The Patron Quadrilogy: The Legend Begins

Chapter 7

Friday, October 13th, 1:30 pm, 2018
Route 103 (North of Oldale)
"Tell us why you exist, if you won't help the world," Dawn whispered.
"Our powers are deadly," April said. "Brendan's right. Us trying to help would just do more damage."
"So, you're willing to let bad stuff happen, unless you're attacked?" Iris scoffed. "That's just cowardice."
"Enough!" Brendan spat, eyes glowing, flames crackling on his shoulders, and engulfing his hands and feet. The heat was causing the grass around him to shrivel and die. "Tell me something, would you want this saving you!? It's not cowardice that keeps us from intervening, it's the knowledge that, to the everyday man and woman, we're freaks. People might even consider us to dangerous to be left alive. So, tell me, if you had these powers, what would you do!?" His voice softened, and his flames dissipated. "Every time I fall asleep, I'm afraid that I'll burn everything. We aren't meant to protect the masses. We're meant to keep old Legends alive. And we're meant to make sure other Patrons and our Legendaries don't destroy this planet. We don't have time to play superheroes."
"Oh, don't get us wrong," Steven said. "We will intervene if, say, someone is being mugged. But we will not intervene in massacres, robberies, and hijacking."
"And even if we do," Nathan added. "It's probably because we know the victim."
"We look out for our friends, families, and any love interests," Marilyn added as well. "But everyone else.... well, they don't matter to us. A lot of the people who serve the Patrons have been dealt a rough hand by life. And, in most cases, we resent other people because of it. In our case, when we were orphaned, nobody helped us. We'd go to sleep hungry most nights. The only one who helped us was Damian, and the rest of Brimstone. They're our family now. And we haven't forgotten what those people did. The things they said, they even threw stuff at us if we'd ask for food or money."
"The only people we'll help are those who got dealt a bad hand by life. The homeless, orphans who, like us, don't want to go to an orphanage, and of course, anybody whose friends with somebody in Brimstone."
"You people are impossible," Dawn said, exasperated.
"Because we won't act like you want us to?" Brendan scoffed. "That's rather childish. We told you our reasons for not intervening in public affairs."
"We'd kill people if we intervened. Our powers are dangerous. All we can do is protect people from other Patrons. Even those fights are rare, and when they do happen, they usually happen at night. And fights usually occur well away from civilization most of the time."
"Most of the time!?"
"Yes, sometimes fights occur in cities, but people just chalk the damages up to ball lightning, spontaneous snowstorms, and various other ridiculous excuses. And, naturally, people buy what they say on TV."
"That can't be true," Dawn argued.
"It is," Brendan replied. "Matter of fact, they usually cover up anything that would cause mass panic. Like, for instance, if they ever found out that our world was invaded by a Pokémon from space. One that was only defeated courtesy of a certain handful of trainers and the Legendary Rayquaza."
"You guys know about Deoxys?" Ash asked.
"Yep," Brendan replied. "Matter of fact, he has his own Patron. And she's..... odd."
"How so?"
"She tries to start cults about space Pokémon."
After a while, they all decided to change the topic of their conversation. They mostly talked about the upcoming Hoenn Festival, which lasted five days.
"It starts next week," she explained. "There's going to be a huge contest event on every other day. It starts here, in Littleroot, then Oldale, and it ends in Petalburg City."
"Yeah, that's also going to be a busy time for the Pub. Lots of celebration."
"What kind of people are you expecting there?"
"Because it's the Festival, sons, daughters, mothers, and fathers who serve in Hoenn's military normally get leave for the week, so they can enjoy the festivities. We'll also probably get a few tourists stopping by, likely coming in to forget the voyage or flight here."
"We'll also likely have our hands full, keeping the peace in the pub," Nathan replied.
"Probably, if someone gets unruly."
"There'll also be a fireworks show, so most of Brimstone will probably stay awake for that," Marilyn added.
"I'm just excited for the games that get set up!" Claire replied.
"Eve! Eevee!" Eve agreed.
"We should probably head back to Littleroot," Brendan said, looking at the sky. Dark clouds were beginning to form, and thunder rumbled in the distance.
"Yeah, sounds like Raikou or some other thunder Legendary is about to go nuts," Steven replied. "Rayquaza is telling me that it might get a bit severe, but nothing too bad."
"Ol' Ozone sees all that happens in his domain, huh?"
"Watch your tongue, fire boy."
"Let's get going, then," Brock replied. "We'll have to fly if we want to make it back to town before it starts raining."
"Of course, " April replied. "But, Ash, can we talk to you? Alone?"
"I guess," he replied, slightly hesitant. "You guys head on back to Littleroot. We'll catch up later."
"Alright," Misty said.
"I'll get Claire and the Twins home," May told Brendan. "But, then, we need to talk back at Brimstone."
"Alright, I'll see you back at the Pub," Brendan murmured back. "Please be safe," he thought as she walked off to join her other friends.
Friday, October 13th, 3:33 pm, 2018
Route 103 (North of Oldale)
Once the others were out of earshot, Ash turned to Brendan and the other two Patrons.
"Alright, why you want to talk to me alone?" He asked. "Why can't the others hear this?"
"Because, this is a private matter," Brendan explained. "It's about your Aura."
"What about it?" He asked.
"It's unusually powerful for someone who isn't a Patron," Steven said.
"How do you know?"
"Patrons can sense aura," April told him.
"It's how we can identify a fellow Patron in a crowd of people. And, it tells us how powerful they are."
"And, as we said before, yours stands out. It's stronger than a Patron's Aura, and it overwhelms the Auras of regular people."
"What does that mean?"
"It means that we suspect you of being an Aura Knight."
"A what?"
"Someone who can utilize their Aura without the assistance of a Pokémon. They maintain the balance of Aura in this world. The most famous and well known Aura Knight was Sir Aaron. Interestingly, is bloodline seems to be the only one capable of producing children with this ability. They can use Aura without training."
"Do you realize how crazy this sounds?"
"I don't know, have you ever been able to communicate with Pokémon that have unusually powerful aura?"
"Well, I could communicate telepathically with a Lucario, and I did have a Greninja that I could connect with. But what does that have to do with anything?"
"It means that you can connect with Pokémon. That ability is rare, unless you're a Patron. However, the bloodline of Sir Aaron has that ability, and they're one of the few that do."
"And, have you seen and/or made contact with all of the Legendary Pokémon?" Steven asked.
"Yeah, I did. When I first started my journey ten years ago, I saw a large flying bird, which I would later find out is known as Ho-oh. Since then, I've made contact with all of the Legendaries, including Arceus."
"Yep, I heard from Groudon that Lady Creation met you. That's quite the honor, seeing as she usually doesn't appear more than once a century, unless something requires her attention."
"I still don't know what this all has to do with me."
"Simply put, Aura Knights were the original Patrons. However, their numbers were thinned centuries ago. The few bloodlines that remain of them are considered extraordinary. Needless to say, you have the ability to revive a once-dead order. You can reunite the few surviving Knights, and even christen new bloodlines. The knowledge that the Aura Knights are re-established could cease much of the bickering within the Patron meetings."
"I'm assuming you want me to do something?"
"Yes," Steven said. "Meet us on December 21st, the Winter Solstice, after the sunsets. 5:00 should suffice."
"Why?"
"Every solstice and equinox, Patrons convene at a special location for a meeting. I believe we told you and your friends about this. Since we suspect you're an Aura Knight, it's our obligation to let the other Patrons know."
"Anyways," Brendan said. "Now that that's settled, we really should start heading back to Littleroot."
"I would, but I must get back to my estate," Steven said, calling out his Metagross. "I'll see you three at the Winter Solstice Meeting."
"And I must get back to Shoal Island," April replied, calling her Fearow, known as Swift. "My Team is probably missing me. See you guys on the 21st."
As they took off, Brendan turned to Ash.
"Well, I guess we'd better get back to Littleroot," he summoned Skar. "Get on, I'll give you a lift back to town. The others are probably there by now."