Chapter 137:

So Ends Another Day

Someone famous whose name I couldn't recall properly once said that there were two certainties in life: death and taxes.

Everyone in Alamos died and yet they came back to life, so death was no longer certain when it involved Pokémon. But taxes persisted, or to be more precise, a small 30% value sales tax on the entire Pokémon Mart stock. It was already included in the price, and I rarely paid it any attention, but in this particular moment it stood out to me as something extremely noteworthy, due to the place being closed yesterday—something about employees still having to recover from having their space inverted, whatever that meant.

They must've gotten over it by sunrise because now the store was buzzing with customers again, just like how it used to.

I couldn't help but be very amused with that thought as I stocked up on supplies. It was busy inside the store. Well not just here, since people had collectively decided to leave Alamos in droves.

The Sinnoh Knight festival and all related activities were officially canceled, so all the Pokémon trainers had to get out of town and back on the road, going on adventures and dealing with smaller problems such as rogue wild Pokémon or a dam blocking a river—problems that weren't Dialga or Palkia.

So aside from bleeding tourists prematurely, life continued on as if time hadn't been broken utterly and no one had died horribly.

I suppose that's just how life works; no matter what world or situation you find yourself in, it will try to move on regardless.

It was a bit annoying because it meant the store was stocked with people instead of stock and some of the stuff I wanted to buy was already gone.

I shuffled past some people and made my way to the Proteins aisle. People automatically moved away when I came near them. It happened subconsciously, as if they didn't like my presence. They didn't notice the dark shadow I cast in the brightly-lit mart.

"Are people always like this with you?" I asked.

No answer came, Darkrai just stayed put, content to literally be my shadow.

I reached the side of the aisle with the proteins and vitamins without too much trouble and scanned the bottles and packages. They all advertised benefits to a Pokémon's growth, abilities, and reflexes, though none of them looked any more convincing than a pack of salt advertising its own health benefits. It reminded me a whole lot of the stuff athletes and bodybuilders use. I knew next to nothing about proteins and how they worked, but it couldn't hurt to start looking into them. I knew some trainers swore they were the key to high-level Pokémon battles, and I had enough money to burn on testing it. In the worst case scenario, it would just be something fun to experiment with.

I tossed a whole pack of bottles I didn't fully understand into my basket. They were rather expensive but then again, 'money to burn,' right? I'd read up on their exact functions later.

I passed the Pokéball aisle and considered buying a shitload of them as well, but I refrained from doing that. I already bought enough medicine and supplies to make me stand out. I'd have to see what would be the best legal way to buy 200 Pokéballs all at once without raising suspicions.

I moved to the prepackaged food section and bought more of what I always bought: instant noodles, berry packages, Glalie-Breath Salad, and everything else I would need.

After that, I moved to the cashier and waited in line patiently. The people around me started fidgeting nervously, though none of them figured out I was the reason for their unease.

I had to see if Luna could somehow mimic that effect; cutting in line is the dream of every human after all.

I made it to the cashier and paid in cash. It wasn't against the law to buy a suspicious amount of everything, but you couldn't be too careful. Especially if someone really was watching me like Hylla said.

Shortly afterwards, I dumped everything unceremoniously into my backpack and left the store.
I found the girls waiting outside on a bench. Luna was using her powers to juggle pebbles around in boredom. Midna was resting on the top of the bench while Fay was watching the people around her.

They were a weird bunch together, and some people stared a bit longer at the trio than they did other Pokémon around town before continuing on with their own lifes.

I split through the crowd of people and made my way back to them.

"Okay, I got all the supplies we need. We're almost ready to leave."

Almost being the keyword. There were still some things to be taken care of here. One of the most important was the stalking shadow.

I had avoided tackling the subject until now, but I couldn't push it forward much longer.

"What now?" Fay asked.

"Well, we did survive something big," I teased. "Remember what that calls for?"

Luna jumped up excitedly. {YES!}

"Well, you want one as well?" I stuck out my hand in front of me, pointing the ice cream towards nothing in particular.

There was no reaction from Darkrai. He opted to stay in my shadow.

I sighed dejectedly. Well, that was awkward.

"I'll take it." Psychic hands took hold of the ice cream as it magically floated towards Luna. She now held two Space-Time Tower-shaped ice creams and wore a smug, self-satisfied smile.

But underneath that smile there was a feeling of uncertainty and confusion. I could feel Luna pushing those feelings towards me. {Darkrai's still not talking.}

I nodded my head and averted my gaze from Luna.
Fay and Midna were enjoying their own ice creams as well. They didn't seem at all concerned with Darkrai's presence, or if they were, they didn't show it at all.

The sun was starting to fall and bled a soft blend of orange and red across the horizon. The wind whistled softly while a subtle cold undercurrent lurked, ready to take advantage of the season's turn.

Godey's Garden was an amazing place, and it looked just as amazing the first time I had seen it. The one key difference was that it was bustling with activity this time.

Last time, the area had been off limits due to the Sinnoh Knight Festival, but now that it was over and people could roam wherever, it was a place that lured in every trainer, artist, and passerby in the vicinity. The Garden had a calming air to it and breathed relaxation.

Pokémon played in the bushes again, flew overhead, or tried to steal from the tourists. The townsfolk chatted and made deals. Traveling trainers readied themselves to depart and said their goodbyes, while salesmen tried to sell their latest wares to those leaving.

It was a lively scene, but we weren't part of it.

It was strange to be so close to people yet be utterly alienated from them. It was a feeling I was painfully familiar with in a past life.

People inadvertently avoided our bench in the garden. They walked around it or sat somewhere else, nudged by a compulsion they didn't even realize they had. Even Pokémon nearing the threshold soon lost interest, skittering away into another direction.

I wondered whether it was something Darkrai did on purpose or if it was something that came with being him. An anti-memetic field that made people avoid Darkrai sounded like a hell of a good tool for theft or murder. It probably wasn't all-powerful since Flamera was keenly aware of Darkrai and so were the bystanders once he was pulled into the light. Maybe it was just a weak compulsion that only lasted so long as Darkrai was idle or sunken into the shadows but broke the moment he made a move.

The ones who weren't influenced by the field were me and my Pokémon, but we also had been aware of Darkrai long before we set foot in town.

Strange stuff.

Trying to avoid hurting my teeth too much, I took a small bite from my ice cream.

Darkrai had been in my shadow and stalking me ever since Dialga had restored spacetime. He wasn't that threatening anymore, and since we were pretty much besties, I didn't really worry too much about the mythical Pokémon stalking me.

Nightmares aren't that scary in the light of day.

"So Darkrai, I think it's about time to talk." I may have started the conversation, but I was still speaking to the air. Fortunately, I could feel the shadow around me darken. Fay and Midna looked up from their ice cream sticks. I continued the script I had planned in my head. "You've been awfully silent."

"Who are you?"

"I am Dust Wildfire," I answered. I wondered if Darkrai knew my true name. He had seen and simulated my dream after all. "I was chosen by your god to be pulled into this world for reasons still unknown."

Fay tilted her head. She mimed something wordlessly to Midna, causing Midna to shake her head to Fay's disappointment.

I told my team about the conversation I had with Aurum (or Arceus) after Hylla left. No doubt Darkrai heard that as well.

"I am either blessed or cursed by your god. For this reason I can dreamwalk, I suppose, not to mention resist the grinding wheels of time." I took a deep breath. It was something I had been thinking for a while, but to say it out loud like this made it feel final, more real and definitive.

"I plan to make my team, or well, companions the strongest they can be and even stronger. We have a long way to go still, but this is my goal for now." I wisely decided not to disclose the other goals I had. "Do you want to join my team?"

Midna and Fay stayed silent, luckily knowing when to keep quiet at least.

Around us, life continued, completely disconnected from our little pocket of secrecy. I awaited Darkrai's response. My heart was softly pounding, and my breathing had become short.

I didn't do this a lot. Normal people just throw a Pokéball and are done with this. Darkrai probably couldn't be captured by a mere Pokéball, but even if he could be, I didn't feel comfortable with casually allowing people in my inner circle, even if they were useful, so this ended up being a rather stressful moment.

"I don't understand you. Any part of you." From the shadow two shimmering spots that could be interpreted as eyes emerged. The smoke expanded and partly shaped into a figure.

"Par for the course." My existence seemed to surprise a lot of people in this world, most in different ways. "But you're also not normal."

Darkrai's eyes phased away from me and looked at the garden. "I swore to protect this place. I failed."

I couldn't really argue against that. Yet, I felt like I should maybe say something nice and encouraging. "You were up against a conspiracy and the gods of space and time."

Darkrai's eyes shifted again. "I failed against that sword wielder. I couldn't stop the Worldbreakers, and most importantly, I couldn't stop you, Dreamwalker."

Why was his failure against me the most important thing?

"Seems like you have a lot of room to grow then," I tried again. "Which is something I can help you with. What else are you going to do? Fuck around in this place until the next disaster is going to strike?"

The shadow shifted uncomfortably. The eyes darted around nervously. "You're weak. Your Pokémon are subpar. You use tricks and schemes to pull through. Yet you succeeded where I couldn't."

"I'm not weak," Fay cut in harshly. "You're the one who lost to us. That makes you worse!"

"Yes. I am weaker than all of you," Darkrai admitted shamefully. "I've been in this little garden too long, lulled into a deep slumber. I thank you for awakening me."

"You're welcome, I guess?" I wasn't sure what to say.

"But I can not accompany you," Darkrai immediately followed. "For I would be a disgrace."

Damnit. That didn't sound good. "Now, don't be too hard on yourself."

Darkrai shook his head. "It is time for me to leave my garden and prepare for the future." Darkrai rose up from the ground, fully revealing himself to me.

He looked a lot healthier, and his shadows looked full and life-like. Despite his own beliefs, he was rather terrifying up-close, especially since he was taller than I was.

"I thank you for saving this place, its people, and me. I remain in your debt." Darkrai slightly bowed his head. "I must now follow a new path of my own from now on. I thank you kindly, my friend. Do not hesitate to call upon me."

Before I could say anything the light of the sun pierced through Darkrai's shadows and he dissolved like a mirage or a trick of the light. Rather abruptly, if you ask me.

{Aaaaand he's gone.} Luna said, her voice sounding rather upbeat.

"Call upon him how?" I muttered confused and annoyed. "He really just disappeared in the middle of the conversation."

"So no mythical on the team, then." Midna tilted her head. "Sad. It would've been fun to have another Dark type around."

"Yeah," I agreed. "What did I do wrong?" I faced Luna as I asked the question.

The psychic thought about the question for a few seconds. Finally, after pondering it very thoroughly, she said with a flat expression, {I think he's too intimidated by you.}

Fay laughed.

"What?" I scowled. "How's he's intimidated by me?"

Fay's laughing grew louder.

"Bullshit," I protested. "He called me weak a few seconds ago."

{I can sense his emotions, not his reasoning.} Luna gave me a shrug.

"Well, you did say you dropped a nuclear bomb on him," Midna suggested contemplatively.

"Only once," I explained. "In a dream."

"There you go. Don't do that next time."

I sighed. "Okay, well that's slightly disappointing. At least we're still friends, so the mission is not a total failure."

"So are we done here?" Fay asked. "I don't like to admit Darkrai was right, but we should focus on getting stronger and training. None of us could even scratch Dialga and Palkia."

{But next time we'll be ready,} Luna said. {Hopefully, I'll have mastered blackholes by then.}

Unlike Darkrai, they were at least optimistic and took their powerlessness in stride.

However, we couldn't leave Alamos just yet. "There's one more thing we need to do."

The Sinnoh Knight statue was just as out of place as it had ever been. Surrounded by actual old ruins, the newly-constructed statue stuck out like a sore thumb.

Whereas the old bricks that once made up a mighty castle had started to sag and sink into the earth, swallowed by time itself, the statue was pristine. The marble, or whatever was used to create the statue, showed no cracks or blemishes. The beautiful details of the armor hadn't started to fade yet, and the Knight's posture was still hopeful and battle-ready.

The water in the basin had also been cleaned up since last time, the glass shards were gone, and the water shone as vibrant as the sea the cliffside overlooked.

It was an idyllic scene, one that almost seemed dream-like in nature. However, there was an undertone of melancholy to this place. I couldn't tell what exactly caused it, but I probably wasn't the only one who felt it because this place was devoid of Pokémon and trainers.

Or, as I considered them at that moment, witnesses.

"Anyone around?" I asked Luna and Fay.

{No one alive.} Luna looked around. {Time for sneaky business.}

Fay hesitated a second. "That's odd, last time we were here, this place felt different.

"Huh?" Midna asked. She jumped on top of the basin. "Looks exactly the same as last time."

She jumped on top of the statue and attempted to scale it.

{I don't sense anything.} Luna scowled at Fay.

"No, I recognize this feeling!" Fay insisted. She turned her eyes to me.

I looked at the statue. "Try sensing something around it. I think it should be there."

{It?} Luna asked.

"Huh?" Midna lost grip and fell with a splash into the water.

Fay closed her eyes. Aura started to dance across her body and slipped from her eyes. It looked more alive, more fierce as if it had a mind of its own. She had used her aura extensively the past week. It probably had grown stronger.

I made a mental note to look into it later.

The Aura that danced around her skin started to extend outwards, almost like an afterimage being pulled in a direction. I couldn't tell exactly what she was doing, but it looked like she was reaching out or pushing her Aura outwards. Or rather, it was being pulled out by something else.

It looked trippy.

"There!" Fay's eyes snapped open and the Aura faded. She pointed at the statue and moved her paw down a little. "Something's underneath the statue."

"Go figure." I rolled my eyes.

A soaked Midna hauled herself over the edge and jumped onto the grass. In a dog-like manner, she shook herself dry.

"There's nothing in the water," she mumbled.

"It's definitely inside the statue. Or underneath it."

The statue was surrounded by a small fountain kind of thing. In short, there wasn't really an easy way to get under it.

"Luna?"

She huffed. {I can't teleport an entire statue.}

"Midna, try digging."

"Where?"

Fay launched a small aura projectile from her paws. It hit the ground a little to the right of the knight. "Over there, go under and in a straight line underneath the basin."

"Aye aye." Midna shifted into another form. When she emerged again, she had turned into a black mole-like Pokémon with a set of claws that were way too big for her size.

Midna started digging, using the two claws to sift through dirt at a rapid pace.

I hadn't seen a Drilbur before, and it clearly showed that Midna also wasn't sure how to be one either. Without much knowledge myself, I could already tell that she wasn't doing it the way a Drilbur would do it. Instead of…well, drilling, she was forcefully moving the earth with her claws.

It was still leagues faster than she could do it in her base form.

It didn't take too long for Midna to go underground and disappear from sight.

"You're veering too much to the left," Fay instructed after a minute. She had no trouble seeing Midna through the soil.

"My left or your left?"

"Uhm. Maybe right?"

I thought about helping or having Luna teleport away some dirt to aid Midna's digging venture, but it was too amusing to see Fay and Midna trying to coordinate.

I picked a broken wall to lean against and took a deep sigh. From my Pokédex came a notification ping. I quickly checked it and saw it was a message from Ash.

I talked to him briefly yesterday, but he didn't have anything interesting to say. He just got time-frozen by Dialga after getting split from his friends. Last I checked, they were all doing okay, though I wasn't really concerned with them at the moment in light of everything that was going on.

I kind of wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible and, if possible, stay ahead of Ash's movements while I could. I wasn't sure how useful it would be, butterfly effect and all, but at least it gave me a reasonable direction on what to do next. I'd probably try to see if I could get a hold of Fantina and challenge her Gym.

Ash was asking me about when I planned on leaving Alamos. I lied and told him tomorrow, after which he asked if we could battle.

I lied again and told him that my Pokémon were still shaken and traumatized from everything and that I couldn't battle him today.

I closed the message and opened a new one.

Chelsea also asked when Barry and I could do another triple Pokémon battle. Apparently, she was doing some shit with fossils somewhere. The suspicious timing of her question probably meant that Hylla told her to reach out to me.

I provided a date and then closed the chat, waiting for her to agree or disagree. I then opened another chat and sent a message to Sabrina. While I was looking for a funny meme to include in the message, Midna suddenly called out, "FOUND SOMETHING!"

I shut the lid of the Pokédex and got up from my lazy spot.

The area around the statue had become a mess. Heaps of dirt lay scattered, and Fay herself was holding a shovel made from Aura. Truly, a strange sight to behold.

When the aura-wielder noticed I was back, she dispelled the shovel and pointed towards Midna's latest hole.

Apparently she failed to reach Fay's spot from her original position and retried. I quickly counted four different holes she had dug.

A purple snake poked its head out of one of the holes. The Ekans slithered out, although she was clearly struggling to make escape. That was because, as I soon found out, her lower half was coiled around the hilt of a sword that she was dragging out of the hole with her.

I knelt down and took the sword from her. Midna shifted shape again and leaped out, flinging dirt everywhere.

"That's it!" Fay exclaimed unnecessarily. "The Knight's sword." She pointed at the statue where the knight held a stone replica. Heartbreaker.

"Yes, indeed it is," I mumbled. The sword was impeccable. Not a spec of dirt had remained on the blade as it shone very faintly and exuded a powerful aura. Although the latter part might have been me being at awe.

{So…she hid it here,} Luna pondered, giving the sword a wary look.

I gave the sword an experimental swing. Of course not in the direction of anyone, but just to check its weight. It felt again like the first time I held it at the museum—perfectly balanced, intuitive, and empowering.

I grinned. "Oh fuck yeah. This does not belong in a museum."

"But how?" Fay asked. "Flamera hid the sword somewhere, but how'd you know it was here?"

I lowered the sword and stabbed it into the ground. It dug straight into the earth, meeting no resistance at all.

"I played Zelda games before," I scoffed. "Flamera liked the drama, the theater of the entire event. The last 'game' of hers was finding the sword and killing Palkia and Dialga. Fucked up and dumb, but if I were to hide a sword, I'd probably put it somewhere like here as well."

I wasn't completely certain about the sword being here. It was a strong educated guess. This place was supposedly a memorial or the place the knight was buried. Flamera had a hand in its construction, so if we play by the logic of legends this should be the place where one would look for a sword.

{I see. Does that mean she was right then?}

"Sounds like it," Fay agreed. "Dust finding the sword does indicate he is a destined hero."

"Bahaha!" Midna cackled. "Don't be stupid. There's no way our boss here is a hero. Not with that attitude. Flamera was all kinds of crazy."

"Yes, I agree with Midna here." Though I did send a glare at the fox—one she responded to with a smug grin. "I kind of cheated. If I hadn't been here with Flamera earlier, I wouldn't have guessed this either. So yeah, dumb luck."

Still, I looked at the statue of the knight. I felt like the sword had more significance to it. Sure, it was a good weapon that stood its ground against Lovesick's Aura, but beyond that, even Darkrai was afraid of it, and Flamera believed it could've helped in a fight against Palkia and Dialga.

I had a vague theory, but I wasn't ready to share it with the team just yet. I had to see how Snowflake would react to the sword, that could probably tell me a bit more about its powers and abilities.

"Anyway, I'm thinking about keeping the sword," I declared. "It would be a shame if it rotted away in a museum. Also, I think I kind of deserve it, considering I was the last man standing in Flamera's last game."

"You should definitely keep it!" Fay agreed eagerly. "I don't care what Midna says. The sword is yours, this is Fate!"

{It would be a very powerful weapon.} Luna frowned. {I sadly can't grasp it with telekinesis.} The thought of Luna using her psychic powers to wield the sword sounded rather terrifying. She wouldn't even need to be near the sword to use it, and the sword itself was indestructible.

"What about the League?" Midna asked. "I don't think they would be happy with some random person having an artifact like this." Midna took a closer look at the blade and studied her own reflection. "No matter how much we've earned it."

I sighed. "I must keep the sword. I saw visions when Palkia and Dialga hit us in that alley. I was using the sword in one of them. We barely scraped by this time. We'll need every edge we can have, pun not intended. We'll just hide it from sight. What are the odds of someone figuring out it is us anyway?"

Although the sword itself was an important artifact, very distinct in its design and came with a slight side-effect of a visual distortion on the blade, I doubted most people would recognize it, if they even cared at all. Worse case scenario, I could just lie about it.

I smiled and pulled the sword out of the ground and pointed it towards the horizon and the sinking sun. "So it's settled, then. The sword's mine now."

Talk to the gods, check.

Get answers, sorta check.

Become friends with a mythical Pokémon, check.

Obtain mythical Pokémon, fail

Obtain a new weapon, check.

All in all, the Alamos project was a success.

A/N Well, I didn't expect this chapter to take so long but I spent a lot of time discussing and working out the next arc and all the little details. That alongside already being a busy month for a lot of reasons and reading the mother of learning, I had a lot on my plate.

Anyway, thanks for reading. It kind of does mean a lot to me to know that people are interested in something I wrote.

Also, thanks to King the Ratmuffin for helping me beta and of course the ever so tarnished Delta.

-CaptainMoonShine-

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After Credits OMAKE:

"Oh and I am afraid you are misinformed." Darkrai poked his head out. He narrowed his eyes. "I'm a girl." She phased away.

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After-After Credits:

"Oh and I'm afraid you misunderstand," Dust said.
"I'm a girl." She walked away, the only sword bigger than the one in her hands was in her pants..

(I'm gonna write your name in the) Delta Note:

Hey everyone, Delta here. I was the main beta for this chapter, so please tell me if I'm shit at my job. Anyways, join the Discord server in Moon's bio, because I could really use some friends. Uh, but not because I like you or anything!

Have a good day/night, guys!