Episode 18: Vestiges of war
Episode 18: Vestiges of war
I had chosen to depend on Ptero to rescue Diantha. Despite the circumstances, I knew her character too well to risk going myself. I was afraid of screwing up, making a mistake during the battle, and having Mirror defeat me. But above that, I absolutely had to ensure that Ariala did not come to harm.
Something Shota had told me had given me a lot of questions. Under the pressure of being completely surrounded by four formidable armies, Ptero still agreed to my ludicrous plan of attempting to rescue Diantha, to the point that he even died for it. That Emolga was definitely smart enough to cut his losses and say no to me, yet still he went, perishing at my flawed orders.
I did not see it, but something that presumably Mirror did caused Diantha to unleash her forbidden powers, provoking Tapu Koko to descend on the battle and take her life. Poor Galen was caught in the strike and perished as well. But this god only functions as coldly as a machine; it was his duty to protect Faernians and dispose of the forbidden powers that Diantha had within her, even if it meant taking her life. He did what only a god would do, so I hold myself accountable for the death of this poor trio.
But at the same time, as crown prince, I held the hopes, dreams, and wishes of every Erinian Pokémon that supports me. I could not hope to reason with them besides treating the situation as an act of war. And in a fit of rage that drowned my whole being, I retaliated in kind, declaring that I would kill Tapu Koko at all costs.
I sent word of what had happened back to my father and embarked on my own trek to the Tower of the Tapu. It was there that the Queen’s attendant and other figures of their royalty came and took Ariala’s army. They promised we would be reunited soon, yet hours passed with no sign of me even being allowed to speak to her again. Their actions fed into my rage and told me all I needed to know about their thoughts on the matter.
And then I learnt the truth of what had happened ten years ago. I never would have imagined that words I mindlessly said to Ariala would change her way of acting and thinking, but she told me everything, and all under her own personal act of rebellion.
She broke out of her own castle with powers that matched those of my Diantha’s. She longed to flee with me to the Stardust Treasury, escaping from the wrath of Faernia’s gods. They did not give chase, confused as to what they could do. They were placed in the same situation I was, unable to put their all into their personal wishes of simply eliminating the darkness entirely. Killing Faernia’s princess would turn their believers against them, especially in such rough times as these.
Ten years ago, Father had sealed the dark powers of a powerful god within Ariala. Me and Diantha’s intervention caused Diantha to have those powers sealed within her as well.
He knew everything. He knew of my devotion to protect her, that was why he had us marry. That was why he trained me to become a knight, why he gifted me with a powerful weapon of legend. And yet, why didn’t he just tell me that this was his aim from the start? What reason did he have to withhold such crucial information? Especially until the very last minute, when everything was said and done?
This changed what I had to do. What we had to do. It changed how I felt about this world, both Eris and Faernia. It changed how I felt about Father, the gods of our world…
It changed everything.
…
“And that’s it. That’s the last entry. That was a bit over sixteen years ago,” An Oshawott said, having just finished reading aloud from an old book. He used a hand to swipe fur out of his left eye, re-reading the start of the diary passage again. “Thracia seven-sixty. We’re now Thracia seven seventy-six. Mother and Father have been missing from the world for sixteen years.”
“Oh, now I get it!” A Pikachu responded to him. He was short and his voice sounded very high pitched, smooth, and young. The Pikachu wore a poncho themed after Charizard in its mega evolved form, complete with a hood that resembled Charizard’s head. The poncho even had eyes, teeth, and a tail with a real flame on the end of it. It was almost like the Pikachu was wearing live Charizard skin, but his naturally cute appearance prevented that from being intimidating in thought.
“You see now why this is so concerning, Prem? And the worst part is, Mother won’t even tell me exactly what’s wrong,” Oshawott said. He sighed as he closed the book and stood up. This Oshawott was as studious as a professor, but a lack of glasses and his unusually short height kept him apart from that trope. His head fur was a wild mess he didn’t care about, a cheap backpack held several books for him, and his voice secreted pompousness with every word.
“So like, the whole world’s at a standstill,” Prem said. “But because the prince and princess ran away with their legendary weapons, the war didn’t start. Those two are geniuses!”
Oshawott paused. “I wouldn’t quite call Mother a ‘genius’. She’s doing exactly as Rune lamented his father for: keeping information from me,” he said as he put the book into his backpack. He hung it on his back, but stumbled a bit because of the weight of all the other books in there. There were so many that the corner of two poked out of the bag and stopped it from closing. “It’s time to study. We’re going to find out exactly why Mother and Father live in hiding.”
“Okay. If anyone can figure it out, it’s you, Leos!” Prem said goofily. There was another pause from the Oshawott.
“Why did Father’s diary even stop there? Did he not have time to keep writing?” Leos thought to himself. “I can’t confirm that the Constellars have a large part in this, but their powers resemble those of Diantha’s too much. I’m yet to find concrete proof of any connection.”
“Er, Leos?” Prem was shy all of a sudden. “I’m hungry.”
Leos barely heard him, muttering to himself as he began to pace. “What you said just now about Mother and Father preventing war – that hasn’t happened. There are still battles of war going on, and far greater than what is written in Father’s diary. Them living in hiding hasn’t prevented the war between Eris and Faernia at all.”
“It was supposed to though, right? The fighting would be terrible if Rune decided to actually fight Tapu Koko,” Prem replied.
“You have faith in them, don’t you? Sounds like you like them more than I do.” Leos shook his head and walked off.
“I just don’t like fighting,” Prem said. He had to jog to catch up.
The duo barely managed to go a few steps before they encountered a large group of ruffians, Zangoose and Mawile. Both parties stopped and stared the moment they caught sight of each other.
While these dirt marked Pokémon gave Leos and Prem a snarl and a spit, Leos was already ten steps ahead of the encounter he had walked into. He was silent, but his eyes made sharp notes of everything around him. Seven enemy Pokémon, three Zangoose and four Mawile. The ground was sloped and slippery with wet soil, and a single tall tree kept Leos in the shade. If they did end up fighting this group, he would have the advantage.
“I spy with my cranky lil’ eye, a rich kid! Hey sod, yer mam give yer dat fancy do?” one of the Zangoose laughed. “Think yer can spare us a pretty penny or two? Lend a fella a hand.”
“Erinians. Only tramps from Eris would open that way. But what are they doing on Faernia, and with fairies, no less?” Leos asked himself. He didn’t answer them, remaining in the same smart pose.
“Hey, I’m talkin’ to ya!” Zangoose raised his voice. His comrades stood beside him and prepped their claws.
“Those Mawile have weapons. Not royal weapons, but there are staves on their backs.” Leos realised. “The only fairies smart enough to use staves are those that have once fought a dragon. Could those Mawile be ex-knights?”
“Oh I see how it is. Yer think yer too smart ta talk to the likes of us, don’tcha?” Zangoose shouted, gritting his rotting teeth. “We’ll show ya! Let’s get ‘em, boys!”
“U-um, Leos?” Prem said.
“Are you serious? You’re really going to fight me just because I wouldn’t respond?” Leos finally answered. The group hesitated. “Or was this really just an inevitable encounter, where you feel good about yourselves for dressing it up to look like a civil conversation that gives you an excuse to fight?”
The Zangoose let out a confused grunt. “You know, make it sound like you’re being all friendly to me, but try and cheat me out of my obvious money. Either way, I end up fighting or giving you all of my money. I said it resembled a civil conversation, but really it was less social than a toddler talking to another toddler. Why bother with the pantomime if you just want to steal my money?”
“Why you smartass!” Zangoose growled and bared his claws. He shouted as he rushed forward with his pack, but the group of them ended up stumbling on the hill and slipped on the wet soil. Leos took their tripping up as a sign to act, and spun his scalchop in his hands. A Razor Shell erected from it, but not like any Razor Shell they had ever seen before. Leos’s attack jutted out from both ends of the scalchop to resemble a double-sided lance.
“Don’t worry, Prem. I’m only going to scare them off.” Leos relieved the Pikachu behind him. “That said, I wonder if my recent studies can let me do something fancy?”
“After telling them off for trying to be fancy,” Prem sighed.
“Hey, the difference is that this move actually is fancy,” he said. He held his Razor Shell to his side. “I call upon the stars to grant me your blessing. Provide me an attack to make ease of this conflict! Star Metronome!”
The words Leos had just said did in fact grant him a mysterious power. His whole body flashed with white light before letting out a thin stream of dark energy above him, which formed into a rotating black star. The Star quickly grew and burst into a blurry light, showering the floor around Leos with streams of energy just like the one he was feeding into the star. Once it all stopped, those streams turned into clones of Leos, all shaped just like the Oshawott with his double-sided Razor Shell.
“Metronome came out as Double Team! And with spectres, too!” Prem said.
Still smiling and boastful, especially now that the ruffians were clearly regretted this confrontation, Leos gestured a dash forward. His clones dashed without him, and each of them targeted one of the Zangoose or Mawile at random. They copied his exact movements even though he hadn’t moved from the spot, smacking them around relentlessly with their weapons. In just a few moments, the quiet scene had been drowned out by cries and groans of Pokémon in pain.
Leos’ triumph was short lived, however. Soon after he had ordered his spectres to attack, he found himself short of breath and drained of strength. It didn’t take long for his heavy breaths to get Prem’s attention, and soon he was leaned forward gasping for relief. His spectres vanished with that, which left the ruffians at their angriest.
“L-Leos? Are you okay?” Prem said.
He couldn’t respond, anxiously grasping for breath. His energy sapped at an alarming rate, to a point that he could barely keep himself upright. Suddenly it felt like the books on his back could crush him into the ground from their weight, and he fell onto one hand.
“Now you’re definitely gon’ get it!” Zangoose growled. He roared out loud as he charged up the hill, bringing Leos into a real panic. He had to move and now, but his body couldn’t manage better than a tremble.
“Leos! O-oh no, Leos!” Prem cried and cowered over him. The Pikachu stood over the weakened Leos just as the ruffians arrived, but all he did was guard his face. “St-stay away! Please!”
“Keh, after your little friend’s fiasco? If you don’t wanna get hurt, stand aside, pipsqueak.” A Mawile spat and swiped his hand aside.
He hesitated to attack Prem however, as if something had distracted him. Nothing out of the ordinary besides the slight ruffles of the tree behind the children. Mawile still held still for a moment to ensure nothing was really there, and then roared as his head glowed for an Iron Head attack.
“Leos!” Prem turned his back and hugged Leos. It felt like minutes before he realised that he was unharmed. He dared to look behind him, shocked to find the Mawile under the control of someone’s Psychic attack. The other ruffians were too surprised to make a move, even though they weren’t targeted.
“What?” Prem whispered. Ariala stepped beside him and stopped there, her arms casually at her sides. “M-Mummy?”
“Well? What do you have to say for yourselves?” Ariala said, half lidded at the ruffians. “You would truly target young Pokémon, even after seeing them so helpless on the floor? Surely ruffians of your kind know not to stoop so low.”
“Y-you- shut up! Why should I listen to what a cranky ol’ Clefable’s gotta say?” Zangoose snarled and snapped his claws together.
“Wa-wait, you dolt! Mawile growled. His voice was strained due to the Psychic hold on him.
“Na-uh, not after that embarrassment! Y’all kid’s definitely getting’ what’s comin’ to ya now!” Zangoose shouted. He charged toward Ariala with both claws hung loosely behind him, a crazed smile on his face. Ariala sighed and swiped her right arm across her front, effortlessly creating a Reflect barrier in front of her. He bumped against the barrier so hard that he bounced back straight to the floor from it.
Knowing he wouldn’t give up there, Ariala revealed her fan and spun it around in front of her to fill it with energy. The energy burst out from within as a charged Moonblast, which she fired with a flick of that same hand. The Zangoose could only look up comically as the attack took him and his comrades off their feet, sending them tumbling back down the hill. Mawile had been freed from the Psychic due to the hit as well, and landed face flat in the dirt below.
“Leos, Prem, are you two okay?” Ariala asked as she turned around. Prem gave a hearty nod whilst Leos forced himself to his feet, but quickly stumbled to the side.
“I didn’t need you to rescue me!” he growled.
“Then don’t treat it as a rescue. Treat it as me taking you home where you’re supposed to be, young man,” Ariala replied. She wasn’t wearing anything right now, so she had to tuck her fan neatly into her tail. “Come on now, you two. I have something important waiting for you back at the hut.”
“Ooh ooh ooh, a surprise? What kind of surprise is it?” Prem bounced up and down. Leos gave up and looked away.
“Wait. Stop right there!” Mawile shouted desperately. The one that had been hit by Psychic had clawed his way back to his feet to trip after the trio. But Ariala tried ignore him, but he picked up the pace. “Damn you, are you really going to run away again, Princess Ariala?”
That got Ariala to stop. She silently sighed, but still refused to turn around. The other ruffians were surprised at Mawile’s statement, but even more surprised that they got a reaction of sorts.
“You’re seriously thinking of running away and hiding again, huh. Do you even know what’s happening to Faernia, now?” Mawile raised his voice. Ariala still didn’t respond. “It would be remiss of me not to recognise you. I used to work in the Faernian Royal Army, after all.”
“So it’s true. The Mawile were ex-knights, but they’re paired up with Erinian ruffians,” Leos confirmed in his head. Ariala started walking again, and held Leos and Prem’s hands to ensure they went with her. Mawile growled and leapt forward.
“Tapu Fini is dead!” Mawile shouted. Ariala froze with a sharp breath that could be heard. “Maybe if you didn’t just run away from the world, you’d know what the heck’s going on. Tapu Fini is dead! The other Tapu are heck knows where, they don’t answer anyone’s prayers anymore. And why do you think I’m here, taking money from a child? I got nowhere else to go anymore!”
Ariala turned around at last. She looked like she wanted to give him a response, but no words came. Mawile was stood firm with both hands at his sides clenched tightly into fists.
“What the hell else am I supposed to turn to? Erinians and Faernians are ransacking each other’s homes, beating each other up for gold and shit. Our fields and rivers are startin’ to look like Eris’, dying and dried up. We’re starving and killing each other out here, and what are you doing about it?” Mawile shouted.
Ariala hesitated yet again, her eyes locked onto Mawile’s the whole time. Even then, she ever slightly showed a hint of tears, but hid them behind a few blinks. “What are Queen Magearna and King Jyararanga doing?” she asked.
“Wasting all our resources looking for you and their precious legendary swords, no doubt,” Mawile spat. Ariala didn’t respond, and turned to walk off for good. “You bastard.”
…
It didn’t take long for the trio to get back to their residence, which was actually just a gazebo hut hidden within the quiet clearing of a deep woodland. The central hut was where Ariala slept, worked, and where she had full view – and clarity of hearing – of everything for countless miles around. Several soil paths marked into the ground split from the central gazebo, which led towards different areas that Ariala and her small family had claimed as their own. They had their own field for growing crops, a makeshift temple with a Tapu statue in it, and their own campsite to sleep in.
“I’m off,” Leos said the moment they got back.
“To where, mister?” Ariala asked.
“There’s much I need to plan. It would be best if you weren’t to bother me,” he said.
“Well that’s just too bad. I’m your mother, Leos, and I won’t have you talking to me that way,” she replied. “There is someone waiting for you in your room, anyway. Remember when I said I had something special waiting for you? Your new personal retainer passed her recruitment test today.”
“Her?” Prem said with a hint of disappointment.
“Why did you bother getting me a retainer? I don’t need any assistants, and I might as well not be royalty.” Leos shrugged.
“Will you at least meet them? I’m sure you will like her. She’s been trying very hard to get this position.” Ariala smiled.
Leos sighed and dismissed that, making his way to his room as intended. It was a short walk through a few trees and bushes whose branches he had to push aside to get through. He always emerged from them with sharp leaves and things stuck in his head fur, but he ignored them until they would start to itch. Prem voluntarily plucked them out for him this time, which earnt a gleeful smile.
Leos’ room was exactly as he liked it, despite a new retainer supposedly waiting there for him. A huge board stretched across one wall above a desk, both plastered with dusty notes all over them. A tall pile of worn out books towered to almost window height along another wall, each one in a messily organized order. The bin stunk of a need of emptying, filled with messes of food like banana skins or inedible nut shells. Even a cupboard of sorts had materials and papers overflowing out of it, with the actual clothes slapped on top of the pile rather than hung neatly. Ariala insisted that the clothes were sophisticated and needed to be looked after, but each item had never been used.
“Good. She’s not here yet,” Leos said as he kicked a few papers aside, dust puffing into the air in large clouds with each kick. He dropped his backpack sort through a few notes, and practically tore them off the board and desk as he searched them all. Prem caught his backpack and happily got to work putting the books inside with the others, but made sure that Rune’s diary was set aside.
“What’re we doing?” Prem asked, wiping his eyes.
“I want to make sure I carry the right evidence. We’re getting out of here, and we’re going to check out Castle Faernia. If I can prove who I am, I should be able to get access to everywhere in the castle,” Leos said. “There’s got to be something in there that’ll help me out with all this.”
“If you just tell them who you are, they should let you in, won’t they?” Prem tilted his head.
“No. Oshawott are Erinian species. I’ll have to prove my identity in more ways than one to get through,” Leos replied. He started to breathe heavily again, where his movements slowed.
“Leos? Le-Leos, take it easy!” Prem came to his aid. Leos stopped him with a hand and took the time to stop what he was doing and catch his breath. He couldn’t help himself however, and twisted around to lean against his desk so that he could stay upright.
“Curse- this fatal- genetic- ack,” he struggled between words.
“Is he weakened?” a new voice asked. A Mime Jr. was stood in the doorway and came in before she got an answer. She took Leos and laid a hand on his chest. “Please, hold still.”
“What’re you going to do?” Prem asked in worry.
Mime Jr. ignored him for a few seconds, and then stood Leos up to guide him out of the room. There was clear incentive to disobey and stay in the room, but Leos was clearly too weak to resist at all. Once outside, she helped him stand for a bit more, where his breathing gradually began to settle and return to normal. Once his strength came back he broke away from her, shocked by her act of seemingly nothing helping him.
“Your room is incredibly dusty.” She answered his question. “And you’re a fragile young Oshawott, Leos. Breathing all that dust in will hurt, especially if you haven’t taken the time to recover from your earlier trip.”
“I am not a child. I—”
“But you are very frail, and you did just come back here with your strength barely recovered,” she said. “P-pardon me. My old master was fine with me interrupting them, but I have no idea if you are.”
“So you’re that new retainer Mum mentioned,” he said.
“Yes. I am Blossom, your new, personally appointed retainer. I was chosen for a very important reason,” Blossom said as she bowed gracefully. Her movements were constant but fluid, as if well-rehearsed and planned. She ended by pointing to the red bump on her stomach, which was shinier than that of a normal Mime Jr. It was as shiny as a marble, and had the Libra star sign marked within.
“You’re a Constellar!” Leos gasped.
…
I had chosen to depend on Ptero to rescue Diantha. Despite the circumstances, I knew her character too well to risk going myself. I was afraid of screwing up, making a mistake during the battle, and having Mirror defeat me. But above that, I absolutely had to ensure that Ariala did not come to harm.
Something Shota had told me had given me a lot of questions. Under the pressure of being completely surrounded by four formidable armies, Ptero still agreed to my ludicrous plan of attempting to rescue Diantha, to the point that he even died for it. That Emolga was definitely smart enough to cut his losses and say no to me, yet still he went, perishing at my flawed orders.
I did not see it, but something that presumably Mirror did caused Diantha to unleash her forbidden powers, provoking Tapu Koko to descend on the battle and take her life. Poor Galen was caught in the strike and perished as well. But this god only functions as coldly as a machine; it was his duty to protect Faernians and dispose of the forbidden powers that Diantha had within her, even if it meant taking her life. He did what only a god would do, so I hold myself accountable for the death of this poor trio.
But at the same time, as crown prince, I held the hopes, dreams, and wishes of every Erinian Pokémon that supports me. I could not hope to reason with them besides treating the situation as an act of war. And in a fit of rage that drowned my whole being, I retaliated in kind, declaring that I would kill Tapu Koko at all costs.
I sent word of what had happened back to my father and embarked on my own trek to the Tower of the Tapu. It was there that the Queen’s attendant and other figures of their royalty came and took Ariala’s army. They promised we would be reunited soon, yet hours passed with no sign of me even being allowed to speak to her again. Their actions fed into my rage and told me all I needed to know about their thoughts on the matter.
And then I learnt the truth of what had happened ten years ago. I never would have imagined that words I mindlessly said to Ariala would change her way of acting and thinking, but she told me everything, and all under her own personal act of rebellion.
She broke out of her own castle with powers that matched those of my Diantha’s. She longed to flee with me to the Stardust Treasury, escaping from the wrath of Faernia’s gods. They did not give chase, confused as to what they could do. They were placed in the same situation I was, unable to put their all into their personal wishes of simply eliminating the darkness entirely. Killing Faernia’s princess would turn their believers against them, especially in such rough times as these.
Ten years ago, Father had sealed the dark powers of a powerful god within Ariala. Me and Diantha’s intervention caused Diantha to have those powers sealed within her as well.
He knew everything. He knew of my devotion to protect her, that was why he had us marry. That was why he trained me to become a knight, why he gifted me with a powerful weapon of legend. And yet, why didn’t he just tell me that this was his aim from the start? What reason did he have to withhold such crucial information? Especially until the very last minute, when everything was said and done?
This changed what I had to do. What we had to do. It changed how I felt about this world, both Eris and Faernia. It changed how I felt about Father, the gods of our world…
It changed everything.
…
“And that’s it. That’s the last entry. That was a bit over sixteen years ago,” An Oshawott said, having just finished reading aloud from an old book. He used a hand to swipe fur out of his left eye, re-reading the start of the diary passage again. “Thracia seven-sixty. We’re now Thracia seven seventy-six. Mother and Father have been missing from the world for sixteen years.”
“Oh, now I get it!” A Pikachu responded to him. He was short and his voice sounded very high pitched, smooth, and young. The Pikachu wore a poncho themed after Charizard in its mega evolved form, complete with a hood that resembled Charizard’s head. The poncho even had eyes, teeth, and a tail with a real flame on the end of it. It was almost like the Pikachu was wearing live Charizard skin, but his naturally cute appearance prevented that from being intimidating in thought.
“You see now why this is so concerning, Prem? And the worst part is, Mother won’t even tell me exactly what’s wrong,” Oshawott said. He sighed as he closed the book and stood up. This Oshawott was as studious as a professor, but a lack of glasses and his unusually short height kept him apart from that trope. His head fur was a wild mess he didn’t care about, a cheap backpack held several books for him, and his voice secreted pompousness with every word.
“So like, the whole world’s at a standstill,” Prem said. “But because the prince and princess ran away with their legendary weapons, the war didn’t start. Those two are geniuses!”
Oshawott paused. “I wouldn’t quite call Mother a ‘genius’. She’s doing exactly as Rune lamented his father for: keeping information from me,” he said as he put the book into his backpack. He hung it on his back, but stumbled a bit because of the weight of all the other books in there. There were so many that the corner of two poked out of the bag and stopped it from closing. “It’s time to study. We’re going to find out exactly why Mother and Father live in hiding.”
“Okay. If anyone can figure it out, it’s you, Leos!” Prem said goofily. There was another pause from the Oshawott.
“Why did Father’s diary even stop there? Did he not have time to keep writing?” Leos thought to himself. “I can’t confirm that the Constellars have a large part in this, but their powers resemble those of Diantha’s too much. I’m yet to find concrete proof of any connection.”
“Er, Leos?” Prem was shy all of a sudden. “I’m hungry.”
Leos barely heard him, muttering to himself as he began to pace. “What you said just now about Mother and Father preventing war – that hasn’t happened. There are still battles of war going on, and far greater than what is written in Father’s diary. Them living in hiding hasn’t prevented the war between Eris and Faernia at all.”
“It was supposed to though, right? The fighting would be terrible if Rune decided to actually fight Tapu Koko,” Prem replied.
“You have faith in them, don’t you? Sounds like you like them more than I do.” Leos shook his head and walked off.
“I just don’t like fighting,” Prem said. He had to jog to catch up.
The duo barely managed to go a few steps before they encountered a large group of ruffians, Zangoose and Mawile. Both parties stopped and stared the moment they caught sight of each other.
While these dirt marked Pokémon gave Leos and Prem a snarl and a spit, Leos was already ten steps ahead of the encounter he had walked into. He was silent, but his eyes made sharp notes of everything around him. Seven enemy Pokémon, three Zangoose and four Mawile. The ground was sloped and slippery with wet soil, and a single tall tree kept Leos in the shade. If they did end up fighting this group, he would have the advantage.
“I spy with my cranky lil’ eye, a rich kid! Hey sod, yer mam give yer dat fancy do?” one of the Zangoose laughed. “Think yer can spare us a pretty penny or two? Lend a fella a hand.”
“Erinians. Only tramps from Eris would open that way. But what are they doing on Faernia, and with fairies, no less?” Leos asked himself. He didn’t answer them, remaining in the same smart pose.
“Hey, I’m talkin’ to ya!” Zangoose raised his voice. His comrades stood beside him and prepped their claws.
“Those Mawile have weapons. Not royal weapons, but there are staves on their backs.” Leos realised. “The only fairies smart enough to use staves are those that have once fought a dragon. Could those Mawile be ex-knights?”
“Oh I see how it is. Yer think yer too smart ta talk to the likes of us, don’tcha?” Zangoose shouted, gritting his rotting teeth. “We’ll show ya! Let’s get ‘em, boys!”
“U-um, Leos?” Prem said.
“Are you serious? You’re really going to fight me just because I wouldn’t respond?” Leos finally answered. The group hesitated. “Or was this really just an inevitable encounter, where you feel good about yourselves for dressing it up to look like a civil conversation that gives you an excuse to fight?”
The Zangoose let out a confused grunt. “You know, make it sound like you’re being all friendly to me, but try and cheat me out of my obvious money. Either way, I end up fighting or giving you all of my money. I said it resembled a civil conversation, but really it was less social than a toddler talking to another toddler. Why bother with the pantomime if you just want to steal my money?”
“Why you smartass!” Zangoose growled and bared his claws. He shouted as he rushed forward with his pack, but the group of them ended up stumbling on the hill and slipped on the wet soil. Leos took their tripping up as a sign to act, and spun his scalchop in his hands. A Razor Shell erected from it, but not like any Razor Shell they had ever seen before. Leos’s attack jutted out from both ends of the scalchop to resemble a double-sided lance.
“Don’t worry, Prem. I’m only going to scare them off.” Leos relieved the Pikachu behind him. “That said, I wonder if my recent studies can let me do something fancy?”
“After telling them off for trying to be fancy,” Prem sighed.
“Hey, the difference is that this move actually is fancy,” he said. He held his Razor Shell to his side. “I call upon the stars to grant me your blessing. Provide me an attack to make ease of this conflict! Star Metronome!”
The words Leos had just said did in fact grant him a mysterious power. His whole body flashed with white light before letting out a thin stream of dark energy above him, which formed into a rotating black star. The Star quickly grew and burst into a blurry light, showering the floor around Leos with streams of energy just like the one he was feeding into the star. Once it all stopped, those streams turned into clones of Leos, all shaped just like the Oshawott with his double-sided Razor Shell.
“Metronome came out as Double Team! And with spectres, too!” Prem said.
Still smiling and boastful, especially now that the ruffians were clearly regretted this confrontation, Leos gestured a dash forward. His clones dashed without him, and each of them targeted one of the Zangoose or Mawile at random. They copied his exact movements even though he hadn’t moved from the spot, smacking them around relentlessly with their weapons. In just a few moments, the quiet scene had been drowned out by cries and groans of Pokémon in pain.
Leos’ triumph was short lived, however. Soon after he had ordered his spectres to attack, he found himself short of breath and drained of strength. It didn’t take long for his heavy breaths to get Prem’s attention, and soon he was leaned forward gasping for relief. His spectres vanished with that, which left the ruffians at their angriest.
“L-Leos? Are you okay?” Prem said.
He couldn’t respond, anxiously grasping for breath. His energy sapped at an alarming rate, to a point that he could barely keep himself upright. Suddenly it felt like the books on his back could crush him into the ground from their weight, and he fell onto one hand.
“Now you’re definitely gon’ get it!” Zangoose growled. He roared out loud as he charged up the hill, bringing Leos into a real panic. He had to move and now, but his body couldn’t manage better than a tremble.
“Leos! O-oh no, Leos!” Prem cried and cowered over him. The Pikachu stood over the weakened Leos just as the ruffians arrived, but all he did was guard his face. “St-stay away! Please!”
“Keh, after your little friend’s fiasco? If you don’t wanna get hurt, stand aside, pipsqueak.” A Mawile spat and swiped his hand aside.
He hesitated to attack Prem however, as if something had distracted him. Nothing out of the ordinary besides the slight ruffles of the tree behind the children. Mawile still held still for a moment to ensure nothing was really there, and then roared as his head glowed for an Iron Head attack.
“Leos!” Prem turned his back and hugged Leos. It felt like minutes before he realised that he was unharmed. He dared to look behind him, shocked to find the Mawile under the control of someone’s Psychic attack. The other ruffians were too surprised to make a move, even though they weren’t targeted.
“What?” Prem whispered. Ariala stepped beside him and stopped there, her arms casually at her sides. “M-Mummy?”
“Well? What do you have to say for yourselves?” Ariala said, half lidded at the ruffians. “You would truly target young Pokémon, even after seeing them so helpless on the floor? Surely ruffians of your kind know not to stoop so low.”
“Y-you- shut up! Why should I listen to what a cranky ol’ Clefable’s gotta say?” Zangoose snarled and snapped his claws together.
“Wa-wait, you dolt! Mawile growled. His voice was strained due to the Psychic hold on him.
“Na-uh, not after that embarrassment! Y’all kid’s definitely getting’ what’s comin’ to ya now!” Zangoose shouted. He charged toward Ariala with both claws hung loosely behind him, a crazed smile on his face. Ariala sighed and swiped her right arm across her front, effortlessly creating a Reflect barrier in front of her. He bumped against the barrier so hard that he bounced back straight to the floor from it.
Knowing he wouldn’t give up there, Ariala revealed her fan and spun it around in front of her to fill it with energy. The energy burst out from within as a charged Moonblast, which she fired with a flick of that same hand. The Zangoose could only look up comically as the attack took him and his comrades off their feet, sending them tumbling back down the hill. Mawile had been freed from the Psychic due to the hit as well, and landed face flat in the dirt below.
“Leos, Prem, are you two okay?” Ariala asked as she turned around. Prem gave a hearty nod whilst Leos forced himself to his feet, but quickly stumbled to the side.
“I didn’t need you to rescue me!” he growled.
“Then don’t treat it as a rescue. Treat it as me taking you home where you’re supposed to be, young man,” Ariala replied. She wasn’t wearing anything right now, so she had to tuck her fan neatly into her tail. “Come on now, you two. I have something important waiting for you back at the hut.”
“Ooh ooh ooh, a surprise? What kind of surprise is it?” Prem bounced up and down. Leos gave up and looked away.
“Wait. Stop right there!” Mawile shouted desperately. The one that had been hit by Psychic had clawed his way back to his feet to trip after the trio. But Ariala tried ignore him, but he picked up the pace. “Damn you, are you really going to run away again, Princess Ariala?”
That got Ariala to stop. She silently sighed, but still refused to turn around. The other ruffians were surprised at Mawile’s statement, but even more surprised that they got a reaction of sorts.
“You’re seriously thinking of running away and hiding again, huh. Do you even know what’s happening to Faernia, now?” Mawile raised his voice. Ariala still didn’t respond. “It would be remiss of me not to recognise you. I used to work in the Faernian Royal Army, after all.”
“So it’s true. The Mawile were ex-knights, but they’re paired up with Erinian ruffians,” Leos confirmed in his head. Ariala started walking again, and held Leos and Prem’s hands to ensure they went with her. Mawile growled and leapt forward.
“Tapu Fini is dead!” Mawile shouted. Ariala froze with a sharp breath that could be heard. “Maybe if you didn’t just run away from the world, you’d know what the heck’s going on. Tapu Fini is dead! The other Tapu are heck knows where, they don’t answer anyone’s prayers anymore. And why do you think I’m here, taking money from a child? I got nowhere else to go anymore!”
Ariala turned around at last. She looked like she wanted to give him a response, but no words came. Mawile was stood firm with both hands at his sides clenched tightly into fists.
“What the hell else am I supposed to turn to? Erinians and Faernians are ransacking each other’s homes, beating each other up for gold and shit. Our fields and rivers are startin’ to look like Eris’, dying and dried up. We’re starving and killing each other out here, and what are you doing about it?” Mawile shouted.
Ariala hesitated yet again, her eyes locked onto Mawile’s the whole time. Even then, she ever slightly showed a hint of tears, but hid them behind a few blinks. “What are Queen Magearna and King Jyararanga doing?” she asked.
“Wasting all our resources looking for you and their precious legendary swords, no doubt,” Mawile spat. Ariala didn’t respond, and turned to walk off for good. “You bastard.”
…
It didn’t take long for the trio to get back to their residence, which was actually just a gazebo hut hidden within the quiet clearing of a deep woodland. The central hut was where Ariala slept, worked, and where she had full view – and clarity of hearing – of everything for countless miles around. Several soil paths marked into the ground split from the central gazebo, which led towards different areas that Ariala and her small family had claimed as their own. They had their own field for growing crops, a makeshift temple with a Tapu statue in it, and their own campsite to sleep in.
“I’m off,” Leos said the moment they got back.
“To where, mister?” Ariala asked.
“There’s much I need to plan. It would be best if you weren’t to bother me,” he said.
“Well that’s just too bad. I’m your mother, Leos, and I won’t have you talking to me that way,” she replied. “There is someone waiting for you in your room, anyway. Remember when I said I had something special waiting for you? Your new personal retainer passed her recruitment test today.”
“Her?” Prem said with a hint of disappointment.
“Why did you bother getting me a retainer? I don’t need any assistants, and I might as well not be royalty.” Leos shrugged.
“Will you at least meet them? I’m sure you will like her. She’s been trying very hard to get this position.” Ariala smiled.
Leos sighed and dismissed that, making his way to his room as intended. It was a short walk through a few trees and bushes whose branches he had to push aside to get through. He always emerged from them with sharp leaves and things stuck in his head fur, but he ignored them until they would start to itch. Prem voluntarily plucked them out for him this time, which earnt a gleeful smile.
Leos’ room was exactly as he liked it, despite a new retainer supposedly waiting there for him. A huge board stretched across one wall above a desk, both plastered with dusty notes all over them. A tall pile of worn out books towered to almost window height along another wall, each one in a messily organized order. The bin stunk of a need of emptying, filled with messes of food like banana skins or inedible nut shells. Even a cupboard of sorts had materials and papers overflowing out of it, with the actual clothes slapped on top of the pile rather than hung neatly. Ariala insisted that the clothes were sophisticated and needed to be looked after, but each item had never been used.
“Good. She’s not here yet,” Leos said as he kicked a few papers aside, dust puffing into the air in large clouds with each kick. He dropped his backpack sort through a few notes, and practically tore them off the board and desk as he searched them all. Prem caught his backpack and happily got to work putting the books inside with the others, but made sure that Rune’s diary was set aside.
“What’re we doing?” Prem asked, wiping his eyes.
“I want to make sure I carry the right evidence. We’re getting out of here, and we’re going to check out Castle Faernia. If I can prove who I am, I should be able to get access to everywhere in the castle,” Leos said. “There’s got to be something in there that’ll help me out with all this.”
“If you just tell them who you are, they should let you in, won’t they?” Prem tilted his head.
“No. Oshawott are Erinian species. I’ll have to prove my identity in more ways than one to get through,” Leos replied. He started to breathe heavily again, where his movements slowed.
“Leos? Le-Leos, take it easy!” Prem came to his aid. Leos stopped him with a hand and took the time to stop what he was doing and catch his breath. He couldn’t help himself however, and twisted around to lean against his desk so that he could stay upright.
“Curse- this fatal- genetic- ack,” he struggled between words.
“Is he weakened?” a new voice asked. A Mime Jr. was stood in the doorway and came in before she got an answer. She took Leos and laid a hand on his chest. “Please, hold still.”
“What’re you going to do?” Prem asked in worry.
Mime Jr. ignored him for a few seconds, and then stood Leos up to guide him out of the room. There was clear incentive to disobey and stay in the room, but Leos was clearly too weak to resist at all. Once outside, she helped him stand for a bit more, where his breathing gradually began to settle and return to normal. Once his strength came back he broke away from her, shocked by her act of seemingly nothing helping him.
“Your room is incredibly dusty.” She answered his question. “And you’re a fragile young Oshawott, Leos. Breathing all that dust in will hurt, especially if you haven’t taken the time to recover from your earlier trip.”
“I am not a child. I—”
“But you are very frail, and you did just come back here with your strength barely recovered,” she said. “P-pardon me. My old master was fine with me interrupting them, but I have no idea if you are.”
“So you’re that new retainer Mum mentioned,” he said.
“Yes. I am Blossom, your new, personally appointed retainer. I was chosen for a very important reason,” Blossom said as she bowed gracefully. Her movements were constant but fluid, as if well-rehearsed and planned. She ended by pointing to the red bump on her stomach, which was shinier than that of a normal Mime Jr. It was as shiny as a marble, and had the Libra star sign marked within.
“You’re a Constellar!” Leos gasped.
…
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