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11 – Knight
[Sunday, July 18, 7.56 AM]
Cepheus slowly opened his eyes on Sunday morning, hoping to start the day off with a refreshed mind and a focused plan for the day ahead. Unfortunately, his ideas were dashed to pieces when he took note of the scenery around him.
He was not in his own house.
Upon looking around him, he found himself in a round wooden shack, about twelve feet in diameter with bamboo walls ten feet tall, and having a green conical roof set above that. There were a few square windows to let in light, and looking outside them, Cepheus could see nothing but trees around him. The door that led outside was closed, and the only furnishings in the room were a small nightstand and a bed, which he had presumably slept in. Cepheus surmised that he was in some sort of tree house, but where in the world this tree house was, he had no idea. His thoughts were interrupted with a loud series of knocks on the door.
“Yoo-hoo!” a girl’s voice called out. “You awake yet, sleepyhead?”
Cepheus didn’t respond right away, but slowly stood up and parted his feet, adopting a battle stance, preparing for the worst.
“Who are you and where am I?” he demanded.
“Oh, good, you are awake!” the voice returned, seemingly ignoring the question. The door opened to let in more light, and Cepheus saw the owner of the voice – a girl with long black hair and dark blue eyes, with similarly-colored tee shirt and shorts to match. Her shoes looked like they had small spikes in them, and she also had two black wristbands with a couple spikes as well. Cepheus judged that she couldn’t be much older than fifteen.
“You’re the one that Pierre brought here, right?” she asked him, her voice as loud and upbeat as it was previously.
“Who’s Pierre?” Cepheus responded. “And you still didn’t answer me...”
“Oh, don’t worry! You’ll have all your questions answered later. Stay right here, okay? I need to tell him you’re awake.”
“Wait, hold up, you’ve – ”
Cepheus didn’t have the opportunity to finish his sentence as the girl ran off. He saw her running the opposite direction on a wooden walkway that wrapped around the trees. He decided to take the opportunity to survey what kind of place he was in. He stepped outside the wooden house he was in, and beheld his surroundings. The place appeared to be a small village built in the canopy of a rainforest. There were several round shacks much like his, no more than five, plus an exceptionally large one set in the middle of the area. All the shacks were connected by a series of walkways, skirting the trees, and connected to one another by bridges and ropes. Off in the distance, Cepheus could see two other people talking – one male, one female – but neither of them looked like the girl he’d just talked with.
The next thing to catch Cepheus’ eye was the original girl coming out of the large shack in the center. She opened the door, closed it quickly behind her, and then started bounding towards where Cepheus was standing. As she got nearer, she skidded to a halt as she had been running quite rapidly to convey her message.
“He wants you to talk to him,” she answered. “See that big house? Go in there, and don’t forget to close the door behind you.”
“You still haven’t told me your name.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it! He’ll tell you. Now go on! He doesn’t like being kept waiting.”
(This just gets stranger by the minute,) Cepheus pondered, (but I suppose I have no choice but to obey.)
Cepheus then walked slowly but purposefully to this large shack situated in the center of this small village. A slew of new questions had entered his mind that he, as usual, desperately needed answers to. What and where was this strange place? Why had he been brought here? And who was this strange person he was going to meet? He doubted he’d ever get answers to these questions, or if he would even leave this place. The thought was incredibly unsettling, and he tried not to let his face betray his heart as he worked his way to this inevitable meeting.
As Cepheus reached the shack, he opened it, and as per instruction, quickly closed the door behind him as he entered. This shack was identical in basic structure to the ones around it, but it was at least twice as large in both diameter and height as the others around it, and it had only one window, whose light did not carry very far. In the gloom, Cepheus saw a table made of oak about ten feet in front of him, and a single visible chair facing the table, presumably to sit in. There may have been other chairs around the table as well, but since he could barely see a thing in the room, he didn’t know one way or the other. In his confusion, Cepheus didn’t even think to use his insignia to light up the darkness – but then again, these people might not have been Pacters, so he didn’t want to betray himself to them. He silently took a seat in the chair he saw, and waited patiently.
Suddenly, part of the roof above him gave way to let more light into the room. Presumably, there were windows built into the roof that could be opened and closed to give light to the shack. As the shine flooded the gloom, Cepheus became more surprised than he had ever been. Inside the room was a single person – at least six-foot-eight, muscular, and wearing a tattered brown cloak that covered his face and torso. He was wearing black gloves and boots, and his trousers, protruding from below the cloak, were likewise black. He suddenly spoke.
“I’ve been waiting,” he spoke, in an all-too-familiar deep voice.
“You!” Cepheus exclaimed, leaping out of his chair. “You’re real?!”
“Of course I’m real, Cepheus,” the man replied, taking a chair at the opposite end of the table, that had become visible due to the light from above. “I’ve been visiting your dreams for three nights straight now. Why would I not be real?”
“It’s just...I never expected to meet you in real life at all.”
“Well, it was only a matter of time. Now, I assume you have a lot of questions on your mind, but I do not want you asking them at this time.”
“Why?”
“Because I will explain why you are here, and as I do so, all your questions should be answered. For now I ask you remain silent and let me speak.”
“I suppose I don’t have much of a choice. Very well, say on.”
“You are in Fortree Forest in the region of Hoenn. The forest is mostly uninhabitable, but we manage to stay hidden here, living in seclusion, away from the Vernexum’s watchful eye. We are a small group of Pacters that live here, and most of what we do is gather intel regarding the Vernexum. We fear that battle may be upon us in the near future, and that it may be unavoidable; therefore we want to gather as much information about our enemy as we can. You are here to be briefed on the situation, as well as who is residing here, and what will be in store for you. Has what I said so far answered any of your questions?”
“Partly, yes, but that still doesn’t explain a whole lot – in fact, you have given me more questions. First of all, I was told that the name of the government was the Vernex, not the Vernexum. Why do you call it that?”
“That is an interesting story, and one that is worth hearing, Cepheus. You are partly correct – at one point, it was called the Vernex. I am sure you’re well aware by now that Pokémon were forced off the earth by the humans. This was due mostly in part to a group of six men: their last names were Volus, Extrio, Reuben, Nicolas, Endore, and Xavier – and as you have probably just noticed, the first letters of their names spell ‘Vernex’. Although these six men are now dead, their grandsons now rule in their place; however, these men aren’t quite like their grandfathers were. Some of them are still against the idea of Pokémon entirely; others are more moderate, saying that Pokémon pose no threat if they are not hostile, and then there are still others that don’t care either way.”
“So why is it called ‘Vernexum’ now? Did they add two more members to their ranks?”
“Yes – you catch on quick. About ten years ago, the six men had voted to do something totally unheard of – to elect two more men as ‘generals’, which is what they call themselves. Their names are Ura and Machina, and these eight men as a whole effectively control the world. But...”
“But?”
“It’s the two newcomers, Ura and Machina, that hold the most sway. Ura is an incredibly headstrong and somewhat violent man. He is opposed to the thought of Pokémon at all costs, and he’s even adverse to the idea of synthetics. He wants all memory of Pokémon to be erased, and will do anything he can to eliminate Spirits and Pacters if he can find them out. Machina, however, is his total antithesis – incredibly calm and collected, and he decries wanton violence. His influence spreads over to the other members as well as Ura’s, and were it not for him, Ura and his agenda would go unchallenged.”
“So, what is your goal?”
“Ura needs to be removed, taken out of the picture entirely, if we and the rest of the world want any hope of surviving. What I’d like is to get one of the generals on our side, but telling one about Pacters might jeopardize our position. I want this conflict to end, Cepheus, and with an end that will please everyone – but I don’t want to have to sacrifice lives to do it.”
“I understand. Yet, I must ask you a poignant question, that has been eating at me for several days now, even before I became a Pacter. If I do not ask you now, I fear I may never know the truth.”
“Ask away.”
“Who...are you?”
“Who am I? Is that what you want to know?”
“I do.”
“Cepheus, are you familiar at all with the Watchers?”
“I found out about them once while researching mythology. They’re supposedly a group of creatures that reside above the human plane, and they watch and survey everything that is going on throughout the world. Their role, so I read, is not really to intervene, but just to keep the world existing and continuing. I heard there were eight, but I’m not sure.”
“That description is quite correct, and yes, there are exactly eight. Cepheus, I am one of those Watchers.”
“Do you jest?”
“I do not. I am not known for joking around.”
“If that’s the case, then why are you here?”
“The aspect of reality I preside over is not quite as taxing as you would believe, and therefore I find opportunity to spend time in the human world and watch over people from here. I also watch over the Pacters, and want to protect them by any means necessary. It is for this reason that I head up the effort to return Pokémon to this world.”
“That is your goal? To return things to the way they were before?”
“I believe it’s possible. I know a full recovery for this world may never be possible, but I know that many of the Pokémon want to return back to earth, without fear of oppression. It is for this reason...that I fight.”
“Watcher, do you have a name?”
“I do. And, since I trust you, Cepheus, and have great plans for you, I feel like you deserve to know. However, you must not tell anyone else – only a select few know my name.”
“Then...what is your name?”
“It is Deus.”
“Deus...A name remarkably similar to my own...”
“I know. As you know, my name means ‘god’, and yours means ‘king’. But I’m no god. It was just a name I adopted when I accepted the burden of a Watcher. I don’t have much memory of who I was before I was a Watcher.”
“You mean...you got accepted into that position? Can such a thing happen?”
“Yes, but it is not important to our goal, and it is a story for another time. For now, I wish to introduce you to the other Pacters that stay at the base, and then I want you to return here, where I can give you your next assignment.”
Deus then got out of his chair and walked over to the entrance of the shack, opening the door, and letting Cepheus out before he closed it again. Much to Cepheus’ surprise, the girl that had been waiting for Cepheus before was now waiting outside the large shack as well. Deus spoke to her, giving her a command. How long had she been standing there?
“Can you gather the others here, please?” he asked. “I want to introduce this man.”
“Sure thing!” she replied energetically, before running off at breakneck speed, just as she had before when relaying the previous message to Cepheus. When she was out of range of hearing, Cepheus shot Deus a question.
“Is she always like that?”
“Yes. Why, is there a problem?”
“Not really, no...”
Within twenty seconds, the girl had returned, with two others in tow. Cepheus recognized them as the man and woman he’d seen talking earlier. The man was a bit younger than Cepheus, stern-faced with black eyes and a stare that seemed to pierce the soul. He seemed to be dressed mostly in purple, and had an air of distrust about him. The woman looked somewhat similar to the first girl, with brown eyes and black hair with dark blue highlights. Her clothes were blue and white instead of the first girl’s blue and black, and she appeared to look a lot more focused. Other than that, she looked very similar to the first girl. When they had all gathered together, Deus began to make the introductions.
“I believe it is time I introduced this man,” he began. “This is Cepheus. He’s a very intelligent level-headed man, and I believe his wisdom will contribute greatly to our cause. He’s twenty-four years old and has a good head on his shoulders. Cepheus, please raise your right hand above your head.”
Cepheus did as told, not knowing what the bizarre motivation behind this act could be. In response, the three others – the man and the two girls – raised up their right hands as well. Cepheus then understood the purpose of the act – it was to show insignia. He saw a purple insignia in the man’s palm, and blue insignia in the palms of the two girls – somewhat similar, but by no means identical; the energetic girl had a slightly lighter blue in hers than did the other.
“Now, Cepheus, I will introduce the others to you,” Deus continued. “You may all lower your hands.” They did so, and he kept talking. “The first girl, Cepheus – the one who woke you up – her name’s Victoria. Her partner is a Lucario, and she is very energetic and upbeat virtually all the time. Her enthusiasm knows no bounds. She’s fifteen, but is phenomenal at gathering intel.”
“Nice to meet you, Cepheus!” Victoria said, bounding up to him and giving Cepheus a nice, firm handshake. “Sorry about being secretive earlier, and all. It’s part of the job, y’know?”
“I understand,” Cepheus said, nodding.
“The man there...He is Pierre. His partner is a Gliscor, and therefore his forte is stealth. He can enter places without being seen or detected, and he has a few other abilities at his disposal. That’s also because why he acts so distant all the time. He’s the one I sent to fetch you. He is twenty-two.”
Pierre took a step forward, but then halted, as if reluctant to shake Cepheus’ hand.
“Something wrong, Pierre?” Deus asked.
“I still don’t totally trust this guy...” Pierre responded, his voice sullen. “I don’t know what you see in him.”
“Even so, it is common courtesy to shake hands...”
“No, that’s fine,” Cepheus interjected. “If you don’t want to, Pierre, I won’t force you.”
“.....Hmm,” Pierre grunted, and took one step backward again.
“And the other girl...Her name’s Abigail. Her partner is an Absol, and she is the one in charge of telecommunications here. She keeps us in touch with other Pacters around the world. She’s nineteen but she is a technological mastermind.”
(Not unlike an old friend of mine...) Cepheus thought, his memories returning to his childhood friend Lyon.
“Cepheus, hm?” Abigail said, approaching him and shaking his hand. “That’s a nice name. I’ll remember that.”
“I find your name to be similarly pleasing,” Cepheus responded, trying his best to act like a gentleman, even though he had just met this girl.
“And now that introductions have been exchanged,” Deus spoke up, “you all know what to do. Victoria, you’ve done very well in your mission. I applaud you. Pierre, I want you to relay your message to Esmeralda, and then go about the recon I briefed you about. As for Abigail, you are with Cepheus and I. Follow me back into the shack.”
“Understood,” the three Pacters responded simultaneously, and they all split up to go about their respective duties. Victoria ran off again into a shack – presumably her own place of residence. Pierre took a few steps and leapt off the platform, engaging his rider form and vanishing into the forest, presumably using the powers of his own Spirit to do so. Abigail then joined Cepheus and Deus, and the three went back into the large hut that Cepheus had talked to Deus before in. Cepheus and Deus took their previous seats again, and Abigail took a third chair that was facing perpendicular to the two.
“Now that you’re both here,” Deus began, “I want to brief you two of what I want you to do next. This concerns you both, so listen up. First, Cepheus – your codename.”
“My what?”
“Actually, I’m joking. We don’t have codenames. They’re pretty silly and there’s no real point to them. Rather I will tell you how to keep in touch with us.”
“And how will I do that?”
“That’s what I’m getting to next. Cepheus, as it stands right now, what we do to keep in touch is I have one Pacter in each region to note everything that goes on within the region in regards to the news as well as other Pacters. To that end, you will be given a special cell phone to communicate with the others – it’s special in the fact that any call made by it is totally untraceable. For security purposes, we only give this special cell phone to Spirit Knights. Ideally I want four, but right now we only have three.”
“Four? One each for Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh?”
“Yes, that’s correct. My plan is to have you one of those Knights who keeps in touch.”
“So, I would be the one in Sinnoh?”
“Actually, no. We already have one in Sinnoh – he is actually the one who designed the cell phone, and I believe you two have met before.”
“So wait...Stefano invented the cell phone?”
“No, silly!” Abigail cut in. “Stefano lives in Kanto, not Sinnoh.”
“So Stefano’s a Spirit Knight too?” Cepheus asked.
“Yes,” Deus replied, “and please, permit me to explain everything before asking your next question. Right now, the one region that is missing a cell phone so to speak is Johto, and so, ideally, we would want you to move to Johto, possibly to Olivine City. There’s a synthetics plant there, so if you got transferred there, that situation would be ideal. However, the world headquarters for Vernexum is also in Olivine City, so with that would come a certain threat. If need be, it’s possible to arrange a transfer, but at the same time, I don’t want you jumping into this.”
“It sounds like a nice idea,” Cepheus responded, “but I’ve grown up in Sinnoh. I don’t know if I’d want to leave any time soon...would you permit me to think about it before deciding?”
“Of course. Now, I should tell you the names of all the Spirit Knights that use the cell phone in the various regions. As Abigal just told you, Kanto is represented by Stefano. Johto as I mentioned doesn’t have anyone; Esmeralda lives in Johto but she didn’t want to be involved with it, unfortunately. In Hoenn, we have Abigail here, and in Sinnoh, we have Lyon.”
“Hold up a moment...Did you just say Lyon? As in Lyon Waters?”
“That’s him. You know each other, do you not?”
“He has been my best friend for years, and I know he’s a genius. You mean to tell me that he is the one who invented this special cell phone you use to keep in touch?”
“Indeed he is.”
“That’s...astounding. It’s a great relief for me to hear that Lyon is on our side.”
“I can very well imagine. And now for the other half of the mission. I want the two of you to listen very carefully – anything I say cannot leave this room, do you understand?”
“I understand,” Cepheus answered.
“Yes, sir,” Abigail replied.
“Then,” Deus continued, “I will now tell you what I believe to be the secret behind this war. It concerns General Ura. I believe that he is being controlled or otherwise influenced by a very powerful Spirit, by the name of Blackheart.”
“Blackheart?” Cepheus questioned. “I take it that this Spirit is...evil?”
“Yes, and also very powerful. Few Spirits that are malicious in intent exist, and this Blackheart is one of them. He’s also a great threat – he has the ability to enter and invade dreams, at times even infringing on my own power.”
“Your own power?”
“Yes...I apologize, I have been remiss in not telling you before – I am the Watcher who oversees the world of dreams. And this Blackheart...he can enter dreams. I think Ura’s being used by Blackheart, or at least taking orders from him.”
“Is that why you said before you want Ura out of the picture?”
“Yes...you find Ura, and you find Blackheart. Once Blackheart is exposed I can finish him myself.”
“So why tell us all this?”
“Because I want to tell you the final end to this war. I firmly believe that once Blackheart, and by extension Ura, are gone, the threat to Pacter-kind will be gone as well. I don’t know how far off that day is, but I would rather it be sooner than later.”
“I...I see...”
“I have another mission I want taken care of as well, and it concerns mostly you, Cepheus.”
“Why me?”
“I believe you’re in a prime position to get it done. First, though, I want to introduce you to someone.”
Deus then snapped his fingers, and immediately a Spirit appeared next to him, hovering nearby. Cepheus surveyed the Spirit’s appearance, and found it to be rather similar to a large seahorse. It was blue, and its body was rather elegant-looking as well. Its mouth was thin and tapered, as if it was made for shooting projectiles instead of speaking. Cepheus recognized this Spirit as being of the species Kingdra.
“Cepheus...this is Louise,” Deus said, motioning to the Kingdra.
“How do you do,” Louise spoke, bowing slightly. Cepheus noticed that her mouth didn’t move when she spoke, leading him to believe she spoke with her mind, and her words became clearly audible. Perhaps other Spirits could do this as well?
“Louise has been looking for a human to make a bond with for quite some time,” Deus explained. “The thing is, she can’t quite find a person who is quite right for her. She has told me she wants her human to be female, and someone she can instruct as well as console. She wants to be a confidant for her human.”
“I want to be of assistance,” Louise stated, “but I can’t find someone to assist.”
“I think I have an idea...” Cepheus said.
“You do?” Louise asked.
“Yes...but I don’t know for sure if I’m right. I want to confirm my suspicions first.”
“In that case, Cepheus...may I come with you?”
“Come with me? Won’t you be in danger?”
“I am a Spirit Knight, Cepheus, much like your own partner. I can stay safely out of sight. Fear not; you will not be compromised.”
“Very well, I accept your offer. I will see if I can find a human you can partner with.”
“Thank you.”
“If everything is settled,” Deus interjected, “I believe this meeting has reached its conclusion, has it not? All the relevant issues have been resolved, and I believe we can go on.”
“If I may ask,” Cepheus questioned, “why did you invite Abigail in here?”
“I wanted her to be apprised of the situation. I also trust her, and know she will keep secret what she has heard. Also, Cepheus...”
“Yes?”
“I shall also speak privately with you tonight. I have one more piece of information I wish to share with you.”
“I understand. By the way...how will I get home from here?”
“I can take care of that.”
Without a moment’s pause, Deus then lunged forward and thrust his fist squarely into Cepheus’ stomach. Cepheus winced slightly, yet didn’t feel as much pain as he was expecting from that fierce blow. However, after being hit, he fell unconscious within half a second, and his mind drifted off into blackness.
I really like when authors do that, it lets you learn a little more about the person.