-Blessed by Divinity: Eternity-

A New Threat

"That sign isn't very friendly."

Neither of us felt particularly welcome once we laid eyes on that sign. The few houses that were dotted around looked abandoned, clearly no one had lived here for some time. From what I had been told about Sinnoh, Iron Island wasn't exactly a big part of the region's history. The only noteworthy location on this island was its mine.

"From the sky I could see some entrances that go into the mountain."

"So you're thinking there's a cave or something?"

I simply shrugged, unsure what the entrances could lead to. We both knew to look for an entrance but from the foot of the mountain, there didn't seem to be anything. Only the few empty houses and the surrounding forest.

Both Dragonite and Altaria were trailing the two of us, relaxing under the rising sun. Not a day had passed since we had left Kalos and we had already been taken off course. The glowing sun was approaching its peak but the rolling winds kept the humidity low.

The mainland was at least a day's journey atop the backs of our pokemon but a journey of that length was unreasonable. Our only way forward was through this island.

Elaine and I made our way through scattered houses, each door left unlocked. The furniture in the houses was a mess and all of the wardrobes and drawers had been destroyed. Nothing of value could be found, meaning our search left us empty handed.

"Hey Aaron, come here quick."

We were currently in the last house nearest to the mountain, searching for anything of use. There wasn't any way to communicate with the outside world meaning we were currently stranded.

I joined Elaine in the house's living room. She was ducking behind one of the sofas, staying out of view from the windows. Instinctively, I hid behind the door, standing between the hallway and the room. Quietly, she motioned over to the window and through the swaying curtains I could see a group of people standing around in front of the house. Each person was accompanied with a pokemon but they didn't appear friendly.

I trusted Dragonite to take care of the egg while she and Altaria watched from the skies. Taking care of that egg was the priority but that also meant I was without my strongest pokemon.

There was a twitching sound from my trainer belt which prompted me to pull out the pokeball. I smiled to myself, realising that I had an entire team of strong pokemon. Quickly, I turned to the hallway, releasing Aegislash from his pokeball. He nodded along as I told him the plan and before long he had disappeared into the shadows.

Sceptile released himself from his pokeball, eager to see some action. Since becoming Champion, we still trained but that didn't mean we weren't looking for more battling experience. The forest pokemon nodded quietly before turning to face the front door.

Elaine joined me in the hallway as Sceptile took the lead. My partner and I took each side of the front door and as I slowly opened it, the forest pokemon kept his eye on the people gathered outside.

Then in one quick movement, the two of us charged out of the door. Now that we were outside, I could see that there were six people in the group, each accompanied by at least one pokemon. We weren't looking for a battle, but Sceptile and I fancied our chances.

"No sudden movements."

I called out with authority, each of the six people froze up, giving my partner and I the opening we needed.

"Who's the leader of this group?"

A tall man stepped forward. His long black hair covered part of his face and he wore a navy blue jacket and fedora. But what stood out most was his gold pendant. From the distance I was stood at, I could make out a symbol but couldn't tell more than that.

"Ah, I'm sure this is a surprise for you. After all, the sign doesn't make us seem friendly."

He took another step forward, the rest of the group stood still, watching their leader move closer toward me. A half smile was curled across his lips as he kept his eyes glued to mine.

"My name is Riley. We can talk." He turned around, gesturing to the others. "But it's going to be on our terms."

In one motion, the remaining five people called out to their pokemon. They each took positions to surround us but before they could react, Aegislash reappeared from the shadows. Two Machokes instantly hit the floor as the royal sword pokemon took his position beside Sceptile.

"You shouldn't have tried that."

Neither Sceptile or Aegislash looked particularly bothered by the remaining pokemon. The man who called himself Riley was partnered with a Lucario but they weren't trouble for us.

"Ah ha. We aren't your enemies. We just can't be too careful with new people coming to this island."

My mind raced back to the signs and everything that had lead up to this point. From what we could tell, Elaine and I concluded that the people who lived here must have been chased out from their homes.

"You tried to pull a fast one on me. I don't take to kindly to that."

"I understand your concerns but once you hear us out, you too will understand us."

I weighed up the options in my mind. These people needed some help and if we expected anything in return, then we'd have to at least hear them out. Riley took my silence as a yes as he began to explain himself.

"Team Galactic." There was a pause. A heavy silence hung in the air at the mention of the name. At that moment, I was convinced that this was the truth. Riley looked up before continuing;

"They came to the island but would couldn't do anything to stop them. They chased everyone out of their homes but soon after, they disappeared down the mines. We haven't seen them since, but more and more Team Galactic members to this island making it harder for everyone to leave."

After hearing Riley out, I let out a deep breath. Even after dealing with Team Flare, it just showed me how much of the world I couldn't protect from more evil organisations.

"Team Galactic? What would they want with Iron Island?"

"I do not know either. The mines have been abandoned for years ever since the oil reserves dried up."

Elaine soon joined me by my side as we weighed up our options. Not long later, we had agreed on a plan and as I turned to Riley, I could see a real smile make its way onto his face.

"If you can guarantee that we can get to the mainland, I'll take care of your Team Galactic problem."

A few of the trainers behind Riley seemed to have a problem with what I said. However, their leader quickly spoke up to silence their doubts, "Don't worry, this young man will be more than enough."

The other trainers looked a little confused at first but shook it off once they looked at their fainted pokemon. They turned tail, returning to the forest. Riley gave me a quick nod before turning to Elaine. She flashed me a smile before following the other trainers into the forest.

The sun had now just reached its peak and as I looked to the sky, I saw the two dragon types circling above us in the air. As I motioned for them to split, Altaria split off to follow Elaine from the skies. Dragonite, who was holding the egg in a pouch across her front, quickly descended.

"Dragonite, I'm going to need you and Altaria to keep watch over Elaine. If you can see that something's up, meet at the cave entrance at the top of the hill."

The orange scaled dragon gave an exaggerated attempt at a salute before she to the skies, in pursuit of Elaine and the others. That left me with Sceptile, Aegislash and the two remaining pokemon. I turned over to see the two pokemon laying on the grassy floor, asleep under the bright sun.

As I turned over, they quickly jumped up, understanding their roles. At that, the three of us took to the mountain, with the cave entrance in sight.