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Chp 23: Island

Seth released Soul the next morning. They were just south of Floaroma town.

"Ugh... What time is it?" She groaned. Her eyes were sunken in.

"About ten, the next day."

"You son of a bitch..." She muttered. "I feel like shit in a blanket. Why did you let me sleep so long?"

"Cause if I hadn't, your sleep schedule would have been turned upside down. It'll be better for you in the long run, grumpy." Seth teased.

"Fuck you too." She snapped.

"Allow me to tell you about yesterday." Sky said in a singsong voice, causing Soul to glare at her.

They left the pokemon center, heading south. It was a nice day, about the perfect temperature. The path was pretty simple, just a bunch of straight paths and sharp turns. However, the path led to a cave.

"Nope." Seth said, turning away.

"What do you mean nope? We have to go this way." Sky said.

"Not exactly." Seth said. He walked over the cliff. It wasn't too far down. Too far to jump, but it wouldn't be hard to climb or slide down. He found an appropriately sloped part, and began to skid down. He made it safely to the bottom and looked back up. Sky was carefully navigating it, while Soul just plain walked down, using her claws for grip.

The path changed from sand and dirt to concrete, signaling that they were getting closer to Jubilife city. Not long after, they arrived in town. "Wow that was a quick walk." Seth said. The last town hadn't been far away. They had only been walking for about ten minutes. "Let's just keep moving and head for Canalave."

Sky began to grow ever antsier as they got closer to route 218. She remembered how the route was traversed.

"Ball or carry?" Seth asked.

She walked over and stretched out, allowing him to pick her up and set her over his shoulder before they stepped onto the ferry. As the boat sped away, he heard her groan and her stomach gurgle. But they made it across fine, disembarking just outside of the port city.

They ventured into town. It was as busy as ever, sailors moving about on their duties, a large cruise ship loading up its passengers, and the everyday folks. Seth could see the gym across the water, and began to move for it. As he did, his eyes drifted across the sea to the north, and the lone abandoned building there. It was in a state of disrepair, and heavily marred the view. Otherwise, it was a gorgeous stretch of glistening water, with an island just on the horizon. They waited for the bridge to lower, as it was currently raised to allow a ship to pass, then crossed, coming right to the gym. Seth approached the entrance, but the doors didn't open. It was barely noon, no way the gym was closed. He tapped the glass, peering inside. There was a man inside coming his way. He pressed something to the side and the door slid open.

"Hello?" He asked. He had reddish purple hair and was wearing plain white cloths and a tattered cape.

"Uh, I'd like to challenge the gym." Seth said. The guy was obviously drunk.

"Yeah, so, Byron, he's not here. Come back later. Go visit Iron Island or something." He slurred most of his words.

"Any idea when he'll be back?" But the guy closed the door in Seth's face.

"Iron Island?" Sky asked.

"That is what he said. I guess we'll need a boat."

"Boat?" Sky asked cautiously, already looking a little green.

"I could get a room at the pokemon center. I promise to tell you all about it when we get back."

"I want to explore... but I'd rather not barf... Okay, but take pictures." She said. As they went around the corner of the gym, Sky stopped, looking up at the large building ahead of them. "Is that..." The sign on the front said 'Sinnoh Library'. "It is!" She called, running up to it. The doors opened at the movement and she went in.

"What?" Soul asked.

"I have no idea." Seth said. He started to follow.

"I don't wanna." Soul complained. "Libraries suck." But Seth was already inside, leaving her no choice. With a scowl on her face, she trotted in after him.

The first floor was absent of espeon, as was the second. On the third, they found Sky harassing a librarian for a book on a high self. The lady took the book Sky's tail was pointed at and carried it over to a nearby table for the pokemon to read. Sky climbed onto the bench and flipped the book open with a paw.

"So what's up?" Seth whispered as he came over and sat next to her.

"This place has the biggest collection of books and studies on legendary pokemon in the world!" She said excitedly.

"Shh." Soul hissed. "Library." She raised a claw to her lips.

"Where did you learn that?" Seth asked.

"Cynthia." Sky answered. She wasn't giving him much attention, her nose buried in a book. "Check this one out."

Seth leaned over and read on the page. "While it has not been proven true, it has also not been proven false. In experiments, pokemon embryos have been fertalized by human sperm, and vice versa. However, there are no factual cases of these so called were-pokemon in the real world. Based on the abilities of pokemon to spread their genes, it would be possible to hybridize a pokemon and human." Seth picked up the edge and looked at the title. "Were-Pokemon: Hiding in Plain Sight". The picture was of a man howling at the full moon, with the silhouette of an arcanine behind him. Seth pouted at that. "Pretty sure this isn't a good source."

"Maybe the information is 'Hiding in Plain Sight'?" Sky said jokingly. "This was just the first one that caught my eye. Why don't you go find a couple books?"

Seth got up and looked along the shelves. Instead of by alphabetical or by decimals, it was organized by legendary pokemon. The one Sky had taken her book from was marked "Myths and urban legends". Seth went to the front, "Arceus", and took one from there. He looked further down the row and grabbed a book on Shaymin. As he turned back, he saw Soul yawn. She was lying on the floor, head resting on her paws.

He returned to the table and slid Sky the book on Arceus. It was focused less on the religious and theoretical aspects, and more on trying to actually find the deity.

He opened his, which was a book about the basics of the pokemon. Shaymin, the gratitude pokemon. It had a picture, taken by a Professor Oak. "Wait... That's the thing we saw in the park." Seth said, pointing it out for Sky.

"Hmm... that was easy. Little guy is pretty cute though." She said.

"You didn't tell me you found a legendary!" Soul complained.

"We didn't know." Seth said.

"So it says here there is no evidence at all that Arceus exists. There's all the temples and Originism, but nothing about the actual pokemon. No one has ever seen it, or at least reported it."

"Not surprising." Seth muttered. "New pokemon are discovered all the time."

"Or it doesn't exist." Soul said.

"Then how did we all get here?" Sky asked.

"Space dust." Soul answered matter of factly.

"We should probably get going." Seth said. "If we're gonna go explore, we'll need some daylight."

"I guess."

"We can come visit again after we get the gym badge." Seth told her. They returned their books, and left the library.

Seth walked back across the bridge, to the side of the city with the pokemon center and went inside. After booking a room, they went up and into it. "I wonder if any seasickness medicine would work for you." Seth said. "We've gotta be able to find some in a town like this."

"I don't really want to test it."

"Alright. I'll leave my bag here in case you need anything. We'll be fine." He dropped his back on the floor, taking out his dex and pocketing it. He took the remote from the nightstand and tossed it beside her. "See you later."

Seth and Soul left the pokemon center, walking a bit aimlessly. "Uh..." Seth muttered as he fiddled with his pokedex. "Got it. There's a ferry, this way." He declared pointing back across the harbor. They had to wait for the bridge again, then headed to the southernmost part of town. There was a sign next to a small dock proclaiming "Free boat to Iron Island! Pokemon trainers welcome!"

They approached the boat, being greeted by the captain. After a quick chat, the sailor bragging about how fast his boat was, they were off. Seth really had no other ship to compare it to, besides the crappy little ferry 218. This thing was much more fierce, rocking wildly over the choppy seas. The island in the distance grew and grew until it was a mountain. The ship pulled up to a dock, where a couple other boat, all small, were moored. They disembarked, and their boat was off. There was another boat that went back to town here. The two captains were also father and son.

"Pretty imposing." Seth thought out loud. He took out his dex and snapped a picture.

"Getting cold feet?" Soul teased.

Seth started forward, stepping off the wooden dock and onto to the rocky land. They climbed the path upwards, coming out onto a flat area. There was a house here, and the cave entrance. "Oh shit." Seth muttered.

"Man up you pussy." Soul said. "They're fuckin' zubat. Just smack 'em out of the air."

"First, the house." Seth walked up and knocked on the door. He knocked again, but still received no answer. "Ughh, fine. Let's do it." He set his dex down on the ground. Seth glowed for a moment before turning full lucario. Reaching down, he grabbed his dex again and snapped another picture. Then, they stepped into the cave. The island got it's name for the iron mine that had once occupied it. When the iron dried up, the mine was abandoned, and now it was a pokemon sanctuary, known for its tough pokemon. The place was still lit, bright mining lights hanging from the ceiling.

They walked for a bit, descending through the twisting shafts deeper into the mine. Seth occasionally took a quick picture with his dex for Sky to look at later.

"Where are all the pokemon?" Soul asked. "I was hoping to fight something."

They rounded a corner, coming face to face with a group of men running towards them. "What is up with that guy?" One asked.

"I have no idea, just run!"

"Get those pokemon too."

Seth saw a pair of odd looking poke balls flying towards them. They weren't a th-