"Use Bullet Punch!"
Riolu shot his fists forwards, punching Flabebe away.
"Vine Whip!"
Chespin's vines shot from the back of his head and lashed at Froakie.
"Use Cut to slice them apart," I yelled. "Riolu, Force Palm!"
"Flabebe!" Alex shouted. "Fairy Wind!"
Riolu was sent careening backwards as Froakie sliced apart Chespin's vines.
"Use Rollout!" Robert commanded.
"Switch!" I shouted. "Force Palm and Water Pulse!"
Riolu leaped over Froakie as the Water type charged up a sphere of water and the Fighting type slammed the palm of his hand into Chespin, knocking him away. Froakie let loose the Water Pulse and it crashed into Flabebe.
Alex and Robert sighed in defeat. "Alright, you win."
I grinned. "Hey now. Looks like it's your guys turn to buy supplies."
They scowled and Alex pointed a finger at me. "You do realize we're the only ones with money anyway, right?"
I shrugged. "I wouldn't put it past you two to find a job for me in this small town."
It was our second day in Camphrier Town and boy was it slow. So slow that we decided we would battle in the back of the Pokemon Center to see who would go to the small store for supplies. As luck would have it, I won.
Riolu and Froakie ran back to me, Riolu pounding his chest with one paw. "Riol!"
I grinned and rubbed his head. "Yeah, you did great out there."
Froakie leaped onto my shoulder and I laughed. "You did good too Froakie."
I waved my two friends goodbye while smiling cheekily and sat down on the hard dirt battlefield. I stretched my arms and felt the warmth of the sun on my face. Then I heard a screech and yelling.
I sighed. "Never a dull moment."
I stood and grinned. "At least this town will get a little less boring."
"Rio!" Riolu agreed and ran after me as I went around the Pokemon Center. There we found a fancy pink carriage being pulled by two Gogoats being assaulted by people in black clothing alongside several types of Pokemon, the stagecoach on the ground. I heard yelling inside the carriage, then the door on the side burst open, another person in black carrying a huge sack over their shoulder that was writhing and screaming.
"Oh boy," I said, standing straight. "Yo!"
Faces covered in black cloth and goggles turned towards me. I noticed a crowd had pulled up and I could see Robert and Alex trying to shove their way through.
"Look," I said. "I'm gonna have to ask you people to kindly put that bag down. Or else things might get out of hand."
One of them stepped forwards and said in a toneless voice, "Get out of the way kid. This isn't your business."
I smirked. "That's good. I excel at getting into other people's business. Riolu, Froakie. Let's bust some heads."
A couple of the people motioned with their hands and a Growlithe, Inkay, and Pancham stepped forwards.
"So you're just grunts," I remarked. "Good to know. Froakie, Water Pulse. Riolu, Bullet Punch."
Froakie leaped into the air, hurling a sphere of water towards Growlithe while Riolu pummeled both Inkay and Pancham in quick succession. I could see the one with the bag trying to get away, but I flicked Arcanine's pokeball into the air.
"Stop him," I said. "Froakie, pin 'em down with your bubbles for Riolu!"
Arcanine sped forwards, stopping in front of the black clothed man, fangs bared. With their Pokemon out of the picture and an Arcanine in their way, I had them cornered.
"Alright," I said. "Put the bag down and I'll let you guys leave. Fair trade?"
They all exchanged looks and took off, the bag getting dropped on the ground. I heard someone yell, more in fury than in pain from within. I walked over to it and cut the strings with the knife Jessie, James, and Meowth had given me. The bag fell open to reveal a girl in a dark pink dress with frills, her auburn hair done in large ringlets. She wore a tiara on her head and had a look of surprise on her face, face slightly red from being in the bag.
"You alright?" I asked her. She stared up at me, looking a little shocked. Then she appeared to regain her composure as she stood up to about my height, dusting herself off.
"Absolutely disgusting," she said furiously. "They think they can try and kidnap me!? Think again!"
She yelled after their retreating forms and I sighed. She looked like royalty. I wasn't one who liked to deal with royalty.
She huffed and turned back to me, a smile adorning her face. She took my hands in hers and beamed at me. "Thank you so much for rescuing me. May I know your name."
"Uh," I looked down at where her hands grasped mine and felt a little uncomfortable. "Zeno."
"A pleasure to meet you Zeno," she said, still beaming, eyes practically sparkling. "I am Princess Allie of Parfum Palace. How can I ever repay you?"
"Well, I, um," I said, taken aback a little. "You don't need to-"
"Oh, I know," she looked excited. "How about we get married!"
I heard a choking noise behind me as well as coughing to cover up a fit of laughter. I had no doubt they belonged to Alex and Robert. The crowd still gathered around began murmuring excitedly and I felt my face go red.
"Say what now!?" I basically yelled. I tried to pull away, but jeez, she had a strong grip.
"Now now," she said brightly. "I can have it all arranged tonight and tomorrow we can have our wedding."
"Uh," I was still in shock. "You're talking about this way too lightly."
"After that Clemont boy rejected me, I've been in a depressed mood," she pouted for a moment, before cheering up immediately, pulling me towards the carriage.
"Hey, wait!" I heard Alex yell, but Princess Allie had managed to pull me into the carriage. At once it began moving and I was force to sit opposite of Allie. I tried the handle and found it had locked.
"Now now Zeno dear," the princess tutted as we rolled out of Camphrier Town. "I promise you I'll make an exceptional wife."
"Yeah, that's not my concern here," I said drily. "You just abducted me."
"Oh don't be silly," she chuckled. "You're my groom now."
I rubbed my face. This was too much.
"Okay, look," I said. "I don't want to be rude here, but I don't want to marry you. I'm travelling with my friends at the moment and-"
"Oh don't worry about that dear," she took my hands again. "I promise you, you'll enjoy my company a lot more than when you're with your friends."
I sighed. I figured I would have to escape when we stopped. Come to think of it, where were we going?
"Hey," I said, trying to act casual. "Where are we heading?"
"Oh don't worry," she giggled into her hand. "It's not far. We're heading to Parfum Palace. There will be a big party tonight, but don't worry. I'll make sure father gets the wedding set up in time for us for tomorrow."
"Wonderful," I thought.
I tried to distract myself by watching the outside go by from the small square window. We appeared to be on a country road, a straight line of trees on both sides. Then, in the corner of a window, I could see us driving towards a huge luxurious palace with huge metal gates. I don't think I could escape easily if I was trapped on the inside.
"Look," I said. "What will your parents think when you suddenly bring me home announcing I'll be your husband? And you're not even old enough to get married."
"Oh silly Zeno," she batted her eyes at me. "Daddy will simply be thrilled when he hears about this."
We pulled beyond the gates and I heard them clang shut behind me, resigning me to my fate.
"There still has to be a way to escape," I thought. "If not, Alex, Robert, you guys will need to save me."
...
As soon as I was brought into the luxurious palace, Princess Allie clapped her hands. Instantly, a butler was there, his short black hair close to graying.
"Charles," Allie spoke in a regal tone. "I want my fiancee to be properly dressed for tonight's party."
"Yes Princess," he did a short bow. "Whatever you wish."
He grabbed me by the shoulder and steered me away, Princess Allie blowing a kiss as we left.
"Hey look," I said, trying to pull away, but his grip was strong, and I didn't want to hurt him. "I don't know what's going on here. Can I just leave?"
"I am sorry," he said gruffly. "Whatever Princess Allie commands I follow."
"There goes that idea," I sighed. If I had my Pokemon with me, they could've caused a distraction.
As we turned a corner, I saw a section of the hallway to my right roped off. Beyond it, the carpet was ripped and glass ornaments laying in pieces on the ground.
"What happened there?" I asked.
"Someone tried to break in last night," the butler answered.
I narrowed my eyes. Someone broke in last night. A couple people tried to kidnap Princess Allie today. I sensed something afoot, but before I could think about it further, I was dragged into a fancy bedroom, a king sized bed taking up half the room. Much like the rest of the palace I had seen, the carpet was a fine red color and everything gave off an unreal vibe.
The butler closed the door behind us and went over to two large doors. He pulled them open to reveal a huge walk-in closet. He rummaged through there for a few seconds before coming out with a tuxedo.
I grimaced. Not again. Some of this situation reminded me of my mission in that mansion way back when. I had a feeling I would end up in a ballroom by tonight's end.
The butler went to help me undress, but I knocked his hand away. "Look, if I have to do this, I'm going to do it myself."
...
I looked at myself in the large mirror, absolutely disgusted. My hair was slicked back and a faint cologne on my body. Not my idea.
"You are certainly a fine specimen," the butler, Charles, gave a short bow. "It'll be a pleasure to serve you and the Princess."
I groaned. This was going to be horrible.
Charles opened the door. "You may do whatever it is you wish until tonight. By eight'o'clock, you must be in the ballroom for the party."
I didn't nod, but he left. I waited until I was sure he was long gone, then poked my head out of the room. He was gone.
"Thank Arceus," I breathed a sigh in relief. "Time to find a way out of this place."
I walked left down the hallway, thinking that if there wasn't a way to escape in the front, the back of the palace might serve an excellent opportunity. I glanced out of the windows to my right and saw a huge garden with a hedge bush maze out there. If I couldn't escape, the least I could do was hide. Then I stopped. I thought I had saw something out there, a dark shadow hide behind the hedges.
I kept walking, glancing out of every window, my pace increasing. What had I saw? I heard a loud crash above me and a shriek. I looked up. It must've come from the floor above. I began running and spotted some stairs to my left. I ran up them and found myself on the second floor. I looked to my right and saw a maid on her knees, staring in shock at a broken window.
"What happened?" I asked, running up to her.
"I-it," she looked shaken. "It broke through the window."
I peered out the window, but saw nothing outside, not even in the maze of hedges. I looked down on the soft carpet and picked up a shard of glass. The window was broken from the outside. That meant, whatever had broken it, was now in the palace.
"Did you see where it went?" I asked, setting the shard down.
The maid shook her head. "I- I don't know."
I grimaced and looked around. It hadn't come down the stairs, so there were only to ways for it to go. Down the hall to my right the hallway turned right and continued out of sight. I looked down to my left and I could see the hallway run on for a bit, reaching a a section where I could see mirrors.
I checked the carpet and found the faintest of indents on it, leading to the right. It might've been the maid's, but it was the only clue I had at the moment.
"Stay here," I told her and started running. I turned the corner and stared at the carpet, trying to follow the faint footprints. Then,
CRASH!
I was knocked backwards, rubbing my head. "Ouch."
I looked up to see the butler from earlier there.
"Do you need something Prince Zeno," he asked.
"I- wait, prince!?"
He nodded. "The Princess wishes for you to have a noble title."
"I, uh," I didn't know what to say at first, but then I pulled myself together. "Okay, never mind that. We have a problem. Someone broke into the palace."
Charles' face hardened. "Where?"
I jerked a thumb behind me. "Back there. A window was broken and a maid saw something break into here. I thought they came down this way. They might be after the Princess."
"No," the butler said firmly. "They're after something else."
I raised an eyebrow. "What is it then?"
"We have recently recovered a sacred artifact related to the legends of Kalos," he explained. "We have it locked up and secured inside the palace, but a mysterious group has claimed interest in it and sent us a message saying they'll do anything to get it."
"A mysterious group?" I thought. "Why do things like this keep popping up? Are they all connected?"
"Is there anyway to find whoever broke in?" I asked.
The butler thought about it. "We could search the whole palace, but I'm not confident we would find them easily."
I started pacing. "If they're here for the artifact, they might be looking for it. Unless they're biding their time. But why? Why would-"
I looked at Charles. "Why is there a party tonight?"
"No reason," he said. "But one of the main attractions tonight will be the artifact."
"I knew it," I breathed. "They're going to show up at the party, guaranteed. That's when they'll strike."
I grinned. "I've made up my mind. Charles, seems like I'll be staying a bit longer."
He gave a short bow. "Very good sir. What do you need me to do?"
I didn't want to know why he was asking me for orders, so I rolled with it. "Keep preparing for tonight. I want guards posted around the palace if you have them. No one is allowed to be near this artifact."
I wondered if there was anything else, then snapped my fingers. "Oh, and I'll need two letters sent to Camphrier Town. I have a feeling I'm going to need backup."
The plot thickens. What could this mysterious artifact be? And who could be after it? And will Zeno actually be married to Princess Allie? Find out next time. Toodles