Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 74: Torn World

Mt. Coronet felt different the moment we reached its lower path. The mountain had always stood over Sinnoh like a spine, holding the region together, but now the air around it pressed against my chest. The caves ahead were too quiet, and Pikachu's paws tightened on my shoulder.

Looker waited near the entrance with Mom beside him. Seeing her there made my stomach twist, because this was not a place any mother should have to stand while the world shook above her.

Mom hurried forward and touched my shoulders. "I heard from Looker that you freed the lake Pokémon."

"Yes, Mom," I said. "Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf are free, but Cyrus created something called the Red Chain. He is taking it to the summit."

Looker pointed toward a broken wall deeper inside the cave. "Observe, if you will, that hole. There was once a cave painting blocking the way to the summit. But the wall is no longer there. It lies in pieces. Ever since the three lake Pokémon were captured, something terrible has been happening."

Lillie looked at the shattered stone. "Team Galactic forced open the mountain."

"There is but one cause," Looker said grimly. "Team Galactic's Cyrus. And now, my friends, we are all caught up."

Mom did not ask me to stay behind. She had learned a long time ago that stopping me from helping Pokémon would only hurt me in another way. She only took my hand for one second.

"Come back," Mom said. "All of you."

Pikachu's meaning came soft but certain. "We climb because coming back matters."

I nodded and turned toward the broken path. "Then we stop Cyrus before he reaches the top."

The first tunnels were already guarded. Team Galactic had set cages across the narrow spaces, poison traps along the floor, and machines that sprayed fumes whenever anyone stepped too close. Wild Clefairy and Bronzor trembled behind metal bars, used as living warnings for anyone trying to pass.

This was not a normal blockade. A normal enemy would try to keep us away with guards and locked doors. Team Galactic had built a path that punished every rescue attempt, forcing us to choose between speed and safety. Cyrus was not only climbing the mountain. He was making sure compassion slowed anyone trying to follow him.

Tox's voice went sharp in the calm way that meant he was angry. "Those fumes are not meant to faint Pokémon cleanly. They are meant to slow breathing."

Gladion sent out Lucario, and Lillie sent out Togekiss to keep the trapped Pokémon calm. I sent out Skorupi because the poison lines were woven through the traps, and I needed a partner who could understand where the danger was coming from.

Skorupi clicked his claws and moved ahead, cutting wires and testing poison nozzles before anyone else stepped near them. He was careful, but the next cage dropped from above and pinned the path in a way his smaller claws could not break.

A grunt laughed from the upper ledge. "Little scorpion cannot cut through that one!"

Skorupi struck the lock again and again, but the trap only bent. The trapped Bronzor behind it shook harder as the poison hissed.

Skorupi's meaning came tight with frustration. "Small claws know the poison. Small claws cannot save them fast enough."

"You do not have to stay small," I said. "Protect them your way."

White light burst around Skorupi. His body grew larger, his tail rose like a weapon ready to guard the whole tunnel, and his claws became powerful enough to make the metal frame groan before he even struck it.