Sapphire Aura: Prelude

Chapter 6

What?! An echoing voice sounded within everyone's craniums. That thing is a new Pokemon?! Everyone looked around and who the voice's owner was was even more surprising than the fact that they had accidentally discovered a new Pokemon.

Gecko, a Pokemon with a parrot voice, had a deep-throated telepathic voice that bore a slight Johtonian accent.

"You can talk?!" Sapphire squawked. "Why the--" She opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water--unable to catch a breath. "I cannot handle this. I need to take a breath." After a few in and outs, she decided to belt out everything that had happened thus far in one sentence. After that, she then proceeded to scream. After that, she almost fainted.

Calm down! A deeper voice echoed around in everyone's heads. Just stop overreacting, Sapphire! "No! I can't!" she freaked. "Chic-tor!!!" CALM DOWN!!!!! Usually peaceful Spark had started to yell his concern at Sapphire. Sapphire freaking out was the only reason she did not realise the two electric bursts forming at the Pokemon's paws, which were clamped down tightly on her shoulders.

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Don't freak out. Just don't. Don't think about the fact that your crush is going crazy and you are about to shock her. Calm down. Your heart is not going to shatter into a million pieces.

No. I can't do this. I'm supposed to be protecting her, not trying to harm her.

But she's going delirious. This is protecting her.

I'm sorry.

I really am.

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The electricity fired out in two blue bolts, resulting in a pained scream from Sapphire as she collapsed onto the floor, momentarily stunned and paralysed. Everyone noticed that the Pokemon that had shocked Sapphire was not Pikachu, but the new Pokemon which no one knew the name of. And he looked like he was about to cry out of emotion.

Just before Sapphire's head hit the ground, the Pokemon caught her, and with blinding speed, ran off towards a Pokemon Center. "Pika..." Everyone was left bewildered about what had just happened. Even quick-thinking Torchic.

Only Gecko noticed the flying tears, though.

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Calm down. She will be okay. You know her. Calm down. Don't start sobbing again. I know you miss Sir Aaron. But don't start crying. Just don't. Calm down. She will be fine. You knew her as a kid. You still know her. Calm down. Sir Aaron is proud of you. You rescued his daughter from becoming mad. Calm down. You didn't do anything wrong. Calm down. Don't cry. Don't cry. Keep your emotions down. Be a man.

It didn't work. Instead, it was the exact opposite of "worked". He broke down into hysterics.

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"Nurse Joy, how's Sapphire?" Ash asked nervously.

"Oh, she's in a stable condition. She will recover by tomorrow. The shock she received was too small to do any serious damage. I have to commend that Pokemon, though. It knew to bring Sapphire here. Although... of all my years working here, I have not even seen it before. I wonder what it is. Do you know?" Nurse Joy mused and looked at the ward which Sapphire was in.

Ash shook his head. "No. It's not even in the Pokedex!" Nurse Joy covered her mouth in shock. "Wh-what? The almighty Pokedex that Birch designed and included all known Pokemon thus far didn't contain that Pokemon? Could it be from another region?"

"Maybe, but I don't think that it can swim. But how else could it have gotten into Hoenn, then?" Ash replied. Everyone fell silent and only Spark let out a soft grumble, a worried statement that no one understood. "Tor..." After the Pokemon Center was completely silent except for Sawyer's scribbles, Spark thought that he had heard someone crying, but the sound disappeared a moment later. It might as well just have been his own imagination.

Then it was there again. The soft, but heartbreaking crying sound. Neither Nurse Joy, Sawyer nor Ash had heard it, they were too absorbed in what they were doing. Spark looked around, made sure that no one was looking, and jumped off the low stool, the only additional sound the tiktiktik of his claws as he walked towards to room where the crying sound was coming from.

It almost seemed like he was back there, looking at Busky being carried away in a net. His cries had been the same pitch and harmony, sadness flowing through as fluent as happiness usually was. "Tor?" he called, and gently pecked the door twice. Apparently, no one heard him, and the crying sound continued. Worry and fear swelled in his chest. He immediately ran back to Ash and Sawyer. "Tor!" he cried. "Tor tor chic! Torr torr!"

"What's going on, Spark?" Ash was the first to notice Spark.

"Tor! Chic tor tor chic!" Spark chirped. He wished that someone was there to translate for him. He knew his cries were only meaningless ramble to most of the people that weren't Sapphire. He ran a few meters from the chairs and chirped again.

"You want us to follow you?" Ash asked, and Spark nodded.

"Wow!" Sawyer exclaimed. "A Pokemon that can communicate with people without talking our language! That's rare!"

Just as Spark had expected, the moment the three of them reached the door, they knew that something was wrong. Without another word, Ash pushed the door right open and the scene inside the room shocked them all.

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He knew that the crying sound could not be distinguished from a person's, but from the moment Aura and a green-haired boy stepped into the room, he knew he was screwed. Like, really screwed. He had to say it. I-I know you don't know me, but I know you. That was directed at Aura. "You do?" Aura looked skeptical. Of course. He had to look like a mess after a long time of wailing out loud. You have actually met me before, but you don't know it. Your name isn't Ash.

"No," Aura's voice cracked. "How is my name not Ash?"

Lucario tried to smile as wide as she could. Because... I was the one who gave you the name of Aura. And you have never met your real father before.