Chương 79: Act 2: Chapter 31

"That is not what we agreed upon!" Elder Danae of the Draconid tribe frowns mightily, leveling his fellow elder with a glare from across the table where they both sit. The Meteorfall Crater is home to many sanctums and hideaways, many of which keep ancient treasures from prying eyes. Others act as homes for the rare few who live within the Crater year-round, such as the venerated Oracle. This morning, the Draconid Elders and Oracle Hakea sit around the elderly Oracle's table for a meeting most urgent.

"Calm yourself, Taxus," Elder Juniper, ever the diplomat, soothes. The woman reaches out and places a hand on Taxus's shoulder, easing him back down into his chair.

"There needn't be raised voices in this place." Taxus twitches, as if he wishes to bat Juniper's hand away, but before he can, she withdraws it. The dark interior of the Oracle's home makes the shadows around Taxus's furious visage all the more fearsome.

"Hakea," he growls, sounding akin to the Dragons the tribe venerates.

"Why? Why did you give outsiders Keystones?" Hakea seems totally unbothered with Taxus' seething hostility. In fact, she seems to barely be listening, her eyes unfocused.

"Taxus…" Danae speaks, stepping into the conversation with a glower.

"Enough of this. Do you doubt the things I saw, the memories gifted to me? Ascension has fallen into the wrong hands already, and our best hope to restore the sanctity of our rite is to bequeath Thelban and Naraikvejor with the tools to combat it."

"I was not speaking to you, Danae," Taxus grunts, affront flashing across Danae's face.

"Hakea! I demand an explanation!" The shout draws a slow blink from the elderly Oracle, and she looks up to Taxus placidly.

"You would demand an explanation from me?"

"I would." A raspy chuckle escapes the old Oracle.

"Never before have you questioned me. What compels you to begin now? Does the loss of pretty baubles disturb you so?" Taxus grips the table with such strength that the wood begins to groan beneath his fingers.

"Do not play coy, Oracle. It is not the stones themselves that bother me, but rather what they facilitate. It is folly, handing such powers to outsiders. We have already bent tradition as it is, but this is too far!"

"Your voice, Taxus; lower it," Juniper says as she narrows her eyes.

"What's done is done, regardless of any opinion of the matter," she continues, sending Hakea a look.

"We should be discussing on how best to guide the Thelban and Naraikvejor, not shouting impotently about events now passed." The bald Draconid elder sucks in a hissing breath and runs a hand over his head.

"We should have been consulted. I have half a mind to demand that the stones be returned."

"Returned into my ownership?" Hakea asks, raising a drooping eyebrow.

"Youngling, you fail to remember, those three were properly all my own, not the tribe's. If they are returned to me, I shall gift them once more."

"We still should have been consulted!"

"Perhaps," Danae murmurs, "but time is of the essence. There is already an unworthy one perverting the sacred bond and rite, and soon I fear there will be another."

"Another?" Juniper asks sharply, snapping her head to stare at Danae.

"What do you mean? Have we had another sneak?" The youngest of the elders sighs and nods his head.

"A great hulk of a man passed through the village but one day ago. His questions were many and unsubtle, nearly resulting in conflict. He was finally sent away, but I have warned the sentries to be vigilant." Hakea laces her gnarled fingers together and turns her good eye to Taxus.

"Change is coming whether we are prepared or not, and young, talented blood could see us through this turbulent time. Will we continue to resist the march of Dialga, or will we bend like the reed in the storm and survive?" For a long moment, Taxus is silent.

"I cannot agree to relinquishing the Mega Stones, not without a test of worth."

"Taxus, you cannot be serious!" Danae exclaims, standing and planting his hands on the table. His face screws up into a frustrated grimace.

"Think of what is at stake! Thelban Zinnia was hand chosen by Thelban Aster! You claim to care for tradition, yet you spit upon the urging of the Thelban! This is unprecedented!"

"Sharing our gift with outsiders is also unprecedented, so I will not be convinced otherwise." The bald elder abruptly stands.

"I must make arrangements. Good day." In the shadows behind Oracle Hakea, gold and ruby eyes meet, then two forms shuffle away unseen. The Mega Keystone in Lee's hand feels as if it weighs a hundred pounds. For most of the past week, the shining, spherical crystal has dominated his thoughts, which have ping-ponged all over. From the terror on the volcano to the disquieting fate that befell Aster, the darkest part of his imagination gnaws at him without regard for how it frays at his nerves.

Idly, he rolls the Keystone around in his hand, watching it refract the waning sunlight streaming in from the great hole in the ceiling. Along his hand and chest, rainbow light dances.

'For such a powerful little thing, it's deceptively innocent-looking.' With the day's training over, Lee and his friends are relaxing outside their hut in the center of the Meteorfall Crater, mostly at Lee's request. The last thing he wants is a lack of sunlight exposure making anyone crabby, not when the Dragon TE in the air already leaves everyone more highly-strung than usual. A short ways away, a smiling Brendan and his team all lie in a bed of soft moss, soaking in the sun and resting.

Even the usually jumpy Electrike is already dozing off.' Brendan is taking the Keystone thing in stride, it seems…' Lee observes, unsurprised. Zinnia is huddled with her five pokemon a bit further away. Noivern, Zinnia's newest capture, looks positively exhausted. Apparently, being fully evolved doesn't mean that she's able to keep up with the rest of her team yet.' That, and Zinnia was twice as brutal in her training today.'

Lee lets his eyes roam his friend's pokemon, taking in all the half-healed cuts and contusions amongst their number.

'The whole damn cave was shaking.' Finally, most of Lee's team are in their balls, resting and waiting for dinner time. Sylveon and Shinx were both thoroughly tuckered out by the day's activities, and Octillery has been even more withdrawn than usual recently. Corviknight is roosted up on the top of the dome-like hut, preening his metallic feathers with quiet rasps. Grovyle… Lee frowns and leans back into the wall of the hut, closing his hand around the Keystone. Around his Keystone.

Ever since the Oracle left the Keystones in their care, Grovyle has had a fire in his eyes, an intensity to him beyond that of any other pokemon on the team. When he moves, he does so with purpose and zeal, pushing himself even when the burn scars across his body angrily tug at his skin. Three times today, Lee told Grovyle not to overdo his training, and three times Grovyle complied… Only to forget minutes later and go right back to what he was doing.

Lee can see what's happening as plain as day, and it leaves him frustrated due to how powerless he feels in solving it. Grovyle feels like he's falling behind. For quite some time, there has always been a clear hierarchy of strength on Lee's team. Ninetales remains at the top. Her raw power, deep bag of tricks, and typing relative to the rest of the team make it so. Even if Lee were to completely shut himself out of her mind and deprive the fox of his input, she is still a force to be reckoned with. Corvi is next.

The great raven was a terror as a Corvisquire, and his evolution has only made him more so. His size, strength, deceptive speed, and stellar dual-typing make him a nightmare to fight. Although he suffers a type disadvantage to Ninetales, a clash between them wouldn't exactly be a foregone conclusion; Corvi is just too stubborn, too iron-willed. Then comes Grovyle. Lee knows the Grass-type doesn't begrudge his teammates for being strong, but he does curse himself for not keeping up.

The longer they stay down here in the crater, the worse the problem becomes. On their first day of training, Octillery won their game of keep away, and got his Thunder Wave TM as promised. The octopus was beyond delighted with his new ability to shoot bolts of paralytic lightning. Meanwhile, Grovyle stood by, his arms crossed and his eyes narrow, but no complaint was voiced. The gecko pokemon made Siphon Blade battle-ready only a few days later, but the rain cloud over his head persisted.

Then Shinx began to improve by leaps and bounds, going from little more than a kitten to a headache on four legs. The same tactic never seems to work on Shinx twice, and when a foe's cards are finally all laid bare, overpowering her becomes the only realistic option. A simple enough prospect now, but who knows where she'll be in a week, a month, a year? Once again, Lee resolves to make time soon to give his baby a full cognitive test. Grovyle is no doubt comparing her growth to his, and finding his own lacking.

The sting of comparing himself to an infant is likely even worse. Even Sylveon is beginning to ramp up. The middle-aged Fairy is shaking loose all the rust in her joints, and improves bit by bit, day by day. Her impressive repertoire of moves aided by Pixilate means she'll never be irrelevant in a fight. Lee stares at Grovyle's back as the Grass-type stands on a boulder a dozen yards away, his arms crossed and his eyes closed as he soaks in the sun.

Being one of Lee's first three pokemon, Grovyle knows much of the meta-lore Lee has to share… … Such as the existence of Sceptilite, spurring him into such recklessness down in the training chamber. Warm fur cuddling into his side eases Lee out of his funk. Turning his head, he spies Ninetales settling down next to him.' Worry not about everything today, Beloved,' the fox begins, casting a critical eye towards the rainbow-hued bauble in Lee's hand.

'Grovyle… If he cannot shake what bothers him, I will aid you in addressing him.' Lee smiles.

'Thank you, Nine.' The vixen smiles back, warming Lee.

'Think naught of it,' she says, before returning her eyes to the Keystone.

'What a curious little thing. I can only wonder if my kind has a Mega Stone out there. Were I to evolve once more, what would I become?' For a moment, Lee tries to imagine what a Mega Ninetales would even look like, but fails. To him, his fox is already perfect the way she is.

'Who knows? The world doesn't have the limitations of a video game, so it's entirely possible there's a Ninetalesite.' Lee wraps an arm around Ninetales in a half hug as he rolls the sparkly catalyst between his fingers.

'According to Zinnia, the stones are essentially training wheels, so even if there isn't, maybe you could go Mega anyway?' He gives the Keystone a stare as he musters many of the fond memories he's shared with Ninetales thus far, filling his chest with bubbling warmth. He almost shouts the word'Activate!' in the confines of his mind, only to stop when he remembers the grave fate that befell Aster.

The Keystone sparkles with a faint light in its center, making Lee's heart leap into his throat, before going dim once more. Lee shakes his head, mentally kicking himself.

'Arceus-damned Dragon TE is still messing with my head. The training is nice, but if we never come back here again, I won't cry over it.' He stuffs the sphere into his pocket. For a time, man and fox simply relax, lazily conversing about this and that. No words of any consequence passed between them, until Ninetales brings up the meeting with Anabel and Lucian. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.'

I can only wonder how we've apparently avoided the deadly pratfall of all bonded telepaths that have come before us,' Ninetales says, looking away from Lee to stare up at the sky through the crater opening.

'Anabel said she had never seen two as close as we without a great mental cascade into a singular being. What is it that we did differently?' Lee is quiet as he ponders the question.

"I'm not really sure," he admits.

"You know just as much as I do when it comes to psychic shenanigans, or maybe even more. Interesting stuff, ancestral pokemon memory is. If you haven't figured it out, I doubt I can." A prickle of uncertainty thrums across the telepathic tether holding them together, like a string being plucked. Nine turns back to Lee, her muzzle set in a frown.

'Perhaps… Something to do with my birth? Was it not as random as anticipated? I am aware that I said I would spurn any plans a higher entity had for me in favor of being with you, but perhaps… This was the intention all along?' Lee places a gentle hand between Nine's withers, rubbing her shoulders.

"I dunno, love. The subject of Arceus and how his influence plays into everything is muddy at the best of times. What we have is special, and we're going to look into it as best we can, but it's not a huge deal as long as we're safe and together." Nine makes a vulpine purr in her throat, leaning once more into Lee.

'You are correct, as usual. Perhaps the Dragon TE is simply setting me ill at ease,' she sends, rubbing her cheek against his. She pauses, then rubs a little slower.

'Goodness, my fur is delightful, isn't it?' Lee rolls his eyes, and in his head, gently nudges her away from his sense of touch.

'That's a little narcissistic, don't you think?'' I am a living analogue to a kitsune; I am allowed some narcissism,' Ninetales sniffs.

'Ah, I've been so caught up with the training that I nearly forgot to ask. Have you been sleeping well, Beloved?'' Sleeping well?' Lee furrows his brow. He takes a moment to feel his face and rub his eyes. He doesn't feel sleepy.

'For the most part. Why do you ask?' Ninetales once more makes a purr, though to Lee it sounds more like a hum.

'Several times now, since we've entered the crater, I've not felt you dreaming when you've fallen asleep first. That's unusual for you.'' Really?' Lee asks, surprised.

'When was the last time?'' Two nights ago.' …That lines up with the strange, repeating dream that Lee has had several times now. Each time he sees red eyes, flashes of gold, and a mouth that moved to speak, only for him to wake up before he hears a single word. Wordlessly, Lee offers his inky memories of the dreams to Ninetales, who inspects each one with a critical eye.' Curious…' she mentally murmurs.

'Why am I not able to feel these?'' I wish I knew,' Lee sighs. The figure within the dream seems so familiar, but at the same time not. It doesn't help that all the figure's features are blurry and set upon a background of pitch black, but even then, a feeling of familiarity remains. Lee put it out of his mind with the busy schedule everyone has, but now that he truly thinks about it, it is beginning to bother him. Vague, repeating dreams are never a good omen.'

Maybe Zinnia or one of the Draconids will know something,' Lee sends to Ninetales.

'This didn't start until we got here, so here's hoping.' Further conversation is interrupted when, from one of the distant tunnels, Isis and her sister Astis emerge, walking towards Lee, Zinnia, and Brendan with urgency.

"Speaking of bad omens…" Lee grumbles, standing. The approach of the Oracle's assistants draws the attention of both Zinnia and Brendan, as well as their teams, who all cease what they're doing to watch the girls approach. Once close enough, both halt, Isis' face set in a frown, while Astis' wears an expression of worry.

"Thelban, Naraikvejor?" Isis speaks, looking each one of them in the eyes.

"We have news. May we discuss inside? Brendan blinks in confusion and Zinnia sets her jaw, her expression becoming grim. Lee heads to the door of the house, opening it and ushering the girls inside wordlessly. Inside the hut, Brendan sits himself in one of the chairs of the living area, the ominous words of the Draconid sisters hanging over him.' Everything was going so well!' The boy allows himself a bit of internal bellyaching.

'Well, except for pokemon hunting, but everything else has been going great,' he thinks.

'Electrike is ready for battle, Marshtomp's Water Cutter isn't recoiling anymore, Breloom's regeneration trick is almost there, and Mawile is becoming a debuff queen. What could've happened?' The sisters seat themselves on the other chair in the living area, their shoulders touching, letting Lee and Zinnia claim the small couch. All the while, Brendan's eyes home in on Astis, the Draconid girl who is fascinated with him for some reason.

In the first days that they stayed in the village, Astis found Brendan and his team training on the edge of town, and the girl seemed captivated by what she saw in a painful echo of Courtney. She'd somehow always know when Brendan was out and about, admiring him from a distance. Even with Courtney's betrayal still weighing upon him, Brendan tolerated Astis' gaze. He was a little bit exasperated when Zinnia told him that Astis would be following them into the crater.

Then Astis volunteered to help him go hunting, which has turned up a whole lot of nothing. Zinnia even suggested that she might be sabotaging him on purpose! The young trainer stops, clearing his thoughts.

'Don't let the Dragon energy get to you. It's putting you on edge,' he thinks to himself. Gosh, he wants to know what Astis' game is.

"I knew things were going too smoothly, I just knew it!" Zinnia exclaims, pounding a fist on her knee with a loud thwack! Apparently, Brendan isn't the only one with his emotions running high.

"What, what is it? How are you going to rain on our parade?" Lee, ever the calm one, sets a hand on Zinnia's shoulder.

"Deep breaths, Zinnia. Calm down and get the Dragon TE out." The tanned woman does as asked, taking a deep, shuddering breath and giving herself a shake. Neither Isis nor Astis seem offended by Zinnia's outburst.

"I'm afraid our news is indeed of the unfortunate sort, Thelban," Isis sighs.

"My sister and I shadowed a meeting between the elders and the Oracle. Not all of the elders were pleased with Oracle Hakea's decision to gift keystones upon you." Brendan feels his face shift into worry. They were going to try and take the keystones back, were they?

"Are they going to want them back?" he asks.

"I don't have a problem giving mine back, even if I kind of wanted to learn how to do this mega evolution thing…" He trails off despondently. A shake of her head is Isis' answer, and Brendan perks up.

"Nay. Those keystones were the personal belongings of Oracle Hakea. The elders, notably Elder Taxus, are displeased, but it is not their right to reclaim the stones. To claim the belongings of another is to announce the shedding of your civility, and your willingness to fight to maintain your claim. A seer is the last foe any should want." Lee nods slowly.

"That makes sense, in a… Dragon kind of way. So we don't have to worry about the keystones. That's nice, I suppose." Isis nods. It's a sharp, crisp movement.

"Yes. Elder Juniper remained neutral while Elder Danae argued your worthiness." Zinnia clenches a fistful of her travel cloak.

"Elder Taxus, however, would not be dissuaded," Isis continues on.

"He insists that the tribe should not relinquish worthwhile mega stones before you prove your worth, and proposed a test."

"A test?" Brendan questions, leaning forward incredulously.

"They know about Magma, Aqua, the meteor prophecy, and all that, right?" They can't possibly be stonewalling them at this point, can they? Lee and Zinnia said that the keystones need an accompanying mega stone for the pokemon, and Brendan can only think of one thing that the Draconid elders could withhold…

"Taxus has always been a stickler, even when it comes back to bite him in the ass," Zinnia growls. She releases her white-knuckle grip on her cloak and takes another deep breath, trying to steady her nerves.

"Fine. Whatever. A test. Did he say what it is?" Isis meekly shakes her head.

"No, Thelban. The elder did not say, and abruptly left the meeting after his declaration, saying he had arrangements to make. We can only presume that he is referring to the aforementioned test." She looks towards her sister, who stares back nervously before nodding.

"Whatever it is that Elder Taxus is planning, we don't believe that he will spring it upon you immediately. No, for as foul as his attitude was, he would not shame himself by putting an impossible challenge before you. He will likely allow you time to train, and if you will suffer our presence, my sister and I shall assist."

"How so?" Brendan asks, giving Astis a suspicious glance. He ignores the prickle of guilt when Astis winces.

"Like, with pokemon hunting and stuff? I don't want to sound like a jerk or anything, but I've gone looking for a fifth team member with Astis a couple of times, and it's been a bust each time." Once more, Isis gives Astis a conspicuous look, as if saying, 'Are you really sure about this?', to which Astis screws her golden eyes shut and harshly nods. With a click of her tongue, Isis answers Brendan.

"Then you are in luck, Brendan Birch. The condition of our assistance is that you take Astis as your newest member."' What?' Brendan's blue eyes narrow, and when he looks at Lee, Zinnia, and Ninetales, all of them seem equally confused as well. Astis stands, her arms held stiffly to her sides. She cracks open her eyes and looks at Brendan with hope. Then she begins to glow. The redheaded girl shines a bright white with shimmers of rainbow color throughout, from the very tips of her toes to the very top of her head.

Then, as if made of light itself, her human shape bends and contorts, refracting like a beam of light caught between countless tiny mirrors. The shape grows thin wings, a long neck, and arms ending in a trio of talons. As quick as it started, the light show is over, and hovering in Astis' place is a living, breathing Latias. Brendan feels his jaw drop, gaping at the legendary pokemon that just revealed itself to him. He's not alone. Over on the couch, Lee's eyes widen such that his face tugs at his scars.

He reaches down, only to realize with a muttered curse that his bag, and thus his notebook, isn't at his feet. Brendan can't really read Ninetales' expression, but all of her wavy tails going still seems like surprise to him. Zinnia looks at the Latias with her lips pursed and the beginnings of a scowl on her face after the shock fades away. She looks none too pleased by what just occurred in front of her. She palms her face with a groan.

"Fuck. I should've known…" Wait a minute. The condition of our assistance is that you take Astis as your newest member. Without meaning to, Brendan shoots to his feet, pointing a finger at… Astis? Latias?

"Hold on! You mean to tell me that you were a Latias the entire time?" The Latias shyly looks away.

"And that…"

"… She wishes to take you as a trainer?" Isis finally allows herself a small smile.

"I would ask you to forgive her deceptions, both for her appearance and for your botched hunts. The latter was purposeful, and she did not wish for your team to fill before she could work up the nerve to reveal herself." … So Astis was misleading him the entire time for her own gain, just like Courtney. Despite the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity before him, Brendan can't help but feel a bit put out by being deceived again. It just seems to keep happening.

The excitement drains away, and Brendan sits back down, folding his hands in his lap and staring at the floor as he thinks.

"Birch?" Brendan looks up to Isis, whose smile is falling.

"You… do not seem pleased. Is Latias not to your liking? Beside Isis, Latias seems petrified at the idea. She stares at Brendan pensively, her shyness completely replaced by apprehension.

"Why?" Brendan asks simply. Isis and Latias share a glance.

"I don't believe either of us understands the question."

"Why me?" Brendan asks again, this time more intently.

"What about me is so special that you would do all of this? What are you hoping to get out of it?" Both Latias and Isis seem to have been caught flat-footed by the questioning. Red eyes meet gold, and Brendan recognizes the minute shifts in their expression, having seen the same thing between Lee and Ninetales whenever they use telepathy. The not-so-silent staring match is broken when Isis turns back to Brendan.

"Latias only wishes for a life beyond the village at the side of a worthwhile trainer," she begins softly.

"You are no fool, Brendan Birch, so surely you must know the risks such an extravagant pokemon takes when they live amongst people. There always exists the risk of a trainer who would capture them, mislead them, use their power for wrong. Without being at the side of the trainer worthy of trust, she would have no hope of living a life free of paranoia outside Draconid lands." Latias gulps and nods with Isis' words, staring at Brendan pleadingly.

"To that end," Isis continues on, voice little higher than a whisper, "she would not accept a trainer without a heart most pure. Yours, Brendan Birch, is what she's looking for." Brendan finds his slowly building temper stalling out. He looks towards Lee, Ninetales, and Zinnia, but they seem content to remain quiet and watch. Returning his attention to Latias and Isis, Brendan mulls over his next words.

"No one she's ever met has been better? What about Lee? He lives and breathes everything pokemon. Or Zinnia? She's your Lorekeeper, sworn to be your tribe hero." Latias twiddles her talons, making a low croon in her throat.

"Lee Henson's heart is pure, but there is little room left to spare within it," Isis carefully answers. The corners of her eyes are crinkled, and Brendan can tell his unexpected questioning is stressing her.

"Thelban Zinnia… She has changed since her departure from our lands, changed for the better. Were you not with them, Latias may have turned her sights upon them, but as it stands, you are the one she wishes for, Brendan Birch." Oh man… Brendan almost wishes that the mega stone thing was the worst problem he had to face today.

"It's your call, Brendan," Zinnia says, leaning back on the couch and watching everything with scrutiny.

"You've got Lee and I to help out if you wanna take this responsibility on, and if you don't, then don't. Simple as that." Lee's encouraging smile pairs with Zinnia's words, and Brendan comes to a decision.

"A couple of months ago, a girl named Courtney lied to me for weeks straight to get what she wanted out of me, and I nearly threw my friends' lives away when everything came to a head, only changing my mind at the very last second," Brendan begins, earning him a startled look from Latias and Isis. He stares Latias in the eyes.

"I understand why you kept everything to yourself, but I hate being lied to, and I hate being manipulated, even for situations like this. Do you see where I'm going with this?" Latias visibly wilts, shrinking in on herself and hovering backwards. She begins to shimmer, her body becoming transparent.

"So that means, starting today, there's no lying or withholding information from me or the team, okay?" The nearly invisible Latias stops, looking at Brendan incredulously, before hope begins to rise to her face. Brendan can't really stop the smile that tugs at his lips.

"As long as you can follow that rule, welcome to the team." The nearly transparent Latias becomes visible once more, and before Brendan can say anything else, she zooms across the room and pulls him into a bone crushing hug.' Oof! For having such short arms, she's really strong!' Grimacing, Brendan smacked his hand against the back of one of her arms.

"I need air! Tap out!" Latias releases him with an embarrassed squeak, dropping Brendan back into his chair. Once the stars stop dancing in his vision and he catches his breath, Brendan reaches for one of the empty pokeballs on his belt. Taking it, he holds the capsule out to Latias, giddiness making him shake a little.

"Whenever you're ready!" Hovering forward and reaching a tentative arm out, Latias pokes the button in the middle of the ball, making it pop open and suck her inside as a mass of light. The ball shuts and doesn't even shake once before it dings.

"Holy crap…" Brendan murmurs to himself.

'I just caught a legendary pokemon. Without a fight. Dad is going to lose his mind.' Then he frowns as the sheer enormity of what just happened really hits him.

'Oh no. Dad is actually going to lose his mind.'