Chapter 26: Festival Day Funkin’

After Ezera, Litleo, and Dewott solidified Team Rebound, the trio were bound to the guild in the following days. Half of it was due to Indeedee’s instruction, as the nurse wanted to keep a close eye on Litleo for any troubling symptoms. Litleo, while normal for the most part, sometimes had bouts of lethargy, and her fire was weaker than she was used to.

The other half was because the team still hadn’t discussed Litleo’s human situation with the guild leaders yet. After the talk that night, Rapidash went into Kaiyo Town for business and hadn’t been back since, and Sirfetch’d claimed he was busy with a project to privately meet with any teams.

Luckily, they could do other team exercises while waiting. Those essentially boiled down to helping Ezera— battle strategies, reading practice, and fighting were the most common.

Litleo and Dewott also naturally elected Ezera as their new bag holder. It would make things easier, since the former had paws and the latter couldn’t shout during the chaos of battle to distribute items. Of course, that meant Ezera had to learn what items were what and how to use them.

“For pokémon and all their great gadgets and powers, you’re telling me there’s no easier way to differentiate these?” Ezera said, currently staring at three orbs laid out across the floor of their quarters. Each had a shiny blue tint, reflecting off the sunlight pouring through the window.

“There isn’t,” Dewott responded with a simple shake of his head. He spun his paws in a half circle by his eyes. “You have to tell by color.“

“How did you even memorize all this? You must’ve had no knowledge like me,” Ezera asked, looking at Litleo.

Litleo didn’t bother returning it, keeping her eyes closed in an attempt to nap. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe you’d get this down quicker if you stopped complaining every five seconds?”

“This is one of the few things you’ll hear me complain about, you complain way more than me!”

“I don’t complain, in fact.”

“Then you won’t complain if I ask Dewott to spray you with water?”

“Not if I ask him to spray you first.”

Ezera put his hands on his hips. “And who do you think he’ll listen to?”

Dewott looked on with eyes widened, once again caught in the crossfire of their exchange.

“I wish we could see what’s going on in town though. I’d like to know how festivals are in this world. Yamper made them sound super fun,” Ezera continued, flopping stomach down onto his cushion.

“You could go without me. Don’t let me be the one holding you back,” Litleo said.

“Then I can’t enjoy it cause I know you’re stuck here. I’d rather it be all of us.”

Litleo peeped at him, unsure if she was annoyed or touched by his reasoning. “I don’t know about you sometimes…”

Knock knock! Their attention went to the archway, where Indeedee appeared.

Ezera cleared his throat. “Hey, Indeedee. What’s up?”

“I have good news for you, cutie. Rapidash has some free time now and would like to talk to your team,” she said, one hand on the archway.

‘That’s good news? That’s more anxiety inducing than anything…‘ “Does she want to meet in the Guildmaster’s office?”

“No. You’ll be meeting inside Kaiyo’s Town Hall. You’ll find it in the upper north district.”

‘Oh, we’ll be able to see the festival!‘ Ezera’s tail perked up. “Okay, gotcha.”

“But before you go, I’d like to perform a check up on Litleo, just in case,” Indeedee noted, dipping her head slightly to say Litleo wasn’t getting out of this.

Slipping on the satchel, Ezera surveyed his teammates. “Is grandma Litleo ready to go?”

Litleo sat up before pushing him with her forepaw. “Yeah, yeah, let’s go, grandpa.“

---

On their arrival to Kaiyo Town, Ezera wasn’t surprised to see it bustling more than usual. The trio kept close to each other, squeezing body to body as they navigated through the sea of pokémon on the street. From the things Ezera could see at his short height, he made out several stalls selling merchandise like green beads, or pins that looked similar to the swords and shields on the guild emblem. The smell of fried food roamed the air, either currently being cooked or carried around by the romping children in the streets. At one stall, “dynamax” cakes were being sold, their signature trait being that they grew in size as one ate it.

“Hehehe, I want that one!” a cubchoo squealed to an ursaring.

“You’ll have to share with your brother…”

The conversation was lost as more noises barraged his ears.

“Get yer Zacian and Zamazenta themed medallions here!” a nearby vendor cried.

“Play twice, get a third game free!” another yelled.

“Let’s do that next!”

‘This festival looks more like a carnival… Or maybe festival and carnival are basically the same thing,‘ Ezera mused. “Do you two know what the festival is called?” he asked, raising his voice to be heard over the crowd.

“The Rexianta Festival,” Dewott replied.

Immediately Ezera wanted to say that sounded like T-Rex, but held off since neither of his companions would get it. “Must be important if there’s so many pokémon gathered.”

“Some would call it the most important for townsmon.“

“Why?”

“Take a look yourself.” Dewott wandered off to the side, ripping a paper from a light post.

Ezera scanned it, happy he understood enough of the alphabet to make general sense of it. It read:

Get ready as Kaiyo Town honors its beginnings, as well as when The Days of Ruination ended!

‘So it’s about the Days of Ruination. That would explain the Zacian and Zamazenta stuff, but who was the third that helped stop Eternatus again…?‘ Ezera folded the paper, then tucked it into the satchel. “A memento of our time here,” he said to Litleo, who he caught staring.

“I didn’t say anything,” Litleo replied matter of factly.

“Your face did.”

“Then stop looking. Let’s take the alley here, less pokémon to walk through,” she suggested.

Team Rebound cut across, passing by small pubs and obscure shops along the way. It amazed Ezera how every time they came into town he noticed something new. Then again, the same could be said back when he was a human— he never explored the city he lived in much either.

If he were home now, would he go out more often? Would he brave the streets and neighborhoods and see the world? Or would he settle into the comfort of home again, waiting for a new exciting thing to drop into his lap? Ezera didn’t know if he grew much in that regard.

“Hey, where’re you going?” Litleo asked, pulling his attention away.

Ezera looked behind him. Somehow he went ahead a good ten feet without them. “Oh, it’s not this way anymore?”

“Did you look at the sign?” She gestured to a street sign made after machamp pointing multiple directions. The bronze machamp’s arm pointing northwest had Town Hall engraved on it.

“Totally…”

Dewott patted Ezera’s shoulder as he rejoined them, and they resumed their walk to town hall. After following a couple more signs, the path gradually became wide enough where they weren’t having to push past pokémon anymore. Soon enough, town hall was in sight.

The straight path to the building was lined in brick. Diamond-shaped braziers burned atop short stone pillars, and how they mirrored each other on both sides made it seem like they were walking into a pantheon for the legendaries.

Alas, the town hall itself wasn’t as grand as Ezera expected it to be. Compared to all the newer buildings, he thought it would tower over the others to symbolize its significance. In reality it was a single level built widely over the land. The arched roof stretched to cover the rectangular base, essentially making it an elongated version of the houses in Kaiyo Town.

Maybe the inside would be better.

“Have you guys been here before?” Ezera asked.

Dewott shook his head.

“Never had a reason to,” Litleo answered, silently judging the building on its appearance. “Plus, all those snooty council members are in there. No thanks.”

“You think Rapidash gets tired of dealing with them?”

“Even if she does, she has no choice. It’s part of her job,” Litleo said, swiping her mane.

Ezera stuck out his tongue, thinking if he were in her position. “I don’t envy her.”

Team Rebound pushed on the glass doors and stepped into the town hall. Ezera had to admit, the inside was better.

The main level’s walls were painted shades of beige and yellow, and the flooring sported jade green tile. Scattered throughout were counters manned by pokémon donning green headbands. Directly ahead, a large bulletin encased in glass held a complete map of the city, as well as portraits of who were presumably the pokémon on the council.

On the left and right ends where the building ended, twin ramps sloping downward led to a sunken level. Lining these ramps were small recesses in the wall, each housing a different stained glass design that was illuminated by colored Luminous Orbs. Many deep oak doors awaited on the actual lower level.

Ezera waved to a passing starly. “Excuse me, do you know where we can find Rapidash?”

“Could you elaborate on who that is?” the starly replied, shifting the papers tucked underneath her wing.

“Uh, sorry, she’s in charge of the Kaiyo Adventurer’s Guild?”

“Oh. Go ask Gothitelle at the desk over there.” The starly pointed her wing toward the desk situated near the right side ramp. “She’ll know where she is.”

“Thanks!”

“Don’t mention it.”

As Ezera approached, he became aware of how slightly intimidating Gothitelle was, and turned to Litleo for solace. In response she pushed him forward, forcing him to swallow his nerves and speak.

“Hi, we were told you might know where Rapidash is?” Ezera asked.

“Guild Vicemaster Rapidash? She’s talking with some councilmon right now. May I have some identification?” Gothitelle said, looking up from the projection she was engrossed in. It looked oddly similar to the projection the Wonder Map had.

“What’s considered uh, identification?”

Gothitelle tilted her head to the left, spotting Ezera’s bronze badge. “Nevermind. A moment, if you will.” Her eyes glowed blue for a few seconds.

Ezera tensed up. She wasn’t trying to mind read him, was she? That required permission didn’t it?

“Hmm. Fledgling Ezera, at your rank your team is not permitted to go through unless you’re given clearance by a higher up,” Gothitelle said, the blue fading away from her eyes.

‘Did she actually mind read me?!‘ Ezera subconsciously took a step back.

“Your expression tells me you think I violated your privacy. Relax. I accessed our records on the guild.”

That didn’t bring any comfort, but Litleo nudging him aside meant he had to ponder that another time.

“Rapidash is our higher up and she gave us clearance,” Litleo said, frowning.

“She never alerted me so unfortunately I cannot let you through.”

“Why don’t you ask her about it then?”

“She’s in a meeting and I cannot disturb them.” Gothitelle glanced back to the projection.

“Are you- Ugh!” Litleo whipped around. “I knew I would hate this place.”

“What’s stopping us from just going through?” Ezera whispered to her and Dewott.

Dewott held a paw out to test his theory. Instead of snatching air, it met with a blue barrier. “That, probably.“

“I will have to ask you to refrain from touching the Protect barrier,” Gothitelle remarked, still not looking at them.

“Gothitelle, they are with me, it is alright,” the familiar voice of Reuniclus said, floating up the ramp.

Gothitelle turned her head momentarily, before lightly sighing. “Researcher Reuniclus. Very well. Please do not make much noise while you are down there.” She pushed a button somewhere below her desk, making the Protect screen dissipate.

“This way, you three,” Reuniclus said, leading them down the ramp.

“I hope this goes by quickly… If I have to stick around all these stuffy pokémon another second…” Litleo muttered, giving a stink eye to Gothitelle as she passed.

“They’re just doing their jobs,” Ezera defended. “I’m glad they weren’t rude about it.”

Litleo grunted in response. Thankfully, being stuck in the guild didn’t get rid of her ability to be crabby.

When the four pokémon reached the lower level, Reuniclus took them to the third door on the right side of the wall. Turning around, Ezera noticed a set of large double doors he couldn’t see previously. These were located on the back wall, hidden between the two ramps and out of sight from the upper floor.

“Where’s that lead to?” Ezera queried, pointing to it.

“That goes to the main meeting hall. It’s able to fit every single member of the town council,” Reuniclus answered.

Dewott raised his paw. “How big is the town council? I’ve always wondered,” he signed.

Reuniclus pressed her own cheek, calculating the number. “I believe there are around… Seventy-five?”

“Bubula Lake only has a few elders as leaders,” Dewott signed, tapping his paws on top of each other before curling both wrists forward.

The door they stood next to swung open. In the next moment, Duraludon, a gray Weezing with puffy green mustaches, and an Escavalier trailed out of the room, followed by Rapidash. Mixed feelings filled Ezera— discomfort from Duraludon, and intrigue because of Weezing. All carried an air screaming some level of importance.

“The notion that we should invite the wildmon is absurd. They have their own traditions, and we already let them roam our grounds as it is,” Weezing was in the middle of saying. The white smoke emitting off his two heads trailed throughout the air and into Ezera’s face.

Ezera’s intrigue instantly died out as he waved the smoke aside. Already he could tell what kind of pokémon he would be.

“I do not believe it is right to ignore them. Not with these new threats sprouting,” Rapidash argued, pausing before the doorway.

“Were you on our council, we might be able to heed your words. Alas, you are not, and I would like to ignore them,” Duraludon persisted. He turned his lumbering body around, facing her along with Weezing and Escavalier. Either they noticed Team Rebound and Reuniclus and opted not to say anything, or they were too engrossed debating with Rapidash. “Calyrex favored us more than those wilds and it must stay that way.”

“The archives have no evidence that they did. Calyrex favored all pokémon equally,” Reuniclus interrupted.

“If that is true, why do they still communicate and aid our town? Why do the wilds struggle day to day?”

Rapidash gave him a sharp gaze. “Only because you choose to stay ignorant of their dealings.”

“There’s no convincing you, that much is clear.” Duraludon’s eyes flicked to Ezera. “You look better when you aren’t sniveling.” He then moved to Litleo. “Or half dead.”

Ezera and Litleo muttered under their breath, coincidentally using the same curse word that rhymes with stick.

“We will send payment over two days from now, as long as your teams perform an adequate job in safeguarding the festival,” Duraludon continued, before finally departing with Weezing.

“Rest assured they will.” Rapidash hid her irritation underneath her calm demeanor, though her mane lit up pink and blue every few seconds.

“I’ll try and convince what councilmon I can to render you folks some aid,” Escavalier comforted. “I reckon it won’t be much with how big Duraludon’s influence is, though.”

“Thank you, dear. I’m sure they will be more amicable once they realize the seriousness.”

Escavalier dipped her head and departed.

Rapidash beckoned the rest of them into the conference room. She pushed out the empty chairs surrounding the oval table with Psychic. “Sorry about that, dears. The councilmon aren’t very friendly by nature, save for a few.”

Ezera climbed onto a chair, but had to stand on it since they were meant for taller evolved pokémon. “For seeing themselves as so much more civil, I’d say the wildmon are five times more friendly.”

“You’ve only seen two wildmon settlements, you can’t exactly say that,” Litleo commented, jumping onto the seat next to his right. Dewott came up on the left, actually sitting, but if they were to look at him from across the table, they’d only be able to see his eyes.

“They aren’t openly rude like Duraludon, so I think it’s good enough.”

“These are matters you need not concern yourselves with. What is more important are your reasons for being here.” Rapidash looked directly at Litleo. “To get to the heart of the matter, Litleo, I wanted to ask you directly. Are you indeed a human?”

Litleo didn’t flinch. She scrunched her eyebrows thinking about it. “I could be? My memories are screwed up so I can’t tell you for certain, but I’m ninety percent sure I was.”

“Screwed up how?”

“It feels like they’re gone, but I know they’re not. They’re just… hidden and scrambled.”

“I would offer to take a look-“

“The answer is still no,” Litleo instantly shut down.

Rapidash put up a hoof. “Hence why I said ‘I would.’ I know how adamant you are against it, dear. Nevertheless, between you and Ezera, have there been any odd or unique experiences you cannot explain? Dreams or visions?”

“Nothing for me,” Litleo replied.

“None for me either,” Ezera added, shooting a glance sideways. Only Litleo knew about the voice, and he trusted she would keep that between them. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Rapidash, but this was something he wanted to keep under wraps for close friends.

Ezera’s glance went back to Rapidash, who continued to stare at him for some time. It was long enough to make him think she knew every single detail he was holding back on her. Lying really wasn’t a good look for him.

“Very well,” Rapidash said as Ezera was about to crack. “We will keep operating under the assumption that the dynamaxes must be solved.”

“Has anything come up on Sling or Orbeetle?” Dewott signed.

Reuniclus shook her head. “Nothing so far. My guess is they’re hiding where this Empress resides.”

He drew a square in the air and pushed it to the right. “Could that be on another continent?”

“It wouldn’t make sense to base all their experiments on this continent if that were the case. No, I am sure they are local.”

“Sirfetch’d and I are working with the police, Team Ace, and Piksqueak to track them. That will be our concern,” Rapidash added, stepping closer to the table.

Litleo slouched, annoyed at being told a second time something wasn’t ‘their concern.’ “What is our concern if you guys are going to take care of everything?”

“I want your team to help Reuniclus run our booth for the festival. She and Helin could use a helping hand.”

Team Rebound slowly turned to one another. That sounded so… tame. Shouldn’t they be helping with the whole dynamax deal? Or still searching for Rockruff? ‘Not to mention, if it meant finally getting a clue about going home…‘ Ezera thought.

“That’s why we came down here?” Litleo said, covering her mouth as she yawned.

“Kaiyo Town is large, and the funds we produce contribute a decent amount to our revenue. Given your current condition and what you have experienced lately,” Rapidash explained, tossing her head back to fix her mane, “I believe this to be the best use of your time.”

“Of course it’s about the money…” Litleo grumbled.

“As I understand it, your team has not been out of the guild for some time. Am I wrong that you want a change of scenery?”

“No, no, not wrong at all!” Ezera jumped in, pretending to sway with the satchel when in reality he used it to smack Litleo. “We’re fine with this.”

Litleo smacked his side in retaliation. “As long as we don’t have to be on duty all day.”

Rapidash observed their interaction in silent curiosity. She cleared her throat before resuming. “Should there be a decrease in activity, feel free to peruse the various activities throughout town. I’ll be getting back to the guild now, Sirfetch’d will need to hear what you’ve told me. Have a good day, dears, and please try not to annoy each other too much.” She trotted out as Reuniclus floated to where she previously stood.

“I hope you are ready to work one of the toughest jobs in the guild,” Reuniclus asked, clasping her hands.

Ezera gulped. “Seriously?”

“Yes, I hear customer service is a job many particularly hate.”

“Oh joy…” Litleo muttered, holding a paw to her head.

---

“And that should do it! Any questions on your duties?”

Reuniclus hovered in front of Team Rebound inside the striped blue stall they had set up. While similar in style to the ones in the shopping district, theirs wasn’t as lavish and roomy as the actual shops.

“Seems straightforward to me,” Litleo answered. She was in charge of putting the poké they received into the bags they had lined up, Ezera would greet and give Persims to the townsmon, and Dewott would keep an eye out for cheaters or thieves looking to do unsavory acts. Litleo thought it was pointless for that since a ‘mon would have to be insane to swindle the literal guild, but she also thought a ‘mon would have to be insane to stick with her for more than a week, and that hadn’t stopped a certain someone.

“We use this time to attract recruits as well, so be sure to put up friendly faces!”

“Good thing I’m in the back!” Helin chimed, her voice somewhat muffled by the merchandise burying her. The only thing visible was her black tipped ears.

“Someone’s gonna have a hard time doing that,” Ezera teased, grinning.

Litleo rolled her eyes. “Shush.” Although she wasn’t thrilled to be doing this, it was true that regular commissions were out of the question for the time being. Helping out in the town meant after they were done, they could potentially relax at the festival themselves. And she certainly didn’t mind doing that with the team… Litleo stilled her swishing tail. ‘Stop, it’s not even that exciting!‘

Dewott finished tying the knot on a corner of the tarp. “What’s the activity we’re hosting? You never said what it was.”

Ezera turned the Persim Berry over in his hand, sniffing it. “Yeah, why do I need to hand this out?”

“Oh, the game is simple. I inflict confusion and you must score the ball in the golden cup while I move them around. Rewards are a voucher for a commission done free of charge if you hit the golden cup three times, or various items we have in the back if you score five regular ones,” Reuniclus rapidly explained, not stopping for a breath. Meanwhile, she levitated an array of cups to demonstrate. She moved them up and down, in a circle, left and right, zigzag, until there was no discernible pattern. “And you, Ezera, will give participants the Persim to cure their confusion once it ends.”

“This looks rigged,” was all Litleo had to say.

Helin came by to drop off another empty sack next to Litleo. “We’re only doing what the rest of those scammers are doing. And it works.”

“Let’s refrain from that term when we have pokémon lining up, hm?” Reuniclus pointed out. “I’m officially opening up our stall. Get to your places!” She took down the sign denoting they were closed and waved to the snubbull in line.

“Hiya!” Ezera greeted, shaking their paw. “How many rounds…”

The next couple of hours went by in a blur for Litleo. The pokémon lining up to play seemed endless, taking each other’s spots one after the other to have a shot at winning. When they weren’t playing, they were in the crowd yelling excited “ooooh’s” and disappointed “aaaaw’s” for the next participants. In total so far, there were only two gold cup winners and eleven regular cup winners. That meant there were many losers— some of which did not take too kindly to it.

“You gave that prinplup before me an easier round, what kind of garbage crap are you pulling here?” one buneary complained, pounding his paw on the wooden counter separating them from the crowd.

Ezera winced as he waited for an opportunity to cut in. “It’s all random, believe it or not. I’m sorry-“

“Lame excuses for a lame organization. I hope Darkrai visits your dreams!”

“I hope you feel better after saying that!” Ezera called to them.

Litleo was surprised and only somewhat envious with how much grace Ezera dealt with those kinds of pokémon. He never got angry or argued back; he simply wished them some form of good luck and moved to the next.

“Does it not bother you?” Litleo asked as soon as there was a break in the line.

“What does?” Ezera replied, watching the flow of the crowd across the plaza.

“When you get insulted by those rude townsmon. Does no part of you want to snap back?”

“Oh, I do. I just understand where they’re coming from. It’s not nice to lose. Doesn’t excuse the nasty attitude, but still. I hate being angry anyway. It feels… blegh.”

“How do you keep your cool then?”

Ezera turned around, crossing his arms as he leaned back. “Never thought I’d be the one giving you tips.”

“Let’s just say I’m asking for science.” Litleo met his eyes. She refused to show any embarrassment about this.

“Right…” He tapped on his tusk slowly. “I guess I think about how they’d feel if I said something similar.”

‘How they feel…?‘ Litleo wondered, huffing. Of course it’d be something like that. “You’re thinking about them when they’re the one insulting you… I don’t think I’ll understand that.”

“Give it a try next time you get mad.”

“Heads up,” Dewott signed, flicking a digit on his paws up. “New customers are coming.“

“Heya!” Ezera said to the incoming group of beldum, mime Jr., and ralts. “Are all of you playing?”

“Only Mime Jr.,” Ralts answered. He had his hair parted to where one eye could be seen, unlike the typical appearance where both were covered. He also wore a golden bangle that matched the ones his friends had.

‘Is this a rich ‘mon’s kid? Maybe a councilmon’s,‘ Litleo observed.

“Alright, if you’ll stand over here please…” Ezera directed to Mime Jr. He led them to the left where Reuniclus was located, and Beldum floated along to watch. Ralts stayed where Litleo and Dewott were.

“Say, do you talk to Team Ace? They’re so awesome!” Ralts said, getting up close to the counter.

“…We do occasionally,” Litleo replied. She recalled Watchog saying that Team Ace’s popularity in Kaiyo Town preceded itself. Given her dislike of them already, hearing somemon else sing praises about them might push that further.

“Everything they do is super cool! Is it true they’re always going off on covert missions?”

“I suppose.” ‘But I’m pretty sure their so-called covert missions are just commissions no one wants to travel half the continent for.‘

“And is it true they complete everything efficiently?”

Litleo debated whether to keep it curt or humor the starry eyed kid some more. “They better, they’re Veterans after all.”

“Do you plan on joining the guild one day?” Dewott signed, walking forward from his place in the rear.

Ralts shook his head. “No, I’m learning under my Pa to run for council. But Team Ace is my inspiration! I’m going to make sure I meet them when I’m older.”

“They’re great and all but trust me, you’re better off getting inspiration elsewhere,” Litleo said, unable to resist hearing more compliments about them.

“Why?” Ralts asked, head lolling to the side.

‘I don’t want to badmouth them, that’s low, even for me. But how do I put this?‘ Litleo snuck a glance to Ezera, who was currently cheering for Mime Jr. “I think it’s better to pick somemon you have more personal ties with. At least that way you know more closely who you’re modeling after.”

“That’s a good point,” Dewott agreed, nodding. “Taking after strangers might give you unrealistic goals.”

Ralts stared into space for a moment. Litleo thought she might’ve said too much until Ralts spoke again. “I don’t know if I want to listen to a ‘mon at your station.”

“…My station?” She wanted to bite back with a retort, but kept it in upon remembering Ezera’s technique. ‘He’s just a kid, cool it.‘

“Yeah. You’re not wearing a badge, and Dewott has a bronze one. I was taught to watch for credibility, and you don’t seem to have very much.”

Litleo and Dewott could only blink, stunned by what they heard. Little credibility? And just what credibility did Ralts have? Thankfully, Mime Jr. and Beldum came back to stop their conversation.

“Did you win anything?” Ralts asked.

“No, but it was fun! Let’s go eat something,” Mime Jr. responded, skipping away while holding onto Beldum and Ralts.

Ralts walked backwards and waved. “Bye bye low level guild members!”

Litleo swore a vein popped out of her head. “You know what-!”

“Thanks for playing, have a good rest of the day!” Ezera shouted over her. He pivoted her direction, brow furrowed. “Did you even try what I suggested?”

“Oh, I did. I think I’m going to stick to mentally cursing them out. ‘Little credibility,’ I’ll show you how much credibility I have after I torch your stupid gold,” she grumbled, shoving the Poké into the pouch.

“I heard something about Team Ace. Jealous you don’t have a fan club?” Ezera smugly asked.

“Please. If I ever have fans one day, throw me into the ocean and let me sink.”

“You might want to choose something a little less swimmable since I’m here,” Dewott signed as he made a scooping motion with his paws.

“Volcano then.”

“But we’re your fans, so does that mean you’re gonna go find a volcano now?” Ezera quipped.

“You’re not my fans you’re my frie-” Litleo caught herself before the rest of the word came out, causing Ezera and Dewott to pause what they were doing. “Friendly teammates,” she carefully finished, smirking.

“So close…” Ezera said, hanging his head.

“Pardon me, what do you sell here?” a bellsprout interrupted, holding a full bag of items in one arm and a coin purse in the other.

Ezera swiftly perked up and faced them. “Oh, uh, we aren’t really selling anything… We have items you can win, or a guild voucher if that’s what you mean.”

“Are those items related to the heroes?”

“Heroes?”

“Zacian, Zamazenta, Calyrex?”

“Errr…” Ezera took a quick look behind him, knowing they didn’t but still checking anyway. “No, sorry.”

“No problem. Cheers.” Bellsprout waddled to the next stall over.

“That’s the one I was forgetting…” Ezera remarked, folding his arms as he spun around.

Litleo tied off a sack using her mouth. “Who?”

“I’d ask this on my own time, but since you refuse to call us friends, I’m gonna do something I know annoys you.”

“Which is?”

“Ask Reuniclus to explain something.”

Litleo’s mouth promptly closed. Explain what? There wasn’t anything they didn’t know at the moment. Unless he asked her about history, at which point Litleo would-

“Reuniclus, I remember during history day you mentioned Calyrex, but never explained them in depth. Could you teach me about them now?” Ezera chirped.

Litleo thought that volcano sounded nice right now.

“Ah, what a perfecto opportunity to educate you!” Reuniclus said, levitating the cups to the side. “Litleo, Dewott, I think it would be beneficial if you listened too.”

Dewott accepted the incoming monologue by standing next to Ezera. “I can’t say I didn’t see this coming.“

“I hate you, Ezera,” Litleo whispered. She made sure to put everything into her glare towards him.

“Hate you too,” he whispered back.

“Now, you might recall how pokémon used to live under a tribe called Calyrex. Calyrex oversaw issues that would arise in the general populace, and solved them time and time again,” Reuniclus began. She retrieved a leather bound book from her backpack. The cover flipped open to a few pages in, revealing a simplistic figure colored in white. Atop the figure’s head was giant circle of green.

“Were these issues big or small?” Ezera asked, squinting to see it.

“Both. Calyrex dealt with the mundane and real crises. This was largely attributed to their two abilities: One was to glimpse into the past and future, and the other of being able to manipulate aether.”

Dewott mimicked molding something in his paws. “Manipulate? Does that mean they could create anything?“

“Based on old accounts, it sounds like they could.” Reuniclus skimmed through the writing before resuming. “Of course, their power did not come cheap. Calyrex required the population’s belief to upkeep it and themselves. Without that, they would grow frail and fade away.”

“Faith doesn’t sound very reliable,” Ezera commented.

“You can be surprised how strong faith and belief can be. They say those reside in the soul.”

“I guess that’s true, plenty of religion back home…” He cleared his throat and waved it off. “If Calyrex was this strong, how did Eternatus cause so much trouble?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Pokémon stopped believing in them,” Litleo chimed in, to the surprise of the others who thought she tuned out.

“That is precisely it,” Reuniclus acknowledged. “It is a fact that the arrival of humans coincided with the slow decline of Calyrex. Why humans would have that effect, all I can offer is other researchers’ conjectures. Some think pokemon were tired of Calyrex’s rule and humans helped usurp them. An alternative, peaceful theory is that pokémon wanted to adopt humans’ lifestyle without the certain outcomes always deemed by Calyrex.”

Reuniclus brought the book to her chest, holding both hands over it. “My personal theory is that Calyrex wanted to give pokémon more autonomy and chose to hand over the reins. Hence why they established Kaiyo Town before disappearing.”

“What makes you think that?” Ezera asked.

“Calyrex dedicated their lives to helping pokémon, valuing prosperity above all else. If it would benefit pokémon in the end, why wouldn’t they do it?”

“Because they wanted to hold on to their power? I doubt all Calyrex were fine losing that and their lives,” Helin argued, dragging a full sack of Poké to the back.

Reuniclus helped move it along with her psychic powers. “You make a good case. It’s a shame we won’t ever know the true reason.”

“Are there any supporters of Calyrex these days?” Dewott signed, lifting a closed paw up with another before motioning out.

“Few throughout the continent. Kaiyo Town could be considered the main hub, but their belief is low compared to what it was in Calyrex’s era. I should mention the Rexianta Festival ends with a pokémon who claims to communicate with Calyrex. The current ‘mon leading this is a Mr. Rime who goes by Minne.”

Ezera pulled down his scarf. “And what does Minne do?”

“Answer questions pokémon might have and make predictions, like in those ancient days. It’s hard to tell if what they say is true. I am most positively certain Calyrex is no longer around, but it does keep alive the tradition of back then.” Reuniclus retrieved her backpack. She put the book away, signaling the end of her impromptu lesson.

“This sounds more like a glorified fortune telling event,” Litleo summarized, raising an eyebrow. She wasn’t one for superstition, much less those who said they could determine your fate. Her fate was hers alone.

“I could see how it looks like that.” Reuniclus floated towards the stall opening, peering over the area. “It seems the crowd has died off. I shall let you three take the time to roam around. But be prepared to come back should I require your assistance.”

‘Thank goodness,‘ Litleo thought. She jumped over the counter, landing on the opposite side of the stall. Ezera and Dewott met her by going around the sides. “Where do you want to go?”

Ezera scratched his head. “You’re asking us?”

“Don’t return my question with a question. I’m not the leader, you are.”

“What if I’m trying to run a democracy here?”

“Democracies still need a leader.”

“She’s got you there,” Dewott signed.

“Uh, then… uh… why don’t we visit the shopping district? Maybe they have some promotions going,” Ezera proposed, drumming his hand on the satchel. Litleo made a note to do this to him more often.

“Good choice,” she remarked, setting off.

“Why are you making it sound like there was a bad one?”

“Because I wanted to go there in the first place.”

“Maybe I should become a dictator,” Ezera said, shaking his head.

“She’ll still find a way to overthrow you,” Dewott added, grinning slightly.

“You going to keep complaining about me or join me?” Litleo shouted behind her, tail swaying all the while. Ezera and Dewott chuckled as they caught up.

The journey to that part of town was quick considering they came from the plaza. Like they saw coming into town, more stalls and mobile wooden wagons packed the cobble streets. In one section, a small space had been cleared out for a stage. On it, a zorua and ditto were looking at the audience as a torkoal narrated off to the side.

Litleo’s paws went toward the stage, wanting to watch a bit of it. Ezera and Dewott silently followed along.

“The little tepig ran as far as his four legs could,

Avoiding the sky and violent pokémon’s wrath,

Through terrain and trees wanting to disrupt his path,

In small hopes he could reach where Sunlight Village stood.”

The torkoal’s deep voice resounded through everymon present.

As she spoke, the zorua took on the illusion of said tepig, running around the stage and behind the few background elements they had propped up. ‘Tepig’ returned onstage with a Berry in their mouth and stopped before the ditto, who transformed into a mightyena.

“Hmph. A runt like you doesn’t belong in the forest,” ‘Mightyena’ claimed, baring their teeth.

“I- I’m just trying to get by,” ‘Tepig’ said with the berry in their mouth.

“Get by, is it? Get by with stealing our food?” ‘Mightyena’ knocked the berry out of ‘Tepig’s’ mouth. He raised his hackles, ready to initiate an attack.

A sizable branch flew in from offstage, striking ‘Mightyena’ on the nose.

A rillaboom lumbered onstage right after, cracking his knuckles. “Food belongs to everymon, and my clan needs it more than yours.”

“Rrgh, you foresters take everything!”

“You have your own selfishness to blame!”

‘Mightyena’ ran at Rillaboom, ignoring ‘Tepig’ scurry off into the background. Rillaboom threw ‘Mightyena’ down with a light thud. The latter howled in pain.

‘Tepig’ poked his head out from behind a bush. “They can fight for the berry. I will only hope Sunlight Village has food!” he said to the audience. On cue, ‘Mightyena’ reverted back to ditto, and ‘Rillaboom’ to a zoroark, before proceeding to leave.

“Tired and hungry was Tepig left to be,

But go forward he must,

To honor his parent’s trust.

At last, the village graced what his eye could see,” the torkoal said as the scenery was moved off and replaced with painted homes. The torkoal blew smoky fumes that evened out over the stage, creating a nighttime look.

“There’s no ‘mon here…” ‘Tepig’ remarked, slowly advancing.

Litleo took her eyes off the stage. “Let’s go,” she said to Ezera and Dewott.

Ezera blinked, shifting his head slightly to still watch. “You don’t want to finish?”

“We don’t know how long this’ll take, Reuniclus might call us back. Wouldn’t you rather find something more interactive to do?”

“True, I was also getting a little bored,” Ezera admitted, sheepishly rubbing his head. “But that was cool to see how theater works here.”

“I think you might enjoy the actual theater more than whatever they’re performing out here,” Litleo said. “They’re not bad though.”

“I liked them,” Dewott signed as they strolled. “I haven’t seen zorua or ditto in that line of work before.“

“When you think about it, they’re kinda perfect for it,” Ezera remarked. He gasped and pointed to the right. “Hey, it’s Sawk and Throh!” He waved at the dojo brothers, running to the wide table they had set up. Stacks of solid wood rested near their feet, and on the table lay a set of two bricks spread apart.

“Disciple Ezera, Disciple Litleo! It is good to see you,” Sawk and Throh said, both opening their arms up in a welcoming gesture. They ended up whacking each other in the chest.

“Sorry about that, brothah,” Sawk said.

“No, I am sorry-” Throh started.

“What are you doing?” Litleo interrupted before their apologizing war could begin.

“Is it not obvious? We are here to promote our dojo with this game.”

Litleo examined the bricks, frowning. Did it have something to do with the wood on the floor? “And what game is that exactly?”

“Do you need to break a wooden plank?” Ezera said.

Throh nodded fervently. “Your perception has improved, disciple Ezera!”

“It’s just I’ve seen this before, ha…”

“We have plenty of wood planks here. Whoever breaks the most in a minute without using moves gets a free session of training,” Sawk explained, picking a plank up and laying it flat across two bricks. “If you want to use moves, we have metal for those who dare. Are you interested?”

“Um, my hand would break if I tried. I’ll pass this time,” Ezera stated, taking a step back.

“I have paws,” Litleo reminded. Trying to break the planks would basically amount to her pushing down with as much force as she could. ‘I doubt that would get me anywhere. Better to save myself the embarrassment.‘

Ezera and Litleo glanced at Dewott. He stared at the planks, then his paw, then the planks again.

“I could give it a shot,” he signed, curling his paw.

Ezera’s mouth formed a grin. “Can’t wait to see you break fifty of them.”

Dewott returned it with a small one. “I’ll aim for ten.“

They gave Sawk fifty Poké and were about to begin when a new voice spoke.

“Yo, is this a competition?”

All heads turned to the pokémon that showed up beside Dewott. Gray fur covered the majority of their body, but two patches of white decorated their chest and forehead. A round pouch was slung over their shoulder as well.

“My brothah or I compete against the contestant, but we can let you go against Dewott if you want, miss…?” Sawk said, pushing another set of bricks and a plank to her.

“Kubfu works, thanks,” she answered, handing over Poké. She shared a brief look with Dewott. “If that’s alright with you?”

Dewott nodded, albeit a little flustered. Ezera reassured him with a pat on the arm.

‘What do you know, there are pokémon I haven’t seen before.‘ From the side view Litleo was getting, the white fur on the back of Kubfu’s head was tied into two knotted ribbons.

“If you will ready yourselves.” Sawk put his hand to the air, the other on the minuteglass. “Ready… set… CHOP!”

Dewott’s paw and Kubfu’s hand flew down at the same time. The wood made a satisfying SNAP as it split in two pieces. Sawk and Throh quickly replaced them, inviting Dewott and Kubfu to break them once more in tandem. This pattern repeated for the next forty seconds, until fatigue showed itself in Dewott. As Sawk placed the wood, Dewott took a second to shake out his arm and regain his breath. Kubfu, meanwhile, chopped away, still focused.

“Come on, come on…” Ezera muttered, fidgeting.

‘She’s going to win…‘ Litleo thought, biting her lip. ‘I have to admit, she’s good.‘ However, as it came down to the last five seconds, Dewott caught a lucky break— Kubfu was messing up. Her hand struck the plank, but instead of breaking it, it rebounded off.

“Ack-! Was my form wrong?!” Kubfu shouted, shaking it off.

In that time, Dewott broke two more planks before Sawk yelled out.

“TIME!” Sawk faced his brother. “Brothah, what is the total for Kubfu?”

“Twenty-six, brothah,” Throh responded. “A respectable number.”

Sawk presented the voucher for their dojo. “Mmm. I declare Dewott the winner, with twenty-seven.”

“LET’S GO!” Ezera cheered, high fiving Dewott’s non-chopping hand. “That was super close! You did amazing.”

Dewott blushed, gazing at the ground while Ezera rambled praise to him.

Litleo didn’t repress the tiny smile she felt coming. Kubfu was good, but Dewott was better. And a win for him was a win for the team.

Throh chopped the plank Kubfu got stuck on. “The plank was not faulty, therefore the loss is legitimate.”

Kubfu sighed, clenching and unclenching their hand. “That’s a rookie mistake. Ah well, that was a fair match.” She held a hand out to Dewott, and they shook. “I’ll remember you, Dewott. Do the same for me, ay?” She whisked off into the crowd soon after.

“She was all kinds of interesting,” Ezera chuckled, storing the voucher in their bag after saying their goodbyes to Sawk and Throh.

Dewott moved a paw diagonally across his body like he wore a satchel. “She must be a traveler, based on the gear she wore.“

“Most likely. She doesn’t live here, that’s for sure. “Where to nex-” Litleo paused, spotting a familiar brown furred pokémon in the distance. “Isn’t that…” She blinked a total of five times to confirm what she was seeing. “Roca?”

She wasn’t sure whether her day was about to get a whole lot better, or a whole lot more confusing.