The Calm Before the Storm Chapter 4 Scrapped version
Continuing their trek across Route 29, with nothing between them, Ethan took several breaths as his headache seemingly grew worse. Concerned, Nathan asked his older cousin "Isn't there anything I can do?" Appreciating his cousin wanting to help, Ethan had replied "Unfortunately...no. Once...we're back, I just feed to find.....something electrical....and I'll be....okay...." As he said that, clouds began to form in the sky. Looking up, the five suddenly noticed a flash of lightning in the sky as drops of rain began to form, and hit the group. "Well, this...is random!" Ethan exclaimed, surprised to see a thunderstorm begin to form. Knowing of the limitless energy produced in a storm, he exclaimed "I've got an idea. Nathan and Christine, I need you two to back up." Wondering what he was up to, trainer and Lucario loosened their grasp on him, as he struggled to stand up. Gesturing for the four to back up, Ethan's hands began to glow a light blue as he directed his attention towards the sky. Before anyone could react, a monstrous bolt of lightning had struck Ethan, as he absorbed the blast like a sponge, feeling his headache go away.
Many could see the lightning bolt that struck the grounds of Route 29. While they thought it was nothing more than an unnatural occurrence, one aging resident knew what it really was. Simply known by the neighbors as Hilda, she couldn't help but smile. "Are you seeing this!?" she heard from their living room. Dressed in a simple long sleeve and jeans, she replied "Yeah, I see it too!" Holding a picture of her son and nephew, she smiled sadly to herself as she sat on her bed; thinking of how long it had been since she saw her nephew. Putting it back on a nearby mantle, she threw on a pair of slippers and walked downstairs. Taking a look at her watch, she heard that same voice ask "If it is Ethan, are you going to tell him? About you?" Turning around, she saw the same man she had married twenty years ago, if older as well as his hair slowly greying. Closing her eyes, she responded "I don't know....I know I should tell him, but part of me doesn't want to." Opening her eyes, she looked down at her hands, before looking back at Cheren. "It still surprises me." Understanding, he asked in response "What about our son? Is there a chance he can do this too?" "It should be a possibility." Hilda responded. Sighing, she asked "How much do you remember of the Unovian Myths?"
Astonished by what they saw, Nathan asked "What on earth was that?" "Just a little trick I learned." Ethan responded, having appeared to have instantaneously recovered. Putting his hands together, they glowed with bright blue sparks before putting his hands down. Noticing his yellow furred sheep looking up at the sky as well as around, he asked "Is something troubling you, dear?" "Looking" in his direction, Phosphora replied "Ampharos!" repeatedly, as the rain appeared to intensify. Knowing his cousin would like a translation, Ethan had explained "She's saying that the rain is appearing to let her see us again, but the constant downfall messes up her sight....and she's freezing." Acting almost on instinct, he quickly recalled his Ampharos, and put her ball into an inside pocket of his jacket to warm up. Out of curiosity, he looked to his sea snake and asked her "And would you like to be recalled, Beleza?" Enjoying the rain, but then again what Water Type Pokémon wouldn't, she replied with an enthusiastic "Milotic!" "Alright then!" he reasoned, as the four walked back to New Bark Town. "Let's get going!" he exclaimed, as he sprinted back to their childhood home, Beleza slithering across the ground and catching up with him fairly quickly despite being better at swimming. Not wanting to go for a run, Nathan just said "Oh, for the love of..." before he and Christine decided that they'll play along, and began running in an attempt to catch up with Ethan. Neither of them had noticed a figure hovering in the storm clouds, a figure that had been watching over Ethan ever since he was born. But for an unexplained reason, she had chosen to distance herself from him, perhaps for his protection.