Pokémon: Knight of Order

by Darkevony

Chapter 5: Moving On

Little pitter patters of paws could be heard on the metal roof of the train, drowned out by the rattling of the wheels while moving along the mountain tracks towards the familiar town of Ponyville and puffing out pillowy white smoke from the engine's blastpipe. No one had paid the noise any mind. There was excitement in the air while the group of friends chatted amongst themselves on what they would find ahead. Past the cheerful veneer, there was also a sense of dread since no pony or human had forgotten what their purpose for this trip was. The confrontation against Arceus was still fresh in everyone's minds, and there was the very real possibility that it could appear at any moment. Twilight was the first to realize everyone's questions when the topic of conversation had shifted from talking about the history of humans living together with their Pokemon.

"So Emile, Hilda. Um... I know we got a rundown from Professor Juniper about what kind of Pokemon Arceus was, and why it's so dangerous, but we're still mostly in the dark about it. Is it okay if I ask you what you know?" She asked them sheepishly, knowing that it was a very sensitive topic that only invited worry and concern. Every pony quieted as she had asked this question, indicating their troubled curiosity.

Strangely, while Hilda looked uncomfortable touching up on the subject since she had the same mindset as the ponies in thinking of it as a heavy topic, Emile on the other hand looked at them with a smile that eased them up a bit. He realized that keeping any more information from them would hinder their ultimate goal going forward, and now was a perfect time to discuss what he knew of It with them.

"What do you know about Arceus, Hilda?" He asked her nonchalantly, which allowed her to feel comfortable speaking about it.

"Not much honestly. After your disappearance at Mt. Coronet, I got to studying the ancient history of Sinnoh and Pokemon since there were rumors that your work there had something to do with It. But there was very little information available to the public, so all I really know is kid's tales about It being the first Pokemon and the creator of the world. The Professor told us as much when you were under." She said, gesturing to herself and the rest of the ponies.

"That thing was beyond powerful. Even the Princess was no match for it... Are you sure we can fight that thing?" Rainbow Dash shuttered.

"I'm sure that big ol' meanie just needs a friend and a few laughs!" Pinkie was the only one unfazed by the topic of conversation.

"Now that's an idea I can get behind. Imagine how easy it would be to quell the Pokemon outbreaks in Equestria if we had a god's help!" Laughed Emile, seizing on the opportunity that Pinkie Pie had made for him to lighten the mood. "Tell you what though, it's not that powerful. I mean, I fought against it and I'm still alive to tell the tale, right? I bet I could take him on no problem with my little super pal Eevee here." He said, gesturing over at the Vaporeon sitting on the opposite seats across the isle.

Vaporeon was making bubbles towards Oshawott using Bubble Beam, with the little otter Slashing at them with its schalop. They were playing and training at the same time. They were both quite skilled, as they had held their moves back enough to not cause any damage to the train whatsoever. Discipline and precision was the name of the game this time.

"If that's not enough, we've got a mighty Oshawott to back us up. Not forgetting the indominable Tepig!" Emile pointed to the cute piglet on Hilda's lap who had been dozing off thanks to the rocking of the train.

The little piglet had pretty good timing, having sneezed immediately after being addressed and shooting a tiny fireball at the empty train chair in front of her and scorching the seat black. It was fortunate that the seat's original owner was not in her chair since she was overlooking the other two Pokemon's training. Her eyes widening beneath her pink curly mane. The mood picked up again at the sight of this as everyone laughed at the piggy's antics, with Hilda being left apologizing to the train's steward since he happened by in that moment to witness the damage. Though Twilight made short work on fixing it with magic, the steward looked none too happy still.

"See? Nothing to worry about. You all saw how powerful even just that tiny fireball was right? We train our Pokemon up right and we'll match Arceus' power in no time." His words were very reassuring to the group of concerned girls who had almost forgotten the topic in that moment. "Myths are often just that, myths. Since Arceus is by far the most mythical, powerful, and rare Pokemon in our world, very little is known about it so it's very possible that it's all just tall tales." His brows furrowed a bit as he tried very hard to keep smiling for their sake. "But every story has truths to it too."

"What do you mean, Emile?" Twilight was the first pick up on the shift in mood.

"Arceus is unequivocally as god-like as any creature in our world gets. I studied directly with the leading expert on Its origins, the long-time Sinnoh region champion Cynthia. What we know of It, and what I can guess from the ancient glyphs and texts we found, is only that Its nature and strength are unfathomable. I can say it with certainty after having fought it once before. I really do think it was sheer dumb luck that I found myself unharmed here in Equestria."

He explained to them in greater detail about Arceus' troubled past with humans. About the tablets the humans of the distant past had stolen and why It looked to sunder the world into oblivion to find them, as it was believed that they were Its very essence and life force. And he also told them about the prophecy that lay within them.

"I do feel a bit sorry for Arceus I must admit, even after everything we've seen it do." Rarity spoke up, with every pony sharing that sentiment. "I don't agree that its reaction was very forthcoming of it, but it is a very sad thing to be betrayed by those you love and then being left almost to wither away because of their greed."

They had all caught onto the fact that these tablets being stolen from Arceus had almost killed It in the process. He had explained to the ponies how ancient scriptures talked about a time where It once walked among men and pokemon, protecting them from galactic and seismic threats like meteors and earthquakes during the early lifespan of the world. How It had used the power of Its tablets to nurture the barren land they lived in. How It had once loved them all unconditionally. And how in their avarice, they had used the power of Pokemon to rend the tablets away from It, leaving it for dead to recover for millennia in a realm outside of time.

"This whole dang thing is all messed up, sugarcube. I don't even feel like fighting it anymore... But I can't let it hurt my friends like this! Some pony has to beat some sense into it." Applejack said and stomped both her hooves with defiance.

"I think so too. It's why I wish Pinkie Pie's idea could work. Maybe all It really needs is a friend and someone to love it back. But it's hard to fix such a broken relationship." Emile rustled his hair in thought. He sighed defeatedly. "I tried everything in my power to find and return those tablets back to it in my old world, but to no avail. I didn't have the luxury of time the first time I faced it and I've been running on pure hysteria ever since. I wish I had been more rational and calm when I confronted Arceus honestly. It took me getting to know you guys to realize that I really want to try to find a better way of fixing things. I hope you're all there with me next time we meet it again, since I don't know if I'm ready to confront It in earnest."

Emile looked down at his legs in his shame at his weakness. He felt Twilight's hoof and Hilda's hand on top of his, and the rest of the pony friends joined in by resting theirs on his shoulders.

"If it's for our Pokemon friends or even just for you, Emile, we'll back you up no matter what. But this time, I won't tell you to ask because I can't trust you to do that. We just will." Said Twilight with a bit of sass and smiled at him.

"Honestly I don't know if I could handle it either! But I'm with you, Emile. Together, we got this." Hilda beamed.

The moment having passed, the topic of conversation shifted to lighter topics as they discussed the creatures of Equestria. Emile was curious to know of the kinda of fauna they'd be meeting and their habitats. Fluttershy answered enthusiastically by recanting her knowledge on her little critter friends. Twilight gave him a bigger history lesson on Equestria and its sentient races. Finally, it was a very boastful Rainbow Dash that spoke of all the dangerous monsters of Equestria that they had met, like the massive four headed hydra or even some of the dragons who could billow so much smoke from their nostrils that they could cover all of Equestria in a veil of darkness in their sleep if not careful. As dragons were mentioned, what followed next was talking about the little purple dragon he had met before.

"So what kind of abilities does Spike have as a dragon?"

"Other than laze around and goof off whenever possible?" Twilight snickered. "As far as abilities go, he has superior magic resistance thanks to his scales and dragon vitality. He can also send messages to Princess Celestia in an instant with his fire breath."

"It's always good to have more able-bodied hands. Err, claws in his case. He seems like a nice kid from when I met him."

"Of course, Spike is a little darling. A bit crude around the edges but he's always looking out for others and he hardly ever complains when I ask the unreasonable from him." Rarity was somehow oblivious to the knowing smiles of all of her friends and the obvious affection of the little dragon.

Twilight seemed to ponder at this a bit. "I guess I hadn't really given it much of a thought. Spike has been a part of my family since we were both young, and he's put up with a lot of my magic experiments and training. Even if you don't consider the work he puts in to help me at the library and on my research, he's been a major help throughout my life. I daresay I wouldn't be half the mare I am without Spike." This was quite introspective of Twilight. After having gone through the ordeals they had over the last few days, everyone was now thinking deeper about the blessings afforded to them.

"What about you guys? Any family to talk about?"

"I have loads! I'd love to introduce you to 'em next time the family reunion comes around. They all have their own apple orchards all over Equestria so it'll be hard to meet 'em this time of year. As for my immediate family, I've got Applebloom, Big Mac, ol' Granny Smith and not to forget my faithful companion Winona! She's a real workhorse for roundin' up herds." Applejack was quite happy to talk about her family.

"That's nothing! I've got the fiercest most daredevilish of all the pets in Ponyville! My buddy, Tank. He's a tortoise after my own heart." Rainbow Dash said as she nudged Applejack out of the way.

"Oh please, Dashy. The barbaric stunts the two of you pull is hardly impressing anyone. Now my elegant and beautiful, Opal, on the other hoof is the greatest feline alive. She rivals my own beauty." She dismissed Rainbow Dash's taunting expression of putting her tongue out with one harumph. "I also have my lovely yet troublesome little sister Sweetie Belle. Oh how I do wish she'd behave. She's always out with Applebloom and Scootaloo making a mess of Celestia knows what."

"Love that little filly like a sister. She's always looking up to me." Rainbow Dash said, talking about Scootaloo. "Didn't they form some kind of group? Eh, what was it?"

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, if I remember what Applebloom said." Applejack's brow furrowed. "Can't help but worry 'bout the tots. They've got quite the adventurous spirit and are always walkin' into dangerous caves and dungeons and such."

"Mystery dungeons?" Emile asked.

"Hm? What was that, sugarcube?"

"Nothing, just a bit of fictional media from our world." Laughed Emile, with Hilda giving a knowing smile. "What about you Pinkie, Fluttershy? What's your family situation like?"

"Oh uhm, I've got my hooves full with all my critter friends at home. My trustiest companion is a little rabbit I've known for the longest time. His name is Angel and he's quite adorable." Replied Fluttershy, happy to talk about her friends.

"Quite mean, you meant to say." The cyan one said from the sidelines.

"He's not always mean. He just gets a little cranky sometimes. He's a good rabbit on the inside. He just finds it difficult to show his affection, is all." A tsun? Thought Emile.

Emile found it strange that Pinkie Pie was the last to talk about her own family. He half expected her to jump on the chance, but he guessed that anyone could have a troubled relationship with their own blood, even the Pink ball of laughter herself. "I come from a grumpy family full of sour-faced miners if you'd believe it." She said, giving Emile an uncharacteristically weak smile. "I've got three sisters and my parents who refuse to smile like if their life depended on it! Humph!" She tilted her head away to hide her own frown. She came back with a very bright expression on her face almost as quickly. "But I do have my loyalest, friendliest, cutiest, special-ist friend, Gummy. My pet alligator!"

An alligator? Now that was quite something, Emile thought. Spike having sentience and being a good-natured kid really took away from the shock factor on how dangerous he could be as a dragon, and everyone else's pets were pretty standard all things considered. But alligators were quite unheard of. Even in his own world, alligator animals and alligator-type Pokemon like Feralligator were quite infamous for their aggression.

"Is it dangerous at all, Pinkie?"

"Don't mind it too much, Emile. It's very small and it has no teeth. Though it still bites pretty hard with its gums so watch out for it if you see it close to you." Twilight spoke up before Pinkie could, having dug her hoof into the pink one's mouth.

"What about you, Hilda? Anything you wanna talk about?"

"Hmm? Me? Oh! I guess I do." She had been pretty distracted listening to everyone's story to think of her own. "Ahem well, hello guys I'm Hilda, nice to meet you." She said in a pseudo-reintroduction, which prompted every pony to greet her again. "I've had my mom and the professor growing up. They've always looked out for my antics!" She beamed. "My friends Cheren and Blanca always told me I had a bit of a black personality. Something about my words not fitting my appearance and how gung-ho I was about being the best Pokemon trainer. I mean c'mon. They weren't even remotely surprised when I won Unova's Pokemon League against Alder the first time around. Isn't that so mean?"

"Whoa, for real? Unova's champion?" Emile exclaimed with surprise.

"Hmm? Oh yeah, I guess I didn't mention it, huh? Teehee." She said cheekily.

"Are Pokemon Leagues really that big a deal? Didn't you win like a whole bunch, Emile?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yeah. They really are. If you remember what I told you guys, those championships are a tournament for the best trainers in all the land competing to see who the strongest is. The trainers and the Pokemon who battle there spend their whole life training, constantly fighting anyone who will give them an opportunity in order to inch their strength towards being the best."

"It was... SO HARD." Hilda rested back in the chair defeatedly. "You guys have like, no idea. It's not even so much the winning part either! Being a Champion is exhausting business. I remember how confused I was at seeing Alder so happy and content at having lost the battle for the championship. The old man had been waiting a long time to finally pass down the title AND the responsibility, that wicked schemer! I mean, when you're champion, everyone wants a piece of you! It's battle-central. Even getting on the subway I couldn't escape it!" She sighed. "It's also a lot of stress maintaining the appearance of a champion you know. They tell you that you shouldn't show any weakness. Trainers from all over look up to you. 'If you're going to be the very best, act like the best.' They say. I have no idea how Emile put up with it for so long!"

"That does sound kinda stressful, yeah." Rainbow Dash admitted. "I wonder if that's how the fastest fliers in Equestria, the Wonderbolts feel. I've always wanted to be like them."

"Any kind of public gig comes with that hassle I think. But don't let my words stop you, Dashy!" Hilda responded to her. "That wasn't my scene though as I learned, so I just handed off my championship title to Cheren and let him handle all the heavy lifting for a few years while I went back to my hometown to help the professor instead!" She laughed. "I got to have lazy days hanging out with my Pokemon team as I researched Unova's Pokemon with the professor..." She got quiet and her expression dropped at those words. She had tripped her own landmine. "You know, I kinda miss them actually. I know my friends Amanita and Fennel are taking good care of my Pokemon in my PC but... I don't even know if I'll get to see them again. They were family too, you know." She petted the tepig on her lap slowly while she said it, the little piglet looking up at her with concern and trying to comfort Hilda by nudging at her.

The ponies all hugged Hilda in a mess of hooves, wings, and horns until little was visibly left of her in order to comfort the aching girl. As they pulled away, what was left was a giggly bright-eyed youngster with tears in her eyes, brushing them away with her arms. The little piglet reflected her mood by dancing on the girl's lap in a happy dance, knowing that she had recovered.

"It's okay. Worst comes to worst, I know my Pokemon are strong and wise enough to find new lives out in the wild after they're eventually released. Besides, it's not just me going through this. The Professor no doubt shares in this too, as she had her own Pokemon that were left behind." She paused and then looked up at Emile, who had been a little beside himself in wondering how he should comfort her. "And Emile too. You've been a trainer for longer than I can remember. I wanted to be champion initially to follow behind you, so I know you must've seen your fair share of your Pokemon friends come and go. How do you deal with it, Emile?"

"I'm sorry to say, but there's no Full-Heal for that kind of thing." He said, giving her a half smile. "If there is, I certainly haven't found it. I've had to release a lot of my friends over the years as I traveled to new lands, and it never got easier. Pokemon are living creatures, and they deserve to be free and happy. Or so I think. That's why I never kept any of them for too long, except my little Eevee here since he would refuse to leave my side every time." He said gesturing over to the Eevee that had transformed into a Leafeon in the interim during their playtraining session. Oshawott and it had returned to him after hearing this. "Best we can do is continue to step a foot forward into the future. For their sake and for ours too. That's the way I see it. Even if it's a little hard for me to do it. It's why I wanted you guys keep calling me Emile. My own little weird way of wanting to move forward, I think."

Leafeon cried a little yelp at this as if to agree, suddenly changing back into an Eevee.

"Hmm. Is that right? It'll be a little weird ya know." Emile was now somehow having his own private conversation with Eevee. The rest of them looked at the two in quizzical confusion. "Well alright. But you can't complain if you don't like what I think of." He put his hand to his chin to think of something.

"You can understand what it's saying, Emile? I didn't know it worked the other way around when you said Pokemon could understand us." Fluttershy had a glimmer in her eyes.

"Well, sort of. It's something like... intuition, I guess. You've never felt that way with your own animals, Fluttershy?"

"I see what you mean, and oh yes, I have. But I can only discern their feelings and make assumptions. It looked like you were having a real conversation with Eevee just there. I'm a little envious."

Emile and Eevee stared at each other in silence, then they both turned to look at her. "Well, it's something like that too. But you'd be correct in assuming we were talking in specifics. Eevee was saying how it wanted a nickname too. Something to match my own. What do you think, Fluttershy, got any names floating around? Girls?" He said as he looked to the rest of them. Everyone shook their head after thinking about it for a bit in silence.

"It's sorta like when we found out your name was Red. It's kinda hard to choose something new after associating you with something else." Mused Twilight.

"Uhm. How about an abbreviation of its name? That way it won't be too unfamiliar. I do that all the time with my animal buddies." Fluttershy gently picked up the little fox into her forelegs. "How about Eve?" She said as the little fox cried out in contentedness at the new nickname.

"Well, that seals the deal!" Emile petted Eve from Fluttershy's grasp. "At least now it'll be easier to address you when you change forms." He said in its directions as it twirled its tail in amusement.

"Nicknames! Now those are customary for a lot of trainers and their Pokemon." Hilda brought the little piggy back up into the air to meet her face. "What do you think of... Teah. Sounds nice, right? Tea-ah?" She said to the little piggy. Sure enough, if it was Hilda, the piglet had no qualms and basked at the new name.

The little otter got up onto Emile's lap and just stared at him for a solid while, as though it were saying 'What about me?' with the look in its eyes. It was hard for the others to tell from this as its deadpan serious expression made it hard to discern what it was thinking, but the bonds between trainer and Pokemon were strong and Emile was able to figure the little guy out, no problem.

"What do you think, Oshawott? Osha or Otta?" Emile said, holding the two names in each hand respectively. It didn't budge. Not because it didn't understand his gesture at allowing it to choose, but because it didn't know what to choose. Eve made a lunge for his left arm to chew on it as if choosing Osha for its nickname. "Well, that's what Eve thinks. You okay with that?" The little otter nodded. "Then welcome aboard, Osha. We've got a lot of adventures ahead of us." He said with a smile and held out one finger towards it, allowing the Otter to grab at it with its tiny paw.

"Look look, everyone, Ponyville is coming into view!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed while jumping excitedly in place looking out the window, urging everyone to go take a look at the scenery.

Instantly, every pony, human, and pokemon knew in that moment that their adventure would be met with challenges at every step. As the town came into view, they could all see the distinct black pillars of smoke from the fires that tore at the pastel-colored houses, the townsfolk running for the hills trying to evacuate.

Ponyville was burning.

Comments

[Darkevony]

11356554

Nice catch! Was waiting for someone to piece that tidbit together!

[Fireflight startrottor]

Oh shit not good