You Gotta Start Somewhere

Roz was slightly sore the next morning, but none the worse for wear. Perhaps there was merit to Terry’s claim of Pokémon being built for battle afterall. “Morning, Roz.” The Cubone joined her in the station’s main room for some bread and chesto juice. His left side had some chipped scales.

“Good morning, Terry,” she returned. “Have you recovered from yesterday?” she added with a note of concern.

“Oh yeah! Looks like you have too.” The Cubone rubbed the back of his head. “We’ll probably run into other situations like that, though. Y’know, where we have to fight. It might not be a bad idea for you to train a bit.”

He had a point. Roz was next to useless against Razor, and while her typing was part of that, Terry hadn’t let his typing hold him back. “You are correct. I cannot be a liability should we encounter a similar scenario in the future.” She realized a slight problem, however. “I am uncertain of how to approach this. I have never attempted to practice fighting.”

“Never, seriously?” Terry thought about that for a minute. “Wait, how do you know you never have?”

I’m such an idiot! “I remember how to use my other abilities. It seems peculiar that I would specifically forget combat.”

  Terry looked uncertain. “Yeah…I guess. But I wonder if this means you’re starting to remember your past. Any idea what you used to do?”

Roz shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “I…I think it involved largely staying in one place.” Accurate. “I do not believe I ever encountered anyone hostile.” Also accurate, at least until that happened. “I never learned to fight because I never needed to.”

“But didn’t you want to anyway?”

Our powers aren’t toys.

“For what purpose?” Roz stopped herself before spilling more information. 

“Y’know, for fun? You…do know what that is, right?” Terry asked with genuine concern.

“Of course I do,” Roz replied, somewhat snappily. “I simply do not think I ever considered fighting to be fun. It is rather… dangerous for my tastes.”

Terry cocked an eye ridge.

“Regardless, I agree with your assessment that I should learn,” Roz said, trying to change the subject.

“Right,” Terry nodded. “We should see about getting you some lessons at the dojo.”

Roz nodded. “I would like to speak with Razor afterwards, if he is available.”

Satisfied with their plans for the day, the Cubone and Elgyem left the station and made their way to the town’s dojo. Roz was mildly surprised to hear that one could be found in such a small settlement, but indeed there was. It was a clear day out, warm, but not hot. A few Pokémon roamed the streets, likely on their way to work based on the time. If she allowed herself to, Roz could forget that the entire planet was in jeopardy.

The dojo was less of a building and more of an open field on the edge of town. A sign posted next to it featured a drawing of an Aegislash. The field was divided into six arenas, all cleared of grass, rocks, and other obstructions. One of them currently hosted a battle between a Magnemite and a Geodude while an Aegislash in its shield stance looked on. The Magnemite looked to have the upper hand, figuratively speaking, since the Geodude had difficulty landing more than a glancing blow.

“That will do,” said the Aegislash. Both combatants stood down. “Your Magnet Bomb is coming along nicely, Ion.”

Thank you, the Magnemite replied.

“Shale, your technique is solid, but those moves won’t work well against a Steel-type.”

“How am I supposed to hit it with Magnitude if it’s airborne though?” the Geodude asked.

“That’s where you’ll have to get creative. Remember, there’s more to a battle than just the moves you know,” the Aegislash answered.

“Or you could use Smack Down,” Terry interjected.

“Welcome,” the Aegislash greeted Roz and Terry with a small bow. “Are you two perhaps new students?”

Ah, hello, said Ion, waving an appendage. Terry waved back.

“You know these two?” the Aegislash asked.

Yeah, they’re the Rangers stationed here.

“Oh-ho!,” said the Aegislash. “Welcome indeed. How may I help you?”

“My partner here needs some training,” Terry answered, gesturing to Roz.

“An Elgyem. Interesting.” The Aegislash looked Roz over. “Well, Elgyem, let’s see what you can do.” He floated away from her and lifted higher off the ground.

“Er, now?” Roz said, wide-eyed.

“Why not? We’re both here. I need to see where you’re at.”

“…Very well.” Roz raised her palm and fired off a Confusion. Much like with Razor, she could tell her attack wasn’t having its full effect, as was to be expected with another Steel-type. What she hadn’t expected was just how little of an effect it would have. The Aegislash’s body vibrated slightly and was pushed back a few centimeters. He didn’t even flinch.

The Aegislash blinked. “You don’t need to hold back. I need to know what you’re capable of.”

“That…that is the extent of what I can do,” Roz stammered.

Aegislash stared at her for several moments. “Surely not. I know you’re a Ranger, but trust me, I am more than ready for anything you can throw at me.”

Roz tried again, squeezing her eyes shut and focusing as hard as she could.

“You were allowed to become a Ranger? A child has more power than that!”

“That is exactly why I came here,” said Roz.

“Then you have wasted both my time and yours. I see the so-called Head Rangers are as irresponsible as ever.”

Terry stepped forward. “Hold on a minute. Isn’t it your job to help Pokémon get stronger?”

“It’s my job to help Pokémon develop the skill and power they already have. I can’t do that if neither is present to begin with,” the Aegislash returned with an imperious glare. “For your sake, I hope you’re stronger than she is. Otherwise making you Rangers was a death sentence.” Terry defiantly returned the Aegislash’s glare. 

Was Roz really that weak? Her attacks had been pretty ineffectual against Razor, but she assumed that was because he resisted them. Then again, Terry had stood up to quite a bit of abuse from the Skarmory, while she’d gone down in one hit. Roz looked at her palm, then turned her arm over to examine her holotab. By not using our abilities, are we letting them atrophy this badly?

“If you won’t help then I’ll teach her myself!” Terry declared. “Let’s go, Roz.”

The Aegislash’s glare softened. “I know being a Ranger is every kid’s dream, but not everyone is cut out for it. Just remember to do what’s best for you, not what’s best for the Head Rangers.”

Terry huffed and kept walking without another word.

“Terry…I’m…I apologize. I didn’t…I was unaware…” Roz stuttered.

“Hey,” he interrupted. “Don’t blame yourself. You probably just came from somewhere people don’t battle as much as kids. Can’t say I know of anywhere like that,” Terry mused with a thoughtful expression, “but it could be a clue about your past,” he finished with a smile. Roz had to admire the Cubone’s optimism if nothing else.

Oh good, you’re still here. Ion floated out of the dojo. I can’t believe he blew you off like that! I tried explaining what you did for my friends and I, but he didn’t care.

“It’s fine,” Terry said unconvincingly. “She just didn’t battle a lot growing up. I’ll work with her and we’ll get something figured out.”

I hope you’re right.

“Have your friends recovered from their ordeal in Thunderwave Cave?” Roz asked.

They’ve been a bit tired, but they’re fine otherwise, Ion answered. Razor seems stable, though.

Terry gave a relieved sigh. “That’s good to hear at least. I guess there’s something even weirder going on on Mt. Steel than we thought.”

“Would it be possible for us to speak with him?” Roz asked.

That should be fine, Ion answered. I was going to check in on him at the ruins after I finished at the dojo. Er, sorry that didn’t work out for you by the way, Roz.

“We will find an alternative,” Roz said, brushing off its concern.

Are you two ready to go now?

“That’s what we were planning to do once we finished up here, so yeah,” said Terry.

While most of Greenmetal Village was surrounded by farmland, there was a small forest to the southwest. It was through here that Ion led the two to the ruins. Roz wasn’t sure what would be left. How would they hold up after 300 years?

Surprisingly well, as it turned out. They were situated in what Roz assumed was once a cleared area of forest, though the flora had long since recovered. The structure exhibited some corrosion, and there was no way anything inside had power, but it was still recognizable as a research station. Roz floated up for a closer look. It was a standard prefabricated building, designed to be easily transported and quickly assembled. 

The interior was dusty and stale, lit only by light coming in through the broken windows. Computer terminals lined the walls, but had been smashed beyond repair. She started at a repeating clacking sound. “Finally decided to stop by, huh?” A Skarmory stepped out of the shadows. 

“Razor! Are you feeling any better?” Terry asked.

“Yeah. I don’t know what happened but my head’s been a lot clearer since coming here,” he answered

“Razor, when we spoke to you on Mt. Steel, you mentioned that something did not feel right. Did you experience some sort of…premonition of this event?” Roz asked.

Razor avoided her gaze. “I’m…I was…Registeel’s Speaker.”

Terry and Ion gawked at him. “Speaker?” Roz asked. Everyone redirected their stares to her.

Terry stared off into the distance as he considered how to address the question. “Well, gods are really powerful, right? They have a lot of influence over the world. So, naturally, a lot of Pokémon want to talk with them.” Roz nodded. “But there’s no way they can meet with everyone who wants to see them individually. Lots of people come to them for help that they either can’t give, or that people should really figure out themselves. So, rather than meeting with everybody, a lot of gods, especially the lesser ones, have a Speaker—someone they speak with directly who acts as their go-between with everyone else.”

Roz nodded in understanding. “I think I understand. So, if I am not mistaken, you are a sort of prophet for Registeel.”

The Skarmory was taken aback. “I, uh, I guess you could think of it that way. It’s not really a religious position though. I’m just someone who doesn’t like being around people and happened to earn Registeel’s trust.”

An interesting concept. Roz was surprised she wasn’t familiar with it. It might provide an explanation for Razor’s behavior though. “Razor, is there any sort of link or bond between Speakers and the gods?”

“Well, yeah. At least in my case I have a telepathic bond with Registeel. I think it’s the same for most Speakers but I’m not actually sure.”

Hmmm…”Are you certain it is simple telepathy?”

“I mean, we talk in each other’s heads, isn’t that what telepathy is?”

Roz put a hand to her chin. “I wonder if it goes deeper than that.” She placed her hands behind her back, and started floating back and forth in front of the others. “Several days ago, Terry and I carried out a rescue mission in Thunderwave Cave, as I am certain you are aware,” she nodded at Ion.

“During that mission, I attempted to locate the Magnemite using my psionic abilities. Instead, I sensed a powerful presence, which I believe was Registeel. But something felt wrong.” She turned to Razor. “Given the abnormalities in mineral levels on Mt. Steel, I suspect something has happened to Registeel. And, I suspect, it has corrupted your link to it.”

“Are you sure?” Razor asked, uneasily.

“Anything but. Yet you are the only person to experience these symptoms.” Roz had an unpleasant realization. She frowned. “At least as far I am aware. Where are the other Speakers?”

“Most of them live close to the gods they speak with,” Razor answered. “You think the same thing might’ve happened to them?” he asked with a worried expression.

“I am not sure. I hope not. Archimedes mentioned problems meeting with Kyogre and Groudon when we met with him earlier. Do they have Speakers?”

“No. They consider their responsibilities too important to listen to mortals,” said Razor, rolling his eyes.

“We should at least pass this on to the Head Rangers. The other Speakers might need help,” said Terry, clutching his club tightly. 

“I concur,” said Roz. She clenched her fist. How long had it been since she’d felt Registeel’s presence inside Mt. Steel? If it needed help, had they wasted too much time already? What if that wasn’t even the problem at all? What if, for whatever reason, the gods had collectively decided it was time to stop catering to the needs of mortal Pokémon? In that case she was completely wasting her time. 

She’d been so impulsive, jumping at the possibility that the disasters were related to her mission she’d barely stopped to consider alternatives. Stupid as that had been, she had a lead now, however tenuous. She’d be an even bigger idiot not to at least see it through. In the meantime, maybe she could gather some additional information. “What is this place?” she asked. She, of course, already knew, but it might be useful to hear this world’s side of things.

Ruins left behind by the humans, Ion answered. No one knows what they were used for, though.

“Probably better off we don’t know,” said Razor bitterly.

Roz floated over to one of the consoles. It was severely damaged, and not just from age. There were clear signs that it was deliberately attacked. It was totally unusable. The interior in general was poorly preserved. It looked to have been some sort of research outpost, most likely for studies of the planet’s ecosystem. 

“I take it humans are not remembered fondly,” she observed.

Razor snorted. “That’s putting it lightly,” said Terry.

There aren’t many people left from their time here, so we don’t know much.

“What’s there to know?” said Razor. “They came here to capture and enslave us. Then they abducted a bunch of Pokémon and left. That’s the last anyone ever saw of them. And good riddance.” That matched up with what Archimedes had told her. 

Some of my ancestors were among the Pokémon they took. I wish I knew what happened to them, Ion lamented. I wonder if their descendants live somewhere like this…

“Thank you for your help, Razor. We’ll notify you if we need anything else,” said Roz.

“Not a problem. Just get this figured out so I can get out of here,” Razor replied.

“If you hate it here so much, why not stay in town somewhere?” Terry asked.

“After what I did to that Drillbur kid? Forget it.”

~~~

“It looked like those ruins stirred your memory a bit,” Terry noted once they were back at the station.

“They did, but I did not recall anything specific. I believe the Speakers and gods are a more pressing issue.” Roz settled down in her chair to begin her letter to suggest investigating Speakers.

“If you think what happened to you might be connected to what’s going on, getting your memory back might be the biggest thing we can do to help,” said Terry, pulling his chair next to hers.

“We are wasting enough time as is at this outpost. We cannot afford to waste more looking for my memories on the off chance that they hold the key to these disasters.” Roz abruptly froze as she realized a big problem with the letter.

“Roz, we need to look after you as well,” Terry pleaded. “And the people here deserve our help too. Just because we’re not actively searching for clues doesn’t mean we’re wasting time. I’m worried about you.”

“I am fine,” Roz insisted. “Our priority is finding the cause of these disasters. Nothing else matters.”

“You matter,” Terry mumbled. He noticed Roz staring at her paper. “What’s wrong?”

Roz started writing her letter. It took her far too much time to write each character, and her writing was atrocious. “Nothing.”

After finishing the letter, Roz handed it to Terry to look over. If she could teleport to Greenmetal Village, she could’ve easily zipped back and forth to Crosswind Town and reported directly, which would’ve saved a considerable amount of time. Teleportation or not, the idea that delivering a message in person could be faster was an odd concept. Yet another way in which she took technology for granted. 

“What does this say?” Terry asked, interrupting her thoughts. He pointed to one of the words in her letter.

“Suggest.”

Terry nodded and kept reading, only making it a few more sentences before he had to ask again. After three instances of clarification, Roz finally suggested that Terry should rewrite it.

“So, you remember how to read, but not how to write?”

“That would appear to be the case,” Roz answered stiffly.

Terry opened and closed his mouth several times. “That’s…interesting,” he finally said. Nonetheless, the Cubone rewrote it. 

There was still time left in the day, so the two of them took the letter to the post office to be delivered, and spent the rest of the day patrolling the village looking for trouble that needed to be addressed. Terry tried to help the villagers with carrying things and other physical labor, while Roz generally spent her time floating above the town looking for anything that needed her attention. She didn’t see anyone skulking around or otherwise clearly trying to avoid notice. 

During the walk home, Terry pulled Roz aside, taking her on an unexpected route. At first, Roz thought he meant to go to the market, but he wasn’t going the right way for that either. “Terry, where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” he answered coyly. Roz scowled. Terry led her a short way out of town, set his pack down, and pulled out his club. She froze when he faced her and entered a fighting stance.

“What are you doing?”

“Put your bag down, Roz. If the dojo won’t help you, then I’ll just have to do it instead!”

Roz had agreed she needed training afterall. “Very well,” she answered with a sigh.

“Alright, try hitting me with the move you used on that Aegislash this morning. Come on, I can take it!” he added after she hesitated.

This would probably be considered assault back home. Roz raised her palm and focused her Confusion on Terry. The air around him distorted and he stumbled back a few steps. 

“Come on, you can do better than that. I practically felt you holding back.”

Roz had to remind herself that this was important. Her life might depend on her ability to use her natural powers. The Elgyem raised her palm again. Aside from a few outbursts as a child that she deeply regretted, Roz had never tried to deliberately hurt someone with her psionic powers. Even against Razor, she’d been more focused on protecting Terry and Monty than actually attacking. 

The air rippled and Terry was knocked off his feet. He dropped his bone to clutch at his head, jaw clenched. “Ow.” The Cubone got to his feet, nearly tripping over his own legs as he picked up his club.

Roz floated next to him. “Are you okay?” she asked frantically.

“Yeah,” he responded with a grimace. “Just give me a second.” Roz waited anxiously, hoping the damage she caused wasn’t permanent. After a few seconds though, Terry’s headache subsided. “That’s more like it!”

“What?”

“Now that was an attack! I knew you were stronger than you thought!” Terry praised.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“You caught me by surprise there, but I’ve had worse. Do you know any other techniques?”

“Only Teleport,” Roz admitted. “At least, as far as I can remember,” she hastily amended.

“Hmmm…I’m not sure what kinds of moves Elgyem can learn. Then there’s the issue of finding someone who can actually teach you,” Terry said wearily. “Uh, we’ll figure something out though!”

Roz’s eyes landed on her holotab. Perhaps it was time. She channeled energy into it and activated it, calling up a holographic display.

“Woah!”

“Perhaps those ruins sparked my memory afterall. I believe I may recall how this works.” 

Terry moved beside her to look at the screen. “What is that?” 

“I do not recall its name,” Roz lied. “I will have to experiment and see if I can remember how to operate it.” The light blue hologram was populated by several icons sorted into clusters. Roz’s finger hovered over the group of files and programs pertaining to Pokémon data, and selected one with an icon of a Substitute doll. 

A small list of Pokémon popped up. Roz had never had much reason to store species data locally since it was so readily available via datanet, but she kept some on a handful of Pokémon stored just in case she wanted faster access. Elgyem, naturally, happened to be one of the Pokémon on that list. Roz tapped the icon for her own species.

Terry stared at the screen in slack-jawed silence. As Roz was well aware, her kind had a strong natural inclination toward Psychic-type utility techniques. However, like nearly all Pokémon, they could learn other moves with the right instruction. Of those moves, most were either utility moves or energy-based attacks. One however, had always struck her as a bit odd: Rock Slide. That technique was usually learned by Pokémon with great physical strength, rather than those like Elgyem that were known more for their ability to channel the mysterious bioenergy inherent in all Pokémon. Yet there was documentation of her species mastering it.

Remember, there’s more to a battle than just the moves you know. The words of the Aegislash from the dojo echoed in Roz’s mind. Why should she limit herself to a set of named techniques? Roz extended her palm toward a fallen branch and levitated it off the ground.

“Woah! I thought you said you could only levitate yourself!” Terry exclaimed.

Focusing on a nearby tree, Roz transmitted a burst of Psychic energy at the branch, hurling it at the tree. The impact wasn’t very strong, but she could work on that. “Perhaps I should have clarified; I have difficulty lifting other living beings, but I can move inanimate objects of low enough mass.” 

Without a proper instructor, Roz would never learn a move like Rock Slide in the traditional sense. But she had telekinesis, one of the most versatile skills a Pokémon could possess. If she honed that talent, she could cause rock slides anyway. It would undoubtedly help if she could find another Psychic to train with, but in the meantime, Roz had a strategy to develop her abilities.

~~~

Roz double-checked to make sure Terry was asleep. Noting the gentle rise and fall of the Cubone’s chest, she silently drifted out of the room. The Elgyem picked up her bag and floated out the door. She flew over the rooftops, trying not to think about what she was about to do as she passed beyond the edge of the village. She had to admit the Air Continent was a beautiful place. While her society had a clean source of energy, Roz spent most of her time indoors. Even though there was no time to appreciate her surroundings, they helped take her mind off of the incredibly risky and frankly stupid thing she was about to do.

At last, she arrived at the entrance to Thunderwave Cave. Roz was sure it was all in her head, but there was something sinister about the glow radiating from the cave’s crystals. It occurred to her that she’d only managed to access the depths of the cave thanks to Terry on her last visit. Hopefully she’d be able to manage.

Roz arrived at the branch in the path, where she’d first sensed the disturbing presence. The Elgyem opened her senses. If she thought there would be any difficulty locating the presence again, she was mistaken. It was at least as strong as before, maybe more so: a twisted monstrosity hiding in the darkness, waiting, biding its time. She couldn’t bring herself to refer to it as Registeel. Everyone referred to the Steel-type god as a benevolent, or, at worst, neutral entity. She was far from the only psychic on this planet; there was no way something this evil could have hidden its true nature from all of them. Roz shuddered and closed her mind. The last thing she wanted was to get closer to that, but she had to know.

Oddly, the charged crystals became less abundant as Roz progressed through the cave system. Without them as a light source, she lit up her bracelet instead. As far as she could tell, there was only one path in this direction, even if it twisted and turned a fair bit. She hadn’t come across any forks yet in any case, and figured it was best to deactivate her presence sense to be rid of that awful darkness. Just before closing off her mind however, Roz felt something else. 

She was sure she could’ve picked up on it immediately under normal circumstances, but it must’ve blended in with the overbearing presence haunting this part of the mountain. It was difficult to describe: alien, certainly, but without the overt malevolence associated with the first presence. What should she do?

Whoever it was might have the information she was after without the danger that came with the greater presence. It wasn’t likely to provide all the answers, but she was confident it couldn’t be as bad as…whatever Registeel had become. It was a risk, but one Roz decided to take.

As Roz both expected and feared, the second presence was getting closer, faster than could be explained by her movement alone. It knew she was here. Once she got as close as she dared, Roz floated upward and pressed herself against the ceiling. Thinking quickly, she also turned off her light.

“I know you’re there. You might as well turn that light back on.” 

Roz tried to read the creature’s surface thoughts. She found them unusually clear and focused, but not informative. Show yourself. With no idea what its intentions were, she was taking a risk revealing herself, but, given that she’d meant to encounter it anyway, Roz saw little reason to remain hidden. She reactivated her light and floated down from the ceiling.

While she didn’t recognize the Pokémon in front of her, something about it was vaguely familiar. It was quadrupedal, mostly black in color aside from some patches of green. There was a green scarf around its neck and a red, hexagonal gem on its throat; Roz suspected both were part of its body. In place of eyes it had a pair of white hexagons. “You have no business here. Leave.” Its voice carried no emotion, only authority.

Roz thought quickly, and recalled something that had worked before in a similar situation. She pulled out her badge. “I am with the Rangers. I noticed several environmental abnormalities in the area and decided to investigate.”

It regarded her for several seconds. “You don’t know who I am, do you?”

Was that a threat? Roz slowly backed away from the unknown Pokémon. “Should I?” she asked nervously.

“As I said, you have no business here. Leave immediately.”

“The inhabitants of Greenmetal Village need this mountain’s resources. I must know-”

“I will not ask again. Leave. Now.” Hexagonal bits of green light rose from the cave floor and floated around it. If this was a Pokémon move, it was unlike any Roz had ever seen. Roz could try to teleport behind it, but doubted that would get her anywhere.

“I will take my leave then,” she said with a small bow.

“See that you do. One more thing.” A small, green object detached from the creature’s body to land on the cave floor. It elongated into a vaguely worm-like shape and crawled toward Roz. “I’ll know if you try skulking around in here. My cell will show you the way out.” The green worm wriggled past Roz and waited for her expectantly. The Elgyem took one last look at the mystery Pokémon before turning around and following the worm.

The worm faithfully traced Roz’s path into the depths of the mountain. She didn’t fully trust it, but it was at least leading her away from the presence she assumed was Registeel. The worm itself had no mental signature. Roz found this puzzling as she could usually detect the presence of animals, even if their minds weren’t as sophisticated as those of Pokémon. 

Despite her misgivings, the worm led Roz back to Thunderwave Cave. Once she was back in the glow of the odd, charged crystals, it stopped and simply waited. Roz knew it was watching her to make sure she didn’t try anything. Maybe she could find another way back in here, but for now all she could do was retreat or risk the ire of the unknown Pokémon in the depths of the mountain.