//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Pokemon the Movie: Voice of the Ocean // by Banshee531 //------------------------------// When they reached the bottom of the path down the cliff, Vinyl and Octavia both began to show them around. Vinyl started by hailing a gondola taxi, the group getting in to start their tour of the city. Considering the city's closeness to the ocean, it was no surprise a lot of the city had water themed designs to them. The bricks that made up the houses were positioned in a way that the colors of them resembled waves while the street lamps were fashioned after Chinchou and Lanturn. Even some of the boats were made to look like Water-types, while real Water Pokémon were swimming through the canals beneath the boats. Wooper, Magikarp, Remoraid and Luvdisc swam by them, the group even seeing a bunch of Kelpool and Lokelpie sitting on the side of the canals. A pair of the evolution duo even swam up to their boat, the Kelpool smiling at them as it swam beneath while the Lokelpie leapt out of the water and dazzled them by flying over their boat and splashing down into the other side. As they floated further into the city, they started seeing the market stalls littering the streets on either side of the canals. Some looked brand new while others had been there for years. They soon learned the difference, being that the older ones were every day stalls that the citizens used to make a living while others were up just for the festival. There were ones with Pokémon helping run it, like a Quilava that was being used as a stove to fry stuff on and a Magitual who was floating targets in the air as part of a shooting game. The group were all awestruck at the sights, ready to get into the festival. But before they could do anything, Twilight turned to a bridge they were about to float under and a noticed statue that sat atop every post of the bridge. "Hey, what's that?" she asked while pointing at it, the others seeing the statues. They saw it was some kind of horse-fish fusion with fins in place of a mane and some kind of gem affixed to its chest. Vinyl and Octavia smiled before the gray skinned girl answered, "That is the guardian Pokémon of our city, Sirenity." "Sirenity?" Doc asked as they turned back to the duo, "I've never even heard of that Pokémon." "It's classed as a Legendary," Vinyl replied, "And it's said to have lived in this city since it's creation long ago." She stood up in the boat and pointed at something beyond the buildings, "See that?" The group turned, all seeing a temple on an island a mile or so away from the city. "That's the temple where we honor our great protector. It's a huge part of the festival." "So...this whole festival is meant to celebrate this Legendary Pokémon?" "That's right," Octavia responded while nodding, "Sirenity is also known as the Voice of the Ocean. That's why the festival's named after it." "Fascinating..." Twilight whispered as the boat came to a stop. The group now climbing out of the boat, now finding themselves in the town's central square. They saw the many booths, smiling at the sights before noticing a large stage being constructed for the festival. "My apologies, but we have to get going," Octavia told them. "Our parents have a big welcome home party planned for us, and we can't be late." "Of course," Twilight replied while nodding back, "Thanks for showing us around." Vinyl then pointed to one of the streets. "Head down that way and you'll find the town's Pokémon Center. You can stay there while you're here." She spun around and pointed at another location, "And if you head down that way, you'll find an parlor that makes great ice cream." Spike licked his lips at those words as the two girls began to leave, "See ya!" They all waved goodbye, Spike spinning around next with a giant grin, "Ice cream?! Please?!" The others laughed with Twilight speaking up. "Okay, but only after we've checked into the Pokémon Center." Spike huffed but nodded, the group soon going to the medical building. Meanwhile... In another part of the city, Black and White were staring down at the city atop a building. They scanned the crowds all over the streets, only to point at a certain girl slowly making her way through the festival. It was the girl Guile had been watching on his monitor, Sonata Dusk. She was shuffling through the crowd, nodding at the people that said hello as she looked at the fruit and vegetables on the market stalls. "There she is," White commented as her Cloyster bounced up beside her, "Let's get her." But before she could, Black held out an arm, "No you idiot, not while she's surrounded by all these people! Don't forget, she's one of the most important people in the city. If we suddenly nab her, it'll cause a panic and Guile's plan would be ruined." She turned back to Sonata, now seeing move over to a peach stand. "We need to wait until she's completely alone. Then we'll grab her." As this happened, Sonata looked over the peaches before taking a few. The stall owner smiled at her as she asked, "That's five peaches you have there, right?" Sonata nodded in response, a stoic expression on her face. "Alright." She told her the cost, only to then hold up a box, "Can I interest you in a few pears?" Sonata's face blanched at this, shaking her head before spinning around and walking off. "Come on. Just a bit more and we'll get her." Black told White as they and their Pokémon ran across the rooftops to follow her. Outside of the Pokémon Center... Flash and others had just got done checking in as they left building, Spike now asking, "Now can we get some ice cream? Please?!" The others laughed as Twilight replied, "Alright, let's go." With that, they walked off to the street Vinyl had pointed at. But as the group began to talk about what flavor they wanted, Springer came to a stop when he heard the sound of rushing water. "Riolu?" He spun around, now staring at a small park-like area, square in design and surrounded by houses. A foot wide canal flowed through it, and the place had several trees and benches. In the center was a metal tap and drain, which a girl and her Brionne had running. The pop star Pokémon was enjoying the feel of the water splashing down on her, this one pure and fresh unlike the canal water. "Alright, come on Brionne." the girl said as she turned off the tap. The sea lion shook her whole body to get the excess water off before following its trainer, both walking away as Springer walked up to it. "Ri?" He blinked at the tap, seeing it wasn't even releasing a drop. The Riolu frowned at this, noticing the tap was too high for him to reach. "Rio..." he pouted as he stared at the metal pipe, only for it to suddenly burst to life, water pouring down into the grate. "Riolu?!" He gasped before seeing a blue girl staring down at him, a blank expression on her face. The two stared at each other for a second before Springer nodded and dipped his paws under the water, filling them up before splashing it over his face. "RIOLU!" He cheered, feeling refreshed. As this happened, the girl's lips slowly curved into a smile, only to vanish as a certain teen called out to the Riolu. "Springer!" The two turned to the voice, seeing Flash running up as he added, "Hey, bud, don't you want any ice cream?" Springer nodded but splashed his face with water a few more times. As he did this, Flash blinked as he saw the girl with his partner, who just looked down at the ground at his presence, "Hey there." He said with a wave, only for the girl began to backpedal, "Um...you okay?" The girl didn't reply, instead spinning around and running off to a nearby corner, making Flash tilt his head at the sight, "Oookay...that was weird." "Ri?" Springer added before taking one last refreshing face full of water. Around the corner, Sonata leaned against the wall while clutching her arms around her body. "Why so upset?" The girl gasped before turning to the voice, now seeing Black standing there with her Malamar. "Why don't you come with us? I've got a friend that's interested in meeting you." Malamar chuckled at this, holding up its tentacles as they began to slither up to Sonata. She began to backpedal again, only to turn around to see a flash of light, revealing White and her Cloyster. "You heard her, just come with us. Oh, and don't make this more of a drag than it has to be," White chimed in before snapping her fingers, Cloyster firing a bunch of Icicle Spears at the ground in response. "Aah!" Sonata yelped as she hopped away from the attack, only for Malamar's tentacles to suddenly wrap around her. But just as the tentacle started to constrict her, her mouth opened and screamed at full force, "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Her scream echoed through the streets, quickly hitting the ears of Flash and Springer as the trainer responded, "Huh? What was-" he tried to say, only to see Springer rush ahead. Blinking at this, the trainer started to follow after. "Will you shut her up?!" White growled as Sonata kept crying out while the tentacles gripped her. "Malamar..." Black told her Pokémon before it spun Sonata around and flashed the lights on its stomach. As soon as the lights hit her eyes, Sonata's body slumped over. "What's...happening?" she moaned out, her eyes closing as she felt herself drifting off into unconsciousness. "Aura Sphere!" The two armored figures and their Pokémon turned to see an orb of blue energy flying at them, slamming into Malamar and exploding. "MARRRRR!" It cried as it was thrown back, letting its grip on Sonata slip. Her body hit the ground, knocking her awake as Flash and Springer ran up to her. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" "Nothing that concerns you," Black replied while Malamar pushed itself back up. "Just turn around and walk away." Flash growled at her before glancing over at Sonata, the girl picking herself up. He saw her whole body was shaking, fear obvious on her face. The sight made him frown, turning back to the armored duo, "I don't think so. Why don't you two leave instead?" "Because we have business with that girl," White responded, "Get in our way and you'll be sorry." "Sorry, not happening! Springer, Double Team!" The Riolu barked before an army of Riolus appeared between the two groups. "Aura Sphere Barrage!" The army formed multiple tiny balls of aura that they threw, explosions of dust appearing next as it caused the alley to be filled with smoke. "What the heck?!" Black yelped as she tried to wave away the smoke. Their helmets protected them from breathing it in, but made their vision worse as the fog continued to linger. And as them and their Pokémon ran through the smoke, they found Flash, Sonata and Springer were gone. "NO!" White screamed, Black turning to her and the Pokémon. "Find them!" The Pokémon nodded, Malamar floating upward while Cloyster bounced around. "You won't get away so easily." Flash and Springer ran as fast as they could through the streets, Flash gripping Sonata's hand and pulling her along. As soon as their pursuers were blinded, the three ran around the closest corner out of sight. They then went down another alleyway, going left, right, left and left again, rushing over bridges big and small. The whole time they did this, Malamar and Cloyster followed after them. Malamar continued to search from above while Cloyster used its Teleport to try and get ahead, but the two kept shifting directions. And as they ran, Springer could sense Malamar's aura getting closer, calling out to warn Flash. The teen nodded and pulled Sonata into the shadow of a building, placing a hand over her mouth. He then looked up, now seeing Malamar flying overhead. Flash pulled back against the wall, seeing the Pokémon float over them...only to go away. Sighing in relief, he grabbed Sonata's hand again. "Come on!" He pulled her down a street going the opposite way Malamar had, zigzagging through another few streets. But as they did this, he soon came to a stop at a four-way street, "Uh...okay. Now I'm lost. Which way do we-whoa!" Sonata suddenly yanked his hand, pulling them to some stairs before going around a corner, "Hey! Where are we going?!" Sonata didn't say anything as she continued to drag him through the town, only to come to a stop on top of a stairway. The sight made Flash raise an eyebrow, seeing he was back at where he had just first met Sonata, "Huh? This is-" He then turned around, now seeing his friends sitting on a nearby bench while enjoying some ice cream. Twilight seemed to notice him and waved, "Hey! Where'd you run off too?" Flash opened his mouth to respond, only for no sound to come out. In response, Spike spoke up, "The ice cream's great! You should have got some!" "We're...we're right back where we started." He whispered before spinning around, "Hey, who were those people any-" He stopped when he found Sonata had now vanished, making him go wide-eyed, "Huh? Where'd she go?!" The teen's eyes darted around, now seeing nothing but crowds of people. "Hey, Flash!" He turned to his friends, seeing them all stand up. "Come on. We're gonna head over to the temple. Thought we might learn a bit more about the festival there." Flash blinked at the suggestion, turning to stare out at the crowd again, still seeing nothing. Shrugging at this, he looked back at his friends and began to follow. But as he did this, no one saw a certain Pokémon staring down at them. It was a Surskit, and its antenna was wrapped with a black band with a metal box on the front that held a camera lens on the front. "Surs…" it hissed as it followed Flash before turning back to the crowd. Meanwhile... In his submarine, Guile watched as Flash rejoined his friends and headed to the temple. "Great..." he growled while sitting back in his chair, "Just what I need: Another annoying kid with a stronger than it should be Pokémon getting in my way. Well not this time." The monitor changed to show Black and White, both with their heads hanging low. "You two idiots get back here." "But we can-" "You blew it." Guile interrupted, "She knows you're after her now, and she won't make a habit of being alone again. We'll need to wait for the right opportunity to grab her. For now, get back here before you're seen." "What about that kid that saved her?" Black asked, Guile chuckling and shaking his head in response. "I've met his type before. He won't let what happened go easily. In fact, he might just be the key to everything we need. I'll keep an eye on him and see what he uncovers, you two just get back here and wait for further instructions." The two nodded before Guile switched the feed back to Surskit's camera. "Now, help me find her." Back in the city... "That is weird," Twilight commented as Flash finished explaining what had happened before. "Who do you think that girl was?" "I don't know..." "Maybe it was just an act," Spike added, "Maybe they were just rehearsing for a bit in the festival." Flash shook his head, "I don't think so. She seemed generally scared." He turned to Springer, "Right bud?" The Riolu nodded, having sensed a great amount of fear from her before. "Whatever it was, it was definitely real." "Maybe you should tell the police," Twilight chimed in. "And tell them what? I saved a girl I've never met before from a pair of weirdos wearing strange armor. They'll think I'm nuts." "He's got you there," Doc replied, "Probably best to wait and see if you can learn more before contacting the authorities." Flash nodded in agreement. And as he did, the group arrived at the bridge leading toward the temple. They were in awe at the sight, seeing the giant building, thinking it was more like a palace than a temple. Multiple people were spotted walking along the bridge, only for a voice to call out, "Hey!" They spun around to see Vinyl and Octavia walking up with smiles on their faces, "Thought you'd be here. Came to check out the legend of the temple?" "Yes," Twilight replied while nodding, "But what are you doing here? I thought your families were holding a party for you." "They are," Vinyl responded with a slight blush as Octavia rolled her eyes. "I made the mistake of having Vinyl send the message home, telling them when we were gonna arrive. They thought we would be home tomorrow, not today." The others laughed at the mistake, Vinyl pouting before yelling, "Anyways! You guys are obviously here because you wanna hear the story of the festival, am I right?!" They all nodded back, "Well, we'll start with the craziest part. It all started with a war." "It did?" Spike asked with raised eyebrows, Vinyl nodding as they began to walk along the bridge. "Sure did. A big one too. Both sides had giant armies of both people and Pokémon and they battled right here." "In the city?" Flash replied, Octavia shaking her head in response. "The city wasn't built yet. It was just a bunch of islands on the coast that the two armies met on. They battled for weeks, new soldiers constantly arriving to replenish the ones that had fallen." "Sounds brutal," Doc commented. Octavia nodded, "It was. It was a time of great strife in Equestria. And the hatred and sorrow the battle caused had greater consequences then any of them realized. You see, their negative emotions were felt by a powerful Pokémon that had been sleeping at the bottom of the ocean for centuries." "Sirenity?" Twilight asked, getting a nod in reply. "Exactly," Vinyl said with a clap, "But it didn't sleep for long. Eventually, the hatred and sadness it felt caused it to awaken and become overwhelmed by those emotions, driving it into a seemingly unstoppable rage." "So...what happened next?" Spike gasped as they got closer to the temple. "What any enraged Pokémon would do," Octavia replied with a sigh. "It went on a rampage and attempted to destroy the armies that caused its rage." "Oh dear. What kind of power did it wield?" Twilight asked next. "There's a reason Sirenity is known as the Voice of the Ocean. It's song has the power to control water in a manner almost no other Pokémon can. And in its rage, Sirenity used its song to create a massive tidal wave that would have not only wiped out the armies, but destroy miles of the surrounding landmass." "Yikes..." Flash gulped, "Hate to be facing that....but wait, how come all this stuff is still here?" "Did something stop Sirenity?" Twilight added. "Yes," Octavia nodded. "A maiden who was from neither side of the conflict appeared. She and a great warrior chose to intervene and stop both the fighting and Sirenity." "How?" Spike asked, only for Vinyl to smirk. "With music." This made all of them blink in confusion, Octavia chiming in next, "You see, the maiden had a power like nothing seen before. Her voice had the ability to calm Pokémon that were in a rage using an ancient language passed down through her family that no one else on the planet knows." "Wow..." Twilight gasped. "An ancient language...incredible." "Not only that, it also has the power to increase the strength of those the singer trusts more than anyone else." Octavia responded as they finally got to the temple, "The maiden came out to this island and stared both Sirenity and the tidal wave down before singing a song like none she had sung before. This song not only calmed Sirenity, but actually tamed it and would have allowed her to control Sirenity if she wanted to." "So...she was able to control a Legendary Pokémon with just music?" "But she didn't," Vinyl replied, "She simply asked it to stop the tidal wave, and when it did, it left the armies unharmed...until the warrior got to them." "Oh," Twilight caught on, "I get it. The maiden used her voice to power up the warrior." Vinyl nodded. "And with a single swing of his weapon, he was able to stop the battle and force the two armies to put down their weapons and find a peaceful solution." "And that was how Vocanctus was made," Octavia finished, "The two armies worked together and built this temple as an apology to Sirenity, then they chose to stay in the camp they set up while building it. That camp quickly turned into a couple of houses, only to keep building until Vocanctus was born." "What happened to the maiden?" Doc asked next. "She chose to remain in the city and live in the temple, becoming a priestess that governed it." Hearing a splashing sound, the group moved to the side of the bridge, now seeing a bunch of Kelpool and Lokelpie sitting on the rocks near the water. "Look at them all," Spike awed as Vinyl giggled. "Yeah, we've got a bunch of them here. Makes sense since Sirenity is meant to be considered as royalty to them." "Yes," Octavia added, "It's said they would be willing to put their lives on the line in order to protect Sirenity, even though it's really the other way around since Sirenity protects our city." "It does?" Twilight asked, "How did that happen?" Octavia gestured for them to follow to explain, the group now seeing the weapons covering the walls of the temple, "When the war was over and the temple was built, Sirenity is said to have remained here and chose to act as the city's protector. Using its powers over the ocean, the legendary is said to keep the seas around the city calm." "Yeah! Its so cool!" Vinyl chimed in, "You know, our city has never been hit by anything stronger than a light rain." This made everyone go wide-eyed, expecting a city on the ocean to be constantly hit by storms and hurricanes. "Thanks to Sirenity, no storm has ever come within ten miles of our city." "Wow..." Doc replied while nodding, "That is amazing." At the same time, Spike stared at the weapons on the walls, reaching to touch one before Twilight slapped his hand, making him backpedal and pout before asking, "Ow...say, what are these even doing here?" "They're the weapons used by the warring armies. They were put here to symbolize the hope of ever lasting peace between the two armies. Though now it's impossible to tell who's from which side since we've mingled and joined so much, everyone born here is likely a descendant of someone from both sides." "So what does this have to do with the festival?" Doc asked next. "The Voice of the Ocean Festival is a celebration of the day the war ended," Octavia responded, "It's also a time for giving thanks to Sirenity for keeping our city safe. Every year, the people of the city come to this temple and give their thanks while praying for another year of the protection. And as they do, the priestess sings to Sirenity." "The priestess?" Flash turned to her, "She's still alive?" Octavia laughed and shook her head, "No. The priestess is a title passed down through the family. The original priestess married the warrior and together, they birthed a daughter that inherited her ability. So, it's been their family tradition to watch over the temple and sing for Sirenity." "So who's the priestess now?" Twilight asked, only to see sad frowns appear on the two girl's faces. "Is something wrong?" Vinyl was the one who answered. "Well, you see, the priestess we have now is a little...different. She was actually born as a triplet." Octavia nodded in agreement. "Her name is Sonata Dusk, and her sisters were called Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze." "Were?" Doc asked, everyone gulping as they had a feeling they knew where this was going. "They died a year ago, on the night of the last festival. They were out on a yacht when some kind of accident occurred. Their boat was pulled under and only Sonata was found the next day." "That's so sad," Twilight gasped, "She must have been devastated." "She was," Vinyl replied while nodding as well, "A lot of people are worried that Sonata won't be able to pull off this year's festival. Over the last ten years, she and her sisters sung it together and now...well, she's all alone." The group all remained quiet after this, the group feeling sorry for the girl they had not met. Seeing this, Vinyl and Octavia changed subjects, and over the next half hour or so, they continued to look around the temple while the duo explained different aspects of the festival they had to look forward too. There would be all kinds of music, games, food and other entertainment. But as they did this, Flash and Springer found a certain sword on wall, staring at the weapon. "Pretty cool, huh bud?" He asked Springer, the Riolu nodding back. "Ri!" Springer replied before freezing up with wide-eyes. "What is it?" Springer didn't reply, instead pointing to a crowd. The trainer turned to the cluster of people, only to see a certain girl, "Hey, its her." She had just stepped into the temple with her hands in her pockets, her eyes darting around as she kept looking behind her. But as she did this, she then spotted Flash, freezing in place with eyes going wide. The two stared at each other for several seconds before she spun around, running out of the temple. "HEY!" Flash yelled as he began to run after her, Springer following as well. But as he tried to catch up to her, the girl rushed through the crowd, getting ahead of him as he ran into the people. And as he did this, his outburst got his friends' attention. "Where's he going?" Twilight asked the others. "No idea," Doc replied while Spike just shrugged. Flash, Springer and Sonata all ran as fast as they could along the bridge, Sonata's lead slowly growing shorter due to the boy's better physical prowess. But before he could catch up, she reached the end of the bridge and disappeared into the city. "Wait!" He yelled as continued to follow her, running around a corner, only to find himself at a three-way street. "What the-where'd she go now?" "Riolu!" Springer added as he ran ahead and turned left, having managed to pick up her aura. "Lead the way bud!" Flash replied as he followed him, the two now winding through the streets. They soon found themselves at a street with a canal running through it, and saw the girl on the other side, "Hey!" She stopped and slowly turned to him, a look of pure fear on her face. Despite this, Flash called out to her, "Why are you running away? I just wanna know what was happening back there." "I-I-I don't know what y-y-you're talking about," she replied, "Just...leave me alone!" She spun around and ran off again, Flash yelling again, "Hey! Come back!" He growled at this, then looking for a way over the canal next. He soon spotted a bridge further down the street, knowing it wouldn't be fast enough. Fortunately, a boat was about to pass by, making a bulb go off in Flash's head. "Hold on bud." Flash grabbed Springer amd put him on his shoulders, the Riolu grabbing his head as his trainer gripped his legs and took several steps back. Then when the boat came in line, Flash leap into the air. The inhabitants of the boat, gasped as the craft suddenly rocked, the teen hopping on before leaping to the other side of the canal. And as he landed, Springer didn't waste a moment as he leapt off his shoulders to follow after her aura, the two now racing through the streets again. But as they did this, a certain Surskit was following them, its speed and agility making it easy for the Bug Water-type to keep up with them as they zigzagged through the streets. The chase went on for a few minutes, Springer keeping a lock on her no matter how well she managed to evade them through the city. "Careful," a women said after the two had turned a corner and almost ran into her. "Sorry!" Flash replied without slowing down. They were on along a straight street now, able to spot the girl as she was just a few feet ahead. "Just stop already!" He yelled as they turned down another street. But as they did this, they came to a stop, now spotting it to be a dead end. "What?" Flash yelped as they walked down the street, noticing the girl was now gone. The teen saw the place was completely boxed in, no exits to be seen as there were two buildings on either side, both tall and had no doors or windows on the side facing the alleyway. And at the very end of the alley was a large pond that was being fed by a large waterfall coming out from the wall. He stared at the falling liquid, seeing it to be a good ten meters tall and had no way of scaling it. "I don't get it. Where'd she go?" Flash looked down at Springer, "She did come down this street, right?" "Ri," Springer nodded, the Riolu trying to sense her aura again. He then stared at the waterfall, now seeing the aura didn't stop when it reached it. "Ri?" Springer went up to the edge of the pond before stepping into the water, which only went up to his knees. "Springer?" Flash asked as his partner walked up to the waterfall. He then stepped into the waterfall, passing right through. "Springer!" The teen gasped as he hopped into the pond and threw his hand into the waterfall...but didn't feel Springer on the other side. He blinked at this, now noticing he couldn't feel anything on the other side. Realizing what this meant, Flash took a deep breath before slowly stepped through the waterfall. As he did this, Surskit stared down at him as the camera recorded him vanishing into the water. And as this happened, Guile chuckled while watching in his sub, "Interesting. Very interesting."