe what anyone says. You’re right on time, boy,” she said, punctuating her statement with a snap. “And you’re in the right place, too.” Her voice took on a strange tone, devoid of any rhythm or emotion, somber and grave.
Unsettled, Alec frowned and took a step backward.
“Wait, boy. Listen to what I have to say,” she snapped, allowing true anger and urgency to slip into her voice. “Sinnoh brought you to this space for a reason.”
Alec inhaled and exhaled. “You’re talking about how I fell through the rift?”
“Oh no, I speak of something far greater than that trivial blotch in the sky. I may not know exactly why you’re in this space, but I can give help you as you to traverse it.” She took a deep breath. “Sinnoh wouldn’t disrupt the smooth system of space on accident. Something big is going to happen, right here.”
Ursaluna began to paw at the ground and Calaba looked at it and nodded in affirmation. It grunted and gouged its thick claws into the dirt, raking large handfuls aside. It continued for a moment longer, deepening its hole, before it huffed and stepped back. It looked up at Alec expectantly, seemingly beckoning him to come closer.
An inkling for what was happening had already occurred to Alec, so he wasn’t surprised when he saw a rectangular shape glistening at the bottom of the hole Ursaluna had excavated. The Ground-type Plate.
He shot a worried glance over to Calaba.
“Don’t worry, boy; I’ll keep your secret,” she said, returning to her usual cryptic tone. “I know things like these are best kept buried from the public knowledge.”
And of course, that implies that she knows of more things like the Plates, Alec shuddered as he bent down to pick it up, keeping his eyes on Ursaluna at all times. It was a bit heavier than the other Plates and had a slightly more coarse texture. It thrummed with a weak yet constant pulse of energy.
“Thanks,” he muttered as he crammed it into the depths of his satchel. He made a mental note to experiment with its power later, when he had the time.
“Farewell, young Alec. Stay safe, and remember that you’re never not on time. As long as you make it to the right space eventually, Sinnoh will take care of the rest.” Calaba said. She turned around and started to hobble into the Temple of Space. “Come, my Noble. We have upkeep to attend to.”
Ursaluna grunted and fell in behind her. As they disappeared into the shadows of the Temple’s entrance hallway, Alec pondered her advice to him. No matter which way he turned it in his mind, he couldn’t figure out what her advice meant.
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Later that day, Alec happily returned to Jubilife.
He stopped by Laventon’s lab to drop off his catch. The professor eagerly informed him that the large Pokemon he’d caught from the mud lake was caled Hippopotas, and that it liked to fall asleep in muddy areas to keep itself cool.
The professor, seeing his progress, also deemed him worthy of his third star with the Survey Corps. Tricky’s recent evolution alongside his stunning progress covering the mirelands only increased Laventon’s confidence in Alec’s strength and competence. He handed over a small folded slip of paper, marked with a red wax seal on the front.
“A letter?” he inquired.
“Oh, don’t worry about it,” Laventon chuckled. “I just thought that an official writ like this would make the process a little more… theatrical, if you will. It’s certainly more fun than me telling Cyllene over morning tea, that is.”
Alec took the paper and grinned. “Gotcha, thanks Professor.”
Once he got his payment for the Pokemon he’d caught, he made a beeline over to the town hall. He’d already done all the tasks he needed to do for the day, so the remainder of daylight could be spent training or having fun with his Pokemon.
He walked with a spring in his step, feeling good about how far he’d pushed himself in Hisui. The pages of the Pokedex were rapidly filling, and he was growing closer to his end goal of seeking all Pokemon every day.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Gaining access into another area of Hisui would allow him to grow even closer to completing that goal. His body tingled with excitement as he wondered what new species he’d see where he was going…
“Hey, Alec! Wait a moment!” someone said from behind him.
Alec stopped, disappointed to be jolted from his thoughts. He turned around to see Ginter slowly getting up from his usual chair in front of his Gingko Guild wagon. Tuli, his wife, was nowhere to be seen.
What could he possibly want? By now, he knows I’ll turn him down if he tries to sell me something, Alec thought.
He shot the town hall a glance from the corner of his eye and reluctantly walked toward Ginter.
“Good afternoon!” he said enthusiastically. “How’re you doing today? I heard about your Shinx’s evolution. Congratulations!”
“Thanks,” Alec replied, keeping a stoic face. He tried not to lean into Ginter’s usual gimmicks of flattery and excitement. He figured that the merchant had just stocked something expensive and simply wanted him to buy it. “Whatcha got for me?”
Ginter chuckled. “Actually, I don’t have anything to sell you today. In fact, it’s something I don’t have. I want to hire you to do a job for me.”
“Huh? What kind of job?”
“One of the Gingko Guild’s usual supply routes isn’t safe for us to harvest anymore. A Crobat—that’s a strong Poison and Flying-type—claimed the area as its territory and won’t let any of our gatherers near. It’s weak to Electric-type attacks, so with your Luxio, we want you to go chase it off.”
Alec shrugged. “I should be able to help with that. Tricky and I’ve fought a few Alphas in the past. Where is it?”
Ginter grinned. “Oh, that’s fantastic! It’s just an ordinary Crobat, not an Alpha, so you should have no trouble dealing with it. The route’s in the icelands, up through Whiteout Valley. It’s two days, round trip. You won’t be going alone; Volo will accompany you since it’s quite risky to travel alone.”
Alec hummed. He hadn’t been to the icelands before. According to the large map on the wall of Cyllene’s office, there were five regions in Hisui. Maybe the icelands were the one he’d be cleared to visit next?
Plus, the name implied that it’d be cold. Above him, the sun glared down, intensified by the heat wave that had been hanging over Hisui for the past few weeks. Maybe visiting a colder part would make it more bearable?
“Okay, I’m interested. What’s the payment?”
The scope of this task seemed to be considerably above the typical request he’d undertake. Most of those—the ones posted on the bulletin board in the town hall—were simple, only requiring about an hour’s worth of effort and entailing very little danger. The longest Alec had ever invested in completing one was when he spent almost an entire day hunting for a Wumple to give to Beauregard, one of Jubilife’s guards. Because the task was harder and more time-consuming, Alec knew it would happen outside of the Corps request system.
Alec prepared himself for a fierce negotiation with the shrewd and wily salesman. He knew he’d be gone for two days, meaning he wanted to be paid at least the amount he’d make if he spent those days working normally. Currently, he made about $300 every day, which was just about enough to keep him and his Pokemon fed and to keep his satchel full of supplies.
“I can offer $1200 when you return, and the Guild will provide the supplies for the trip. We’ll throw in a parka and a pair of boots—you’re gonna need ‘em.”
What? I wasn’t expecting nearly as much! he thought, taking an involuntary step backward. He’d been expecting a low offer, not one that good! And that was just Ginter’s starting offer!
However, Ginter’s trained senses noticed Alec’s reaction. His eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly and Alec swore he saw a glint as the old man realized he didn’t need to negotiate.
“Satisfied?” he asked, a sly grin creeping up.
Alec allowed a huff of frustration to escape his lips. Honestly, it was still a very good deal for him. Though, he wondered what was on this route that made the Gingko merchants want it so badly.
“Alright, I’m in. When do we leave?”
Ginter laughed heartily and patted Alec on the shoulder like an old friend. “That’s the spirit!” he said. “A young go-getter like you will go far in the world. I figure it’d be most advantageous for you to leave tomorrow morning, at sunrise, to squeeze in as much daylight as possible.”
Alec nodded. “Makes sense; I’ll be here.” He uncomfortably pulled away from Ginter’s grip on his shoulder and readjusted his clothes. There was something about the old man’s touch that made him uneasy. “I’ve got business to take care of, so if that’s all, I’ll be going.”
And so, he turned on his heel and strolled away toward Galaxy Hall.
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The next morning, Alec groggily rubbed the heaviness from his eyes as he approached the village gate. The first shreds of sunlight were barely spilling over the treetops, casting long and harsh shadows along the uneven ground.
Both Auster and Tricky had vehemently opposed getting up so early. Both of them refused to leave the warmth of their sleep-pile so Alec resorted to recalling them into their Pokeballs to bring them along.
The walk from his campsite was a quiet one. The faint chatterings of Pokemon in the brush served as ever-present white noise that he barely noticed anymore. Though, the approaching winter meant almost all the trees had shed their leaves, meaning the melody was heavier on the croaking of Bug-types than the chirping of Flying-types.
When Alec saw the village gate, he first noticed Volo’s bright blue-and-yellow outfit, marking him as a member of the Gingko guild. The merchant was chatting with Dorian, gesturing to the spiky snow-capped mountains on the horizon. The massive line of mountains, including Mount Coronet as the centerpiece, was silhouetted against the sun.
Volo turned when he heard the leaf crunches of Alec’s footsteps. “Good morning, Alec! I was just informing this gentleman about our expedition today.”
“ What expedition?” Dorian pointedly asked. He crossed his arms defiantly. “I wasn’t informed of anything scheduled for today.”
Volo clasped his hands and smiled widely—eerily reminiscent of a particular villainous merchant from a video game back home. “Oh, ours isn’t scheduled. In fact, we’ll be out of your hair in just a moment, now that my traveling buddy is here.”
Dorian narrowed his eyes. “This true?” he asked Alec.
“Yep,” he affirmed. “Ginter hired me to chase off a stubborn Crobat that claimed one of their supply lines as territory.”
“Through the icelands, this time of year?” Dorian asked.
Alec hesitantly nodded, sensing that he’d gotten himself into a much larger situation than he was being paid for.
“That reminds me—” Volo said with a snap. “This is yours, to keep. Courtesy of the Gingko guild.”
He shrugged his absurdly large backpack to the ground and pulled out a massive parka—thankfully lacking the blue and yellow color palette signature of the Gingko merchants. It was primarily brown with reddish-orange accents, reminding Alec of a tree in autumn. It had white fluff around the neck, arm, and waist holes and a line of buttons up the chest to fasten it closed.
Alec gratefully took it and folded it over his arm, not wanting to put it on and overheat.
“I have everything we’ll need in here,” Volo said with a grunt as he shouldered his pack again. It made clinking noises as it moved, meaning metal pots were likely inside. “Shall we be going?”
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The final visages of Jubilife Village were just beginning to disappear into the treeline behind them. The duo was heading north, directly toward what Volo had labeled the Mountains of Acuity.
For such a strange name, Volo had very little to share about their origin. He simply cited an old myth about people climbing the peaks and returning wiser.
They both remained mostly quiet for the first thirty minutes or so of the journey. The little conversation they did share remained unsubstantive and drab. It consisted mostly of Alec asking Volo questions about the geography and history of Hisui. The merchant seemed happy to share his knowledge, and Alec happily drank it up.
But for the most part, they walked in silence.
After about an hour, Alec noticed how they’d been walking on a slight incline for their journey, meaning they’d gained elevation. He also felt a distinct chill from the wind, piercing through his hoodie that was normally sufficient to keep him warm.
The trees they passed seemed to change, too. They went from the standard bright green oaks of the fieldlands to darker pines, ones more suited to the cold.
Alec pulled on Volo’s parka—technically it was his now—to fight the cold. It was surprisingly comfortable. He didn’t button the front up though, since he figured that would be too warm.
“Cold getting to you?” Volo chuckled. He was still wearing his Gingko uniform, the one with short sleeves, and his hat.
“A little,” Alec shrugged. “I’ve never been to the mountains before, I think.”
Volo hummed, scratching his chin. Alec’s situation was common knowledge throughout Jubilife for the most part, though only Kamado, Laventon, and a few others knew the details. He knew that Alec was an outsider, having fallen from the rift, but he wouldn’t know about his encounter with Sinnoh.
After a moment of silence, Alec picked up the conversation. “What’s even on this route? What kinds of plants even can grow through the cold?”
“Direshrooms,” Volo explained. “They’re really scarce—only found in the icelands. If you eat ‘em, you’ll have sharper senses for a little while. Great for high-stakes Pokemon battles where every second counts, y’know?”
Alec tried to hide his surprise. He knew what direshrooms were, from his previous life. He knew that, with modern scientific processes, it was possible to reduce a direshroom into a very potent performance-enhancing drug called that the Pokemon League banned—and was outright illegal in nearly every region.
He didn’t know if the mushrooms themselves had that property, though. Obviously, the chemistry of a banned PED wasn’t common knowledge, so he had no idea how much was derived from the mushrooms.
“Who do you sell them to?” Alec asked, a hint of concern on his face. He wanted to determine as much as he could from Volo without raising suspicion by pushing the subject too hard.
Volo seemed to notice Alec’s reaction. He shrugged. “No one in Jubilife buys ‘em, so we barter them with other Gingko outposts. But it isn’t a merchant’s job to ask questions, so I don’t really know who they end up with, or what they use them for.”
He seemed to add that last bit to quell Alec’s suspicions about any unethical practices of the Gingko guild. However, Alec remained unconvinced—He didn’t want to help them supply dangerous items to people. “It’s interesting,” he said,” how a plant can do so much for you. It’s not addictive or anything, right?”
Volo replied with a staccato edge to his voice, shutting down any responses Alec could give. “Like I said—it’s not my business. We only sell those kinds of items to adults, who are responsible enough to manage their own decisions. I don’t lose too much sleep over it, to be honest, and you shouldn’t either. It’s not a merchant’s job to ask questions.”
“That saying, ‘merchants don’t ask questions,’ where does it come from?”
Volo cracked a wistful smile. “Ginter taught it to me when I first joined the Guild. It’s like a motto of sorts. He’s taught me a lot about the merchant business.”
Alec wasn’t entirely convinced, but he decided to drop the topic to avoid pushing too much. He made a mental note to revisit the subject later, once the tensions had died down. Their conversation returned to silence for a while longer. Alec noticed their footsteps gradually sloped upwards as they gained elevation.
Occasionally, Tricky grew bored of resting in his Pokeball and popped out to accompany him. he dutifully walked by his side, sniffing the air and scanning the trees for movement. Alec knew that there wasn’t any danger nearby but he greatly appreciated the sentiment nonetheless.
Thus, they progressed for about an hour more, absentmindedly sticking to the dirt path created by decades of foot traffic. There was little of note for the entirety of their journey, save for the occasional patch of wildflowers that Tricky stopped to inspect (sneezing cutely from the pollen) and gurgling river.
Eventually, they saw their first patch of snow.
It was on its last life, nearly melted and barely enough for a snow angel, yet it was by far the most interesting thing they’d seen thus far on their journey.
Immediately, Tricky charged over, emitting a low growl as if it were some kind of threat. He sniffed it vigorously, keeping his distance as if they were in a standoff.
“Tricky, relax, it’s just snow,” Alec laughed. He crouched down and scooped up a large handful. Back in Lacunosa Town, it rarely snowed, but Alec was familiar enough with it for the novelty to have worn off.
He presented the powder to Tricky, who took several steps back with a cautious look on his face. “It won’t hurt you,” he laughed. “See?”
Reluctantly, Tricky padded forward and sniffed it from up close. Alec wondered what Tricky smelled in the odorless snow that deemed it safe and threat-free.
The whole time, Volo watched silently from behind him. He had a grin of levity on his face as he seemed content to watch the exchange instead of helping. Alec couldn’t help but laugh, knowing he’d do the same thing if their roles were switched.
Tricky pawed at the pile of snow, feeling the crunch of the flakes being compressed beneath his weight. He barked inquisitively, then stepped out onto it. Immediately, he sunk about an inch or two into the snow, leaving paw-shaped craters.
Tricky yelped in surprise and jumped out of the snow, landing with a low growl.
Alec knelt beside him and started scratching him in his favorite spot behind the ear. “It’s not gonna hurt you. It’s not entirely solid, sort of like mud. Get used to it, since there’ll be a lot of it where we’re going.”
“Lux…,” Tricky whined. He pulled on a look of confidence and jumped back into the snow.
Alec stood back up and watched as Tricky explored and experimented with a smile on his face. He made a mental note to introduce Auster to snow later, though he figured that he’d already have some knowledge of it, being a Flying-type that migrates.
A minute later, Tricky recognized the snow as entirely harmless and started to play in it. He enthusiastically dug holes throughout the patch just to see how deep it went. Eventually, Alec called him back, saying they were wasting daylight and needed to get going. He promised that they’d see plenty more snow on their journey.
And see snow they did.
The patches became more and more frequent the farther they walked. Before long, it seemed to become more snow than grass, and Alec was thankful for the thick pair of boots Ginter had given him. Each footstep became more and more laborious, requiring him to pull his foot higher than usual.
Every so often, Volo would offer some commentary about how much longer they had, based on a passing landmark. The most notable thing was the merchant nonchalantly picking up a pebble and tossing it onto a pile of about thirty other pebbles.
“I made that pile,” he explained when Alec questioned. “Back when I was young, before I was old enough to go on my own, Ginter would take me on this trail a couple times a month. I’d always toss another pebble on that pile to prove we walked it too much.”
“Did it work?”
“No,” he laughed. “When I confronted him, he thought I faked it. Eight years of work, tossed into the river.”
The two shared a laugh at that. He definitely had a few memories of himself not being taken too seriously by his mother. Though, a part of him assumed that Ginter wasn’t as kind or forgiving as she was, so Volo and he likely had vastly different experiences.
Alec had a question prepared but he didn’t want to push Volo too hard. He let silence precipitate for a moment after their laughter faded. He took a deep breath. “So you’ve always been a part of the Ginkgo guild, since you were a child?”
Volo cracked a small smile but it vanished just as quickly as it arrived. “Yeah, it’s been a while. Nearly as long as I can remember,” he stated. “Anyways, we’re here.”
Alec looked away from the pile of rocks to see two massive pine trees flanking either side of the path. Large tufts of snow clung to their branches, making the trees look more white than green.
“These pines officially mark the border of the icelands. Button up your coat, Alec. Our mission’s only just begun.”