I slouched over the footsteps in the mud, clearly too small to be that of an adult's.
"Third one this week. The disappearances... they're getting too frequent." Officer Jenny said, as she noted it down in her notepad.
Every single time, the footsteps just seemed to vanish. They seemed to lead us on somewhere, and they just disappeared without a trace. As if every step itself was a Kecleon from that moment onward.
"Oh Arceus. They're mere children... How can they just disappear without a trace?" Officer Jenny said.
It was year 2 as an intern for me at the Police Task Force. I have seen Pokemon theft, murder, arson, illegal hunting, but disappearances... that's new. In a town as well constructed and advertisable in Floaroma as well.
Floaroma is known for it's scents, flowers. It's meant to lure all the tourists into seeing our beauty. But something might be wrong in here. I suspected it might be the works of an old evil.
"Officer, I believe this might be the works of the remnants of Team Galactic. They've never failed to stoop low. We don't know what they might be up to." I said.
"That's a good observation, young Jill. But I'm afraid you're wrong, dear. Team Galactic was shredded down to it's roots by our current Champion years ago!" Officer Jenny said.
I looked up from the mud, unable to give a coherent reply. I looked up from the mud, all I could see was the woods, the once flower filled meadows of Floaroma town, which now laid barren ever since Team Galactic took over. My house was at the very edge of the town, and was greatly affected by their attempted industrialization.
I despised them. They took everything from this town. The sheer beauty of walking in the gardens of flowers, the scent of fresh pollen against the grass, all was to be thoroughly missed, after the destruction they caused at Valley Windworks, polluting the town.
"But... Officer Jenny." I said, not facing her. "It took years for the town to recover from what they had done. It is them. They're up to something evil, I just know it."
"There is a possibility, but it is only that dear! A possibility." Officer Jenny said as she put her notepad back into her backpocket and walked back to her bike.
"Come, let's go. The sun might set soon. The more late we make it, the more chances of another child going missing."
I nodded and got onto the bike. We patrolled the perimeters of the town for an hour, as the sun set slowly. I asked the Officer for a stop at my home so that I could pack some Sandwiches for the night, and she approved.
I tried not to make a noise as I turned on the kitchen light, slowly packing some sandwiches into the aluminium foil, not making haste so they won't turn out bad. As soon as I set them into the machine I heard the light to the stairs turn on.
"Didn't expect you to come home at all." My mother said, standing atop the stairs, the light barely making her face visible.
"I had to... you know. We have a night patrol today, and there's no way to eat out today too. So I'm packing Sandwiches, mom, you want some? I can make some." I said, stuttering over my own words.
"A boy your age.. making sandwiches huh. At your age, your father challenged the elite four and won."
She said and scratched her head. "You're disappointing me, you know that?"
"He lost to Cynthia... and he never came back home." I protested.
"You're nothing compared to him. An eyesore maybe, a lot more of an eyesore." Mom said, drooling over her own dress. "You should have disowned that Piplup of yours long ago. Or is it a Dewott now? Doesn't make a difference."
"She's still a piplup. I'm... leaving. You can call me if you need anything." I said as I turned off the light to the kitchen and made my way out the door, closing it and not looking back.
That's all I was. I couldn't get past the first gym at all. Me and my Piplup weren't a match. I found out later he had a sort of anatomical anomaly which made him less able to utilise his attacks to their full extent... so I gave up on becoming a trainer.
"That was quick. Almost like you wanted to leave." Officer Jenny commented.
"Let's patrol near the center of the town today, Officer. The last 3 of them were near the meadows, I have a feeling this might be different..." I said as I was interrupted by a sudden ringing of Officer Jenny's walkie talkie.
"Officer Jenny on duty here, what is your reason for calling?"
As soon as she finished the sentence, a loud roar of wailing and screaming ensued on the phone.
"Sir... Sir.... calm down. What happened, are you in danger?" Officer Jenny asked.
"My daughter... My baby.... she's not returned home... she went outside to play...." I heard sobbing.
"All that is left of her is her tiny shoe... and a drop of blood..."
I felt chills go down on my spine. I blanked out for a second... as I could hear Officer Jenny asking the whereabouts of the last seen place.
I could feel all my senses begin to numb, my ears beginning to ring against the loud wails of the man on the phone... my eyes starting to blur against the darkness of the night...
"Jill... Jill!"
I was brought back to my senses by Officer Jenny. "Let's go! It's believed there has been sighting of a little girl walking alone near the bridge to Valley Windworks!"
I nodded and got onto the bike. The abandoned Valley Windworks. Where it all began.
We reached Valley Windworks, slowly screaming the little girl's name : "Lusamine! Lusamine!"
But to no avail. There simply was no response.
The moonlight shined brightly against the darkness of the meadows, once populated by flowers which illuminated the place. What laid now was pure concrete.
But for a mere second, I could see a movement in the tall grass to the side of the bridge.
"Officer Jenny! There!" I pointed.
"Okay, follow protocol, I'll be going inside with my Gallade, and you cover the area outside. Disobey orders, and you'll be punished." She said.
"But... Officer Jenny! It's those grunts! Those goddamned Galatic grunts! You have to let me beat them!" I said.
"I won't repeat myself again, dear." She said and stared me down.
I grunted and reluctantly nodded, as we left behind the bike, and ventured into the grass, only to see an opening on the underside of the abandoned bridge.
But there was light. There simply was light inside the tunnel, which seemed orange... and floating.
We made sure to not let our footsteps make sounds against the twigs on the ground... as we got closer and closer, we could hear the sound of heavy breathing against the concrete.
One, two. One, two. One, two, three...
It was clicking, and it seemed to have no pattern. I held my breath as Officer Jenny entered first. We could hear heavy breaths from what sounded like a little girl.
I clutched my hand. Not again. This time I won't let these grunts take away an innocent child. I released my piplup onto the ground, signing him to be silent. But he was raring to go.
Officer Jenny barged in, "Hands up! You're under arrest! Hand over Lusamine back to us!"
I could hear her Gallade grunting as it fell down in a thud. I swallowed. There was no movement at all, but Officer Jenny's Gallade... just fell to the ground.
"It can't be..." I thought to myself. I could see Piplup shivering... his beak quivering unlike anything I've seen before. I wanted to go inside, get a look on what caused it. I wanted to make sure Team Galactic were put back where they belong! Those animals!
"My god..." screamed Officer Jenny.
That was the last straw. I barged in with my Piplup.
"Police! Hands up!"
I froze. There was nothing. Only an orb of fire floating. I fell to my knees as I saw Officer Jenny floating in the air beside it, her eyes as white as the moon, with no shade of black.... like a celestial body orbiting it's star.
I began to shake, my breathing heavy as I could feel my knees getting weaker.
"Who are you...." I whispered to myself as I saw a string float down from above the orb, landing near me.
Piplup trembled beside me, unable to move from it's feet. I could feel the air cool down around me. I looked up again, this time, it was multiple bodies, not just Jenny.
Children, women, men. All floating around in a haze, spiraling upwards into something impossibly massive as they writhed and flew like swamps of bees with no intention at all.
I couldn't save anyone again... even if I had... would it have made any difference at all?
There was no certainty. This was where I had to run away, but my legs wouldn't move. I frantically tried to identify every single body, but I couldn't... there were too many... rotting, young, hurt, fresh. It had it all.
I tried to look away from the orb of fire.... but I heard its whispers calling out to me.....
"Drifblim."
Father?
This entry ends here.