Lambency (Ingo x Reader)

4. The Galactic Railroad

"I believe it was the last of them. My sincerest apologies for this unscheduled detour, Lady Sneasler.", Ingo says, tipping his ragged hat as a sign of embarrassment.

The Pokémon crosses her arms and shakes her head back to move the long feather out of her face, before emitting a sound similar to a whistle, meaning "meh, don't worry about it."

Satisfied with Sneasler's reaction, Ingo then suggests:

"Shall we head back to Mountain Camp and get some rest before our next shift?"

Sneasler nods and the two of them set off.

The Galaxy Team Survey Corps that has established a camp in the area had reported to Irida the presence of a very aggressive Alpha Pokémon near the Clamberclaw Cliffs. 

The head of the Pearl Clan subsequently asked Ingo to investigate and hunt it down. However, a Mass Outbreak was spotted at the same time by the lake near the Primeval Grotto, and Ingo took it upon himself to go and disband it to ensure the researchers' safety, after he was done taming the Alpha.

Walking along the Celestica Trail, Ingo does not say a word.

His mind is as foggy as the Cloudcap Pass at this hour of the night. 

He longs for some rest.

Although he knows his way, he still has the feeling that he is wandering aimlessly.

He feels far away from himself.

Dissociating from himself.

"Sneeeas!", the Pokémon suddenly squeaks, as if aware of Ingo's state of mind.

"Ah, I am all right, Lady Sneasler. Please, do not concern yourself about me."

A shooting star catches his eye, drawing his attention to the starry sky.

He gazes upon the Milky Way.

"Can you see this, Lady Sneasler? This unique pattern at the centre of this hazy band of light? Have you ever noticed that the stars form crosspieces that are connected to each other, like the tracks of the railway? And the shooting stars are similar to the headlamp of the trains speeding across the night landscape. And all these overflowing strobe lights are certainly from the buildings and the electric poles of the cities..."

He falls silent, lost in thoughts. A vision flashes through his mind but immediately fades away.

"Oh, hum, what was I rambling about just now? I believe that I briefly recalled a memory from my past life... But it was most likely a dream, was it not?"

Sneasler stares at her friend with a mixture of worry and displeasure.

"Please, forgive me for burdening you with my troubles. Let us move with speed, yet not haste."

The Pokémon grunts and kindly pats Ingo's back in all response.

All of a sudden, a loud cracking sound resonates in the distance.

Alerted, Ingo and Sneasler hurry to reach the other extremity of the plateau and the Pokémon assists the man to climb the cliffs.

At the top, Ingo scans his surroundings and takes notice of a dome shining with a dark and purple glow, all the way down the Highlands, in the direction of the Crimson Mirelands. He can faintly hear wind gusts blowing and the thunder rumbling.

"Could it be one of those space-time distortion fields?", he ponders.

From afar, he vaguely observes a bright and transient blaze, like a fireball, coming out of the rift and piercing the veil of obscurity, followed by a muffled explosion.

If Ingo did not know any better, he might have thought that a meteorite had just crashed down into the bog.

He knows this is about the rift in the sky.

Something very serious has just occured.

He sighs, then straightens his hat decisively.

"Unfortunately for us, Lady Sneasler, it appears manifestly that this will be quite a long night."

*

(22 April 2022)