Chapter 21
The next morning, Char awoke to the sound of Scythe's call, as usual. This time, he finally felt like his body was getting used to it… until he looked up and saw the sky past the roof of the ditch. It was nearly noon! They'd slept in for a long time!
"Well, I couldn't wake up the kids too early," Scythe said with a smile after Char had mentioned this. "Especially not after yesterday. That would just be irresponsible!"
So, when everyone was wide awake and ready to go, the team headed off on the final leg to Sitrus City. The kids were more eager than ever to see their auntie, and Char and Saura were more eager to know that another successful mission had come and gone.
Sitrus City
"Well, here we are!" Saura exclaimed as they entered the lively Pokémon community. "Sitrus City! What do you think?"
Char didn't really know what to think. For some reason, he'd expected something a lot different; something like a great big cluster of skyscrapers, streets, and vehicles. A human city. This, though, looked more like a giant garden or a city park. There were buildings, but in shapes he never thought were possible, and almost none of them were more than one floor tall. Decorative trees, plants, and flowers lined the sides of the wide, stone-paved pathways.
"It's pretty," Char answered. "Not what I pictured, but it's very pretty."
"It's a nice place to live," Saura said. "A lot of my brothers lived here at some point in time, and I stayed here a lot, too. It's so relaxing…"
As they walked through the town, they passed many Pokémon. A Ponyta tugged a cart full of stones somewhere. A Delcatty and two Skitty lapped water from a pond. A Pelipper flew down the street, stopping at mailboxes to deliver mail.
"It's almost like the Division," Char noticed.
"It is," Scythe said. "Pokémon who live in cities help one another out, just like the division. For most of us, it's vital to our survival to live in a community."
While Char could certainly appreciate the colorful and inviting sight of the city, he couldn't imagine living there. He knew he much rather preferred to be back in the Division base, surrounded by rocks and fire rather than plants…
They didn't stop to enjoy the scenery, although Char did his best to take in the strange and interesting sights. A lot of the houses were things like tents and teepees, but there were also a number of structures made of brick, stone, or metal. The architecture of some of these buildings was so odd, Char really had to wonder about the different Pokémon that lived in them and what kind of reasons they would have for, say, a house shaped like the head of a Totodile, or a house which stood upon two pillars with the entrance several feet up in the air, or a house shaped like a giant pyramid with slits down the sides, or one that resembled a giant, vertical arch with one window.
I know that Pokémon got the idea of building houses from humans, Char laughed to himself, but maybe something got lost in translation! This place is ridiculous! Or… maybe it's just… I don't know… fun.
Saura led the team quickly through the city he knew well and to the place known as the Pearl Dome. At first, it appeared to Char like a big, pink igloo made of polished rock. As he saw more of it, he noticed that it had several entrances around the circumference, which probably housed different Pokémon.
"That one!" Meary shouted, pointing at one of the dome's doors. "That's where Auntie lives!"
As soon as Teary rapped on the door, the Nidoqueen burst out. With a cry of joy, she gathered all the bunnies up in one big armful and gave them a big hug. Most of the children didn't look too thrilled.
"Ohh…. Children!" she gasped. "You all had me so worried! Your momma sent me a message that you were supposed to be here yesterday! I stayed up all night… oh… I'm so glad to see you're all safe! Oh, you're all so filthy! We'll have to get you cleaned up! Oh, Beary! You went and hurt yourself again, didn't you? We'll have to get you a good slice of Pecha fruit right away!"
When the eager Nidoqueen was done squeezing the living daylights out of the kids, she turned to their traveling companions.
"Sirs, I must thank you for all your trouble," she said amiably. "We can't tell you how much this means to us!"
"It was our pleasure," Saura said proudly.
"Well, well, I suppose I owe you something for your babysitting," she rambled, disappearing back into her house for a moment. "Here, wait just a moment…"
This is it, Char realized. The reward! I wonder what it will be?
Char and Saura were all smiles as the old Nidoqueen returned, holding something in her claw. Char preemptively stretched out his own claws to accept the gift…
"Here you go," she said kindly. "It's not much, but consider it our way of saying thanks."
Two little round coins, amounting to twenty Poké, fell into Char's grasp.
Words could not express the disbelief on Saura's face. Scythe even looked a little bit surprised.
"Hey, if you want, you can stick around for a while," the Nidoqueen said invitingly. "I'm sure the kids would be happy to have you around! I even made some poffins for them. You're welcome to share!"
"Uh… no thanks," Char said, clenching his claw around the money. "We've… got to get going. We've… got more work to do."
"Oh, too bad," the Nidoqueen said. "Well, thanks again for everything! Kids, why not say goodbye to your kind guides?"
After a barrage of adoring goodbyes from the five little kids, the adventurers turned and left. Their mission was finally complete… but it all felt somehow unsatisfying.
"Say, you two," Scythe inquired to the still-speechless Team Ember, "you didn't by chance take a mission with an unmarked reward… did you?"
"We did," Saura admitted. "Is that why…?"
"Well, when you see one of those, it means that the Division won't reimburse you for the mission, so the only reward you're going to get is whatever the client decides to give you."
"…Oh," Saura grumbled. "I wish I would have known that before. Oh, well, I guess the greatest reward was knowing the kids are safe and sound, right?"
Char opened his claw and stared at the two tarnished coins in his palm. Yeah, Char determined. That must be it.
Division Base
"Thirteen Sitrus berries?" Kecleon cried, examining the contents of Char's bag. "THIRTEEN whole Sitrus berries? Wow! Where on earth did you find these?"
"Uh… the Sitrus Orchard?" Char said awkwardly.
"Well, my young friends, you've certainly hit the jackpot!" he shouted, patting Char on the back. "These things are so rare, and even when Pokémon around here do get their hands on them, they're never willing to let me have them!"
Remembering Shander's advice, Char decided to try to sell his spoils to Kecleon to see if he could produce just a little bit more profit from the trip than he'd received from the Nidoqueen. To his surprise, Kecleon went completely mad at the sight of a couple pieces of fruit.
"I'll take them!" Kecleon proclaimed. "Seventy thousand for the whole bag."
"Wow, really?" Saura cried. "They're that valuable? That's amazing! I guess this was a profitable trip after all!"
Char smirked. "Seventy thousand for the whole bag, except one," he said. "We want to keep one. And that's our final offer."
"Well, you, my good sirs, have got yourselves a deal!" Kecleon exclaimed, bowing his head to Char and eagerly snatching the bag away. "Absolutely fantastic! Just wait until my brother hears about this! You two, my good sirs, may you have the best day in the history of Poké-kind. Incredible! Sitrus berries! Incredible!"
And so, Team Ember's perfect record continued with their third successful mission. It was the hardest one yet, but they persevered, defied the odds, and came through! As they did so, Char and Saura learned more about their world, the mysterious dungeons, and their lives as a resistance team.
After the victory had been reported to the registry, Team Ember happily stocked up on supplies. After all, they would just be getting up tomorrow and doing it all over again; a resistance team needs to serve the division each and every day. Making sure to steer clear of the unmarked bounties, they decided on their next day's endeavor and were all prepared before the torches even turned red.
Scythe was given a good talking to by Daemon for staying out longer than planned as well as dropping Team Absolution in his lap without coming back to give them the promised explanation. Then, at the evening's meeting, he described all the latest developments and broke the bad news that the Basin Canyon campaign would have to continue a lot longer than previously planned. Surprisingly, the team took it very well; they all seemed full of morale and ready to give their all, even though it would probably turn out to be their most difficult endeavor yet.
After a satisfying dinner and a glance at the evening news report, the torches changed colors and Team Ember retired to Scythe's room for the night.
… … …
"Hey! Wake up!"
Char stirred at the sound of Scythe's voice. He felt horrible. How early was he getting up this time? Was it because he slept in so long the night before?
That's when he glanced back at his tail flame—it was red. Red, as in, it was still late in the evening.
"What do you want, Scythe?" Char asked.
"Get Saura up," Scythe hissed. "You've been summoned."
"Summoned by who?" Char wondered. "High Intelligence?'
"No, Team Stripes!"
"What!?"
"Team Stripes has requested your presence down in their quarters," Scythe said. "Now, come on, we don't want to keep them waiting!"
So, Char woke up a very annoyed and grumpy Saura, and Scythe dragged them both down more stairs than they cared to count. Char could only wonder what in the world Team Stripes wanted with them…
Down they went, all the way down to the eighteenth floor of the base…
Through the dull, dimly-lit hallways of the training teams…
All the way to Team Stripes' headquarters…
And when they got there, they were in for quite a surprise.
… … …
"THREE…!"
Team Stripes had welcomed them at the door, then hurriedly ushered them inside…
"TWO…!"
Inside, they found the last thing they'd ever expect to see—a party.
"ONE…!"
The room was filled with Pokémon. All twenty-seven members of Team Stripes were there, cheering for Saura. There was even a huge cake, prepared by the kitchen masters for this very occasion…
And at the very moment the torches turned blue, the room erupted in one great cheer…
"HAPPY FREEDOM, SAURA!"
The last day before Saura was to be captured by the Master's forces and forced into servitude had just finished passing by. By the Scizor's promise, tonight was the night Saura was supposed to be lead away in captivity… but instead, he was at the very, very bottom of an underground cave, surrounded by friends, and with no intention of ever giving into the Master's demands. It was official: he'd escaped. He was free.
Saura cried tears of joy, thanking everyone for the wonderful surprise and friendship, as the whole of Team Stripes tackled him and gave him a big hug.
Scythe admitted that he'd planned the whole event ever since he learned when Saura was scheduled to be taken. Having served many terms in the Master's army himself, Scythe knew how precious freedom was, and felt it needed to be celebrated.
They spent hours into the night stuffing themselves with cake, telling stories, and conversing about all of their endeavors with the division. Nobody cared that they'd be dead tired the next morning, as the training teams were still restricted.
At one point, a Weavile came down and visited the party, requesting to see Saura.
"I'm Vazidor, of Team Dread," the Weavile said to him. "I heard a rumor that you were in the market for one of these."
He grinned, presenting Saura with nothing other than a mobile scarf. Already drained of all the tears he had, Saura managed to weakly choke out a "thank you" as he speechlessly accepted the gift.
"Happy freedom," the Weavile said just before leaving. "It's the greatest treasure you will ever have. Never let anyone take it away."
At last, the party ended, and it was time for everyone to sleep. Saura's head reeled from everything, and Char couldn't help but be happy for him.
As they gathered themselves and prepared to leave, one of the members of Team Stripes came to them. It was Ray.
"So, did you like it?" Ray asked. "We worked really hard on this! How was the cake?"
"It was all amazing," Saura said, his bright smile never leaving his face. "Thank you so much for everything. I can't tell you what this means to me."
"We knew it all had to be perfect," Ray said. "I'm really glad you liked it."
… … …
After they said their goodnights, Char and Saura headed for the door, but Ray stopped them again.
"Uh… listen, you guys," he said, a little bit nervously. "Since you're here… do you think… we could talk? There's something I've been meaning to say… and I thought now would be a good time for it…"
"Eh, why not?" Char shrugged. "What's the matter, Ray?"
As the rest of the team scrambled and clamored, cleaning up their room in the wake of the celebration, Char and Saura stepped out into the quiet hallway with Ray.
"I've been trying to work up the courage to ask you this," Ray said, fretting with his tail. "Could you… I mean, could I… Would it be okay if… you let me… … … join Team Ember?"
Char blinked. The question really took him by surprise.
"Y-you don't have to answer right away!" Ray said quickly. "If you… if you want to think about it for a while, that's fine!"
"Really?" Saura said in surprise. "You want to join our team? Are we… even allowed to do that?"
"Well, usually, the new recruits like me stay on the training teams until they either form their own team, which they almost never let you do… or until one of the other teams lets you join. And I was wondering… if you'd let me join. It's… up to you, really."
Char and Saura looked at one another, unsure of what to say.
"Listen," Ray said. "It's just that… Ever since I started working here, I've only had one dream: I wanted more than anything to be on Scythe's team. The heroic exploits of Team Remorse have always been an inspiration to me, and I've just… always wanted to be a part of it. I give my all every day, hoping that someday, somehow, they'd accept me. I even evolved as fast as I could so I could get stronger. I know that day is still a long way off, but… now you're here, and you're a team of your own, and it's… really a dream come true for me if I could be on your team! The thought of personally training with Scythe every day… just like you two do… it would make me really happy."
When Char saw the eagerness and hope in the Raichu's eyes as he awaited an answer, he knew he couldn't let his dreams down.
"We'll have to see if Scythe approves of it," Saura said. "But… we'd love to have an extra hand! What do you think, Char? You're the leader, the decision is up to you."
Char didn't wait a single moment to answer.
"Ray, we'd be honored to have you on our team," Char said gleefully, holding out his claw for a handshake.
Once again, no handshake was returned. Instead, the Raichu leapt joyfully into the air, sparks of static electricity buzzing across his fur.
"Sweet!" he cried. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You won't regret it! I'll never slack off, and I'll give ten hundred percent effort to your team! Thank you! I can't wait! Yes! I'm on Team Ember!"
It was really, really late as Char and Saura finally got around to sleeping that night. After talking to Scythe about letting in a new member—which he had no problem with, especially after he heard who the candidate was—they spent another hour wide awake, just talking about all the crazy events of the day.
"You know, we made a lot of Pokémon very happy today," Saura said. "The Buneary, and their mom and dad, and that Nidoqueen, and Ray, and even Kecleon!"
"Yeah, and you, too!" Char added. "Who would have guess they'd throw a party for us? I couldn't believe my eyes! I thought those kinds of parties were only a human thing!"
"Oh, Char, I can't tell you how much that meant to me," Saura said happily. "Last week, when I ran away from home, I was on the verge of despair. I thought it was all over. And now, look at me. I found you, and we found this place, and everything's… okay."
Maybe that's the real reason we fight the Master, Char thought. We spread happiness while the Master wants to take it away.
After everything was said and done, Char finally settled down and closed his eyes…
… … …
It's… it's happening again!
Char felt himself in the midst of another vivid memory. He floated in a realm of blinding whiteness…
It… feels so real!
The great blue dragon, Dialga, stood before him, its eternal eyes glowing brightly with power. Radiant beams of light reflected from its scales and blades…
This… is the clearest memory I've ever had!
Char tried to move, to turn his head, to cry out with his voice, but it was all futile. It was only a memory recorded in the recesses of his mind, unable to be changed…
The great Dialga began to speak. This time, Char heard its voice… although he could not understand it. It was too quiet, too distorted… or perhaps it was in a different language…
No! Dialga, what are you saying to me? I… can't understand!
But he saw the Dragon's face much more clearly than before. He saw how the great lord of time stared down at him, its eyes full of sadness, but at the same time, full of pride. It spoke as if it were about to do something reluctantly, yet reverently…
Suddenly, Char felt his vision change. Something else entered his line of sight. It was…
A bipedal dragon, equally as mighty as the first, lined with dark red stripes and adorned with great wings and pearls…
P-Palkia! Char realized, his heart erupting uncontrollably. Palkia is here, too! What… what does this mean? What's happening?
The great master of space bowed its head as well, its many jewels shining like stars…
And, holding out its hands, it presented Char with an object.
The little round floated before Char, shining brightly with the same supernatural light. It was the object of grave importance.
Except, this time, Char could see it so much clearer than last time…
It was such a strange little thing… so small, yet so powerful… so simple, yet so dangerous… it was something… something that shouldn't have even existed in this world…
And then he recognized it. He knew exactly what it was.
The realization made him jump awake. He gave a loud gasp for air as he sprung to his senses in the middle of Scythe's chamber.
"Char, are you okay?" Saura asked weakly, stirring from his sleep. "Nightmare?"
"Saura!" Char gasped, still in disbelief. "I saw it! I saw the thing in my vision!"
"What? What is it?" Saura asked, now wide awake.
"It was… a Pokéball!"
Elsewhere...
"Faster! Faster!" Dusknoir shouted to his servants as they wearily pushed themselves across the land, under the shadow of the Watchers.
"Erk… can't we just take a rest?" Croagunk pleaded, dragging the heavy bag full of salvaged valuables with them. "I think we've gone far enough for one night…"
"We're not safe until we reach the fortress," Dusknoir said softly. "Until then, danger could come out of any—"
"You're awfully late."
Dusknoir froze at the sound of the voice. A Scizor stood before him, watching the travelers from atop a rock.
"Adiel," the Dusknoir addressed reverently in surprise. "I swear, we were going as fast as—"
"I gave you your orders," Adiel said. "I expected you at the rendezvous point yesterday."
"Yes, I know," the Dusknoir replied confidently. "We are sorry. We will be there by morning!"
"Listen, Dusknoir," the Scizor said, leaping off the rock and approaching the ghost. "I intend, for once, to outwit Scythe. I only have once chance at it. I need your assistance to do it. You are not going to blow my one and only plan apart because you're too lazy to keep your servants under control. Do I make myself clear?"
"Perfectly," the Dusknoir said. "You know I wouldn't miss the opportunity to help with his undoing."
Satisfied, the Scizor nodded at his answer. He was about to give his final comments and leave, but suddenly noticed what the Dusknoir held in its hands…
It was a small, round object the color of violet. The ghost had been fiddling obsessively with it ever since they left the cave.
A Master Ball.
"You know, we could just end the Scyther's efforts once and for all most easily with this," he said. "I would be more than happy to perform the deed for you, Adiel…"
"Dusknoir," the Scizor said, a dark anger seething behind his voice. "You know very well that ball was meant for one Pokémon, and one Pokémon alone. Do not do anything foolish."
The Dusknoir looked disappointedly at the Pokéball.
"Yes, Adiel," he said shamefully. "You are right. I would not want to displease the Master in that way."
"Good," the Scizor said simply. "Now, move yourselves faster. I expect to see you there by morning. Right now, I'm off on a little mission of my own. Unless I'm mistaken, there's a little Bulbasaur whose time is up…"
The Scizor dashed away into the darkness.
End of Season I