Chapter Text
The wild Pokemon of the Sinjoh Ruins are ferocious sentries. A forsaken temple deep in the isolated Holon mountains is the last place Khaled expected to be battling. He really should have known better, for all the places he's been and Pokemon he's fought.
The Mamoswine charges. Its deadly tusks glow with the readied energy of a Take Down attack. "Rosie, Fly!" Khaled orders. Despite her abnormally large size, his Flygon gracefully avoids the charge by darting up into the air, then swooping in on her attacker. Mamoswine roars. Now its cuspids glow, and Khaled knows an Ice Fang is coming — deadly to his beloved dragon-type should she be unable to dodge.
But the mammoth's attack is quickly interrupted by a Lucario leaping onto its back, slashing with Metal Claw. The ground quakes as Mamoswine attempts to shake him off. Khaled calls out to his Flygon, and she blasts a Dragon Pulse at her foe. It bellows, rearing up and stamping its stumpy legs. Lucario jumps down to safety, crouching in the deep snow as he watches the enraged Pokemon fall.
"Thanks, bro," Khaled says with a sigh of relief. "I can always count on you."
"Don't thank us just yet," replies Riley, pointing. An Abomasnow rushes them, sucking in its breath. It unleashes an Icy Wind, particularly at the hovering Flygon. She lands in the accursed snow with a squeal.
"Not my Desert Rose, you fucking ice monster!" Khaled shouts, recalling her to the safety of her Ultra Ball. In her place he sends out his Nosepass. Before he can order an attack, Riley's Salamence swoops in with flames building in his mouth. He sets upon the Abomasnow with a Fire Fang — twice the effective attack. Bellowing, the wild Pokemon flees to extinguish its body in the snowy wilderness.
It's still not over, as a smaller Pokemon rushes in from out of nowhere to take up the fight. It would almost be comical to think of a wee Larvitar taking on the strong team both Khaled and Riley have built over the years, but both Trainers are well aware that its looks are highly deceiving.
Khaled has his Carbink, hovering nearby, use Reflect to bolster their defenses. Larvitar flings its body at Nosepass in a frenzied Thrash attack. Little good it does, but repeated Thrashes will eventually weaken the sturdy Pokemon.
Riley holds up an Ultra Ball of his own. "Maybe its relative can put it in a time out."
With an incredulous stare, Khaled asks, "Are you still carrying around that beastie? And you'd unleash him here, of all places?"
"I've been training him."
"For what?"
Riley just shrugs nonchalantly. "You never know."
"Keep that thing contained." A visible wave of violet and black energy bursts from the Larvitar's open mouth. Nosepass's bulky body is pushed back, and he trembles. His special defense against a powerful Dark Pulse is not nearly so great. Khaled curses himself for not paying better attention. "Use Discharge!" he commands.
"Khaled, it's a ground-type," Riley helpfully reminds him as the Larvitar stands unharmed by the electric flare.
He grits his teeth. "I hate their entire line."
"Alright, alright." Riley concedes by pocketing the Ultra Ball he offered. "Alhabor," he says to his watching Lucario, "take care of it with Focus Punch, please."
Alhabor's precise strike is super-effective, causing the tiny terror to collapse in the snow, defeated. Nothing comes to take up the fight in its stead, and the two men catch their breath. "It looks like we're in the clear," Riley assesses after a few minutes.
"Finally." Khaled pats the top of his Nosepass's head, then sends him back to his ball to rest. He watches the puff of air escape his lips, cloud before his eyes, and dissipate. "After all that, I'm still bloody cold."
"The sooner we find what we're looking for, the sooner we can get you warmed up." Riley faces the ruined temple's dark entrance.
Khaled continues surveying their surroundings. "Were those Pokemon keeping us out, or seeing if we're worthy to go in or someshit?"
"Hmm?" Halfway inside, Riley pauses. "What makes you say that?"
Khaled nods his head towards a broken pillar. On its remains sits a Pokemon whose white fur camouflages it among all the snow. Only its black curved horn and face, beset with sharp red eyes, betray its presence. It seems intent on watching them closely, rather than attacking.
"Oh..." Riley murmurs. "Well... let's go, and see what happens. Come." He tugs on Khaled's arm.
They enter without incident. As they head deeper inside, Khaled has his Carbink use Flash to light the way. As the little Pokemon drifts ahead, the eerie, blue-white glow from its crystals illuminates the shrine's walls.
"Look," whispers Riley. "These wall carvings are just like the ones in the Ruins of Alph."
"Well, yeah," Khaled replies, keeping his voice hushed as well. "This is a Johtonian temple too, they're related. Any archaeologist worth his Shoal Salt knows that."
Riley gives him a look, smirking. "I guess I'm just not as learned as you, old man."
Grinning, Khaled shoves his younger friend. "Send Alhabor to do his thing and let's get out of here already."
"What, is this place creeping you out? How many abandoned temples have you raided in your career?"
"Naw, I'm fuckin' cold," Khaled deflects. "I wanna go back to the cabin and warm my insides with a drink. Even better, back to civilization and warm my bed with some company. It's been far too long."
Riley rolls his eyes and releases his Lucario. "You know what to do, Alhabor," he tells him while Khaled checks over his shoulder.
The Lucario holds out a paw, concentrating. His head appendages rise and stick straight out, and his body faintly glows blue for a second. Then he looks to his Trainer, who lets him lead the way. Carbink floats ahead to light their path. The band of explorers makes their way to a small, empty chamber. There's a broken stone platform which might once have been for offerings, but nothing else of note. Alhabor grunts and points at a nondescript wall.
"You're kidding," Khaled says.
"He senses it's in there," Riley tells him.
"You sure? It looks like this room has been ransacked thoroughly." Khaled studies the remains of the pulpit. "A hidden wall compartment would have been the first thing to go."
"Only one way to find out."
Khaled lets out a breath, shrugs off his heavy backpack, and takes out a pickaxe. "You gonna make me do all the grunt work, as usual?"
"Like you don't love to show off." Riley holds up one of his PokeBalls. Khaled steps back as Metagross makes its appearance. Its bulk nearly fills the entire chamber; fortunately, it doesn't need to move to use its psychic powers to detect the loose bricks, pry them out of the wall, and levitate them carefully to the ground.
Khaled rests his pickaxe on his shoulder. "What would I do without you?"
"That's what I'd like to know," Riley quips.
True to Alhabor's aura sense, there's a small wooden chest hidden in a hollowed-out compartment. Carefully, Khaled pulls it out, sets it on the floor, and opens the lid. His Carbink floats closer with its helpful light. He lifts out the treasure inside: a large lump of some organic material like bone or ivory, beset by holes, coated in a brilliant blue mineral that glitters under Carbink's Flash.
"That's it," Riley whispers, leaning in close. "The Azure Flute."
"Hot damn." Khaled grips it protectively and looks up at his closest friend. "I can't believe we figured it out."
"Put it back in the chest. They'll want that too."
Grinning like a child, Khaled puts the ancient artifact back in its box for safekeeping. "How 'bout it, brother? Ready for fame and riches again? To start over somewhere new? I sure as hell am. Haruba Jones, back in Sinnoh after all this time." He sweeps his hand out in front of him.
Riley recalls his Metagross. "You forget Sinnoh isn't exactly new for me."
"Yeah, but it's been what? Ten years? I'm sure a lot's changed, it'll feel like new." Khaled starts rearranging the contents of his backpack to make room for their discovery.
"Ah, but Sinnoh is a bit slow-paced. I doubt much has changed at all." Riley nudges an errant piece of rubble with his foot, pensive for a moment. "It will be nice to see my family again."
"It'll be nice to stay in their bloody mansion, that's what."
"So long as my father isn't around." Riley kicks the stone away. "You think, after ten years, he still hates me for the way I turned out? For running away instead of learning the family business?"
Khaled scoffs. "Fuck that guy. You are your own man now." He rises and straps on the heavy bag. "You have to live your own life, not the one others want you to have. Look at me. If my parents had their way, I'd have never left Kalos, been settled down with a good girl, and had a handful of kids by now. Can you see me doing that?"
That makes Riley chuckle. "Not at all."
"I never got on with my old man, either. I dodged a Bullet Seed with any kids of my own. And you will too, yeah?" He thumps his friend's back in a show of support. "No chance of you spawning any little ingrates, am I right?"
"That almost sounds like an insult."
Khaled's laugh bounces off the chamber's walls. "C'mon, let's get out of here already. Freezin' my ass off."
"You know, you'd best learn to tolerate the cold if you want to stay in Sinnoh for a while."
"What? It's spring."
"Yet there's abundant snow here in Holon. It won't feel like proper spring up north until May. And that's only if you're out of the mountains. Among which my family resides."
Khaled grumbles.
The sparkling snow at the temple's entrance blinds the explorers as they exit darkness. But no sooner do they take one step outside does the white-furred watchguard leap down from its perch to confront them. Alhabor takes a ready stance, waiting for his Trainer's command.
«I am not here to fight,» declares a woman's voice.
The two men and Lucario look around for the voice that sounded so close. There's no one behind them, and no sign of anyone hiding amongst the broken pillars.
«I come with a message from my master,» she continues.
"Khaled," whispers Riley, "I think it's this Absol."
"Impossible... isn't it?"
The white Pokemon sits back on her haunches, staring up at the pair with wide, brilliant eyes. «My Master grants you leave to the treasure you carry, but for a price,» her voice resounds in both their heads. «You will both be tasked at different points in your futures.»
"What 'Master' claims ownership over a lost Shin'ai artifact?" challenges Khaled. "If anything, I'm its master. Tell your Trainer to come out from hiding and face me himself."
«You assume I serve a human. As ever, you are wrong.»
Riley sucks in a breath. "Ay..."
«Give the Azure Flute to the homeland shrine of its rightful people,» instructs the Absol, «and consider your individual duties. You will each have a mission to fulfill. Do so favorably, and your lives will be richly rewarded from then on.»
"Now you're speaking my language." Khaled grins. "You hearing this, Riley? Not only will we be welcomed as heroes in Sinnoh for finding the thing, but we'll get new jobs instantly with big payouts."
"Take heed, my brother," says Riley, warily, "My intuition tells me there are hidden truths behind her message."
«This one has wisdom beyond his years,» the Absol states. «When he thinks to look for it.»
Khaled chuckles. "She's got you there."
The telepathic Pokemon rises to her feet. «This message is for you alone, Khaled Jones.»
His smile fades.
«Those you have wronged, you will face once more. Those you have not met, you will see with renewed eyes.»
"Wha—" he tries to ask.
"Khaled?" Riley asks with growing concern.
«Let all of your sins be ever on your mind, and know this: you can redeem yourself, if you so choose. I shall tell you how. First place yourself in the hands of the enemy and execute his tasks. Then gain his trust to finish what he started.»
"Wait, I—"
«All will be a test of your worth for the judgment of my Master. Thus will you make a dire choice which determines your ultimate fate. Absolve yourself and serve my Master, and your life, Khaled Jones, will be prosperously changed.»
"Khaled!" Riley grips his arms, shaking him. "What's happening?"
"Nnh..." He's suddenly very aware of his friend's voice, his body being lightly jerked, the cold air on his face. "She... had more to say."
Riley turns, but the Absol is gone. "That was so peculiar," he remarks. "I didn't think Absol had psychic abilities... but then, no one really knows that much about them."
Khaled doesn't really hear him. His head is spinning, and there's a sinking, gnawing sensation in his gut. "Can we go already?" he asks.
"Yes, let's—" Riley faces him again. "¡Ay Dios! You're all pale! You look sickly!"
"I feel sickly." He bats away Riley's hand on his forehead. "Stop. I just need to get outta here. Let's fly to Sinnoh already."
"No, we're going to the cabin to rest and warm up first." Riley holds his arm protectively as they begin to walk, despite Khaled's protests. Alhabor leads, his guard up in case any more wild Pokemon cross their path.
The hairs on the back of Khaled's neck stand up. He can tell the Absol is closely watching him from her hiding spot among the Sinjoh Ruins — but he dare not look back.