The Whirl Islands—long ago, they were not a scattered chain of islets, but a single vast landmass known as Whirl Island. And the guardian deity of this island was none other than the legendary Pokémon, Lugia.
However, two nations once resided upon Whirl Island. Quarrels over sovereignty soon escalated into bitter conflict, dragging on into a ceaseless, drawn-out war.
Disappointed beyond measure by this endless strife, Lugia unleashed thunderous lightning, splitting the great island into four separate parts before disappearing into the abyss at the end of the mighty waterfall.
From that time forth, Whirl Island ceased to exist, and the land came to be known as the Whirl Islands.
Yet in truth, much like Ho-Oh, Lugia had never truly abandoned humankind. Even now, it still held onto the hope that the invisible bond of trust between humans and Pokémon might one day reappear.
In this, Lugia and Ho-Oh were the same. Both had once dwelled in Ecruteak City as its twin legends. And though they had suffered disappointment at humanity's hands time and time again, they had never completely forsaken them.
Ho-Oh, for its part, had chosen the Three Beasts as its emissaries, sending them out into the world to search for humans with pure hearts. Lugia, while it had not created messengers in such a way, still acted with compassion—whenever it encountered humans stranded by shipwreck, it would extend its wings to aid them and deliver them from peril.
Both were extraordinarily benevolent legends, each still waiting, still yearning, for the day when true harmony between humans and Pokémon could finally come to pass.
And in the present day, the Whirl Islands had flourished greatly. They had even developed their own unique cultural tradition—the Whirl Cup, a grand tournament held once every three years, exclusively for Water-type Pokémon trainers.
The victor of this great event would not only earn the title of Hero of the Sea, but would also be granted the Power of the Sea Soul by the priest of the ocean.
This Sea Soul's power bestowed upon its bearer the ability to connect minds with Water-type Pokémon—an ability akin to telepathy itself.
High in the skies above the sea, a pristine and majestic white dragon soared gracefully—Reshiram. Flying alongside it was an Altaria, its cotton-like wings gleaming in the sunlight.
Indeed, this was none other than Lucas and his companions. Guided by Mew's directions, the three had made their way to the Whirl Islands.
"The power of the Sea Soul sounds so miraculous… That priest must be someone remarkable," Marnie said, tilting her head curiously as she sat upon Lucas's lap. She had been reading about the Whirl Cup and could not help voicing her amazement.
After all, the ability to grant others a bond that allowed heart-to-heart communication with Water-type Pokémon… was that not essentially the same as telepathy?
"Pfft~ sounds fake to me. Nothing could really be that exaggerated. Most likely just some kind of publicity stunt."
Green cast a sideways glance at Lucas and Marnie, her gaze lingering especially on Lucas's hand resting rather casually atop Marnie's thigh. Clicking her tongue, she voiced her skepticism toward the Sea Soul's supposed ability.
"No… I don't think it's fake." Lucas shook his head calmly. He had little doubt, for the Whirl Islands had once been under Lugia's protection.
If certain individuals of the islands had inherited fragments of Lugia's blessing, it would hardly be surprising. More specifically, the so-called Hero of the Sea gained their power from the Sea Soul Gem—a gem very likely left behind by Lugia itself to be passed down through the lineage of the island's priests.
It was not without precedent for legendary Pokémon to bestow powers upon humans. For example, in Kalos's Arche Valley, there existed an ancient tribe that had once received Arceus's gift. Bestowed with a portion of its divine power, they had gone on to…
…develop extraordinary abilities, such as accelerating plant growth with nothing but their will, or even creating artifacts capable of sealing and releasing Hoopa. Truly outrageous! Such feats alone revealed the terrifying scope of Arceus's might.
"Reshiram, Rayquaza—don't you two have any special powers you could give me as well?"
At this thought, Lucas secretly reached out through his bond with Reshiram and Rayquaza. After all, if even Lugia could bestow gifts, surely his own legendary partners could not be lacking in comparison.
His current Dragon Force allowed him a natural affinity with Dragon-type Pokémon, letting him communicate with them heart-to-heart and even sense the essence of dragon energy.
To be fair, it was not weak at all. Aside from the versatile abilities of true psychic power, few other gifts could truly outclass Dragon Force.
The Viridian Power excelled in healing. Aura was strongest in sensing. Psychic power was the most balanced and convenient of all.
As for the Bond Phenomenon, its greatest strength was its ability to calm emotions and communicate deeply—even with higher legendaries.
At first glance, Dragon Force might seem underwhelming compared to Viridian or Aura, since those could connect with all Pokémon, while his was limited only to Dragons. But in reality, its greatest strength lay in something else: the innate affinity it created.
That natural affinity was priceless to a trainer. Moreover—
Dragon Force, was a hereditary gift. It could be passed down through bloodlines.
Viridian Power and Aura, by contrast, were uncertain blessings—Viridian Power a gift from nature itself, Aura requiring an extremely rare innate talent. Psychic ability was even more accessible; with enough talent and effort, one could develop it through training.
"Eh?" Reshiram, who was currently flying, blinked in confusion.
"Special powers? What powers?" Rayquaza, abruptly roused from a nap, was equally baffled.
"You mean… you really don't have any special abilities you can grant to humans?" Lucas could not help but feel that his own legendaries were a little… abnormal.
The Galarian Moltres was a pretentious poser, Eternatus looked terrifying but was actually straightforward, Reshiram appeared holy yet was secretly a cunning oldy, and Rayquaza—well, Rayquaza was perhaps the most abnormal of them all, hopelessly enamored with worldly pleasures.
"Special abilities, hmm…" Rayquaza fell into deep thought.
Reshiram, on the other hand, simply pretended to be invisible. Sorry, it really had no special powers to hand over.
"I suppose I could give you some of my Dragon Aura… but…" After a long pause, Rayquaza spoke awkwardly.
As the Sky High Dragon, the apex of all Dragon-types, its natural aura was of the highest grade. But…
"What would I even do with your Dragon Aura?" Lucas was momentarily stunned. Of course, Rayquaza's aura was a valuable gift, its power to intimidate Dragons beyond doubt—but he already possessed Dragon Force!
Dragon Force already ensured a natural goodwill with Dragon-types, along with the ability to communicate with them.
"…I'm going back to sleep. Didn't rest well last night," Rayquaza muttered before promptly dozing off again.
"Forget it. Once I deal with that alpaca, I'll just have it grant me some abilities," Lucas muttered, rolling his eyes. He hadn't been particularly serious anyway.
Truthfully, Dragon Force was already the ability most suited to him. And these powers, after all, were only ever meant as support. A truly powerful trainer ultimately relied on their own effort and talent.
Otherwise, no matter how great the power, it was useless.
Look at Sabrina and Caitlin—their psychic powers were formidable, but even so, in the original story they were no more than Elite Four level trainers.
Giovanni, Lance, and Yellow were all wielders of the Viridian Power, yet most of its value lay in healing and communication. Their personal strength had little to do with the power itself.
Meanwhile, trainers like Red, Blue, Steven, Cynthia, Iris, and Leon—all champions standing at the very peak—were nothing more than ordinary humans.
That fact alone proved it: in this world, special powers were no more than aids.
And above all, no gift could compare to the power of Arceus.
Arceus's might was the most broken of all. Once the coming events regarding Arceus had passed, Lucas could always just ask for a bit of its power.
"Mi~ we're close now," Mew's soft, childish telepathic voice chimed in Lucas's ears.
"I see it."
Lucas narrowed his eyes, his gaze settling upon a small island in the distance. It was not large, crowned only by a small hill. Atop that hill stood a lithe, elegant figure gazing into the horizon.
Its body resembled both wolf and leopard, a crystalline crest shining upon its brow. Flowing purple mane streamed behind it, its body patterned in blue and white, while a ribbon-like tail drifted around it like mist.
It was the incarnation of the North Wind—the legendary Suicune!
Cold, noble, and graceful—that was the first impression Suicune imparted to all who laid eyes upon it.
"So cool!" Green's eyes sparkled as she beheld Suicune.
Indeed, in terms of appearance alone, Suicune's elegance and mystery were unmatched. This was one of the reasons its popularity had always been so high in every new journey it appeared in.
After all, humans were creatures of vision, and every time Suicune had appeared in history, its image had been grand and awe-inspiring.
"Let's go."
Upon seeing Suicune, Lucas patted Reshiram's neck.
With a mighty roar, Reshiram descended toward the small island where Suicune stood.
Suicune immediately took notice, its eyes flickering with alertness. It recognized Reshiram, yet could not fathom why the white dragon had come here.
And then—
With a graceful leap, Suicune bounded down from the hill, landing upon the shore to face them calmly.
"Suicune, emissary of Ho-Oh… It took some effort to find you." Lucas leapt lightly from Reshiram's back, his eyes sweeping across Suicune as he spoke with a faint smile.
"???" Suicune's gaze sharpened, its body lowering as it instinctively stepped back half a pace into a defensive stance.
Something was wrong.
This white-robed trainer had sought it out deliberately?
And for what purpose could a human seek a Pokémon, if not to capture it?
"No need to be so wary. You can relax a little," Lucas said gently, raising a hand with a smile.
Suicune tilted its head in confusion.
"But regardless, you won't be escaping today."
Lucas's next words froze Suicune in its tracks, its calm composure momentarily cracking.
(End of Chapter)
(TN: To those confuse who is Vicious. He is the Iron-Masked Marauder I just put a name on him. I chose it from his Japanese name.)