The Road to our Destiny II: The Galar Adventures

Chapter 20

It was half-past 7 in the evening, and after several hours of driving, Sonia began to tire. She began to sway back and forth as she drove until Timothy and Coovers convinced her to stop for the night. Thus, they found an open spot in the grass to camp for the night, much to the relief of Timothy, Coovers, Gwen, Electchu, and Winnie. Coovers started a fire to cook dinner for the group while Electchu and Winnie played, and Timothy and Gwen set up the table, though Gwen was still distant emotionally, much to Timothy's concern. Sonia stood next to Coovers, pouting like a child as she watched him cook.

"I wish I had thought of taking cooking equipment with me when I left home. I would like to cook for you guys," she said.

"And you are very sweet for wanting to do that, my dear Sonia," Coovers said, giving the peach-haired woman a dreamy look. "But as much as I adore your cooking, I have more experience in cooking outdoors. Besides, we should thank you somehow for taking us to Hammerlocke."

Sonia continued to pout for a few more seconds before she smiled and said, "Well, I can't argue with that, and your stew does look good."

"Why, thank you," Coovers said with his face lit up. "I promise you'll never have such a tasty stew in all of your travels."

Sonia chuckled at Coovers's enthusiasm, which set his heart aflutter.

"Speaking of travels, Sonia, you still haven't told us yet what you're doing out here," Timothy said.

"Oh yeah. I haven't, have I?" Sonia said with a chuckle. "It just so happens that my Gran asked me to figure out the mystery behind the Darkest Day."

At this, Gwen immediately turned to Sonia; her distant demeanor turned into a glare.

"She did what?" She growled.

"Oh, yeah. That means you're not the only one investing anymore, doesn't it, Gwen?" Sonia said with a mocking smile.

"Sonia, that's wonderful news!" Coovers exclaimed, standing up. "You're finally pursuing your dream!"

"Yup, yup," Sonia said with a cute smile.

"Wait. So both of you want to uncover the mystery," Timothy asked.

"Gwen wants to uncover it too?" Coovers asked.

"That's right, we do," Sonia said. She continued with a competitive smirk, "And I'm going to discover it before you do."

"Oh, please, don't make me laugh," Gwen rebuked. "I've been researching the legend for years. What do you know about? Do you honestly think that a man with a sword and the shield held off heaven knows how many Dynamax Pokémon?"

"Just because it sounds silly doesn't mean it can't be true," Sonia argued. "Besides, I don't hear you coming up with any other possibilities."

"And you think you'll find out right away after staying at your grandmother's all your life?" Gwen challenged.

"Why not? I don't hear you making any progress," Sonia said.

"Alright, alright, let's settle down," Timothy said, standing between the two women.

But Gwen glared daggers at Sonia, not listening to Timothy. By this point, Electchu and Winnie have stopped playing. Gwen walked past Timothy until she was inches away from Sonia and pointed her finger at her.

"Get this through your head, Sonia, I've been trying to solve this mystery all my life, and I'm not going to let a lazy bum like you figure it out before me!" She barked.

Sonia gasped, and her anger grew as she shouted, "And what? You're going to solve it by yelling at innocent Pokémon? Is that what your mom would have wanted?"