NOVEL WEB Chapter 25 – Celestial Views
Chapter 25 – Celestial Views
“Hmmm… Okay then.”
“Really!? you’ll keep our secret?”
Phoebe just finished explaining mine and Victini’s circumstances to our enigmatic hostess.
“It’s fine you don’t seem like the type of trainer that would misuse the power of a legendary Pokémon. The way you have been trying to keep Victini’s existence a secret is admirable enough. However, I would caution you to avoid the psychic academy inside the settlement(.) I have no guarantees that they wouldn’t be able to sense Victini’s great psychic potential. The headmistress is… a bit too eager in expanding her school’s influence.”
“Tini, can you shield your mind from other psychics?”
“Vi Vi!” “No problem!”
“She says it shouldn’t be an issue for her. I was kind of hoping to visit the school and maybe get some technical machines on the cheap since Glove here needs to work on his psychic abilities.”
“Vi!” “I am Glove’s teacher!”
‘It’s not a criticism of your teaching methods Tini, but you only know confusion, right? Your versatile application of the move surpasses any psychic Pokémon that I know. However, I was thinking you and Glove could learn some new moves together.’
Kira observed the byplay between me and Victini. The rabbit Pokémon is capable of projecting her thoughts outwards so as to have everyone participate in the conversation, but Victini only does so with people she considers friends. Since she has only known Kira for less than an hour it left the woman guessing as to the contents of our discussion.
“Victini has never been in a match before, so she doesn’t know many battle moves.”
“Fascinating! What we do know about legendary Pokémon is that they tend to be quite old on average based on texts of people encountering them in olden times. Does this mean Victini is newly hatched?”
“Well… no she’s just been really shy mostly. Before we found her, she was holed up in someone’s basement playing children’s board games all day.”
“Vi!” “Hey!”
“If it’s instruction on battle moves that you are looking for. I own quite the collection of technical machines, mostly ghost type moves of course.”
‘Could I? No, I made a promise to myself to not rely on others… overly much.’
“I would really like to, but I made a commitment to make it on my own. So please don’t tempt me with expensive technical machines.”
Phoebe took this opportunity to butt into our conversation.
“Are you still on that Egon!? Relying on others doesn’t make your team any weaker.”
“Says a third generational heiress… I feel like if I rely on shortcuts like these too many times it diminishes from my journey. True strength is developed in the face of adversity.”
Most of my team gave me a half-confused look but surprisingly Glove gave me a quiet nod. Agreeing with my philosophy on battling.
“Dar.”
“Thanks Glove.”
“I see that’s very mature of you Egon, but technical machines aren’t the only way to learn a new move. How about I let one of my Pokémon teach one of yours a new move?”
“Well, I’ve always been wanting to teach my Pokémon the move will-o-wisp. Even though it’s a fire type move, ghost types seem more naturally inclined to learn it than fire types. Rena should be able to learn the move on her own, but it could help if she got some tips from an experienced ghost type Pokémon.”
“Vuuuul!”
“I know but I believe you have sunny day down pat. Now it’s just a power issue.”
Kira didn’t seem to be opposed to my idea of having one of her Pokémon teach my Vulpix a new move. That’s when she proposed a deal of some sorts.
“I have an excellent idea. Why don’t you and Phoebe climb the tower? There’s a bell situated at the very top. They say the bell's sound reflects the nature of the one who rings it. This could endear you to the Pokémon living inside the tower making the search for a suitable partner that much easier. And as a reward for completing this challenging quest, I’ll have one of my Pokémon teach this cute little Vulpix how to use the move will-o-wisp.”
“Can I leave my egg here? I don’t want to risk dropping it when one of the ghost types in the tower inevitably tries to prank me.”
“Prank? Well maybe, but they are not like ghosts haunting forests and caves. There’s plenty of negative energy around to keep them going. The ghost type Pokémon in the tower only interact with humans that manage to garner their interests.”
I turned my attention to Glove who was seated right next to the egg.
“You still want to come with us to the tower?”
“Nitan.”
“Vi” “Glove says he will stand watch over the egg.”
Celestial tower entrance*
The walk over to the tower was very uneventful; the settlement only housed around a hundred people and most of those individuals only came out of their beds later in the day. The morticians who tended to the graves of the deceased Pokémon, entombed inside the tower, naturally were all tuckered out from last night’s séance so the only one left at the tower’s entrance was a token guard who kept record of who entered and left the tower. As we approached his light lit up at the sight of Phoebe.
“A good day to you miss Phoebe. Are you here to visit the Pokémon in the tower? I have it on good grounds that all the Pokémon enjoy your visits.”
“Hello to you too Carl. Yes, and this time I am bringing along my friend who is also visiting from Hoenn. Can you ring us up?”
The worker took out a simple sign up chart filling out Phoebe’s name himself and afterwards asking me for my address and contact information. Before I even had a chance to enquire as to why that was necessary Phoebe preemptively answered those questions for me.
“It’s because the staff working here are responsible for maintaining the graves of the deceased and to make sure no one desecrates the interred ashes held on the upper levels. The last time someone did that, the ghost type Pokémon refused to let humans enter the tower for a full year.”
“Really? Why would someone steal or damage the remains of deceased Pokémon?”
My vocal confusion on the matter drew out a peculiar reaction from Phoebe and the gatekeeper.
“Eh yeah… Why indeed?”
Phoebe might be a professional trickster, but she is terrible at lying. I was curious as to the true reason people would mess with the graves of deceased Pokémon, but not enough to hound her for an answer. After I was done registering, Carl let us through the main entrance. Immediately I noticed the change in surroundings. The air felt stifling and even with the many open unglazed windows and it being well into the day there was a supernatural amount of shadows covering the floor.
“This is it, Egon! Very homey don’t ya think?”
“Did you just describe a graveyard as homey? On Mt. Pyre the fresh air and the fragrant mountain flora suppresses the ahem… stale smelling incense and decomposing remains.”
“Stop moping Egon! We still have four sets of stairs to traverse until we reach the mourner’s bell.”
The ground floor should easily be the largest storey judging by the tower’s shape on the outside. That did indeed seem to be the case. The graves were lined up in an orderly manner and funnily enough no Pokémon were within eyesight, confused I asked Phoebe what the deal was.
“How come there are no Pokémon living on the ground floor?”
“There is an agreement that during visiting hours the wild Pokémon stay upstairs. Some of the older people that have come to pay their respects are deathly afraid of ghost types after all. We have similar arrangements on Mt. Pyre during the festival season. Just keep following me! My new partner is waiting for us on the first floor.”
Without further ado Phoebe took an immediate left and started walking up the grand staircase with me following closely behind. By my estimations the staircase
“So how did you decide on which Pokémon to catch?”
“Well, most of these cuties wanted to come with me and if I wasn’t under any restrictions, I’d take at least a dozen to come and live with me and my family on Mt. Pyre. However, since I am a professional battler, I ultimately came to the conclusion that I should try and catch the toughest one of them all. That ended up being my dearest Lampent.”
The distinct smell of soot started entering my nostrils as we made it further up the staircase. The unmistakable smell of a large grouping of fire type Pokémon.
“Say Phoebes, are there any other ghost types living in this tower beside those of the litwick species?”
“For sure the people living here just love ghost types and they often let their partner Pokémon inside the tower to come and play. If you meant to ask if there are any wild ones around, I would think not. Ah! But they do have a group of Elygem and Beheeyem living on the upper levels. Something about this being the only place in Unova without any light pollution and the tower being one of the tallest buildings seems to attract them. Those Pokémon just love stargazing.”
We finally made it to the first floor and as Phoebe took her very first step on this level a flickering shadow released itself from one of the prayer altars and blitzed in her direction.
“Lamp-enttttt!”
“Oooh! Lampy you sure are quick to greet me. Have you been waiting all this time?”
Now finally getting a better look at the shadow’s shape and size it revealed itself to be a floating lampshade sporting two long wavy arms and bluish-purple flame with oval yellow eyes. The Pokémon, by my account, was excited to meet back up with its trainer judging by its enigmatic behavior.
“Lampy meet Egon you know the one I told you about? He’s also here to find a partner, but first he’ll have to ring the bell of course.”
“Laaamp!”
“Ehhm nice to meet you. Please take good care of this troublemaker from now on. I know she can be a handful.”
“Hey you! Don’t badmouth me in front of my new buddy!”
“Ouch! Stop it! Don’t think just because you are bigger than me, that you are free to walnut me!”
“Oh yeah? It seems to me like this big sister still needs to teach you some manners!”
“Laaaamp?”
The first three floors of our climb to the top were surprisingly uneventful if you disregarded the fact that we were being stalked by floating sentient candles. The fact that the abundant litwick population lit up the halls of this tower did little to stymie the eerie feeling you get when walking around a massive graveyard. For the most part the presence of Phoebe’s Lampent helped ward off any of the wild ghost Pokémon looking for a fight. Unfortunately, Phoebe herself couldn’t resist the temptation of engaging in some friendly banter with the ghosts we passed along the way much to her Lampent’s jealous dismay. The ghost type seemed to have a possessive streak a mile wide.
“You are looking amazing as always! I am absolutely sure that any trainer would be lucky to have you.”
“Lit…”
“Don’t be like that silly… you know that if I could. I’d bring you along with me.”
One of the Litwick that was in contention for being her Pokémon still needed a good pep talk to come out of her funk. This touching emotional moment brought out someone else who was resting inside of her poké ball. A certain rabbit that was getting into the habit of picking up strays.
“Please Egon! We just have to take her with us!”
“Just because this Litwick is a good fit for Phoebe doesn’t mean that she’ll be good addition to our team. And need I remind you that you have already used up your yearly quota of charity cases?”
“…We capture her and once we are back in Hoenn you can give Litwick back to Phoebe.”
“Trainer registration records are a big deal! League inspectors at any time can demand to see the Pokémon I am responsible for and if I don’t have a legitimate reason for Litwick’s absence, I can have my license revoked. Technically being a Unovan citizen I am not allowed to trade away native Pokémon to foreign nationals the only exception being direct family members. The only reason I felt comfortable with helping Tranquill find a trainer is because the Unovan league association will not raise a fuss over such a ahem… prolific species.”
“How do we make Phoebe your family?”
It was at that point that I should’ve stopped indulging Victini’s line of questioning. Sad to say that my kryptonite was that pair of big blue eyes.
“Well adoption won’t work, and we are both a bit too young to enter into a sham marriage…”
At this juncture of my conversation with Victini Phoebe stepped in with some unhelpful comments.
“Egon… A squirt like you should thank their lucky staryu for even the opportunity to enter into a sham marriage with me! Don’t you dare get too full of yourself you little brat!”
“Have you been listening at all? Anyway, I think it’s best that this Litwick remains here for now. A little birdie at Professor Juniper’s home told me that Unova will ease up on foreigners catching Unovan Pokémon in the near future. And it’s not like you can’t come and visit whenever you want right?”
“Vi…” “I guess…”
We continued on. The little Litwick catching a ride on Phoebe’s shoulder milking their time together for all it’s worth. The next floor I came across an unfamiliar sight. A pair of extraterrestrial looking cyan-colored Pokémon being seemingly instructed by a larger bigger one. They didn’t really talk, instead opting to use the rainbow-colored lights at the end of their arms to communicate in some sort of morse code. I instantly recognized the species of Pokémon we encountered. Intrigued, I motioned for Phoebe and the gang to wait while I went over to say hello.
“Hello, would you mind if I scanned you with my Pokédex? It’s the first time I’ve met members of your species.”
The leader flashed the green light bulb on his arm which I took as him giving the go ahead to my request. I pulled out my device to record these wondrous creatures.
Elgyem, the Cerebral Pokémon. Elgyem was first discovered when it emerged from deep within the desert 50 years ago. Elygem uses its strong psychic power to squeeze its opponent's brain, causing unendurable headaches.
Beheeyem, the Cerebral Pokémon. Beheeyem can control its opponents' minds and confuse their memories with its psychic power. Apparently, it communicates by flashing its three fingers, but those patterns haven't been decoded.
“Fascinating, I bet the ability to tamper with memories would be really useful for treating people with PTSD. Have you ever considered working as a mental health specialist?”
After making that remark I felt a foreign pressure trying to make a connection to my mind and having experienced this before I commenced a quick mental exchange with Victini letting her know that everything was okay and to allow the Beheeyem to contact my brain box.
“Am I Intruding, human?”
“Yeah, no sorry I have a psychic type on my team, and she doesn’t like sharing headspace if you know what I mean.”
“Yes quite, members of our race also don’t allow anyone else access to our minds except for the closest of partners. Communication with your species has proven difficult… in the past. Which is why I opted to link minds like this. To answer your earlier question, I do indeed provide similar services to the still developing humans attending the Academy outside. Budding psychics run the risk of their powers going out of control when facing emotional distress.”
“Interesting! Does your species work for money or is it more like an exchange of services?”
“It is a mutually beneficial arrangement. In return for our assistance, we are provided food and lodging. Younger members of my species often choose to pair up with their young initiates who still lack a partner. That way both can benefit from the free training the school provides.”
“Say... is It true that your species are extraterrestrial in origin? Sorry for all the questions by the way.”
“Not many humans are able to see the signs. What was it about us that led you to such a conclusion?”
I could hardly tell a Pokémon that I just met about my first life. So, I tried coming up with a plausible explanation.
“You use light signals to communicate right? That kind of adaptation would make more sense if one finds himself in the dark vastness of space. Not to mention several other Pokémon have settled here after crashing on this planet. In Hoenn Lunatone and Solrock are speculated to have hitched a ride on meteorites their species was undiscovered up until a meteor crashed on the mountain range we now call Meteor Falls forty years ago.”
“Excellent deduction from one as young as you. Your mind feels more “settled” not at all like your age mates. Yes, we indeed crash landed here after running into a great serpent near your planet’s exosphere. It shot us down before we had any chance at communicating our peaceful intentions. Don’t ask of us to disclose the location of our vessel, it is in disrepair and we agreed that introducing such levels of technology to the world is not a wise venture.”
“Oh, you must have encountered Rayquaza, one of my region’s legendary Pokémon. The Sky High Pokémon regards the earth’s atmosphere as its territory. I think it considers any form of life foreign to the planet as a potential threat. Maybe it has had a bad experience with interplanetary visitors in the past?”
“So that’s its name… you have given us much to think about. In any case we have grown accustomed to living on this planet. The beautiful scenery flush with life trumps that of our own home. We hold little attachment to our past. At first, we started living in this tower because it was the best place in the region to signal our people for a possible extraction, but now our lights flare only for tradition’s sake so as to not forget our origins.”
“Well, I am off to ring that bell. It was nice talking to you.”
“Before you go, can you keep quiet about our spacecraft? We want to avoid any unnecessary attention.”
“For sure. Thank you for showing restraint, you could’ve just erased that part of the conversation from my memory.”
“That would have been the prudent choice, but I didn’t want to draw the ire from your partner.”
I turned around and spotted Victini off in the distance being reluctantly held by Phoebe while giving Beheeyem the evil eye. Little did she know it just made her all the more adorable.
Our party reached the tower’s roof in good time. I was partly exhausted from the long trek on the spiral staircases. In the middle of the roof stood a meticulously designed bell. The contraption holding the great bell aloft seemed to be made out of some sort of green marble while the bell itself was made out of brass but inlaid with intricate golden designs depicting a stylized version of the tower itself.
“Have they ever considered building an elevator or some kind of pulley system? I can’t imagine older folk enjoying the climb to the top.”
“This is for your own good Egon! Your body needs to be in shape if you ever want to make it as a Pokémon trainer. Seniors can make use of the staff’s teleportation services.”
“Whatever, So I just have to pull this rope, right?”
“Yes, but before you do, think hard about what kind of trainer you are. They say it helps make it clear to the Pokémon living down below what kind of partner you’d be.”
‘Hmm honestly, I never spent much time thinking about that… To the Pokémon I travel with I am more of a mix between a friend you can goof around with and a male nanny. We do have the overarching goal to make it to the big leagues but there’s no rush to get there. Journeying with them seeing the sights and meeting interesting people and Pokémon is just as important. No… before all of that I have to get my sister back.’
Victini started sending me feel good vibes through our connection. Words were unnecessary, the feelings of approval and affection were enough to let me know that she perceived me as a worthy Pokémon trainer. Her intent of cheering me up was made clear.
I pulled the rope, deciding to only ring the bell four times so as to not upset the Pokémon living in the surrounding area. The sound the bell produced put me in a melancholic mood mixed in with a hint of nostalgia. I must have been more worried about my sister than I previously thought if the sound is any indication of my state of mind.
“Is everything alright Egon?”
“Yeah… let’s go downstairs. I need to find my last partner as quickly as possible.”
We went back downstairs and while climbing back down. I felt Phoebe staring holes in the back of my head the entire time. Obviously still unsettled by the sound the bell produced. I haven’t told any of my friends about my familial situation, not wanting them to worry about a situation they could do little about. Legally speaking Zinnia’s father and my mother had every right to take their child back with them to the village. Getting frustrated I tried focusing my attention on the task at hand.
“Hey Lampent?”
“Pent?”
“Do you know any litwick that might be interested in traveling with a novice trainer like me? You know, battling, exploring and the like. Preferably ones that don’t like pranking.”
“Laaaamp!”
“She says that the more docile litwick keep to themselves on the first floor.”
Firstly, I thanked Phoebe’s Lampent for the useful information before addressing my overly worrisome friend. We were most of the way down already, currently finding ourselves on the second floor. She still has not let up on probing me for details on my private life.
“Hey Phoebe, you mind if I take a look on my own? I want the ghost Pokémon that’s going to be my teammate to pick me for me not because I am hanging out with you.”
“Cheh! Fine, I'll be waiting outside. But you better tell me what’s going on with you afterwards!”
Phoebe ran ahead leaving me alone with Victini. The flying rabbit nestled inside my hairdo the whole way down. Giving me head pats all the while as if I was a kid starved for attention.
“It’ll be okay, you'll get back soon.”
‘I hope so. I don’t know when that league sanctioned raid is supposed to happen but if I miss it, I’ll never forgive myself.’
After a few minutes we made it to the first floor. I immediately noticed a change in the demeanor of the local litwick without Phoebe and Lampent to stave off the more aggressive ones. I was immediately marked as a trainer that is available for battles. Three of them came up to me demanding a match.
“Lit!”
“You want a battle? That’s fine but if I win you will help me find the mildest mannered litwick that is living on this floor.”
The trio were momentarily confused by my request after murmuring among themselves for a while. The biggest one, which by my estimates was their leader, hopped forward and gave me a nod in confirmation.
“Wick!”
‘Now who to pick? Numsy would have the type advantage but seeing as we find ourselves on the first floor of an ancient tower I am guessing the locals wouldn’t appreciate us using most of his ground type moves.’
“Vi Vi!” “Let me!”
My Rabbit companion floated upwards and landed on the floor tiles just in front of me, her paws clenched and jittery for battle.
“Tini, are you sure? Maybe for your first battle we can…”
“Vi!” “I can do it!”
“Well, if you are that determined… As your partner, I obviously have to support you all the way. Litwick, can you take it easy on Victini at the start? This is her first real battle.”
“Lit lit!”
“Alright! Let’s slowly trade moves use Incinerate!”
Both fire types got ready to exchange blows. The Litwick’s flame intensified and took on a swirly pattern. Having seen this hundreds of times at the Lavaridge gym I know this is the precursor of a fire spin attack.
‘This Litwick is not unskilled, being able to figure out this fire type move on its own without a trainer. If the one we are looking for isn’t interested I might offer this little one a spot on my team.’
Both Pokémon fired off their moves at the same time. A pillar of whirling fire headed straight towards Victini and simultaneously Tini responded by firing off an incinerate.
“That’s it, you are doing it! Now Ehhh…!?”
The fire laser Victini fired off in the direction of our opponent completely engulfed the fire spin before mercilessly impacting Litwick’s body blasting the poor Pokémon away like a projectile. Luckily one of the graveyard’s headstones was in the middle of Litwick’s trajectory somewhat cushioning the ghost Pokémon’s crash.
“Arceus! Are you alright?”
Me and Tini rushed up to check if Litwick was still okay. The candle Pokémon was knocked out but still seemed to have all his parts in order.
“Quick Tini, give me the potion spray!”
Victini dove into my backpack and fished out the topical spray meant to alleviate a Pokémon’s injuries. I could only afford the basic version at the time, but it is better than nothing. The potion even in any of its advanced forms is not a replacement for treatment at the Pokémon center. However, in a pinch they are lifesavers. I pulled off the cap before applying the topical medicine on Litwick’s candlelike body. Instantaneously the candle Pokémon started moving again clearly the medicine having an immediate effect.
“Lit…”
“Are you okay Litwick? We are very sorry for surprising you like that.”
“Vi Vi!” “Please forgive us!”
“Lit…Wick!”
“Vi!?” “Ehh!? I don’t need followers!”
The other two litwick caught up to us and started to prostrate themselves in front of Victini much to the embarrassment of my little rabbit Pokémon.
“Vi Vi!” “Stop it! I am not your big sister!”
“Tini, this is our chance! Ask them to help us with our quest to find a uniquely tempered litwick.”
After a quick back and forth between the gangster trio and Victini they happily led us towards the most lit up section of the floor. Once there I couldn’t help but notice the stark differences between this part of the tower and the rest of the floor. A sunbeam coming from an open windowsill lit up the entire area and a fresh breeze wafted through alleviating the old damp smell emanating from the tower’s insides. On top of an old edifice not bothering to hide at all sat a lone Litwick. Eyes closed presumably asleep since its wick was devoid of any kind of activity being unlit. I motioned for Victini to keep the trio of litwick busy while I walked up and tried to make first introductions.
“Hey there, do you want to be my friend?”
“Wick…?”