Child of Thorns - A Pokemon Sinnoh Reimagining

A sweet, musky scent began to blow north from the edge of Sunyshore's beach, emanating from an aquatic creature so elegant and beautiful it seemed as though every one of his individual scales reflected light in a slightly different yet equally entrancing way. His trainer, a young, pale girl with hair like sunlight, simply stood back and smiled.

"A-are you sure this is a good idea, miss?"

The girl looked over her shoulder, and if the determination in her smile didn't convince him, then the paralyzing gleam behind her stormy grey eyes certainly did.

"There is no need to fear, friend." Her voice was quiet, yet it carried itself through the air quite uninhibited. "You asked me to take care of the problem, and so I shall."

The fisherman shook his head in worry. "Still, with only one Pokemon…"

"I assure you, it will be no problem." She ran a hand through her shoulder-length hair in a rather self-satisfied manner. "Besides, it's a bit too late to be having doubts now. They're already here."

It took a moment for the man to notice the horde approaching from the blue horizon, but once he did, it felt as though something got caught up in his throat. An island of blue and red parted through the waters straight toward them. Tentacool and Tentacruel. He glanced toward the girl, thinking maybe her Pokemon's Sweet Scent had attracted more than she'd expected, but she didn't look worried in the slightest. That smile of hers never wavered.

Due to the enormous construction effort in order to connect all of Sunyshore's islands with state of the art solar-powered bridges, the local aquatic wildlife had been… badly affected. Tentacool and Tentacruel populations especially hated all the noise and ruckus. And about the only way they could take it out on them was to attack any and all ships that left harbor. The fisherman association had asked the League and the government for support but they'd been told to 'deal with it as they'd always done'. Right, because using lethal force on Pokemon as aggressive as Tentacruel would surely not backfire, seeing as they outnumbered humans ten to one.

When this girl, this… Cynthia Artemis had come to him claiming to have a solution to his problem… Well, she had a Milotic. That had to count for something, right? Meeting one while at sea was a once in a lifetime experience for a fisherman, but actually catching and taming one? No, he wasn't sure the girl was the right person for the job, but if he didn't at least give her a chance then he was as much of a fool as a drunken Spinda.

"…A'ight. Let's see what you can do, miss."

"You won't be disappointed," muttered Cynthia under her breath. "Now, Atlans! Like we practiced!"

Letting out a quiet, melodious cry, the Milotic coiled into himself before jumping down into the waters. The surface of the sea barely shook, as though he'd phased through it. In the distance, the army of Tentacool and Tentacruel got closer and closer, the red of their eyes gleaming with fury. Only a few more seconds until they reached the shore. And yet Milotic stayed hidden, invisible amidst the deep blue surrounding him.

Finally, when they were so close the fisherman could perfectly see their faces, Cynthia threw her hand forward and yelled out.

"Twister!"

The surface of the water moved and shifted. The fisherman raised a hand in front of his face, knowing the effect such an attack had, but no geyser came. Instead of exploding in every direction, the water simply… flowed upwards. An uniform spire of swirling blue rose high into the sky, startling both the man and the army of Pokemon, who suddenly stopped their advance, eyes wide in surprise. The tower of water continued to grow and swirl within itself. Never wavering, never expelling even a single drop.

Then, from within, a figure rose.

Milotic's silhouette slithered through the center of the spire and then emerged from the top, rings of glistening blue framing her outline as she rose above her opponents. The red of her hair was rich and vibrant. Every one of her scales gleamed like gold, the rays of sunlight falling upon her reflecting into threads of rainbow. Her fan-like tail covered her face for a moment, but once she moved it aside, all felt the full brunt of her ruby eyes upon them, their sharpness and coldness a stark contrast with the rest of her body.

The fisherman's mouth hung open. A powerful shiver ran through him, and if his eyes weren't deceiving him, then the Tentacool and Tentacruel felt the same way. Before, he could never imagine why some early fishermen had worshiped these Pokemon. Sure they were pretty, but so was the sunrise over the blue horizon and no one worshiped that. But now… Looking upon that creature in all his glory and ruthlessness, in all his calm and anger, in the clear difference between his beauty and the dispassionate cruelty in his eyes…

Yes, he understood now. Milotic truly were the embodiment of the sea itself. And if the sea told you to turn tail and leave…

"Now, Disarming voice!"

"RHYAAAAAAA!"

…Then you bowed your head and did as you were told.

The group of Tentacool and Tentacruel were gone before Milotic had even finished shouting. They scattered into small groups, then retreated under the waters. He'd seen many of those smaller groups before, and the way they ran away made one thing clear; despite the fact that they outnumbered their opponent massively, they'd been terrified beyond reason.

And he really couldn't blame them.

"Wonderful performance, Atlans! You've earned your rest." Cynthia pressed the button on her black and gold Pokeball, returning Milotic to it. Immediately, the spire of water collapsed violently. "Phew. That should keep them away for a good spell."

"I… thank you. Thank you so much." He bowed to her respectfully. "I don't know how we could pay you back…"

Cynthia simply smiled and shrugged. "Eh, the experience was payment enough for me. Hopefully you can travel in peace now."

He smiled back. "It… will definitely help, yes. I wish we didn't have to scare them off like that but…" He shrugged. "Better than hurting them, I suppose."

At that, Cynthia's smile dropped, not from her lips but from her eyes. She looked toward the horizon, toward the sea, and frowned. A sudden shiver ran down the man's spine.

"They didn't listen to you either, huh," she whispered. "The League or the government. They told you to handle things by yourself."

"I… yes. That's exactly what they told me."

She nodded. "Same as in every other town I've been in." She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened them again, something sharp and dangerous gleamed behind them. "But not for long."

She turned to him again, and the smile that formed on her lips was nothing short of electrifying.

"When I get to the top, things will be different," she said, no hesitation in her voice. "When I become the Champion… things like this will never happen again."

The man couldn't help but gulp. They said trainers and Pokemon were never too different from each other. If that was true… then what kind of terrifying strength lay hidden inside this adorable young girl?《

In the middle of the Lily of the Valley island, inside the Champion's office, two trainers stood across from each other, the air in the room so tense it could be cut with a knife. Cynthia stood firm, arms folded. Despite the apparent lack of threat in her posture, Lucian knew that she could probably grab a Pokeball from her belt before he could.

And yet, he was not worried. It'd been a long time since he'd looked up to her as someone to be afraid of.

"Have you finally reached a consensus, then?"

Lucian's reply was to grab the letter from the small pocket on the inside of his suit, extending it toward her without breaking eye contact. Cynthia didn't look away either as she took it and opened it to reveal a slip of paper inside.

"The Elite Four and remaining Gym leaders have all cast their vote. It was… close. It seems there are some still loyal to you despite all that's happened. But regardless…" He took a short breath, his shoulders seeming to deflate as he spoke the words. "A decision has been made. Cynthia Artemis, by the power granted to me by the independent nation of Sinnoh and all of its representatives, I hereby strip you of your title as League Champion."

The firmness of her expression betrayed that she knew this was coming, but it was impossible to hide her reaction completely. Her eyelids shook slightly. Her next inhalation was sharper. There was a sadness in her eyes that nothing else could mask.

"Additionally, it's been… considered prudent that you be investigated for your criminally inept behavior regarding recent events," he added. "Willful negligence, disobeying direct orders, putting innocent people in danger…" He shook his head, the most utter contempt in his expression. "The only reason you're not being charged with involuntary manslaughter is because Roark and Gardenia barely survived that rain of meteors. You should count yourself lucky. Most of the region wants your head in a pike. This is a light punishment, in comparison."

Cynthia finished reading the contents of the letter and closed her eyes, seemingly aging years and years in that exhalation alone. She looked so tired. When she opened her eyes again, the storm behind them seemed dulled.

"I suppose you've been told to bring me in for investigation," she said. "Yet you came alone."

"Yet I came alone," Lucian confirmed, folding his arms behind his back. "You tell me why."

She squinted her eyes in a futile attempt to try to gauge the truth from Lucian's expression. The man's face had always been a mystery.

"You're might be appealing to my guilt, hoping that I'll turn myself in to atone for my mistakes," she said. "But you know I'd never do that. You know there's only one way I could atone, and it's not by rotting in a prison cell."

"Then that leaves one other reason."

At that, Lucian turned on the ball of his feet and looked the other way, placing his hands inside his pockets.

"The official story will be that you used your Pokemon to knock me out shortly after I gave you your sentence, then escaped. I'd say I hope you can live with that chain around your neck but in all honesty… you deserve much worse."

Cynthia wanted to retort, to say something, but deep down she couldn't find herself disagreeing with Lucian. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed a Pokeball from her belt and stepped forward.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice strangely weak and brittle. "I know you've never liked me much…"

"That's an understatement," said Lucian. "In truth, I've always despised you."

Cynthia stopped, raising an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

"Ever since I was young," he admitted. "The days after the war ended, when I saw you up there, victorious, loved by so many… I was excited, I admit. Almost hopeful. During those days you had the entirety of Sinnoh in the palm of your hand. Your approval ratings might as well have been a hundred percent. And most importantly… you had power. You had a chance that no one else in our nation's history ever possessed. A chance to turn Sinnoh into something different. Something better. I'm positive that you could have put in place any political system you could have possibly imagined. And yet…"

As he looked over his shoulder, Cynthia believed that she saw the true Lucian for the first time. In truth, there was no anger or hatred in those eyes. Just a deep, bottomless disappointment.

"And yet you chose the closest thing you could to a meritocracy without actually slapping the name on it. Out of all the options, you chose a diet version of the system we already had. The only differences were the empty platitudes you continued to spew, day after day, about how everyone could reach greatness if they just learned to bolster their spirit and 'seize their destiny'." He scoffed at that last part. "You've never truly understood Sinnoh, nor its people. I'm quite sure you've never understood yourself either. You've always talked about the ever-growing greatness of the human Spirit, yet you're still the exact same person I met ten years ago. You haven't changed. You haven't grown. All the power in the world and yet you haven't done a single thing the world will remember you for once you're gone."

The silence that followed his speech was so heavy and tense that he didn't need to turn around to imagine the look upon Cynthia's face. He could feel the pressure all around him. For a moment he expected her to spit back something at him, maybe to attack him, but she simply let out a long sigh and took another step toward him.

If he'd been looking at her, he might have noticed the subtle, wet sheen in her eyes.

"I suppose we'll have to agree to disagree. There is something… but no, it doesn't matter." She shook her head. "Regardless… thank you. For giving me another chance."

"I certainly hope you use it well," he said. "We've got our hands full trying to keep the people from coming for our heads. I assume know what to do?"

She gave a decisive nod. "I have a plan. And people that can help me," she said. "I swear I'll make this right. We will stop Team Galactic, no matter the cost. So until then…"

There was a flash of light, followed by the sound of an impact and a deaf thump as Lucian fell to the ground, unconscious. Lorencia stood behind him, looking regretful.

"…Keep Sinnoh safe, please."

When Cynthia told Lucian that she had a plan and people to help her with it, she might have been overselling one of the two.

Regardless, she couldn't afford to waste any time. And considering the amount of talent she'd been able to amass under a single roof in such a short time… she doubted coming up with a good plan would be too difficult.

"I'm back," she announced into the barely lit room, her voice echoing off its walls. "Is this everyone?"

She swept through the room with her gaze, a multitude of eyes meeting hers. Percy and Reiko were closest to the staircase, the latter keeping her fingers over the hilt of her sword. Lucas stared over the screen of his laptop, its light bouncing off his glasses. Next to him, Saturn seemed to be taking notes with pen and paper. And over on the darkest part of the room, arms folded and back against a wall, stood a tall and lanky man whose features might have reminded someone of a scarecrow. He wore a perfectly kept blue suit and his spiky, unruly hair was mostly hidden by a hat of the same color, hiding his eyes from view.

He flashed her a quick smile as their eyes met, and Cynthia had to stop herself from frowning. Riley Ordine… times truly had become desperate if she'd been forced to ask him for help.

Reiko was the first to speak.

"Maylene and Candice are also in, but they said they can only help from afar for now. They both have a town to look after."

Percy nodded. "Unfortunately, Volkner wasn't quite as enthusiastic. He didn't even bother answering our calls."

Cynthia couldn't help but scoff. That damned Volkner… maybe if Flint were here to help convince him…

She shook her head. They could deal with that later. For now…

"That's good enough for now," she said. "There's a couple more people I'd like to recruit later, but we should be able to at least come up with a plan between the six of us."

Every pair of eyes in the room was focused on her, and none of them showed an iota of trust. There was a clear, hostile tension in the air. She'd thought the previous strike team had been volatile, but at least then there had been a semblance of unity, even if most of the members refused to see it. Now…

Well, there was no point in lamenting that. These were the cards they'd been dealt, and now they had to try to win with them.

"Let's get started," she told everyone, pouring every ounce of confidence within her into her smile. "Let's save Sinnoh."