Ellie and Seijo both walked from the Pokemon Centre, leaving behind Lucas and Harry to have their battle while they investigated what on earth was going on with the stadium. More breaking news had appeared on the TV around, with an even larger clump of people setting their eyes upon the TV sets that were on display. Ellie wanted to see what it was all about, but shook her head and reminded herself to focus on the task that was ahead of her.
They passed by a row of shops all selling their goods, set up there to attract customers who had come to watch challengers of the gym leader or the select few that were battling themselves to make it to the Ever Grande Conference. Except, it was quiet. Really quiet. It was almost desolate, other than the few employees that could be seen outside or through a window in the business. And, they all looked bored out of their minds. A couple even abandoned their posts to see the news, hoping that it would be a little more interesting.
The doors of the stadium finally opened as Ellie and Seijo stepped through, but not a person was sitting inside. The only exception was a lone, bored receptionist who was tapping the desk lightly as they held their head in one hand. Their eyes lit up for a moment as Ellie and Seijo entered but quickly diminished after a guess at what they'd be here for.
"You're here for a gym battle, aren't you?"
"We just want to know why the stadium is completely empty.", Seijo said, while the receptionist just sighed and pointed to the TV store,
"You can just go back there. It'll tell you what you need."
And, so they did. Seijo stayed back and listened out for the news, while Ellie used her smaller body to slip through the crowd of people easier. Then, she read the news headline blaring across the screen.
The Hoenn Elite League cancelled amid national insecurity concerns.
Ellie was shocked to see that it was cancelled but could make a guess as to why the League was cancelled. Although, she didn't quite want to think about it. But, with some hesitation, she watched on for more information. The screen shifted, showing the news' logo for a second, then cut to a woman standing, reading off of a script in her hands.
"Good morning. We have recently received reports of the Hoenn Elite League ticket holders receiving refunds at a rapid rate. We have since consulted a representative of the Hoenn Elite League, who delivered the unfortunate news. He said that, with the recent invasion and subsequent destruction of Meteor Falls at the hands of an unknown group of terrorists, we cannot hold the battles with complete assurance that spectators and competitors will be safe from these criminals hurting even more people. We are sorry that we cannot continue with these battles, but are looking to schedule these at a later date.
Immediately, chills ran down Ellie's spine as she listened to the news reporter talk about Meteor Falls. It felt like her world was about to crumble, even if she stood on solid ground. The thoughts of Meteor Falls, Lucas' injuries first, the people's screams. Then, suddenly, poison began to escape from her lips. It submerged her in a gas, and she began to feel suffocated. Tears streamed down her face. Her breaths became heavier, savouring every piece of oxygen. Then, suddenly a heavy tug came from behind.
"Ellie? Ellie! Ellie, are you okay?", he asked, but it didn't seem to be getting through at all. She seemed lost, even if nothing was around her. At least, to him, there was nothing to be afraid of. Her ears were toning out his voice, replacing it with a ringing that negated anything. But, still, he tried to remain calm for her. He looked at her heavy breathing and told her,
"Just try to get your breathing to relax.", Seijo said. She finally heard the voice. She looked at him. He took a breath for four seconds and then exhaled. He did it again. Ellie mimicked it. In and out. Simply. Slowly. As she did it, she found the ringing dying down. More rational thoughts seeped in, as it felt like the threat in front of her was slowly diminishing, thanks to her calmer breathing. She took one final deep breath, and while her panic attack wasn't completely gone, it helped her calm down enough to tell Seijo.
"Meteor Falls. It's caused it to be cancelled."
"Meteor Fal-. Ellie! That doesn't matter right now. What matters, is that you're okay.", he said, holding onto her shoulder, while Ellie brushed away some of the tears that had made their way down. He took a breath and said, "You know, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I understand that its difficult, so I don't want to force you into anything."
"No. Of course, I want to find Flannery. And, I should be fine. I'm not gonna get any better by running from my problems."
"If you say so. So, the Elite League is cancelled because of Meteor Falls? But, that doesn't explain why she's not at the gym."
"Then, how do we investigate?"
"We could go to her house.", Seijo suggested, but Ellie approached it with caution.
"Are you sure that doesn't cross into stalkerish terroritory?"
"Relax a bit, I've talked to her before. I feel like we're good enough that I can pay a visit to ask how she's doing."
"Alright, if you say so."
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Seijo knocked on the door gently, taking the lead ahead of Ellie in talking his way through more information. He'd probably be recognized by whoever answered the door, so he'd be able to talk more easily. Eventually, he got an answer at the door and found that Mr Moore was standing at the door, accompanied by a walking stick. He looked at Seijo and smiled, saying with a slight wheeze,
"Oh, Seijo, lovely to see you again. Please, do come in."
Seijo opened the door for Ellie to pass through, and Mr Moore limped towards a table for them to sit at. Seijo helped Mr Moore sit down, while Ellie awkwardly took out a chair and sat down, fidgeting with her fingers slightly. Mr Moore looked over to her and grabbed a teapot sitting in the middle of the table, asking,
"You drink tea?"
Ellie nodded her head slowly, finding a rich tea poured into a small cup. She slowly drank the tea, finding it to be an amazing cup. She smiled as she took every sip until nothing was left in the cup. Moore smiled and said,
"It's good isn't it?"
"It's great, but I think I prefer the stuff at home.", Ellie said with a smile, to which Moore responded with a laugh. Then, he looked at Seijo and asked,
"So, are you just travelling, after what happened with your gym?"
"Somewhat. Ellie here is trying to get all the gym badges, so we figured we'd stop at Lavaridge. But-"
"Flannery isn't there. Yeah, as soon as she heard the news, she was devastated. She closed up the gym immediately. I told her that she could keep it open, but she didn't listen to me. She normally does take my advice, but I think her mind might be a bit clouded."
"So, where do you think she could be now?"
"Well, she has three places of comfort. The hot springs just outside the Pokemon Centre, training on the Jagged Path, or coming back home to meditate. And, she's not home right now. So, that gives us two options, in case you wanna go looking for her."
"Well, that's what we were planning to do."
"Alright then, well good luck on your journey to the Hoenn League, young lady," he said to Ellie, who smiled and nodded. Then, he turned to Seijo and said, "Please try and bring Flannery to her sense. I know that the Elite League must be hard for her, but she really needs to reopen for all those people, like Ellie, who are trying to compete."
"Don't worry, she'll be back to normal. I'll make sure of it."
"Well, I believe you better be off then. Do feel free to come back later if you need to.", Moore said as the duo began to file out of the door, waving at Moore as they went away from the house. Now, all they needed to do was make it back to the Pokemon Centre and hopefully meet back up with Harry and Lucas.
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Harry and Lucas' eyes averted as Ellie and Seijo finally walked through the Pokemon Centre doors. Lucas shot up to meet Ellie and Seijo, exclaiming,
"Finally! Feels like we've been waiting for centuries. So, what's the news?"
"Not great.", Ellie started as Seijo began to walk off and look outside through the window, then rush into the hot springs. Ellie explained to both Lucas and Harry the situation with the cancellation of the Elite League and how Flannery has been affected by it.
"Such a shame, what happened to Meteor Falls.", Harry commented as the conversation came into the topic of Meteor Falls, "But, at least none of us are affected by it much."
"Yeah, of course, yeah we haven't been affected by it.", Lucas said awkwardly, trying to move on the conversation as quickly as possible. But, Harry picked up on Lucas' lie pretty quickly, then realised what must have happened. His eyes widened as the realisation set in.
"Oh sh-"
"Hey, where did Seijo go?", Lucas interrupted, noticing a distinct lack of Seijo around them. However, Ellie provided an answer relatively quickly.
"I think he's went to the hot springs to look for Flannery, since her dad said she'd be there."
"Alright then, that's good. So, can you tell me a bit more about Meteor Falls, if you don't mind. I mean, I don't want to pressure you at all to tell me anything."
"We can't really tell you everything, since it's really hazy, but we'll tell you what you know.", Lucas said, recounting the foggy memories after they escaped the cave, choosing to try and repress any memories of what happened during the cavern in Meteor Falls.
"Thank you so much.", Harry responded, and they sat down around a booth in the Pokemon Centre, discussing it with each other.
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Seijo ran down the path leading into the hot springs, having seen Flannery relaxing in the hot spring through the window. She was pretty far, but her hair colour and style were pretty noticeable even from longer distances. He ran past different pools where the hot springs had formed until he eventually found Flannery relaxing in the hot spring. And, she could notice when someone was staring at her. She turned around, fully expecting to tell someone to go away. But, she was pleasantly surprised to find that it was a familiar face looking at her. Flannery's face lit up as she stood up and asked cheerfully,
"Hi, Seijo! I didn't expect to see you here."
"Yup, just travelling through, so I thought I'd see if you were here. Just to talk for a bit."
"Well, I am glad to talk to another gym leader.", she said as she slipped back under the water. She sighed as she melted into the soft embrace of the hot spring, then told Seijo, "Well, are you going to get in?"
"I didn't bring anything for this sort of thing though."
"Eh, it'll dry off. Come on, I wanna talk to you!"
Reluctantly, Seijo decided to get into the hot spring, taking off his shoes at the side and then hopping in. And, as soon as he got into the water, it was like nothing else mattered in the world. He'd been in Lavaridge's hot springs before but didn't remember just how good it felt to be in the waters again. Flannery noticed the relaxed expression on Seijo's face and asked,
"Good, isn't it?"
"I forgot what this felt like. It's amazing."
"You bet! So, you said you were travelling. I'm guessing you left after the gym was destroyed."
"Yeah, I figured I didn't have much else to do. So, I decided to travel with these two kids who were there when the gym was destroyed. They're just in the Pokemon Centre right now?"
"So, they're taking on the gyms, I presume?"
"Yeah, and they're doing pretty well. They were going to challenge you next, but you weren't at your gym."
A silence followed as neither wanted to say anything after that statement. Rather, it just hung in the air, until Seijo decided to ask,
"Is the cancellation the reason you're not at the gym?"
"Well, it's a reason. I just have nothing to look forward to other than a bunch of gym trainers that I've probably seen before."
"But, you're not gonna find any more special gym trainers unless you keep fighting, right?"
"I suppose. But, I'll probably need to do some training first. In fact, maybe I should do that now.", Flannery said as she sat up, and said to Seijo, "I'll be around Jagged Path if you want to talk further then."
Flannery ran from the hot spring immediately after, leaving Seijo in the hot spring. He wanted to follow her but decided not to. As long as she's trying to train for the gym, that's a good thing. And, then Ellie, Lucas and Harry saw Flannery running through the lobby of the Pokemon Centre. It attracted a bit of attention, and Harry commented,
"I guess Flannery was in the hot springs then."
"So, that hopefully means that she's back at the gym, or going training at Jagged Pass.", Ellie replied as she spotted Flannery running out of sight through a window. Lucas tapped his fingers together, then reached into his bag, pulling out Vibrava's Pokeball. He asked Harry,
"So, is there anything else you want to know about Meteor Falls. Cause, I kinda wanna meet Vibrava upstairs."
"No, I don't think I have any more questions. So, let's see what this dragonfly can do!", Harry exclaimed joyfully. Ellie expressed less enthusiasm but did want to see if Vibrava's mannerisms would change at all. They all went upstairs, through the stairwell into a vacant room. They locked the door and Lucas let loose Vibrava to the world. The first thing he did was scan for information with the Pokedex.
Vibrava, the Vibration Pokemon.
To make prey faint, Vibrava generates ultrasonic waves by vigorously making its two wings vibrate. This Pokémon's ultrasonic waves are so powerful, they can bring on headaches in people.
Vibrava seemed extremely proud of its Pokedex entry, even willing to give a demonstration of the power of the ultrasonic waves, until Lucas held the wings to stop them from vibrating. Lucas then reached into his pocket and brought out some treats for Vibrava to eat. Vibrava spat a substance onto the food that looked to be acid. It broke down the food immediately and Vibrava began to munch on the acidic substance. Ellie gagged at the disgusting display, while Harry looked again in the Pokedex for anything about the acid. And, soon enough, he found something.
"Yeah, it says here that it will spit acid at prey to eat."
"Great, so it can spit acid as well as create dangerous ultrasonic waves, and sandstorms!", Ellie exclaimed.
Vibrava finished its meal and then looked up at Lucas, who sighed and told Vibrava,
"Right, so I'm Lucas. And, I'm going to be your new trainer from now on."
Vibrava immediately started to charge a Mud Slap with one of its wings, but Lucas just managed to catch the blow before it hit him in the face. Vibrava didn't let up though, so Lucas resorted to talking while blocking the blow.
"Listen, you might not be happy with it, but I promise that we'll make a great team if you decide to just work with me a bit."
Vibrava shook its head violently then slapped its Pokeball with its other wing, returning back inside where it didn't have to communicate with Lucas. Lucas lay on the floor, with Ellie and Harry looking down on him.
"Looks like it's going to be tougher to get Vibrava to listen to you.", Ellie commented as she grabbed Taillow's Pokeball, noticing their similarities in how they refused to listen.
"I'm going to be honest, I'm sort of relieved that I didn't get Vibrava now. It looks to be a handful."
"But, I'll deal with it. I can do it. I just have to connect with it, one way or another, then it'll be a friend and team player."
"Yeah, you'll definitely get there.", Ellie said, reassuring Lucas with a warm smile. Harry nodded and then opened the door to leave, saying,
"Well, I wish you luck with Vibrava."
"I should probably be looking for vacant room as well.", Ellie said as she waved Lucas goodbye and exited into the corridor. Lucas smiled and waved back, then heard the door click shut. He looked at Vibrava's Pokeball and said,
"I can do this. You'll be okay, by my side."
Notes:
Hello everyone, thanks for reading. I actually managed to publish this chapter at an appropriate time, wooo! It's quite a long chapter, but I didn't want to split it into two parts and I couldn't find a part where I could break it up, even if this chapter did do quite a lot of stuff. So I just decided to leave it how it normally is. Anyways, there should be a bit more about Flannery in the next few chapters and then into Mauville City, which I am extremely excited to write! So, yeah, I'll see you next time. Bye!