Hey there readers. Here is the 22nd chapter of Dedication Through Light and Darkness. I would rate this chapter PG because of certain words towards the end. This chapter has more plot development and the introduction of six new characters. With the start of a new arc I have a new theme song. It is titled Invincible and is by the band Adelitas Way. You can watch the video by clicking
here. Enjoi.
Dedication Through Light and Darkness
Chapter 22: Team Lustrous Takes the Stage!
The first week of winter break had been an eventful one. The second week wasn’t. Every student from the Pokémon Academy trained their hardest during the second week, minus a few exceptions. After the events with Jyharri and Sydnie, the latter woke up in her bed, thinking it all but a dream. After getting used to her new body, Jyharri had begun to train Glaceon, learning some of her faults and some of her strengths. Livi had been happy to help Jyharri in his training which in turn helped her train her Pokémon as well. A blare sounded as Livi and Jyharri traveled to the docks of Lilycove City, leaving the city behind and heading back to the Academy. The air had been cold, goose bumps appearing all over Livi’s arms. The sky had retained its black color, all the stars still visible. Crowds of students gathered around the boat as a man checked their PDAs as they got on. After settling in his room, Jyharri decided to pay Livi a visit, being careful to check for Sydnie or Mio.
“Now which room was hers?” Jyharri asked himself as he walked down the hall. “I guess this one is as good as any.”
Stopping at room 119, Jyharri knocked on the door as he looked at the ground. A shuffling noise came from behind the door as a click was heard. The door opened to reveal a girl of about the same age as Jyharri. Observing her blazer, Jyharri figured she was in Lightning Yellow. When she saw Jyharri she became surprised. Jyharri felt that there was something familiar about the girl. His eyes started at her feet and slowly began to move up. When he saw her face he knew why she seemed familiar.
“Jyharri, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“Stacy, what a surprise,” he said with a nervous chuckle.
“I went to your house,” Stacy told him. “I was worried about you when I found out you weren’t there. So why were you in Hoenn?”
“I was visiting a friend,” Jyharri lied.
“I have to tell Sydnie you’re alright,” said Stacy as she pulled out her PDA.
Jyharri quickly placed his hand on her PDA, stopping her from contacting Sydnie. “It’s ok. I’ll find her once we’re back at school. I’ll go now though. I have to find someone.”
Jyharri quickly left the room, heading down the hall again. Hanging a left, Jyharri ran into something, that something letting out a small, “Eek!”
“Oh! I’m sorry,” Jyharri said as he looked at the ground, trying to see who it was he had run into.
“I let you stay at my house and then you go pushing me down,” the something said.
“Livi, there you are,” exclaimed Jyharri. “We should go back to your room.”
“I thought you said you had a girlfriend,” Livi said with a smile.
Jyharri shook his head as he pulled Livi up and began to pull her down the hall. As the two left a person began to follow them, completely hidden by the shadow. When Jyharri and Livi entered her room, their pursuer quietly approached their door and put their ear to the door.
“So why were you looking for me?” Livi asked as she jumped onto her bed.
Jyharri put his hands into his pockets and began to pace the room. “I wanted to talk to someone.”
“Ok then let’s talk,” said Livi as she patted the spot next to her on the bed.
“Do you know if dreams mean anything?” Jyharri asked.
“Well dreams always mean something, but different dreams have different meanings.”
Jyharri took his left hand out of his pocket, covering his eye as he began to recall the dreams he had. He fell backwards, his right hand coming out of his pocket as well. Livi looked him up and down before she lay next to him.
“I’ve been having these dreams lately,” he started. “Sometimes they’re long and sometimes they’re very short, but I always find myself waking up all sweaty and very shallow breaths.”
“What do you dream about?” asked Livi as she studied him very closely.
“Lately I’ve been dreaming of this young woman. She doesn’t seem that much older than me.”
“Do you have an older sister?”
Jyharri shook his head. “The only sibling I have is my older brother. He left a while ago to go on a journey. I haven’t seen him in over a decade. Sometimes I dream of a man too, but most of the time it’s the woman. She seems familiar, but I’ve never seen her in my life.”
Livi watched as Jyharri’s expression changed to a very serious one, his eyebrows arching and a frown appearing on his face. Slowly, Livi’s hand inched towards his. Once they were touching her hand interlocked with his. When she saw there was no reaction from him she moved closer, resting her head on his chest. Livi closed her eyes as she listened to Jyharri’s slow heartbeat. Looking up at him, she noticed that he had fallen asleep.
“It’s going to be a while before we get back to school,” she said closing her eyes. “Might as well get some rest as well.”
The person standing outside took their ear away from the door and began to sulk down the hall. A small tear trickled down their face, the light from the ceiling shining off of it. The drop of water fell of their face and hit the floor creating a tiny splash. The person fell against the wall, tears now streaming down their face. The small light on the ceiling shook causing it to sway back and forth. A small fraction of the light hit the person, showing a sliver of yellow. The person sank down to the floor, tears still running down their face. As the ship plowed through the waves a Lightning Yellow student cried their eyes out in the interior of the ship. After all, it’s not every day that it seems you’ve lost your boyfriend.
----------------------------------------------------------------
“Welcome back students! We hope you enjoyed your two week break,” said Headmistress Taylor’s voice over an intercom. Her voice echoed throughout the entire school, ensuring that everyone heard it. “This semester should be packed with as much learning and fun as the last one. So go forth and be the best you can be!”
The students had begun to flood the campus, catching up with friends they didn’t get to see over the break. Jyharri and Livi exited the boat, Jyharri walking her to the Leaf Green dorm.
“Thanks for spending time with me,” Livi said with a small giggle. “It was nice even though we fell asleep.”
“Right,” agreed Jyharri as he fixed his bag on his shoulder. “I’ll see you around.”
When Jyharri began to walk away, a person appeared in front of him. Startled, Jyharri jumped back.
“Stacy,” said Jyharri once he realized who it was. “You startled me. Is something wrong?”
Stacy’s usual happy vibe was gone, an angry look on her face. “I know you went to that girl’s room. What did you do in there?”
A questioning look came over Jyharri’s face. He looked over her face, noticing that there were tear marks still left on her face. She had been crying, no, she was weeping.
“How did you know?” Jyharri asked.
“When you left I followed you,” she answered, tears coming to her eyes. “Am I not enough for you? Am I not good enough?”
“Yes you are,” Jyharri said, placing his hands on her arms, trying to comfort her.
Stacy shook his arms off her, backing away a little. “Obviously not because you go off with all these girls and do Arceus knows what. I liked you Jyharri. I liked you a lot.”
Jyharri’s gaze changed to face the ground. Stacy began to weep in front of him, snivels and cries the only thing coming out of her mouth. Jyharri looked up at her again, his face one of seriousness.
“Why would you like a guy like me anyway?” Jyharri said quietly. “I’m not the type of guy you should like.”
“You’re a great guy,” Stacy said between cries. “You really are. It’s just that you hang around all these girls and I don’t know what you’re doing. You’re the guy I’ve always dreamed of.”
“There’s that again,” said Jyharri, still looking at the ground. “I’m not the guy you think I am. You may think you know me, but you don’t.”
“But-” she tried to interject.
“But nothing,” he continued. “I am manipulative; I strive for power and glory. If you stick around me then you’ll end up getting hurt.” Jyharri turned his back on Stacy, his head turning to the side. “I’ll be going now. Have a good semester.”
Jyharri began to walk off, leaving Stacy weeping by the Leaf Green dorm. Clouds began to move in, the sky darkening a bit. A small wind picked up as Stacy fell to her knees. Jyharri grabbed onto his hat, pulling it slightly over his face. Many people attempted to say hi, but he ignored them and continued on to the Fire Red dorm.
----------------------------------------------------------------
“Good morning students! Today is the day class resumes. Pick up your new schedule and enjoy your new classes!”
The next day was, as the voice over the intercom said, the day that classes were starting up again. After picking up his new schedule, Jyharri dragged himself to his first class; Pokémon History.
“Can anyone tell me who one of the most famous champions of Kanto is?” the teacher asked the class.
A few people raised their hands, but it wasn’t many. Resting his head on his hand Jyharri began to fall asleep, his head almost falling out of his hand. Surprisingly, the teacher called on someone who actually had their hand up. With a feeling of relief Jyharri put his head on his desk in an attempt to go to sleep.
“If anyone is sleeping then they should be happy to know that I can fail them for that now,” the teacher announced.
Several people jolted up including Jyharri. Not knowing what else to do, Jyharri pulled out his notebook and began to take notes. After about an hour, the telephone on the teacher’s desk began to ring.
“Keep working on that sheet,” said the teacher as he went to the phone. “No talking or you fail.”
Once the teacher hung up the phone he wrote something on a sticky note, walking over to Jyharri’s desk and sticking it to his hand. It read, “You are needed at the office. Finish that worksheet for homework.” Jyharri quickly put everything back into his backpack and exited the room with a smile on his face. He walked in long strides, taking a little hop every once in a while. Once he reached the office door he quickly went back to his usual calm expression. When he entered the room a man to his left caught his eye. Seeing him would catch anyone’s eye as he was dressed in all white. His eyes seemed to go through the soul and his smile sent a chill up the spine. Aeolus was standing in the Academy’s office.
“Jyharri,” said the receptionist, “this man said he needs to talk to you.”
“Yes Jyharri,” Aeolus said. “Walk and talk with me my boy.”
“Um, he’s in school right now,” the receptionist said.
“It’s alright. I’ll return him before the school day is over.”
Aeolus put his arm around Jyharri’s shoulder and led him outside. The sun was bright and warm, instantly heating up their skin the instant the rays hit them. Silence reigned over the two as Aeolus led Jyharri away from the Academy and towards the shore. Once they reached the shore Jyharri saw a man dressed in a similar robe to Jyharri’s, minus the cape.
“Jyharri my boy,” Aeolus finally said. “I’ve kept you in the dark too long. I should have done this a while ago.”
“What are you going to do?” Jyharri asked a little nervous.
“I’m going to let you meet your teammates,” Aeolus said with a laugh, “your fellow members of Team Lustrous.”
The man on the shore stood erect once Aeolus reached him. The leader of Team Lustrous nodded and the man tossed a Pokéball into the air, an Alakazam emerging from it. The Alakazam positioned itself in front of the three males, holding his hands out.
“I am going to bring you to our base,” Aeolus told him. “Alakazam use Teleport.”
A light, translucent blue sphere appeared around the group. With a slight grunt from Alakazam, they vanished. In less than a millisecond, they appeared in a white room on a balcony, hundreds of people in chairs below them. Golden banners hung on the walls beside the balcony with a giant white L on them. The man who sent out Alakazam recalled him and ran into the room behind the balcony. Twenty seconds later he joined the rest of his comrades down below.
“You see these people?” asked Aeolus. Without even saying anything Jyharri nodded, his mouth hung open. “You are their superior. They are weak and you are strong. You control them.”
“I can’t control anyone,” Jyharri said. “I’m just not capable of that.”
Aeolus began to laugh, his laugh sending chills throughout Jyharri’s body. “Your eyes can do much more than you think. Using just your left eye, you can control any of the lower ranks of Team Lustrous. That isn’t the reason I brought you here though. I want you to meet six people. These six have proven to me that they are the best and that they are loyal to me.”
Pulling him into the room behind the balcony, Jyharri first saw an elliptical table. Seated around the table were six figures. All of them were facing their leader except one. The exception was facing the wall, his fingers interlocked by his face. They all wore the same robe that Jyharri had with one difference; they all had emblems on their right shoulders
“Who do we have here?” asked the one nearest Jyharri, obviously female.
“Another recruit huh?” said the next one, another female.
“Hopefully he’s stronger than those other ones that the boss brought in,” the third one said with a deep gruff voice.
“If he’s not then can I get rid of this one?” a male asked.
The fifth one down didn’t even look at Jyharri. He just continued to stare at the wall. The one after him stood up and approached Jyharri. From the way they walked it was obvious they were a female. She had a long slender body; her white heels making her seem taller. Once she reached Jyharri she touched the right side of his face with a soft white glove, moving her hand slowly.
“Don’t be frightened child,” she said. “I won’t hurt you. My name is Doris. I am Radiant rank so you know I’m good.”
She gave him a light tap on the cheek, Jyharri flinching a little. As she spun around to return to her seat, her black hair hit Jyharri in the face, the faint smell of cherry blossoms entering his nose. The first one who spoke stood up to introduce herself, pushing her blonde hair out of her face.
“I think I can introduce the rest of us,” she said with a thick country accent. “I am Eos. The lovely brunette next to me is Hestia. The thick bald headed guy to her right is my brother Eros. To his right is the mad man Chryses, and the quiet one is Alexander.”
“These six are my best operatives,” Aeolus said proudly.
“What is with the different colored emblems?” asked Jyharri.
“They all correspond with what Pokémon they use,” explained Aeolus as he held out his hand towards Eos. “Take Eos for example. Her emblem is green because she has a Roserade. Eros’s is gray because of his Armaldo and so on. Now take a seat. We must start making our attack plans.”
“Attack plans,” Jyharri asked as he took a seat next to Alexander.
“In a few weeks time we will launch an assault on the Black Organization’s base. If this attack goes well then we will end this war and end their entire organization!”
Suddenly Jyharri became light headed. Sydnie was in the Black Organization. That would mean she would be attacked as well. Trying to hide his sudden unsettlement Jyharri put his hand to his head. Alexander gave him a quick glance, his eyes flashing blue.
“The new kid is uneasy about this,” Alexander said quietly.
Surprised, Jyharri turned to face Alexander, the latter going back to facing the wall. Aeolus walked over to Jyharri and put a hand on his shoulder.
“I know what’s going through your mind,” said Aeolus. “Sydnie is not your friend anymore. She has joined the enemy. She decided long ago that she would be part of that criminal group. If she must be destroyed then you must do it.”
Aeolus’s words did not make Jyharri’s uneasiness go away. They actually made it worse. He couldn’t bring himself to destroy anyone, let alone one of his good friends.
“Now, when we reach their base then we will focus our attacks at the same point and bust their door wide open,” continued Aeolus, walking back to the head of the table.
“No need to,” said Jyharri barely above a whisper.
“How else are we going to get in smart ***?” Hestia asked with a vicious tone.
From his pocket, Jyharri produced the black card he had stolen from Sydnie. He slid it across the table to Aeolus, the boss looking it over carefully. Doris stood up, trying to get a better look at the card.
“Great job Jyharri,” said Aeolus, his twisted smile appearing on his face again. “What we have here is a key to the Black Organization base. With this, two of our members can disguise themselves as members of their organization and infiltrate their base.”
“But who’s to go?” Eros asked. “I don’t do sneaking around. I like to smash skulls in.”
“Same here,” Chryses said.
“I think it’s quite clear who should go,” Aeolus said, “only our best, Alexander, and our newest member Jyharri.”
Alexander’s eyes moved from the wall, to Aeolus, then to Jyharri. The only sound that came out of him was a, “Hmph.”
“Jyharri,” Aeolus said, walking around the table. “We have a few weeks time before we launch the first attack. You will signal that attack from their base.”
“What about school?” Jyharri asked, trying to take his mind off of possibly having to kill Sydnie.
“Don’t worry. I have connections with a few people at the school. Your grades won’t drop one bit. I want to thank you for giving me this card. You have sealed the fate of the entire Black Organization.”
“And what is their fate?” Jyharri asked again.
“It is the fate that we all share,” said Aeolus. “Death.”