6: Things Long Forgotten

“Oh… My stomach…” Munna moans as they exit the Magnagate.

“Sorry about that. I would have said to close your eyes but I forgot in the heat of the moment.” Espeon replies. She looks over the Entercards which have apparently cracked under strain and are beginning to smoke. “Guess Keldeo couldn’t figure out how to make his modified cards last more than a few uses. This is the third set we used up this week.”

“Perhaps for the sake of our safety we work with our standard ones until we get that sorted out?” Thunder suggests. “I’d rather not be stuck in a hostile dungeon with no way out…”

“Fair point.” Umbreon agrees. He turns to face Munna and her companions. “Are you three ok?”

“I’ll live… Though I may need to lie down…” Munna replies.

“If you don’t mind, Munna, after you start feeling better I’d like to ask a few questions.” Thunder says.

“Yeah… Sure. I’ll probably be a while, though.”

“Don’t worry. I can wait.”

“…Glass Lake? Why am I back here?” Munna surveys the still waters of the lake. She could have sworn she was in Pokemon Paradise with New Hope. Yet she feels like she remembers coming here. But she can’t for the life of her recall how.

She spots a figure in the distance. A familiar figure. …Empoleon. Fight or flight takes control. Munna attempts to flee. However the moment she turns away, something else stands in her way, a ghostly Charizard. However the flame on its tail was gone. It was James. She could tell. Munna yelps as the Charizard grabs her tight before she has a chance to react. “ You’re not going anywhere, Munna… I haven’t forgotten what you did to me…” He says in an echoing ethereal voice.

“Stop! Please!” She screams, trying to struggle out of his grip. “I thought it was the only way to help the world! I didn’t know there was a better option! Let me go! I’m sorry!”

“It’s long past too late to apologize, Munna. For now it’s time to face your punishment.”

“Every action has a consequence, Munna.” Empoleon’s voice came from behind her. “And that’s what this is.”

“Mercy! Please! Don’t do this!” Munna cries.

“No.” James replies. “You don’t deserve mercy. You deserve to perish.”

James hands Munna over to Empoleon who in turn dives into the lake with her in tow. Panic overtakes Munna as she gets dragged farther and farther down. The pressure of the surrounding water grows with each passing moment. While Empoleon seems unaffected, Munna can feel the crushing weight pushing against her body. Soon it becomes too much, forcing the air out of her lungs and preventing her from breathing back in. And soon her body begins to shut down. The last thing she hears is Empoleon, chuckling at her demise.

Munna wakes with a start. Looking around she is relived to see that she is in bed. It was just another dream. In spite of being asleep for an hour or so, she feels like a Snorlax. But it’s not likely she’ll get any more sleep after that. Well, may as well see what Thunder was hoping to ask about.

“Thunder? You in there?” Munna asks, knocking on his front door.

The door opens to reveal the electric mouse. “Munna! Good to see you. Come on in.” Munna hovers into his home, ready to hear what he has to say. “Remember when we first saw each other?”

“Yeah. Mt. Kilionea.”

“That’s right. You were trying to kill me, weren’t you? Don’t worry. I’m not holding that against you.”

“I was. I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”

“Why were you trying to kill me?”

“Well… Because… Uh…” That’s strange… Why can’t she remember? And why would he attack a pikachu the way she did? “I…don’t know, actually…”

“You mentioned at the time that you were hunting humans in Pokemon form. I remember that. But I’m a Pokemon. Purely a Pokemon. So why attack me?”

“What are you getting at, Thunder?”

“I’ve noticed some strange things regarding the last month that don’t make sense. Everyone else thinks I’m being obsessive, but I swear, there’s something going on. For one, my nickname. Thunder. I don’t ever recall being called that before I started saying it myself. Then there’s this.” He gestures to one of two beds in the room. “Where did this come from? Why is it here?”

“Thunder…”

“Then there’s the fact that everyone thinks I destroyed the Bittercold. The winds of despair suffocate any Pokemon that gets too close. How did I get in and finish the job? Then there’s you, the human Hunter attacking me, a Pokemon.

“Well…”

“And last is this.” He opens a drawer and pulls out a New Hope badge. “Everyone in New Hope has a badge that has their named engraved on the back. But this one… ‘Alex,’ I have no idea where it came from.”

“Ok, hold up, Thunder, what are you going on about? What does all this mean?”

“I can’t say for sure. But I think that there used to be another member of New Hope. A human named Alex. And for whatever reason we can’t remember him. It would explain everything that I’ve seen.”

“Come on Thunder. There’s got to be a more reasonable-“

“Don’t you start too, Munna. I’ve heard it enough. I’m not crazy! There’s something here that’s missing. Can’t you see? I need help. And you’re the only one I know with experience with humans. Don’t turn your back on me as well.” …Thunder truly believes what he’s saying. Munna is sorely tempted to just brush it off as mad ramblings, but she knows that there were humans on Pokèmar. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to say that he encountered one… But then why does no one remember him? And where would he have gone? However his case with all the unexplained coincidences has some logic to it. Maybe, just maybe, he’s on to something.

“Alright. I’ll help you.”

“Really?! Thank you! Thank you so much! You have no idea what that means to me!”

“So I say we start at the library. There must be something about what we’re looking for.”

“That’s probably a safe bet. Let’s go!”