Pokémon BW: Rise of Clarity (book 3 of the HBoD series)

Chapter 2: Warning

"Find anything?" Robert called out as he hopped over a log. Mary, who was just ahead, partly hidden by trees, yelled back, "Nothing!" There was a twinge of desperation in her voice now. Robert sighed, rubbing the back of his head as he waited for Chesnaught to catch up. He still had no idea what kind of Pokemon "Ghost" was, but Mary seemed too distraught since she had woken up to explain. She had almost ran off into the forest by herself as soon as there was enough light.

A sudden yelp from up ahead stirred him from his thoughts. He quickly ran towards where he had last seen Mary, vaulting over another log, only to realize the ground wasn't there. He didn't have time to scream before his head collided with something and everything went black.

...

"Farewell my friends," Robert breathed as he gazed for a couple more seconds before turning away from the boat. He would miss both Zeno and Alex, but it was high time he headed home. He sniffed, realizing how much he had missed the clean, fresh tropical air of Alola. The smog in Virbank seemed worse now that he had been away for so long.

"It'll be better along Route 20," He told himself. Soon, he found he was right. Now the air was cleaner and the Unova air smell, a mix of water and forestry scents. The planks echoed beneath his feet as he crossed the bridge, making his way to Floccesy Town. 

Robert then stopped, leaning on the side of the bridge to look over the flowing river. He sighed. "What to do now? I lost in the Alolan League. I did make it pretty far, but perhaps battling just isn't my strong suit..."

He shook his head, resuming his walk. Soon, he was in Floccesy Town. "The home of Unova's Champion, Alder. I hope I can battle him one day." He moved on through the town, nodding to people as he passed them. He was surprised at how they stared at him, smiling and welcoming. A couple even congratulated him for his performance in the League.

"Well, dang," Robert rubbed the back of his head as he left the town behind. "I didn't realize they had all watched. I wonder..." He stopped, seeing Aspertia City, his home, not too far off at the end of Route 19. His pace quickened until he was sprinting the rest of the route, a sudden urgency to be home filling him inside.

As he ran down the street towards his house, the sound of an explosion registered and smoke filled his gaze...

...

"Ugh, my head," Robert groaned, trying to blink away the blurriness. The outline of a figure was kneeling over him, waving their hand frantically in his face.

"You okay!?" Mary's striking wide red eyes were the first things Robert saw when the world finally came into focus. He glanced around, seeing that they were in the forest... 

Everything came rushing back. "Man, did I seriously fall into a hole and nearly kill myself?"

"Um, basically," Mary sat back, looking relieved as Robert sat back up. His hand immediately flew to his head, but he was pretty sure he was doing alright. "How long was I out?"

"Several hours," Mary bit her lip, looking worried. "Chesnaught pulled you out of the hole and seemed to apply some berries to your head."

Robert pulled his hand away, feeling the stickiness from the berries. "Must've picked up a few things from me." He glanced around. "Where is Chesnaught anyway?" 

"He went foraging I think ten minutes ago."

Robert nodded slowly, the simple movement triggering pain. He then realized another thing. "I'm so sorry." He clasped his hands together. "Because of me you weren't able to look for your Pokemon!"