Auron Vale's heart lurched.
"Uh—w-why… why would you ask me that?"
Ashen Vale gave a confident smile.
"Aura has special properties. My Aura trait is wide range; your grandfather's Aura trait lets him probe deeply into things.
"As for yours, I'm guessing it's related to premonition—intuition and the like."
Hearing his father's explanation, Auron let out a breath. He'd nearly died of fright a moment ago, thinking Ashen had sensed that he wasn't originally from this world. To find it was only this?
"Uh… well—alright. Yes, that's about right."
He thought it through. He still didn't truly know what his Aura's trait was. But since his father had already formed the notion that his Aura was tied to premonition, he might as well go with it. In his previous world, Nintendo's Pokémon generations were ahead of what existed here. If, later on, he brought out something this world hadn't discovered yet, he could explain it under the umbrella of his Aura trait.
(In Nintendo's settings, even though Mega Evolution had been discovered in the distant past, it wasn't until Generation VI that it truly spread and entered official battles—only then did research count as successful and the conditions for "MEGA" evolution as truly mastered.)
Ashen: proud.jpg
"Alright then—out with it. What other hunches are you hiding from me?"
Auron took from the box a Mega Stone whose outer ring was silver-gray and whose core mingled red and bluish violet.
"I have a feeling… this Dazzling Stone is related to Gengar."
Ashen took the Gengarite from his hand and examined it for a while.
"And?"
Auron pulled a face.
"That's all."
Ashen looked up, eyes still fixed on him.
"I don't believe you."
Resigned, Auron produced another Mega Stone—this one with a pink exterior and a core where pale red and pale yellow blended.
"This one… is related to the Chansey at home."
Ashen took that too. He continued,
"And?"
Biting down, Auron steeled himself.
"That's it."
Ashen pocketed the two Mega Stones, stood, and patted his son's shoulder.
"Alright, alright—if that's all, then that's all. Honestly, I was just trying to bait you. Didn't expect you actually had something."
Auron's momentum deflated at once, his face drooping.
"You really are my dad…"
Ashen burst out laughing.
"Ah, that felt good."
He turned on his heel toward the computer, ready to dive into researching the secrets of the Dazzling Stones.
"Dad, wait—there's one more thing I haven't said."
Ashen looked back.
"What is it? Make it quick—I've got Dazzling Stones to study."
"Dad… do you know about the Church?"
"The Church?"
Ashen's expression turned serious at once. He came back and sat beside Auron.
"Why are you asking about the Church?"
Auron lifted the Pokémon Egg from his backpack.
"This egg was handed to me by someone from the Church. He said he was something like a… Red-Robe leader? And he mistook me for one of their White-Robe followers."
"Then, inside the Secret Realm, he was being chased and beaten by two Charizards. He gave me this egg, told me to take it and that he'd draw the Charizards away. He said that after I got out, I should go to Pigeon Plaza and hand the egg back to him."
Auron finished, and Ashen thought for a moment before asking,
"Tell me again—how did he mistake you for a Church member?"
"I was dressed all in white, right? And Crobat was flying beside me. He seemed to decide just based on those two points that I was one of them."
Ashen's mouth twitched.
"Not surprising. You lucked out big time."
Auron blinked.
"Huh? Big time how?"
Ashen explained,
"A Red-Robe leader in the Church is generally at the level of an Advanced Trainer. A small number of Intermediate Trainers may also be promoted to Red-Robe based on missions or merit."
"From what you said—being chased by two Charizards in the Secret Realm—he most likely took those Charizards' egg. In other words, the one in your hands."
"Second, the fact that he grabbed a Pokémon Egg and still escaped from two Charizards means he's at least Advanced level."
"And if an Advanced Trainer is being hounded by two Charizards—especially in that particular Secret Realm, where the danger level isn't high—then tell me: what would those two Charizards be?"
Auron's heart leapt; the answer burst out of him.
"The guardians of the Secret Realm."
"Exactly. So your Pokémon Egg—"
"—is a guardians' egg."
Auron cut in before his father could finish. No wonder the egg's potential was so high—turns out it belonged to the guardians' brood.
"Wait, that's not right. Dad, how did you know the danger level in that Secret Realm wasn't high?"
Catching the inconsistency, Auron frowned.
Ashen's mind stuttered. He couldn't very well say he'd gone in to secretly protect his son and failed to find him.
"Uh—well—your Uncle Dax told me. Yes, Dax Jonas told me. He's already completed his mission and come out—should be submitting the paperwork now."
Bang!
Right then, the door banged open with a kick, and a figure appeared in the doorway.
"So? Surprised to see me?"
It was, of course, the very Dax Jonas Ashen had just mentioned.
"Oh, thrilled. Kick that door like that again and I'll kick you," Ashen growled.
Dax gently closed the door.
"Hey, it's a habit, don't mind me."
"Fine. You're just in time. Tell Auron about the Church. I'm going back to my research."
Ashen shot Dax a glare, then went to sit down at his computer. Dax took the seat Ashen had just vacated.
"What's up?"
Resigned, Auron repeated the story he'd just told his father.
"Oho—so you ended up with the guardians' Pokémon Egg. Not bad, kid."
Auron could only sigh harder.
"Uncle Dax, can we talk about the Church first?"
Dax laughed.
"Alright, alright—don't rush. I'll lay it out for you."
"The Church stands in opposition to the world. You could call them an evil organization. Their long-held dream is to overturn the world order and claim it for themselves."
"But with the P5 pressing down on them, success is hardly easy. Still, the Church has a long history. At its strongest, it was on par with today's major powers—they even formed a covenant with a Legendary."
"They single-handedly provoked the first world war of the modern era. Of course, they may have lit the fuse, but in the end they became cannon fodder—strong start, weak finish."
"The turning point came when their leader—the one they call the Patriarch—formed a covenant with a powerful Legendary. That was the peak of their strength."
"Unfortunately, the cooperation didn't last long before the United States poached that Legendary. Coupled with the Church's swelling arrogance at the time, they were relentlessly suppressed afterward and had no choice but to retreat into the shadows."
"These days, their power isn't small, but they can't do much against any one member of the P5."
"Here's the part that matters: their hierarchy is clearly defined. The lowest rank is what you were mistaken for—the White-Robe faithful. The hallmark is an all-white outfit, and their Pokémon are mostly Zubat, Ekans, Koffing, and the like."
Auron griped inwardly. How is this not just Team Rocket?
Dax went on,
"Second tier: Green-Robe instructors. As the name suggests, they wear green. Their Pokémon are generally at second or third-stage evolution."
"Third tier: Blue-Robe acolytes. If the first two are considered outer-circle members, from Blue-Robe onward you're official. Aside from a uniform blue outfit, there's no special hallmark to their Pokémon."
(End of Chapter)