Chapter 6
The Keeper of the Flame
The Dungeon they entered afterwards was a breeze. Barren Pass, as Abundant Pass had come to be called in these desolate times, was a hill of petrified trees, begone of leaves, blackened rock, and dry soil. Mercifully, the place was bereft of Pokémon inside…
“Burn to ash, feral scum!”
“
Kyaaaaaah!”
Or more accurately, it was begone of ones who still had their minds, as the charred Victreebel at Nina’s feet reminded her. Just another lost soul that Mystery Dungeons like these had no shortage of.
Even for a short time after Sam and Raijin died, she had baulked at the thought of cutting down Pokémon whose only crime had been to go mad from the darkness in this world. But Nina had had many years of experience since then to tell her that such sentiments were foolish and a risk to life and limb. She had slain no shortage of ferals even before becoming the Ashen Fox, and had long since lost any shred of remorse for felling them where they stood.
And so she kicked aside the burnt corpse without a hint of care.
“Yeesh,” Robin remarked from behind Nina. “I can see where you got your reputation from.”
Nina only let out a huff at that remark as they continued down the path before them.
“It’s kill or be killed in a world like this.” She looked over her shoulder at the human. “I’ve lived by that ideology for three hundred years, and I’m not going to divert from it now.”
“Still…” Lifis pointed out, as he took position on Nina’s right flank. “We shouldn’t have to live that way. I’ve thought like that before as well, and you’re not wrong, Nina. But…it would be nice to not have to be fending for our lives around every corner.”
“Hmmm…I see your point.” Nina’s ashen tails swished behind her. “But we have to get to the past first, and until then, my stance remains.”
The Ninetales had to admit, though, that in spite of their naivety and idealism, Robin and Lifis were hardly untrained. The two were every bit as quick firing arrows or slashing Leaf Blades, and not once did either of the two hesitate in battle—as steady as any warrior she’d seen in quite a while.
Have we simply forgotten that basic will in these times? Nina mused.
Numbed by the darkness and the overwhelming power of Primal Dialga, perhaps it’s no surprise any bravado would crumble in an instant. But…
Maybe I was wrong to assume they were foolish.
The Dungeon soon came to an end, and the trio stepped out of a cavernous exit and out in the open wasteland of crumbled ridges, petrified trees and blackened sky. Yet all the same, Nina’s ears caught Robin breathing a sigh of relief.
“Good grief,” she muttered. “It’s been a year, and I still can’t get used to those places.”
“Better mindless ferals than Shuranabi,” Lifis said, taking the lead. “At least ferals are predictable, whereas Shuranabi’s got a plan for everything.”
Don’t remind me, Nina thought, recalling the countless schemes Shuranabi had cooked up in the past that many had fallen to and that she’d only squeezed out of by a Joltik’s hair.
“Trust me, you two have
no idea,” she huffed, striding forward while looking about at her surroundings.
“Now then…where do we go from here? What’s your next step?”
“Well, we know where the Time Gear locations are,” Lifis said. “It’s just a matter of actually getting back to the past and executing our plan from there.”
“And luckily, we got a secret weapon on our side!” Robin grinned. “You’ll never believe this: we’ve got an actual Legend helping us!”
“What?” Nina froze where she stood. “A
Legend? Here? And now? But surely not…”
“Oh yes, we do.” Robin brushed down her cloak briefly. “Wouldn’t be saying it if it wasn’t true.”
Nina stared at the human, wondering how such a thing could be. But then the very sight of Robin did remind her of how unusual the circumstances were. Was it truly strange that she knew a Legend? Maybe it was a Legend who had brought her here?
“…Who are they?” she asked.
“It’s not Dialga, that’s for sure.” Robin gathered stray sticks as they walked, no doubt intending to craft them into arrows later. “No, the other god of time. Time travel, specifically.” She then thumbed in Lifis’ direction. “And this guy has a thing for her.”
The Grovyle froze on the spot and immediately grimaced.
“I do not,” he harrumphed, all while Nina cocked her head at the growing smirk on Robin’s face.
“Ohhh yes, you do.” Robin teased, waggling a finger. “You and Aega spend ages together alone in Dusk Forest, and she’s all over you when you’re not near! What’s all
that about? Just friendly conversation you two are having, hmmmmm?”
“I-It’s none of your business.” Lifis turned away, but Nina noticed a hint of red on his cheeks as he turned. She couldn’t quite make heads or tails of it, but was the human implying this Grovyle and this Legend were…a
couple?
Clearly it was a topic of teasing if Robin’s behaviour was anything to go by.
“Come on, Lifis, spill it already! You’re obviously a lot happier whenever she’s around!” the human sing-songed. “And she definitely likes you too! I asked her, and she said, and “I quote, ‘Yes, I am indeed fond of him!’”
Robin finished her mimic of a somewhat highborn accent while Lifis only became more flustered and turning his gaze away, all while Nina looked at the back and forth in confusion.
“Fondness and love are two different things,” the Grovyle said, brushing the matter off. “We don’t have time to be focusing on that, anyway.”
“Excuse me,” Nina interjected, admittedly feeling left out from their little exchange. “But you haven’t said who this god is.”
Lifis turned to Nina, before sighing in annoyance at Robin’s antics.
“It’s Celebi. Celebi Aega,” Lifis answered. “She lives in Dusk Forest, where a Passage of Time is located. She guards over it, and that’s what we’re using to get to the past.”
“Dusk Forest…”
Nina pondered as to the location. She’d been before briefly and had sheltered there once in the past, but this was the first she’d heard of a
Legend living in the place. But from where they were now, east of Treasure Town…
“That’s still some ways away, isn’t it?”
“It is. So no dilly-dallying.” Lifis said, before shooting a glare at Robin. “We need to get there as soon as possible before Shuranabi finds us again.”
“Alright, alright, I getcha.” Robin shrugged. “Stubborn old lizard…”
“We’re the same age,” the Grovyle deadpanned.
“Could’ve fooled me. You act twice it!”
The human stuck her tongue out playfully towards her partner. Nina was about to speak, but was unable to get in a word before the human broke off into a sprint, looking back at Lifis.
“Come on, old man! Try and keep up with young and sprightly me!”
Nina and Lifis shared a look, the Grovyle only sighing and shaking his head.
“…I don’t get that girl sometimes,” he muttered, dashing forward and closing the gap between them in no time at all. Nina followed just as quickly, and in no time at all, they were three again. Their pace settled down into a more measured pace as they continued walking through endless wasteland, petrified trees and rocks suspended in time. The grey, dead surroundings all began to blur into one another after a while, a sensation Nina had grown well accustomed to in all the time she’d spent in this dark land. From the stony look in his eye, Lifis clearly had too.
Robin was the definite outlier of them all. Nearly all those born in this time were forced to grow up almost as soon as they’d hatched, yet she’d manage to keep some semblance of whimsy in spite of this world’s terrors. Maybe much more than that if her teasing back and forth with Lifis just earlier was anything to go by.
Nina couldn’t help but wonder what the story behind that was. And how she’d ever come across Lifis in the first place. She glanced curiously at the Grovyle, as one question lingered in her mind:
What’s his story, then? I get the human’s tale, but what’s Lifis’s stake in this?
… Perhaps it would be simpler to just ask him herself. They
were a team now. She turned her head to ask the Grovyle, but at that moment, a sudden voice echoed through her mind.
Well now. You’ve picked up the Ashen Fox herself? What surprises you continue to weave, Lifis and Robin!
One that
wasn’t her own. Nina jumped and her hackles raised as she got into a battle stance.
“Who’s there?!” Nina snarled, looking around at her surroundings. Was it another agent of Primal Dialga? Had they been followed? Had Robin and Lifis lured her into a trap?!
However, Robin and Lifis’s expressions looked rather more relaxed, making the Ninetales quirk her head in confusion.
“Come out of hiding, Gramps,” Robin said. “You’re making Nina nervous.”
Don’t ‘nervous’ me like I’m some pet of yours. Nina resisted the urge to growl at Robin for that remark.
She didn’t focus too hard on that, as after a blip of light, something yellow Teleported right in front of them. A wizened Alakazam stood there, holding a wooden stick with a gem on it, who then immediately straightened out his moustache as he took in the trio before him.
“It appears our stalwart duo achieved their goal and evaded Yveltal’s wings yet again. Bravo, bravo!” the Alakazam congratulated, clapping his hands in mirth and acclaim. His voice appeared to be that of an experienced elder, as a jovial smile crossed his wrinkled face.
It was his species, though, that made a question spring to Nina’s lips.
An Alakazam? I wonder…could there be a connection to…?
But she held out on it, awaiting the inevitable introduction as Robin spoke up.
“Yeah, you know us, Gramps. No one can best me and Lifis!” The human held a hand out to Lifis, and the two clapped a hand to each other.
The Alakazam brought a hand to his moustache, twitching it, before he waggled a finger with that same hand, his left hand keeping steady on the stick.
“Careful now. Pride comes before a fall, Robin,” the stranger chided. “You may jinx yourselves yet.”
“You saying that has a bigger chance of jinxing us than any cockiness from my partner,” Lifis grumbled, visibly rolling his eyes along with his retort. Nina supposed that was one way to tell that this wasn’t the first time the Alakazam had given this lecture before.
The Alakazam then turned his gaze her way, as he glanced to Robin and Lifis.
“Well, before you go boasting like that, at least give introductions for our new companion!”
He gestured to Nina, before focusing his attention on her.
“Pardon their lack of manners, madam. Our dark times make our youngsters forget such basic customs,” he said, shaking his head in dismay. “Oh, what erosion upon the conscience has taken place these past centuries…”
Nina quirked her head. Was he seriously getting this hung up over
etiquette? Of all the maladies brought to the fore after time’s collapse…
this was where this old man’s priorities lay?
The Ninetales resisted the urge to snap at him. Did he forget everything else? All the ruin around him? All the souls that had fallen to this state of the world? The great enemy that hung over their heads?
“We have far more to worry about than basic manners being forgotten,” Nina growled, her eyes narrowing. “Who are you?”
“Whoa, hey, Nina!” Robin held up her hands in protest. “Don’t bark at him! He’s an ally!”
Meanwhile, to Nina’s surprise, the Alakazam didn’t seem to flinch at her gesture.
“Indeed. Forgive my…skewed priorities,” he replied. “I can make up for my friends’ shortcomings this time.”
The Alakazam cleared his throat.
“My name is Pellehan. You could say I am something of an elder to Robin and Lifis, as well as a loyal servant of Lady Aega, guardian of Dusk Forest,” he said. “But most importantly I am a keeper of a flame; that is to say…the flame of hope, that one day we might find salvation in these dark times.”
Nina
immediately frowned at that last part.
“‘Flame of hope’? Great job you’ve been doing keeping others’ faith in it alive,” she scoffed. “I doubt it’s even a flickering ember at this point!”
To her shock and affront, the Alakazam only chuckled at her words. She bit back the urge to spit fire at him.
“Oh, ye of little faith! It is an ember that has not been snuffed.” Pellehan gestured to Robin and Lifis. “Someone has to light the spark to set the darkness in this world ablaze, and these two will be the kindlers to temper hope and give it life. And I, in my old age, would be all too willing to pass down my wisdom and aid them however I can.”
Well, Alakazam were known for their knowledge and wisdom. Nina couldn’t deny that. And for Robin and Lifis’s plan, she wondered…
That would be like his species to come up with a plan that radical, wouldn’t it?
“So you were the one that came up with the plan to travel to the past and fix time’s collapse there?” Nina asked, still leering at the aging Alakazam.
“As you suspect, yes.” Pellehan nodded, resting both hands on his cane. “It’s quite a bold move. To mess with time like that.” A worried look crossed his face, his moustache twitching slightly.
“As guardian to Lady Aega, I myself confess I have had my doubts at times,” he said. “Lady Aega explained that putting this plan into action risked destabilising other timelines and leading everything to a collision course. One world’s salvation could well be another’s ruin. To say nothing about the cessation of life in this world, which…” The Alakazam gave a solemn sigh at. “…I feared not all would take to it kindly.”
The cessation of life… Nina’s heart still sank at those words, that death would await her no matter what she did at this point.
“But…to my surprise, Lady Aega agreed with the plan,” Pellehan went on. “She gave it her blessing, to save those days gone by and turn them anew with life. She insisted that it was certainly doable with her help, and promised to aid us when the time came. The key to our plan is her, the lone remaining master of time’s passage who would be willing to help us.”
Pellehan twirled his moustache, except there was a new twitchiness to it. Almost uneasy, a contrast to the jovial gratitude he’d had for Robin and Lifis just moments before. Nina quirked her head, before turning her head towards her new partners…only to see Robin’s expression crease with worry and a serious look come into Lifis’s eye.
“…Pellehan?” The Grovyle’s voice had an edge to it, as though he would brook no stalling. “You better not be telling me something happened to her.”
The Alakazam continued to twiddle his thumbs, not making eye contact with any of the party. Nina frowned, with her gut telling her that whatever was to come out of Pellehan’s mouth would not be good news.
“…Well, you see…” the Alakazam began. “…Whilst preparing the Passage of Time for your arrival, Lady Aega sensed a peculiar force at the edge of Dusk Forest and wished to investigate it while we waited for your return. When we went to investigate it, it seemed to be…an anomaly of sorts.”
“An anomaly?” Robin put her hand to her chin. “What do you mean?”
“Even now, I find it hard to describe,” Pellehan pulled his moustache restlessly. “In around the frozen waterfall – where you and milady tend to meet, Lifis – there was some sort of small tear in the space around it. From the vague glimpse we got, within seemed to be a black void…”
He clenched the cane, his fist trembling.
“There was something
in there. Some sort of sinister being of great power we have not comprehended yet,” he murmured. “Whatever it was, its potential from what we could sense of it far exceeded Shuranabi’s.”
“And this thing took Aega?” Lifis’s voice was like ice. “Is she trapped in that void you mentioned?!”
Pellehan held a hand up.
“Hold, Lifis. I’m not finished. But the long and short of it is that I don’t know for sure,” the Alakazam said. “When we tried to investigate the void further, an evil cackling emanated from the void, and a dark shadowy being reached out from it, its crimson eye glowing brightly. Suddenly the urge to sleep overcame both of us, and we fell unconscious.”
Pellehan’s hand gripped the cane as he shook his head.
“It was no doubt a foul trick of that creature,” he muttered. “I suffered a horrible nightmare thereafter, and when I woke up…Lady Aega had vanished, as had that void.”
Both Robin and Lifis stiffened, looks of horror across their faces.
“What?!” Robin cried. “No! Not when we were so close! Now we’ve lost our only means to travel back to the past!”
“Pellehan, why didn’t you tell us this immediately?!” Lifis’s horror dissipated, quickly replaced by fury as he shook his fist. “We have to find her! I’ll cut that void thing to pieces!”
“But where is she, though?” Nina pointed out. “You said the void vanished, didn’t you, Pellehan? How can we know where it could appear next? Do we even have a chance of finding it again?”
No one had an answer for that immediately. Robin and Lifis looked at each other, gazes dotting with panic and struggling to come up with something in that moment. Pellehan twiddled his moustache some more, and seemed to fiddle with an item in his satchel. A blue crystalline charm of some sort? Nina couldn’t make it out.
But the Ninetales had no more ideas than they had. She was just strung along, as far as she knew. A familiar dread crept over her again, as she grappled with a tired emotion that stayed with her most times when she was in a group.
Useless.
Here, their biggest lifeline may well have been taken and their last ember of hope snuffed out. Yet…nothing. No plans, no thoughts, nothing that could help the gang in any way.
Pellehan seemed to catch her eye and notice the panicked look in her eyes. At which point he spoke again.
“Keep calm, all.” Once again, he took out the object and fiddled with it. “Frazzled minds and strategies barely blend.”
“How can you keep calm at a time like this?!” Lifis raged. “Your liege’s been taken! Our only hope’s been taken from us!”
Robin didn’t reply, though. Just like Nina…she found herself transfixed by the object in Pellehan’s hand, her brow furrowing. That prompted the Ninetales to speak up.
“What’s that in your hand, Pellehan?” She gestured her snout towards the object in question.
“Oh, this?” Pellehan held it out for everyone to see. “It’s a piece of blue crystal. I found it when I woke up after that slumber. It is…most strange, to say the least.”
He held it up to an imaginary light, tilting his head along with the others at this mystery object.
“I cannot determine what exactly it is,” he explained. “There seems to be a power flowing within it, but I know not what it could be. I have never seen or felt anything like it in my time. Not even my Teleport Gem is like this.”
“Hm…So not much use, then,” Nina lamented, her tails drooping.
I thought I was onto something there…
Robin didn’t look crestfallen, though; in fact, the opposite.
“Pellehan,” she requested, gesturing with her hand. “Give it to me.”
In an instant, both Lifis and Pellehan blinked in realisation at Robin’s request. Nina cocked her head; was she missing something?
“You’re not seriously trying to activate the Scream, are you?” Lifis asked, a doubtful frown crossing his face. “We don’t even know what this thing is. And it only works in places that had Time Gears anyway. How will this crystal produce anything?”
“If it’s nothing, it’s nothing,” Robin said, still holding her hand out. “But if it holds a clue…then we have to pursue it.”
The Grovyle shrugged, upon seeing the human’s mind was made up.
“…Alright, then,” he said.
What? What’s all this? Nina looked on as Pellehan presented the strange crystal to the human. Robin took the gem and felt it in her right hand, and then pressed her left to it. She closed her eyes, as if she were trying to focus…
Before suddenly she let out a cry and fell to one knee with her head down.
“Robin?!” Nina jumped in alarm. “What’s happening?”
“No, stay!” Lifis barked, holding out a claw. “Don’t distract her!”
“D-Distract her?!”
Nina looked blankly at the Grovyle, and then aghast at Robin clutching her forehead with one hand. What on earth was Lifis
doing? The human was breathing in and out heavily and looked like she was in pain. Why on earth was he, her
partner, not doing anything about it?!
“…Just trust her.” The Grovyle eased his stance. “Please.”
Lifis’s plea met her ears. And Nina did consider: what if there was and so to her reluctance, Nina stayed and watched as the human remained in that position. She couldn’t lock eyes with Robin exactly, for the human was facing down and her gaze was distant, but she thought she spotted a faint blue glow coming from her eyes.
“What…?” she mumbled, not quite understanding.
Why are her eyes glowing? Is it…some kind of hidden power?
Not long later, the glow faded, and Robin began to get back to her feet. Lifis helped her up, while Pellehan took the crystal back from the human.
“Well?” Lifis was the first to speak. “What did you see?”
“I…” Robin’s voice sounded distant, and she looked shaky on her feet. Worry pooled in Nina’s gut; was the human well?
“…Ice. I saw ice.”
“Ice?”
Lifis only seemed more determined to draw out an answer. Nina could hardly believe it; did he not care for her current state?
“Go on. What was there?”
A bit more life came back into Robin as she listed what she saw.
“…Giant floating chunks of ice,” she began. “There was snow everywhere in the air, like there used to be a blizzard there before time stopped. Everywhere was carpeted in white, but it was also rocky, like a mountain…”
What? Nina’s brow furrowed.
What’s she going on about?
“Floating chunks of ice? Ah…”
Pellehan seemed to have caught onto something. Nina was about to ask what, when she noticed a look of alarm in Robin’s eye.
“And then…I saw her,” Robin continued. “I saw Aega.”
“You did?” Lifis’s eyes widened, hopeful. “Is she…?”
“…She was being held captive in a big crystal. I think. On somewhere that looked like the summit of a mountain. But then…” Robin stiffened. “Th-There was something there! An icy ghost Pokémon of some kind…I-I don’t know what it was, but it was probably responsible for that!”
“An icy ghost Pokémon?” Lifis turned to Pellehan. “What could that be?”
“Ah. A Froslass…?” But if anything, Pellehan sounded rather confused. “How strange. That did not look like that void dweller. And Froslass only live all the way down south. How could one have come up here?”
“I know what I saw!”
There was a defensive edge in Robin’s voice now, and Nina looked closer, she noticed the human was clenching her teeth. But that wasn’t the part which the Ninetales wanted to focus on; there was something else about everything that just happened that struck her as very strange.
Namely,
all of what had just happened.
“What is all this?” she cut in, interrupting Pellehan before he could respond. “What’s this talk about ‘seeing’ things, Robin?” From Robin, her gaze turned to Lifis. “And what has you pressing her about what she saw as if this was some kind of interrogation?”
And yet the talk of ‘seeing’ things sounded familiar. The image of a certain Xatu popped into her mind, and from there…a possibility.
But there’s no way…This human has an ability like that
?
“Robin…” the Ninetales said. “Are you saying you have some kind of foresight? As a
human?”
“…Er, yeah, that’s basically what I can do,” Robin said, before wincing and feeling her forehead. “Ow, ow…headache.”
“Be still.”
Pellehan held up a hand, and a white psychic energy drifted around Robin’s head. The human took deep breaths and visibly became less tense.
“…S-Sorry about that. That tends to happen after a vision sometimes,” Robin replied. “But…yeah. It’s what you say. I can see visions, both of the past and future. It’s something Aega called ‘the Dimensional Scream’.”
“The Dimensional Scream…?”
Nina tilted her head. That was a new one for her.
“I don’t know why I have it, but I have it. And I’ve used it to track down the locations of the Time Gears with Lifis, so we know where to go when we go back to the past,” Robin went on, twiddling with her knife handle. “It only ever triggers when I’m in contact with Time Gear energy, though, and there’s very little of that here. So when it does trigger…we know we’ve struck gold.”
“It also only works when the one with the Scream has a loyal partner by their side,” Lifis said, before murmuring, “Apparently.”
“What do you mean, ‘apparently’?” Robin fumed. “We’ve been partners since day one a year ago! We’ve hunted down those Time Gear locations and evaded Shuranabi’s henchmon all the while. Firm partners enough to be able to unlock an ability like mine? Well, I’m glad for it.”
She placed a hand on Lifis’s shoulder, and the Grovyle reciprocated with his own.
“I’m glad to have been by your side too, Robin,” he said, before taking his hand away. “But we can’t celebrate yet. Not until we get back to the past.”
“Mmhm. Of course, Liff.”
Robin then turned to Pellehan. There was a gulf in composure between human and Alakazam, with the latter seeming more quiet. He did smile at Robin and Lifis’s moment of camaraderie, but Nina noticed in his eye a small hint of…sadness?
“So do you have any idea where that could’ve been? Icy chunks of rock, a blizzard frozen in time, snowy mountains everywhere with ghosts dwelling in them?”
Pellehan seemed to pause and consider Robin’s question. As he held himself firm on his stick, his hand seemed to reach for his satchel on his hip, as if there was something he was looking to retrieve from it.
“…There is only one place that could be what you describe,” Pellehan said. “Frozen Island. An island far to the south of this continent. In other words…quite a ways away.”
Nina’s heart sank at the words. The time they had to spend venturing south was time they didn’t have. There was all too big a chance Shuranabi and his Sableye would happen across them again, and what if his forces were big enough to overwhelm them? She, Lifis and Robin were three capable fighters, but there were still only three of them. How long could they really hold out against a larger force when just the party Shuranabi was with had given them so much trouble back in Treasure Town?
And there were worse possibilities still… Especially if Shuranabi wanted Robin dead as badly as he seemed to back on that beach.
Nina felt a chill go down her pelt as the image of a looming crazed red-eyed Primal Dialga appeared in her mind. Shuranabi already
knew that Robin was a great threat to his existence and his world. If they got close enough to their goals, then surely the powerful Primal Dialga was bound to come out of the woodwork somewhere. If he did, and he somehow found them, they may as well kiss any chances of getting back to the past goodnight.
Please no. The Ninetales felt her breathing quicken again at that thought.
Not when there’s a glimmer of hope for the first time in ages…
“But never fear. I have a means of dealing with that.”
Nina jolted from her thoughts at Pellehan’s voice. Oddly, he seemed composed, with not a hint of panic on his face. It was eerily well-timed on the Alakazam’s part; had the Alakazam sensed her emotional peril?
“Desperate times call for desperate measures. And now is a time for pulling out this last stop of mine.”
He dug into his satchel and fished out another gem. This one was an emerald green, with a faint psychic ward surrounding its midsection. It looked to have dulled, and though Nina could sense a power within it, it was weak and diminished, with the glow and ward flickering occasionally.
“What’s that?” Robin asked, glancing at the gemstone.
“This is an heirloom that has been passed down through my family for generations.” Pellehan replied. A solemn reverence and pride seemed to creep into his words, and Nina noticed that same sad look from before return again.
Somehow…she had the vaguest hint there was something the Alakazam was withholding from them.
“Though my bloodline has lived through this wretched world for centuries and suffered its many ills, we have sworn to keep this safe no matter what,” the Alakazam explained. “All this time, we have kept our hopes alive with a prophecy given long ago: ‘That which was used to aid heroes past may once again shine brightly in the future’.”
Prophecy? That word made Nina’s ears prick. It was a prophecy that had brought her here too, in following Robin in this adventure. It sounded familiar…too familiar. It couldn’t be a coincidence, could it?
“Pellehan, who gave that prophecy?” she asked. “And why do you put so much faith in it?”
“Because the prophet who spoke of this gem was one of its creators,” Pellehan answered. “A mystic and seer of the Air Continent – one Xatu Yogen.”
“Y-Yogen?”
Nina stiffened at the mention of that name. The same Yogen from Treasure Town all that time ago? So he
was from the Air Continent,
and he had aided the heroes back then? That humble shopkeeper who sold off-hand prophecies for pittances was an aide to Team Go-Getters all those centuries ago?
But if that’s true, then…that can only mean one thing. Just like I thought…
“You know…” Nina said, stepping forward. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something, Pellehan.”
“Oh?” Pellehan grabbed his spoon which had stayed stationary in midair. “Do speak, dear Nina.”
The Ninetales didn’t hesitate, instead coming out with it straight.
“What relation do you have to Alakazam Manand? The heroic leader of Team A.C.T. at the time of the Meteor Crisis?”
That drew a surprised reaction from Lifis, while Robin cocked her head in confusion. But Pellehan simply stood there, as he broke a smile and a laugh escaped him.
“You catch on well.” The smile on his face grew, an appreciative look in his eyes. “That’s not a name that’s been uttered to my ears for a very long time. Not even Lady Aega mentions such a legend these days.”
“…Someone caught on quick,” Lifis muttered, his gaze drifting to Nina. “How’d you make that connection?”
“Old heroes matter not when the present is a ‘mon-eat-’mon world far removed from my many times great-grandfather’s time. Which-” Pellehan pointed his spoon at Nina. “-Would be your time too, in fact, would it not?”
“…I heard the odd story about him when I was a kit.” Nina flicked her tails behind her. “Once a champion in his own right, Alakazam Manand, along with his comrades Charizard Prometheus and Tyranitar Helmold, helped the heroes of Team Go-Getters in their quest to stop the giant meteor that threatened the world all that time ago. It was said that among his deeds…he created something called a Teleport Gem, which brought the heroes straight to the doors of Sky Tower, the sacred rest of Rayquaza.”
“Impressive!” Pellehan chortled. He gave a round of applause, an appreciative look twinkling in his eye..
“Few could recite that tale well in this day and age. But yes, it is true. I am Manand’s descendant. Even in these dark times, the bloodline yet lives. Soon it will be snuffed out …” He twirled his spoon psychically. “But then won’t we all?”
Snuffed out? Nina caught that odd choice of words.
Why is he…wording it like that? It’s almost like he…expects to die. We will, but…something’s different.
“Enough talk about your ancestry, Gramps,” Robin said, pointing to the Teleport Gem. “Can that get us to Frozen Island?”
Pellehan seemed to…hesitate in that moment, as he took a deep breath and gave the rest of them a fond look.
Nina tensed. Something about the Alakazam’s composure was unnerving, and a sinking feeling wormed its way into her gut.
“…With a bit of luck and power, we can do it.” The Teleport Gem floated out of Pellehan’s hands as he held it up to the air psychically. “Stand back, you three. I need space for this.”
Robin, Lifis and Nina did as requested. Pellehan concentrated energy into his hands, before he fired green energy at the Teleport Gem. The energy coalesced into the gem, making it shine with a bright green light. The other three covered their eyes, while Pellehan kept his hold firm, continuing to channel power into the gem.
Nina happened to peek when the initial light burst dimmed. Pellehan was still charging the gem. However…it was hard to tell amidst the bright light, but on the Alakazam’s face…she swore she spotted him straining.
Does he even have those capabilities within him? Alakazam are strong psychics, but… The Ninetales looked him up and down.
He’s aging for his species, and…all that power, all that strain…
She tried to ignore that sinking feeling as she watched Pellehan, praying that his strategy would work.
“Gramps?” But Robin appeared to have seen it too, her face dotted with worry as she looked to Lifis. “Sh-Should he be doing this?”
“Don’t doubt him, Robin.” Lifis brought his claw to his lips. “Let him work his magic.”
After enough charging, Pellehan relented, and the blasts of energy stopped. The Teleport Gem floated where it was, its glow having now brightened. The dullness that had plagued it before was gone, and now it looked revitalised and shone brighter than any diamond.
…Except Pellehan suddenly appeared visibly winded, and he was struggling to stand.
“…There it is,” the Alakazam wheezed. “Recharged…and ready to use.”
Then he unceremoniously fell to the ground, his cane clattering by his side.
Nina, Robin and Lifis all jumped in alarm, with the latter two visibly panicked.
“Pellehan!”
“Gramps!”
Lifis ran over to him, as did Robin. Both tried to lift the Alakazam to his feet, but he seemed to be shaking his head.
“It’s ready.” Heavy breaths accompanied Pellehan’s words. “Take it. Go to Frozen Island… Save Lady Aega… Save… this world…”
There was an odd sense of finality to his words, a gravity Nina realised in that moment. That sinking feeling within her had, to her regret, proven correct.
“G-Gramps?! No! Y-You’re coming with us, you
have to!” Robin pleaded, her voice cracking. “You can help! Y-Your powers, they’re indispensable! We can’t just leave you here!”
“I…can’t do much now.” Pellehan coughed. “D-Don’t worry about me. G-Go, Robin, Lifis…Nina.” He looked past all of them. “You three…and Lady Aega…you’re our hope. P-Please…you can do this. Make our ancestors…live the life they should’ve led…”
Nina took a few steps back, aghast at what he was saying. That he would just accept his death so willingly…that he was able to commit to forgoing his life in the end for the cause. Many thoughts decrying his actions came to her lips, but Robin’s words from the campfire came back to her.
“We made a promise, me and Lifis, to change history. We’re committed to this cause, and if it’s for the world and everyone in it…then we’ll give our lives for it.”
Looking upon the perishing form of Pellehan before her…he looked to carry that same will. She had barely known him, but…something about that determination touched her within.
There I was, living because I was too scared to die…yet here he is, mortally wounding himself to advance their cause? I…I could never have…
She bit her lip, hoping that she wouldn’t start crying again.
“…We will, Pellehan.” Lifis nodded grimly. “We’ll get Aega back, and we’ll succeed. For you, and for everyone suffering in this world.”
Nina still hadn’t found her voice, still overcome by her thoughts swarming her. To die in full faith that she, Robin and Lifis would succeed…
…It would be a disservice not to honour his dying wish.
“…Thank you for doing this.” Nina saw fit to get in a few last words. “I…I will do what I can.”
Robin gripped her fist, trying to suppress her emotions and failing, a dribble of a tear coming from her eye. Too choked up and unable to find any words to say, merely turning away from Pellehan and wordlessly marching towards the Teleport Gem.
“Good.” Nina heard Pellehan rasp from behind her. “The world is…in good hands.”
Somehow, the Ninetales couldn’t find it within her to look back at him.
The three stood around the Teleport Gem as it sensed their presence. A circle inscribed with patterns formed around it and spread out to cover where they stood.
Then it lit up even brighter, and in a bright flash of light…Nina, Robin and Lifis were gone.
