Chapter 14
"Every so often, a Pokémon is born with a special ability known as The Call," Scythe explained to Char as they, along with Saura, rushed through the deserted corridors of the base.
Char had no idea what was going on. Before he could respond, Scythe had hastily ushered him and Saura from their sleeping place. Char found himself following close behind as they hurried through the blue-tinted halls. Saura had the hardest time keeping up as they ran, still trying to come to his senses after the rude awakening.
"Char has the Call?" Saura asked groggily, trying to get his eyes to stay open. "I didn't hear anything! What is the Call, anyway?"
"You don't hear it," Scythe said. "It's a telepathic call. It only affects you on a subconscious level. Hah, they didn't believe me. Nobody believed me! Not Eva, not even Shander! But here you are, Char! Right here in our grasp, right in front of our very eyes! Hah! Quick! This way!"
Scythe dashed into a dark side-tunnel, and Char did his best to keep up by the light of his tail. It all strangely reminded him of the dream he'd just escaped minutes before.
"Where are we going?!" Char demanded.
"We need to hide!" Scythe hissed.
"Hide?" Char repeated. "What, can't we hide in your room?"
"No, not even there," Scythe said. "If I am correct, soon, all fourteen hundred Pokémon in the entire base will be wide awake and looking for us. We need to be out of sight until it all passes over."
Char was amazed at Scythe's reaction to the whole thing. The old bug was absolutely ecstatic. Fire burned in his eyes as if he was witnessing something legendary. His steps were nervous and impatient, yet he took great care not to move too fast for Char. He constantly cast nervous, worried glances toward every adjacent corridor.
Down the stairs they went, down into the lower floors of the base. As they descended the spiral staircase, a low rumble came from down in the dark depths. Even after they'd only passed three floors, it became clear that other Pokémon were coming, and they would be overrun.
"I hear them," Scythe said in a trembling voice. "The base is coming alive! We're almost too late…"
"Do you know of a good hiding place?" Char asked.
"I was going to have us hide under the very bottom of the stairs," Scythe said. "Nobody ever goes down there… but now I don't think we'll make it. Now, we'll just get intercepted."
"Quick question," Char said suddenly, remembering his recent dream. "If a ghost Pokémon touches you, can it drag you through the wall just like it does with items?"
Scythe froze.
"Brilliant!" he cheered. "Char, you're incredible! The storage area. We're only two floors away from that. Quick! We can make it there!"
Running faster than ever, Scythe bounded down the stairs five at a time. Char's feet fumbled about as he followed behind, trying to keep up the speed yet not take a spill and tumble down the stairs. He knew it was a long way down, with a lot of stairs to hit on the way…
After they descended another floor, the unmistakable sound of footsteps began to echo through the stairwell. Soon, it was accompanied by the low murmuring of barely-awake voices. Char wondered why it would be dangerous to be spotted by other Pokémon, but since now was clearly not the time to ask, he could only put his full trust in Scythe and keep running.
Finally, they emerged into the seventh floor. To Char's surprise, no Pokémon were patrolling the halls of the floor just yet. By the bright blue lights of the torches, he could see that the main halls were empty. Scythe dashed down the hall, beckoning the others to follow as fast as possible.
At last, the final stretch was visible. The hub which led to Kecleon's shop and the storage area opened before them. Char's heart skipped a beat when he noticed that both doors were closed for the night with planks of wood.
*CRASH!*
Before Char knew it, Scythe had barged straight into the door of the storage area and taken it down. Splinters of wood fluttered to the ground as Char followed him inside, holding his breath in anticipation.
Morrik the Gengar leaped out of the wall in anger, screaming "WHAT IN THE NAME OF AR—"
"Morrik, we need your help," Scythe interrupted. "Hide us in the storage area."
"W-what?" Morrik said, reeling back. "Y-you're kidding, right?"
"Morrik, this is vital," Scythe roared. "Hide us, fast!"
"W—all three of you?" Morrik said in disbelief. "Well, I've never done anything like this before, but if you say so, Scythe… Uh… hold on, I guess?"
Char grabbed hold of the Gengar's arm, half-expecting his claw to go straight through the ghost's skin. But it turned out to be tangible, and he held on tightly as his friends did the same. Once they were all ready, Morrik sighed and led them straight into the back wall. Char braced himself as he saw the solid rock wall coming closer and closer…
Walking through the wall was one of the weirdest sensations Char'd ever experienced. He found himself blind. The sound was muffled as though Char was underwater; all Char could hear were low, haunting reverberations that reminded him of the vision he'd just experienced only minutes ago. A painful tingling sensation burned at the tip of his tail as the flame couldn't quite stay alive. A clenching feeling arose in his chest: his lungs deflated and were frozen in place, as there wasn't any air…
But the worst feeling of all was the hunger. Walking through the wall was exhausting, somehow, and was quickly draining his body of any semblance of energy he'd attained from the nervous rush to hide. Even his grip on the Gengar weakened as they went, but Char didn't want to think about what would happen to him if he were to let go. He wondered if he instantly die, becoming a petrified fossil in the middle of the wall.
Just when Char was starting to lose his grip on reality, a rush of ice-cold air engulfed him and brought him back to his senses. They'd arrived at a storage pocket. With a strange little sizzling sound, his tail flame re-lit itself as it popped out of the wall and brought light to the absolute darkness of the chamber. It wasn't a very big room, and it was packed from wall-to-wall with orderly piles of items, clothes, and food. He heard himself taking a big breath for air along with his two friends.
"Now, uh, you know you can't stay in here for too long before you suffocate, right?" Morrik reminded them.
"We're fine for now," Scythe said, panting. "Thank you for your help, Morrik…"
"You're welcome, I guess…" the ghost said, scratching its head. "Now… uh… wait here for a sec."
Morrik leaped into the wall, and soon re-appeared holding a pile of clothes. He set them on the floor.
"Mobile scarves," he told them. "You can use these when you want to leave. Just put them on and walk straight that way. Just be sure they get back to me; they belong to Team Dread."
"Thank you," Scythe said again. "And I'm sorry about the door."
"Ahh, 's not a problem." Morrik said, walking back into the wall. "I'm sure you had a good reason."
Morrik left, but Char still didn't feel peaceful. The air was terribly chilly, taxing his poor little flame and giving him frostbite on his nose. It didn't help much that his stomach wanted to retch from starvation. He noticed Saura frantically jumping around the room, examining the piles of items and gobbling up the first pieces of dried food that he saw. Char joined in, not caring what teams they were stealing the food from.
Char soon collapsed onto the floor, his stomach satisfied for the time being. He was still cold, and tired, and confused…
"Scythe, what is going on?" Char managed to say. "What are we running from? Are we in danger?"
"Not really, no," Scythe said, sitting against the oddly-angled corner of the room. His smile had never left his face the whole time. "All I know is that I don't want to be the one to explain to everyone what just happened. But, can you believe it? This is all your doing, Char! You released a call so powerful… It was truly touching, it made my eyes water."
"So, what is this 'Call', anyway?" Saura asked again. "Can't you tell us? Or does it have to stay a secret still?"
"I can tell you," Scythe said. "Like I said, every so often, a Pokémon is born with an innate ability we refer to as 'the Call'. It stays dormant for most of the Pokémon's life, but at unpredictable times, when it activates, it will telepathically cry out to other Pokémon, and anyone who hears the Call will come to you. It all happens subconsciously, so neither the caller nor the answerer will realize what's going on. Depending on a Pokémon's sensitivity to the Call, the other Pokémon will simply be disturbed, or find themselves strangely drawn to you."
"Uh… okay," Char said, trying to wrap his mind around it.
"The Call comes only every several decades," Scythe continued, "and the power of the call varies. One Pokémon's call might only fill one room, while another's might reach out to a whole city. But… then, there are Pokémon like you, Char, whose call is so vast and immeasurable, even the legendary dragons would heed it! And when the call is that powerful… strange, unpredictable things happen! We knew that the next time the Call would appear, it would be more powerful than ever before… And those few of us, like me, who are so sensitive to the Call that we can hear and understand it on a conscious level, we've been searching for it… searching, and waiting… and now, the wait is over, Char, because you're here!"
"So, wait," Saura said. "Char let out this telepathic cry that I didn't even hear, and now the whole base is awake and looking for him? And that's why we have to hide?"
"Exactly," Scythe said. "Like I said, they wouldn't hurt you, but I think it's safer this way. After tonight, most of the Pokémon in this base will know that we've found the Call, but for safety's sake, we're going to keep a secret of who exactly has it…"
"There's something I don't understand," Char grumbled. "What's so special about the Call, anyway? Why were you looking for it and waiting for it for so long?"
"That's the most important part," Scythe said gravely. "The Call which is so powerful that it can summon even the aid of the legendary dragons… can win the war!"
There was a moment of quiet as the words sank in.
"You mean… we can actually get them to fight for us?" Saura said in disbelief. "We could summon Dialga and Palkia to fight on our side?"
"Yes!" Scythe answered excitedly. "Throughout history, this power to call upon masses of Pokémon has won wars and kept entire civilizations of Pokémon and humans alive. If we were to harness this power to call upon the gods, the resistance force would become undefeatable! But, would the Call have fallen into the hands of the Master, the same could be said about him. Whichever side obtains the Call would be the victor. That's why it's so extraordinary that you're here today, Char! It means that the Call has finally been secured, and the resistance forces can finally win! The Master will finally be brought to feel his due remorse!"
Maybe this is my purpose, then? Char considered. This Charmander body… if it possesses both the Call and the ability to hear the Call… that must really be something rare and special! Maybe I was put here to summon Dialga to help the resistance forces win the war! But… didn't I call to Dialga? I did, didn't I? And Dialga answered me! It said it was powerless! How could Dialga be powerless? What… could this mean?
"But… there's one thing I can't understand," Scythe said, his smile finally fading. "Eva tested you, both of you! Using her psychic abilities, she can sense the Call in Pokémon even when it's not active. Yet… she didn't find it in either of you. And she made me look like a fool, at that…"
This is it, Char thought. Now is the time to say it…
"Scythe… I have something to tell you," Char mumbled, his face full of shame. "Eva didn't test me. She lied to you… and she threatened me to not tell you. I'm… sorry I didn't say this earlier. She just pretended to test me, but she said it wasn't worth her time."
Char held his breath as he watched for Scythe's reaction. Scythe blinked.
"Char, you're kidding!" Saura said, shocked at the news. "I didn't like Eva, but… that's ridiculous. She didn't test you? And you even turned out to actually have the Call?"
"That arrogant brat…" Scythe spat. "You know, this doesn't really surprise me. Part of me never wanted to trust Eva in the first place, but because of her power, I ignored my instincts. I should have listened to them. She will hear about this. I will not go lightly on her about this. It could almost be considered treachery. Char… you should have told me sooner. You should know that Eva can't do anything to you. Not here."
"I'm sorry," Char said again.
Scythe got up, his eyes wide in concentration. He paced around the tiny room, muttering strings of thoughts quietly to himself. Char couldn't imagine all the things that were spinning in the warrior's head. He was starting to see what it all meant. He wasn't just a Pokémon. He was an important Pokémon. His power could change the world. What now? What could he do?
"What now?" Char decided to ask. "Is there a way I can use my power to help?"
"That's the hard part," Scythe said. "As far as I know, there's no reliable way to trigger your Call. It happens all on its own, on its own time. We will just have to wait. Although, I honestly wouldn't be surprised if your call tonight reached out to the ancients. It was… so powerful… I shudder in memory of it! But now, I will live knowing that I could wake up one day, and Dialga would be standing at our front gate, ready to help us. We just have to wait and see what happens."
After about twenty minutes of Scythe's excited banter and Char's nervous silence, Char started to feel a little short of breath. Having less air to feed on, his tail flame slowly died down, dimming the light of the room and making it harder to see. Regardless of what was happening out in the base, it was time to leave.
As Char slipped the scarf that the ghost had given him around his neck, there was one last question he felt he needed to ask Scythe as long as they were confined to this cell, away from all the other Pokémon in the base. Part of him didn't want to ask the question, but the other part of him knew he had to, especially now that his purpose was starting to be revealed to him. At last, when they were ready to step through the wall, Char hesitated. Gathering his courage, he turned to Scythe.
"Scythe, there's one other thing I need to ask you," Char said nervously. "Do you—"
"Yes," Scythe said, eying Char with a blank face. "Yes, I do."
"Oh, come on!" Saura growled. "Not this again! Scythe, please, just answer's Char's question."
"I did," Scythe said, turning to the wall again. "The answer is yes."
"I'm a human!" Char cried. "There! I said it! Now you know. I'm a human. Now we don't have to play this dumb game anymore. Now you know my secret. Because I trust you, Scythe. I really do. I need you to know, so I can stop worrying about it. So there."
Silence. In the dying light of his flame, Char watched Scythe for a reaction. He resisted the urge to bite down hard on his tongue. Had he just make a big mistake? The warrior had his back turned, staring at the wall through which he was about to walk, contemplating his reply. Char held his breath as he awaited the answer, even though he was already getting dizzy from lack of air…
"You look like a Charmander to me," Scythe said quietly, not turning around.
Before Char could respond, Scythe stepped into the wall and disappeared from sight.
… … …
Using the strange "mobile scarves," Char and Saura passed through the wall and back into the main corridors of the base. To their surprise, the directions that Morrik had given them didn't lead back to the storage area lobby; they were now in a familiar, yet unrelated hall. Scythe was nowhere to be seen.
It was still in the dead of night, but this time, a few Pokémon wandered through the hallways. When Saura casually asked a passing Pikachu why it was up so late, she told them that she had trouble sleeping tonight and just felt like taking a walk upstairs. A Minun said it was sleepwalking and it found itself several floors away from its room when it woke up. A Growlithe claimed it was awake because it swore it felt an earthquake and wanted to go upstairs to escape the base, before realizing that getting caught by the Watchers was a much more horrible fate than being buried alive. A Typhlosion asserted it had a dream about Dialga, and a voice told him to go upstairs and visit Team Remorse's chambers.
With each Pokémon they questioned, Char felt more and more nervous about his power. He could see its gravity right before his very eyes, how it had the power to literally control the minds of the Pokémon around him.
"This is so weird," Saura commented as they walked back up to their rooms and passed countless numbers of confused Pokémon all suffering from insomnia and wandering around. "The entire base was… looking for you."
"And apparently I summoned them all," Char muttered.
"Hey," Char said quietly, passing by an annoyed group of Nidoran trying to find their way back downstairs. "I just realized something. Do you remember when I first met you?"
"Vaguely," Char said. "It was only a few days ago, but it feels like weeks…"
"Well, that night, I was taking a walk," Saura said. "But when the night came, I… I decided to keep going farther into the forest, instead of heading back home. Even though I knew the Watchers were coming. I felt… I felt like I really wanted to go to the cave. Do you think… that I heard your call?"
"That would make a lot of sense," Char thought out loud.
"Also, how do you think Shander and Scythe found us?" Saura continued. "They probably heard the same call I did! They were drawn to the cave, and they found it even though I thought it was hidden, and… and Scythe was the only one who understood what was happening, since he was looking for the Call all along. And that's why he took us here to the base to be tested. It makes perfect sense!"
That does make perfect sense, Char realized. Of course, that would also mean… that every good thing that has happened to me since becoming a Pokémon has happened because of my power: Saura finding me, Scythe and Shander finding me, Scythe and Shander taking me to the base, even Saura and I getting special treatment with Team Remorse… If it weren't for the Call, I'd still just be a lonely Charmander sitting in that cave, too afraid to go anywhere… It's almost like the Call is bending my surroundings to best suit me. No wonder it's such a coveted power!
Char continued to gawk in awe at the effects of his call. So many Pokémon had been disturbed from their sleep! Some were even lounging and sleeping in the hallways, too tired to make it back to their rooms. He could only wonder what he would hear about this crisis the next day.
… … …
Meanwhile, Scythe was headed in a different direction. He crept in the shadows and tried to avoid being seen—since it was his rooms that all the Pokémon had been drawn to, and it was him that they would all question—and made his way down to a certain hallway of residence. His heart was set to give a certain Pokémon an earful of his frustration.
"Eva!" He hissed angrily, arriving at the Espeon's door.
Without waiting for a reply, Scythe tried to force to door open. It didn't budge; it was blocked from the inside. Eva had to be home.
"EVA!" Scythe yelled a little louder. "I'm not going to let you hide from this. This is your error, you will be the one to face up to it."
No reply.
With a snort, Scythe reared back…
*Slash!* *Slash!*
The wooden door fell into several pieces, and Scythe barged inside.
The room was completely dark. All the candles and torches were turned off and snuffed out.
"Eva…" Scythe said again, becoming even more annoyed at the Espeon's stubbornness.
Just as the Scyther's irritation was about to become full-blown rage, he realized something he should have seen sooner: the Espeon wasn't there after all. Her sleeping mat was empty.
"Eva…" Scythe growled to nobody but himself, slashing at the air. "You coward! What do you think you're doing?! Where did you run off to?"
Growling incessantly, Scythe fled the room.
… … …
When Char and Saura arrived back at Team Remorse's front door, what they saw was an odd sight that, in reality, didn't surprise them. About twelve Pokémon were sleeping in that very corridor, too lazy to return to their own rooms after being summoned by the Call. Char gritted his teeth as he carefully stepped over a sleeping Meditite on the way to the door.
Just as Char's first knock connected with the door, a rage-filled voice rang out from behind it.
"GO AWAY!"
"Uh…" Char said. "But… we live here!"
"PLEASE!" the voice demanded again. "FOR THE LOVE OF ARCEUS, LEAVE US ALONE!"
"Uh…" Char said again.
Then, Char noticed something: he was still holding the mobile scarves from before. With an evil smirk, he quickly tied one on and put the other one on Saura, and they proceeded to march straight through the locked door…
They met a weary, infuriated Gabite, a member of Team Remorse, on the other side.
"Oh… it's you two," it said indifferently. "Ugh… And here I thought it still wasn't over. There's no way I'm getting up for the mission tomorrow. Too…tired…"
… … …
"You know, I don't think I'll even be able to sleep now either," Saura said as the two once again tried to relax in Scythe's room. "Tomorrow's going to be a crazy day. You know that, right? Everyone's going to be talking about this… And when word gets out that the Call caused this, we'll never hear the end of it…"
That's for tomorrow, Char told himself. Tonight… it's time to finish our sleep.
As Char's eyes fluttered closed, he knew one thing was for certain: his purpose in the world of Pokémon was slowly but surely becoming clearer. Although, for the first time, he found himself starting to wonder if he really wanted to find out what it was.