N normally wouldn’t mind the sand getting into his shoes that much, but with all that was on his mind, every little annoyance bothered him tenfold. Route 213 seemed to be mostly comprised of a beach, the people of Sinnoh not having bothered to create a proper route to walk when the relatively traversable shore was right here. There was a chill in the air that bothered him just as much as the grains of sand, and he wasn’t sure if it was the cooler ocean air blowing over them or if the world was just out to poke and prod at him in every conceivable way. The latter wouldn’t surprise him terribly much.

  “Rotom had never really understood the Unovan phrase ‘time flies’ before, but it is hard to believe that autumn is already here.”

  The Electric type had been in the room when N woke up, having returned sometime during the night without anyone noticing. Rotom didn’t seem intent on discussing the argument with Mimikyu from the night before, and nobody else had bothered to ask and risk starting it up again. N wasn’t sure if Rotom had thought things over and cooled off, or if Rotom was simply acting like things were fine now, but now back in his flip phone, the little spirit was talking to them as if everything were fine.

  “Fall, huh?” N repeated halfheartedly. He may not be aware of how Rotom felt, but he had personally decided to go with the “pretend things are alright” route. He didn’t know what to do. Mimikyu falsely believing that he was once a human was something that needed to be addressed, but N wasn’t sure how exactly to go about something like that, and asking for help…

  Despite all the problematic things that had come up last night, he had promised to keep it all a secret. He could hardly consider himself to be a good leader for Plasma if he went around breaking promises and spreading secrets.

  “Is fall in Sinnoh anything like Unova’s?” he continued, hoping to keep up some level of normalcy.

  Mimikyu hummed contemplatively from his shoulder, but didn’t speak up.

  Rotom had no problem with answering, however, letting out a buzzer sound that N thought sounded like a “wrong answer” from some game show he’d watched. “Rotom cannot claim to be very familiar with Unova, but Rotom has heard that the seasons there all last about the same amount of time.”

  “Yeah? Isn’t that normal?”

  Marowak startled from where he was trailing along next to N’s feet. “You guys get a spring and autumn that actually lasts? Lucky!”

  N frowned. “What do you mean?”

  Rotom buzzed. “It means that here in Sinnoh, the shift from summer to winter is rapid. Autumn only lasts a couple weeks before we start getting snowfall.”

  “Hold on,” Mimikyu spoke up for the first time since they’d set out for the day, “lemme understand ya correctly. Surely yer exaggeratin’, righ’? I mean, I’m used ta blisterin’ hot days quickly becomin’ freezin’ cold ones in the span of a week, but the leaves changin’ color and fallin’ to the ground still happens over the course of a few months or somethin’ like that. Well, when ya consider all the diff’ren’ trees, I guess. Thinkin’ back I s’pose individual trees change pretty fast…”

  “Nope!” Rotom quickly replied. “Excluding the evergreens of course, all Sinnoh’s trees go from green and lively to completely barren in roughly a week. Once you see the first leaf starting to turn yellow,” N looked over to the distant treeline,noticing that quite a few of the leaves were indeed yellow, something he’d definitely not seen even the day before, “you’ve got a week until they’re all on the ground and then a few days, perhaps a week at the maximum, before winter sets in.”

  Marowak hummed. “Maybe winter won’t be so bad this year, since I’m a Fire type now….”

  N was as confused as Mimikyu, though. “How could the trees possibly change with that much regularity? Back home different species would lose their leaves at slightly different times, and I know for a fact that Sinnoh has a variety in the forests.”

  Rotom just let out a non-committal sound. “How should Rotom know? Rotom isn’t an arborist. That’s just how it is!”

  “Maybe it’s cuz of how many Pokemon live in the trees ‘ere?” Mimikyu hesitantly proposed. “I mean, maybe it’s jus’ me, but in my mind Sinnoh is the place for Pokemon in trees. They’ve got those honey trees ‘ere! Though I suppose Johto has those trees ya Headbutt, ’n’ Alola ‘as those trees with the Crabrawler, ‘n’ I think Galar has berry trees or somethin’..... Maybe I’m graspin’ at straws ‘ere…”

  N sighed. “I guess it doesn’t really matter. Does anyone have an idea of where the Shadows might be? And for that matter, where is Lucas?”

  “I saw Lucas go in that house over there!” Marowak used his bone to point to the single building on the beach.”

  “He never learns, does he?” N resisted the urge to facepalm. “How many times do I have to tell him it’s not okay to just walk into buildings without permission?”

  “Ta be fair, I think that one’s a business. It’s got a sign out front, see?” Mimikyu pointed out.

  N squinted, and just barely made out a small sign next to the door. “Doctor Footprint? What? Is that his name or is he some sort of podiatrist?”

  “I don’ think I want anythin’ ta do with someone so int’rested in feet…” Mimikyu muttered.

  Rotom turned back and let out a concerned sound. “Why do you–”

  “Don’t ask.”

  N wasn’t sure he wanted to know what the two were getting at, so he ignored the interaction.

  They watched Lucas walk out of the building with a confused look on his face, shutting the door behind him and approaching the group as they made their way down the route.

  N idly noted that the boy was covered in sand, like he’d been digging along the beach for buried treasure or something. Knowing Lucas, that probably wasn’t far from the truth. That poor doctor probably had a real mess in his office now… “Lucas, you weren’t harassing that doctor, were you?”

  The boy shook his head no, and held something up for them to see. It was a golden foot imprint attached to a red ribbon. N had so many questions, but Mimikyu’s words echoed in his mind. Perhaps it was better not to ask.

  He felt Mimikyu shudder on his shoulder. “Let’s just get to Pastoria already…”

  “Finally!”

  N’s attention was drawn to the treeline as they reached the point where sand began to turn to grass. Mawile rushed towards them, her extra maw notably held up in the air to avoid the sand being kicked up by her steps.

  “You guys took forever!” Mawile complained. “I was so bored!”

  N smiled, glad that at least the interactions with her would not be weighed down by yesterday’s conversations. “I’m sorry, Mawile. Things got a bit busy on our end, but we’re here now.”

  “Hmph!” she pouted, turning away and sending drool flying at them in the process. Gross. “You’ll have to make it up to me!”

  The false Mime Jr. head tilted next to him. “Wasn’ this whole thing happenin’ cuz yer a needy little brat? Ya wouldn’ ‘ave needed ta be separated from us if ya hadn’ been so insistent on participatin’ in the contest ya know.”

  Mawile paused, considering that logic, but harumphed again. “Don’t care! You still owe me!”

  N rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I’m sure we can figure something out.

  The Shadows approached at that point, and Mawile dragged Marowak off to show him something. “Lord N, it is good to see you.”

  “Your companion is rather annoying to deal with, please don’t make us do that again,” complained another.

  “You haven’t run into yet more problems have you? I recognize that look on your face at this point.” The last muttered, already resigned.

  N frowned. Was he wearing his emotions so openly? He really needed to figure out how to handle that at some point…. And he also needed to figure out what to tell them. Saying nothing would have them investigating on their own, and he had specifically promised Mimikyu that he wouldn’t inform the Shadows of his “secret”.

  He supposed there were other things they might be able to assist with.

  “You could say that.” He felt Mimikyu tense up the slightest bit beside him, and Lucas gave him a curious look. “We’re going to need to do some research on local Legends.” He hated the way that Mimikyu sagged ever so slightly. Did he really think that he would throw away trust so quickly? “It is… suspected that Azelf, the Guardian of Lake Valor, has decided to involve me to an unknown degree in some sort of nonsense that I don’t understand terribly well.”

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  The Shadows tensed, sharing a look before turning back to him. “What do you know so far, my Lord?”

  Scraping together what information was available between Mimikyu and Rotom, N spent the rest of the journey to Pastoria getting the Shadow Triad up to date, at least in regards to what he could tell them.

  As the gate into the city came into sight, he felt that they were looking at him with a different set of eyes. Evaluating, almost. He wasn’t sure what to make of it, but…

  “Honestly, basing this off of a Pokemon you could not see sounds like a bit of a stretch, but we shall investigate it all the same. If you can so easily draw the attention of a Legend…”

  The rest went unsaid, but N thought the implication was clear. Something like this may very well further cement his right to be King in the eyes of Plasma as an organization.

  “I doubt there will be much research material available in Pastoria, that will likely have to wait for later. For now, we will go back to conducting our actual duties. We’ll be watching, Lord N.”

  With that, the three of them sank into Banette’s shadow, vanishing from sight.

  “Tch. Weirdos,” Mawile derided.

  And with that, they entered through the gates.

  Pastoria City was built upon some rolling hills that ran right up to the ocean’s edge on his left, and to the right he could see some sort of large, marshy area, the water’s surface reflecting light through reeds and various other grasses. The architecture wasn’t anything too different from what he’d seen in the rest of Sinnoh, and the populated area didn’t seem all that large either. Honestly he found it a bit hard to believe that a place like this had a Gym, as small as it was at first glance.

  “Alright,” Mimikyu suddenly spoke up, his tone authoritative. “First things first. We need to go to the Pokemon Center immediately.”

  Mawile looked up at him curiously. “Why? Are you hurt?”

  Marowak shook his head. “There haven’t been any battles….”

  N, on the other hand, had his memory jogged by that comment. “Ohhhh… this is where we told that doll saleswoman to send it, isn’t it? I had forgotten about that…”

  “How could ya possibly forget that when I’ve been goin’ aroun’ lookin’ like a clown?!” Mimikyu demanded to know. “Ugh, no wonder nobody ‘as been takin’ me seriously, dressed like this…”

  N didn’t argue the point, knowing that it would only upset Mimikyu further to point out that it was the crazy thing he’d claimed rather than his current disguise which had N questioning his believability. “Relax, Mimikyu, we can head straight there, no problem. We’ll need to get a room for the night regardless. Are you coming with us Lucas?”

  The boy shrugged, looking around the city with only mild interest before suddenly tensing.

  N frowned. “What? Is something wrong?”

  Lucas looked around warily before subtly gesturing off towards the marshy area.

  It wasn’t often that N saw the boy looking so serious, so he assumed that he wasn’t pointing at the big cutout of a Croagunk with a hole for people to stick their head through. Nothing really seemed out of the ordinary, though. A few Pokemon wandered around, people laughing or stopping at shops….

  “Tch.” Mimikyu let a shadowy tendril slip out from beneath the pink disguise, directing N’s attention more obviously. “Right by the entrance ta that buildin’. Facin’ away from us. Don’ that outfit look familiar?”

  When N finally spotted it, his heart sank.

  Team Galactic was in Pastoria.

  Lucas knew quite well that Galactic was trouble, with how many times he’d had to put a stop to their schemes. Something about spotting one now, though, seriously had him on edge.

  Why?

  What about Galactic in Pastoria was nagging at him so much?

  He couldn’t put his finger on it, distracted as N pulled him back behind the side of a nearby building, getting them out of the open if the grunt happened to turn around.

  “Shadows.”

  There was no verbal response, nor did they appear from nowhere, but Lucas saw the way that the actual shadows rather than the trio with their namesake gathered into something darker and more physical, an impression of a smile forming on the grass beneath them.

  “One of you tail that one, the others are to start looking around the city for any Galactic that may be hiding. Report to the Pokemon Center in an hour regardless of your findings so we can discuss what to do next.”

  “Mi-kyu?”

  “Wile!”

  “Maro….”

  “No, this is the logical course of action. We don’t know what they’re doing here, and I don’t see an obvious base looming over the city like in Veilstone.”

  “Kyu….”

  The smile faded, along with the darkened shadows.

  “They might have spread the word that we were involved in the Veilstone incident, it wouldn’t do for them to notice us… maybe we should just go to the Pokemon Center for now?”

  “Wile….”

  “Kyu.”

  N shook his head. “I don’t like it either, but that’s how it is.” Turning towards him, N continued with “Lucas, you’re probably good to explore as you like since you weren’t directly involved. Just don’t do anything stupid. I don’t want to find out you accidentally stumbled into their hidden base here because you felt like barging into houses unannounced again.”

  Lucas gave him a placating nod, not much caring what he thought.

  N sighed. “I guess we can at least get your new disguise in the meantime. Let’s go.”

  Lucas heard one last “Kyu” before N disappeared behind the back of the house, sneaking his way to the Pokemon Center.

  He didn’t see the point of that. For as much trouble as Galactic caused, he knew that they were a bunch of morons and cowards. If they wanted information…. Shouldn’t he just go up to the grunt and demand it? It wouldn’t hurt to get some practice in with a quick battle to make his point.

  Feeling bold, Lucas walked right up to the grunt, noticing as he got closer that the man was talking to himself.

  “Grr…” The man actually growled, like some sort of weirdo. “The package hasn’t arrived from the Veilstone warehouse yet… I have to wait here until then? I’m going batty from this wait… Oh, man, I wish I could do something that involved lots of explosives! Yup, this is going to be a smashing job for Team Galactic…”

  Veilstone warehouse? He… Lucas couldn’t recall such a thing, and yet it nagged at him even more than his initial gut feeling…

  And did this guy just mention explosives?! That was a huge step up from what he’d seen before! Their MO was kidnapping Pokemon and forcing people to do stuff for them, not blowing stuff up!

  Maybe letting Togepi practice Metronome with this guy as the target would encourage him to expand on those thoughts. This guy was talking about full blown terrorism, so it’s not like anyone would care if Lucas got a bit rough with him.

  Just as he was considering his options though, he heard a strange noise from his bag.

  He thought about ignoring it, but this guy was just standing here talking to a wall. He’d probably be here for a minute.

  Stepping to the other side of the building, closer to the Pokemon Center but still within a line of sight for the Galactic grunt, Lucas started digging into his bag, wondering which item in his collection was suddenly making noises.

  “-zed. Please state your password to continue.”

  …was that his Pokedex? The voice sounded much more clear than he was used to, but he pulled it out regardless.

  “No signal from home unit available. Local use only. Voice of member 435 recognized. Please state your password to continue.”

  Well that was new.

  Lucas hadn’t seen his Pokedex do anything like this before. Home unit not available? Did it mean something back in Rowan’s base? He’d not had problems connecting in the middle of routes, so a lack of connection in Pastoria didn’t make much sense, did it? And who was member 435? Lucas was pretty sure Rowan only had a handful of Pokedexes…

  Unless…

  It said a voice was recognized. Did that make the Galactic grunt “member 435”? What did that even mean?

  Did Team Galactic have control of Rowan’s Pokedex? No, that didn’t make sense, did it? They’d tried stealing Rowan’s research back in Jubilife, they wouldn’t need to do that if they had access to a Pokedex…

  The more he thought about it all, the more that nagging feeling intensified. He felt like he was forgetting something. Like it was on the tip of his tongue, but he just couldn’t grasp it.

  Think, Lucas, think… When else had his Pokedex acted up?

  When Rotom had hidden inside of it? That was a bit different from this, though, wasn’t it? Rotom had made his Pokedex speaker come out distorted and more crackly, not made it more clear than ever. And it definitely didn’t add weird Galactic stuff to the device…

  Yet… something about that rang familiar…

  Galactic…

  A Pokemon hiding in his Pokedex…

  It hit him all at once.

  Rowan’s assistant getting her Pokedex stolen, following to the warehouse at the western entrance to Veilstone, the battle, Looker, his Porygon going into his Pokedex suddenly, how had he forgotten that he had a Porygon now?! He looked down, and the Pokeball was there with the rest, had been there the whole time, but he’d just ignored it since Veilstone, acted like it wasn’t there!

  Lucas felt dizzy, stumbling back against the building as he glared down at the Pokedex.

  What had that man said when he’d given Lucas the Pokemon? Something about it running away from Galactic goons…

  Maybe… maybe it hadn’t run away…

  Maybe it was still working for them.

  ….

  N really wasn’t going to like this…

  While English versions of Platinum have the weirdo named “Dr. Footstep”, when reading from the Japanese sign, it would indeed be transliterated as “Dr. Footprint”. Idk why they did that, especially with the man specializing in footprints.

  The Galactic member number 435 is the same as Skuntank’s national dex number. It is the highest dex number (excluding the Legendary Azelf) for a Pokemon in the Japan based regions that can learn Explosion. This means nothing but I thought it’d be funny since he wants to blow stuff up.

  As always, feedback is appreciated. (If you’re actually looking for a response, discord is the place to be)