Chapter Text
“Well, there goes the drone,” Annie said, staring at Oakley’s laptop screen and the frozen video feed on it. “He’s so quick, too. He appeared out of nowhere, even though we saw him far away not long ago.”
“Yes. But we already knew of their speed based on Latias’ fight with the poachers.” Oakley scoffed and clicked her tongue. “I’m both surprised and not surprised they saw it. I swear, stupid drone…”
“What happened? Did you try to take off knowing they were still in the garden?” Annie asked. “I doubt you’d be that careless.”
“No. The drones have an automatic return-to-base function if their battery gets too low. I was so focused on taking notes of what I was seeing in the garden that I forgot to turn it off. When the warning popped up on my screen, I was just a second too late to override it.” Oakley hit her head with a palm and groaned. “I can’t believe that happened to me.”
Annie placed a hand on her sister’s shoulder and squeezed it. “It’s okay. Happens to the best of us. You’re so focused on so many things, it’s a wonder a slipup hasn’t happened until now. Still, are you concerned that the guardians caught the drone? Are we in danger?”
“Yes and no,” Oakley replied. “I confirmed it registered the self-destruction command the moment it gets tampered with. So, they won’t get much out of it.” She smirked. “It packs a little nasty surprise hidden within it. I wonder how the guardians will respond to that.”
Annie chuckled and shook her head, a knowing smile spreading across her face. “Same old Oakley. You and your tricks. Why, though? I doubt you’d get anything from it if it self-destructs. Blown-up drones are notoriously bad at sending back information.”
“Annie, sometimes you can get a lot of information from a complete lack of information,” Oakley said. “If the days go by and there’s no news of the drone’s surprise, and the guardians are unharmed and unbothered next time we see them, I can infer they successfully dealt with it without problem, and I can note they are prepared to deal with something similar in my notes for Sebastian. If we see it in the news or notice any slight injuries on the guardians, we’ll have a lead.” She shrugged and glanced at her notebook. “Anyway, now we know the guardians are on edge, or at the very least aware that a fight is coming. I had hoped to take them completely by surprise, but it is what it is.”
“In the end, it’s nothing we haven’t dealt with before. Just a pair of powerful Pokémon and nothing more. We got this. So, what’d you get from the garden exactly?” Annie asked, taking a seat next to her sister. “I’m curious.”
“Many things. The most important thing, I believe, is the typescripts I needed to decode the ancient book. Its language was older than expected, but with the images from the garden, I think we’re done,” Oakley said. “We also got information on a few ways to enter their hidden little cove. And I confirmed the existence of the Soul Dew.”
Annie’s eyes sparkled, and she clasped her hands together in delight. “Okay, you should’ve led with that, because that is what I wanted to hear.”
Oakley pulled up an image of the shrine on her computer. “There it is.”
“Oh my, it’s beautiful,” Annie murmured. “I want it. I want it so badly!” She ran a hand over her chest. “A jewel containing a Legendary Pokémon’s soul… That belongs around my neck. I’ll be shopping for a matching dress immediately.”
“Of course you like it,” Oakley said, unsurprised. “Anyway, one entrance I mapped should be large enough to get equipment inside. I’m glad about that.”
“Right, we have to fight for it. While I want the jewel, I’m not eager for the day that it’s time to go in and take it,” Annie said with a shudder. “Take your time planning the operation.”
“I’m not going in unless victory is assured.” Oakley closed her laptop. “Anyway, time to pack your things. We’re leaving Alto Mare tomorrow.”
Annie blinked. “We’re leaving?”
“We’ve gathered pretty usable information so far, and I doubt anything we can find will get any better than all the footage I’ve gotten from the garden,” Oakley said. “And, with the guardians on edge, there is absolutely no way we’re getting a second round of footage from their garden without them tracking us down. Staying here further, now that they are indirectly aware of our existence, will only put us at risk. Now that they have captured a drone, I’m afraid they could take drastic actions to try to flush us out, which I want to avoid.”
“I see… You’ve been quite paranoid about their powers, but I guess not being in Alto Mare is a terrific way not to get killed by them,” Annie said.
“I have one last test planned for them; it’s an idea from Sebastian. Last we talked, the strike package is doing well, and I want to start rehearsing the upcoming operation against the guardians.” Oakley reached toward the other side of the table and grabbed the ancient book they had retrieved from the Johto region. “And when I decode this with the shrine runes, I’ll know exactly where to strike and what to target in the garden, and possibly, if we can use the DMA against them.”
“Perfect.” Annie’s face adopted a confident expression. “I’m sure, with all the progress we have, we’ll win. We’ll defeat the mighty guardians of Alto Mare.”
Latias returned to the garden, humming an upbeat song to herself. She passed through one of the hidden entryways, doing a couple of happy twirls in tune with her hums as she did so, and stopped when she found Latios waiting for her at the garden’s center, red eyes dead centered on her.
“Welcome back,” Latios said in greeting.
Latias opened her mouth to voice a retort to the snarky comment she expected out of her brother, but stopped the moment she registered the seriousness of his voice and noted his no-nonsense expression. Immediately, she realized something momentous had happened. “What’s wrong?” The upbeat hums had died away into the deadly serious tone of a guardian goddess.
“I discovered this drone in the garden,” Latios said as he telekinetically eased the crippled machine onto the grass in front of Latias. “How or when did it get in? I don’t know. I don’t recall anything following me recently. Do you?”
Latias stared at it, deep in thought. “I was too distracted playing around with Ash earlier, and I don’t recall checking if one trailed either of us. Sorry.” She bit her lip. “But I doubt something like that would slip past me, even if I didn’t check. There’s no way.”
Latios nodded along as his sister spoke. “I don’t doubt you. It could’ve also been Bianca. She knows to ensure nothing’s trailing her when coming in here, but she’s still human. I’ll admit we were also a bit careless in our rush to make it back in time to pull that water dragon prank on you and Ash, so it could’ve been me.”
“It doesn’t matter who it was, the point is it happened,” Latias said.
“I agree.” Latios scowled. “Now, time to deal with it.”
Latias levitated closer, eyes narrowed at the downed drone. “Wait a moment.” A low, guttural growl rumbled in her throat. “I recognize it. I’ve seen this before.”
“You have?” Latios asked. “Where? It could be our first clue.”
“When the three dumb poachers attacked me the other day, I saw a pair like this one in the distance. There were also several other drones all around, so I didn’t think much of it,” Latias answered. “Both were in areas where drone usage is allowed. It stood out to me that they were identical while the rest were from different brands, but I didn’t think it was enough of a reason to shoot them down. Could’ve been people coincidentally buying the same model.”
“Bianca said this isn’t a commercial drone; it’s too sophisticated. If that’s the case, it’s not a coincidence that you were attacked by three poachers while being watched by a drone like this, and then we found one of them in the garden soon after,” Latios said. “It’s connected.”
“There’s no way the poachers were the drone operators. If they were, the drones would’ve gone down, and this drone wouldn’t have come here today.” Latias paced about. “If the poachers are not the drone operators, that means…”
“Someone sent them,” Latios finished. He remained silent as he pondered the implications. “That means you were being watched by someone else when you fought the poachers. And whoever watched you just found the garden.”
Latias let out a long, weary sigh that echoed through the garden. “Well, I guess that means it’s time to restructure all the entrances. When was the last time we did that? I forgot.”
“Thirty years ago or so,” Latios answered. “We can go back to the old design we had. That one thief who found the garden back then is probably long gone. I’ll have city hall get us the materials we need for that.”
“It’ll be some time before we can get to that. In the meantime, we should be watching for anything odd.” Latias glanced at the shrine that held their father’s spirit. “ Anything . And, we should both keep a permanent psychic watch on the garden when we’re not here.”
“I like that.” Latios paused and paced about. “But, going back to the topic at hand, why would someone send poachers to attack you and then watch the attack, though? Considering how poorly they performed, I don’t think they were sent with the idea of defeating you. If a third-party drone operator was watching the fight, that means the poachers were either a test or a bait. And if someone is going as far as to do that… That proves the drone operator is competent, or at the very least, careful. They’re not coming to fight us right away, but are instead scouting us first.”
“And whoever is the drone operator isn’t above using sacrificial pawns to gain either information or an advantage over us. That shows they’re either heartless or extremely pragmatic,” Latias said, watching out of the corner of her eye as she followed her brother’s impatient pacing. “Or both.”
“This person sent the poachers, knowing there was a high chance we’d kill them, just to learn a bit about us.” Latios’ expression darkened. “We’re dealing with someone intelligent, secretive, level-headed, and competent. A monster who will only fight us once they’ve set the battlefield completely on their terms.”
“Looks like it because these drones—” Latias paused, and a breath caught in her throat, which now felt oddly dry.
“Something wrong?” Latios asked, levitating closer to his sister. “Latias?”
Latias remained silent as her earlier conversation with Ash burst into the forefront of her mind. The weight of Ash’s worried words—his anxieties about past encounters with Legendary Pokémon, the troubles that followed him, and his pleas for her safety—lingered in her mind. Her eyes lost focus, replaying their conversation in her head over and over, claws flexing with each remembered word as she looked for clues in a silent, restless rhythm.
Latios knocked his head against hers, a soft thud accompanied by a steady, gentle rumble that vibrated through Latias, soothing her. “Hey, why are you so worked up? Are you okay?”
A sharp gasp left Latias’ lips as she snapped out of her daydream. Then she realized, like a potent thunder that ended all speculation in her mind and replaced it with absolute certainty. “Latios, listen, we’re in for a challenge . I’m not kidding here when I say what’s coming our way will most likely have us fighting for our lives. Whatever or whoever is coming our way, it’ll be a tough fight, almost on the level of Kyurem. Be ready for it.”
Latios blinked. “You sound quite confident of that,” he said, pulling back. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure of it. Trust me.” Latias’ eyes narrowed. “Don’t ask me how or why, just please do. There is no logic, no explanation, and no sense to the source of my intuition. But I trust it. I feel it’s true.”
“Okay. I’ll believe you, then.” Latios gazed upward, lost in thought, toward the garden’s roof. “Then it looks like we’re in for a serious fight. Been a while.”
“We’ve taken it easy for years now, but starting tomorrow night, we resume sparring sessions to get our minds and bodies in the zone again.” Latias paced about, lifting a single claw for every point she spoke. “We also have to fortify the Soul Dew’s shrine. We should also stockpile supplies around the city in case we need them. And, we should inform Alto Mare’s security services, but in a manner that doesn’t cause alarm. Think you can handle that?”
“Yeah.” Latios nodded. “Though, based on the profile we’ve got so far of our challenger, I’m certain they’ll find a way to ambush us, or there’s a chance we may be tested again, if the poacher attack is any indication. Speaking of the poachers, did you kill them? What’d you do with them?” He snickered and threw her a side eye. “I kind of tuned out after your terrible acting job.”
“They turned out to be idiots who had little grasp of the severity of what they did,” Latias answered drily. “Hardly someone I’d consider answering with lethal force for a basic transgression. I asked Jenny to press the appropriate charges and extradite them to Johto afterwards.”
“Well, did you read their minds after their arrest?” Latios asked.
Latias shook her head. “I didn’t bother because of the hassle involved. They’re just idiots out of their depth. Not something I took seriously.”
“True. They weren’t that scary, after all,” Latios admitted. “However, if we suspect they were a test or bait hired by a competent opponent, then I think we should. Maybe we’ll find a clue in their minds about who sent them. We don’t take them seriously, but whoever is the drone operator, we do.” He hummed and eyed the drone. “Let’s take this to the police station tomorrow and see what they can find.”
“Yes, and then we’ll—” Latias paused and fiddled with her claws. “Actually, uh…”
“You’ve got plans for tomorrow, don’t you?” Latios asked, a teasing glint in his eyes. When Latias flushed, he continued, “Don’t worry. You go with your newfound boyfriend and have fun. I’ll handle this and find out who’s stalking us. I should be fine.” He turned and flew away, leaving the redder-than-normal Latias behind. “See you tomorrow night for our sparring session!” he called out.
Latios barely evaded the indignant Dragon Pulse that soared after him and lit the garden’s rooftop in an emerald maelstrom.
Chapter End