Pokémon Bloodstone | An Orre Fanfiction

Chapter 43: Fateen's Fortune-Telling Chamber

The sun set in carnelian orange over the rust-striped walls of Pyrite Town. Dirk made the mistake of driving in through the main gate. Cail was too busy as Gym Leader to stand there all day, charging unsuspecting visitors an 'entrance fee,' but his 17 year-old daughter Brass filled his spot without missing a beat since completing the Gym Challenge last year. She sent out a growling Umbreon when Dirk refused to pay. Chalcedony wound her window down.

'Isn't your Impidimp Ready Dinner going cold? Give it a rest.'

Brass couldn't argue with her. She knew Chalcedony was from Pyrite and fully aware there was no 'entrance fee.' She reluctantly let the car through. Dirk parked outside the new Pokémon Center which – despite Cail's determination to look like a 'tough guy' who thought no Pokémon Center was necessary – was funded by Znider's ongoing Imipdimp Ready Dinner subscription.

'Lock it, Dirk,' Chalcedony warned, 'And neither of you leave anything you care about in there.'

Zileh's wide eyes swept from the dusty concrete to the shabby streets of recycled metal homes to the looming colosseum. The ONBS Building and Pyrite Heights apartments were strangely clean strips rising from the sunset-stained crevice.

'Wow. The infamous Pyrite Town!'

A Dragonite and Crobat landed at the entrance. Brass rushed to charge their Trainers, but got talked into joining Team Magma when Crobat's Trainer trounced her. She shrugged and pulled on her free hoodie. It clashed with her green hair. She didn't argue with tough Trainers, or at least not until she forgot how it felt to be flattened by them. Dirk gawked.

'Whoa! Cail's kid is tough, but that girl's super tough! She's cute, too...'

The smoky evening wind blew whiffs of floral essential oils from Fateen's Fortune-Telling Chamber. It was the first thing visitors saw when entering Pyrite Town. Lights were on inside. It was still open. Chalcedony found herself unexpectedly nervous. She knew Fateen wasn't a con artist. Everyone in Pyrite did. If she did know the truth... was Chalcedony really ready for it? The automatic door was already sliding laboriously open for Zileh. She stepped inside.

Floorboards creaked. Dim light danced over satin cloths draped over the starry walls. Behind a crystal ball on a glass table was elderly Fateen, her greying pink hair coiled in pigtails.

'Find what you seek, be it an object, person, or luck. Welcome to Fateen's Fortune-Telling Chamber.'

Chalcedony followed Dirk inside. She didn't lay down her bag or guitar case. Thieves were capable of silently snatching unguarded bags if the door opened.

'Fwofwofwo... I think we should wait just a moment.'

Fateen's customers had no idea what that meant, but she clearly wasn't ready to speak yet. The door opened. Fateen smiled. The Team Magma recruiters walked in.

'Now, we're all here. Yes, indeed, the five of you seek the same thing... you wish to know how Fire Agate Addison's pendant came into Rustie Clark's possession, correct?'

Chalcedony glanced back at the other visitors. Why did two Team Magma Grunts need to know about the pendant? How did they know about the pendant? Maybe Courtney sent them. That made sense. Lyndon was, after all, Fire Agate's half-brother. Yet she felt she recognised the one hiding behind sunglasses from somewhere...

Dirk nodded. 'And we're a li'l worried about Fire Agate... if she's alive...'

'The child is alive.'

'O-oh! But – the dead baby...'

'A victim of Gretchen Manning, also known as Rosen Raco. As you may have guessed, Fire Agate is also now in mortal danger. She is protected by another name... but it is only a matter of time until her enemies dicover her true identity, which I cannot currently share with you. I know your actions, if I were to tell you, would put you in danger. You must grow stronger first.'