Bridging The Gap; The Final Records In Unova: An Autobiography

The Eight For The Eighth

"So, this is Ghyst Town?" Courtney asked.

"Yeah..." June answered.

I looked at the dreary looking town we were in.

It was a gloomy evening with a consistently darkening, gray sky, giving a depressing feel to the already mopey environment. All the buildings were made of wood, giving the town a very old-fashioned feeling. A black lamp hung from in front of every building I could see, a bluish purple flame burning inside of the glass containers, two small, yellow lights glowing on either side of the fire. A black lampshade covered the flames, sitting on top of the glass containers, and they had a pointed spike on top. From the sides of the lamp were two long, black beams that curved. Sitting in the windows of a few buildings were one white candle with a purple flame lit on top.

Despite the gentle, warm breeze blowing through the town, I felt a strange, unwelcome chill.

"This is where you'll be getting your final Badge, and I'll be getting my ninth," Courtney told me.
"You... you... you... asshole! Stay away from her! And me, as well!" Ella had shouted at me just earlier today.

"And there's the Pokemon Center," June said. "Let's get a bit of rest here and, I guess, develop a plan to beat the Gym Leaders here."

"I can't believe I used to like somebody as pathetic as you," Ella had snickered at me with a disgusted smile on her face, shaking her head.

It was the way she looked at me that hurt the most. It gave emphasis, and sincerity, to the words she spoke.

A young guy walked by, but he was hunched over and moving very slowly. He looked as if he hadn't slept in weeks, dark bags under his eyes, his feet scraping the ground in his filthy and worn white sneakers. In his hand was a candle in a golden holder, a purple flame flickering on top. I turned to him as he moaned lightly.

"Gary?" June said. "Where are you going?"

I looked behind me and stopped walking when I saw June, Courtney, and my Charizard standing in front of a short building with a brown, wooden 'P' near the top of it, a lamp hooked above the front door. "Oh," I mumbled. The fact that there were so many lamps in this town gave me the creeps, for some reason. It just felt so out of place to me. Doesn't this town have electricity? I wondered. I walked over to the two girls and my Pokemon. Sleep would be nice, I thought to myself. Sleep. Maybe a couple of days off to just relax and do absolutely nothing... I just feel so tired. Stressed out. I don't even wanna really go for this Badge. The sudden feeling of laziness and tiredness seemed to increase slightly as I walked through the door of the Pokemon Center.

The inside of the building was typical, containing chairs and tables and benches, all made of wood. I also received the answer to my question I had earlier as I noticed that this building was lit up with light bulbs from above. Not only that, but there was a line of four phone booths against the wall to our right. For some reason, a pair of candles still sat in the window inside.

A wooden counter contained a Nurse Joy whose elbows were on it, her head in her hands. The cross on her hat was a very dark gray; nearly black. Her eyes were closed, as if she were asleep.

"Hey, there's a Gardevoir!" Courtney pointed.

Indeed, accompanying Nurse Joy was not an Audino, but a Gardevoir! Its eyes were wide open, watching us sternly.

"She works here?" June questioned.

Nurse Joy snorted and stood up quickly, her eyes flying open in surprise. "Hello! I'm Nurse Joy! Welcome to the Pokemon Center!" she cried out rapidly in shock.

We all froze about halfway to the desk, staring at Nurse Joy in surprise.

Nurse Joy laughed lightly. "Ha ha. Sorry. I guess I fell asleep, there. Welcome! Do your Pokemon require some attention?" she spoke more slowly and calmly.