May 20

22 Days until Torrent Day

Dear Reader,

If you can't already tell by the amount of pages torn before this entry, I had a hard time writing this. How do people find writing so relaxing? I know Asher says it clears his mind, but I don't think my brain works the way his does. Well, actually, I know our brains don't work the same way. If my brain was like his, nothing would get done, and he should have realized that by now. He should have realized I am not him and that I function differently.

But I'm doing this for my own sanity. Too many things have happened today that I'm just trying to make sense of everything. It seemed like one thing just blurred into the next, and before I knew it, I had to sneak out of here to try and get Cami back. Dear Reader, let me just tell you, it was a lot harder than I had originally planned it to be.

Guess I could split this up into three sections: Promotion, Asher, and Team Aqua. Well...probably more than that. I can't get into specifics of my promotion in case you're a member of Team Aqua reading this. Yet, I don't know how I can let my mind think straight if I don't talk about it. That probably sounds really weird, and it probably doesn't make sense, but I don't know how to really describe it.

At least there's some stuff I think is common sense and easily seen everywhere. Even while I was at Team Aqua's base, I could tell there was a bit of formation going on. Sure, it was chaotic formation, but formation nevertheless. So, I guess I could start off by getting into some background information on what Team Magma is like. After all, it's almost like common knowledge. It's not like what I'm about to say is going to be something that can be used against me. At least, I hope not.

Even if you're an outsider, someone who isn't a member of Team Magma or Team Aqua, you've probably noticed this already. As an organization, we're broken up into factions and have different classifications that define us. One way of looking at it is Grunt versus Admin. Obviously the Admins have more power and authority than what we—well, I guess not me anymore—but they have more power and authority than Grunts. There's a logical reason for that. Obviously, if there were no Admins, Grunts would be running around causing a lot of chaos, and that wouldn't be good.

So that's one way of looking at it, but another way of looking at it is in groups. Groups outside of Grunt versus Admin. There are three groups, or at least, now there are three groups. Before I became an Admin today, I thought there were only two, but apparently, Maxie always had three groups under his control. These groups have names, but in case you're a member of Team Aqua, I'm going to use false names for this. The last thing we'd need is someone to know how to sneak their way into our base and figure a way through the system.

The first group is the logistic side. That's where I was always stationed. We did research under Tabitha, but if we were to go off base, we were to be under Courtney's instruction. I hated field research for that reason, but if there's one good thing about being promoted, it's that I no longer have to worry about that. You may be wondering what kind of research we do, dear reader, but I'm not going to let you know about that. That information is in another journal that's not to be seen by anyone.

The second group is the battle side. It is here that my old roommate, Lynne, was stationed under. Self explanatory, I think. For Team Aqua, I know they have more members on this side than we do, but that's also because we believe knowledge is greater than power. It has to be. Even Lynne's battle strategies are strategized, not reliant on brute strength.

You may be wondering where my only friend from Team Magma fits under all of this. That's the thing. Until today, I just thought Asher was a floater. If he was needed on the battle side, then he'd be on the battle side. If he was needed on the logistics side, then he was needed on the logistic side. What I didn't know was that Maxie was looking for someone who could control these floaters.

More-so, I didn't even know that these people knew that they were waiting for a leader.

That's where I should probably start my story for today. After all, it was a given that I was given the job as the third Admin. As the third Admin, I had to come up with tasks based around my "expertise". Really, I was new to this and had no idea what was in store. My specialty was in logistics, not battle. If that's the case, then why did he need me for this job? He could've picked someone else.

I wasn't ready for this!

So much has changed the moment I became an Admin. Within a day, I had moved all my stuff from my old room to a new one. A room in which I didn't have a roommate anymore. It was on the other side of headquarters, being that all the Admins slept in a similar area. People watched as I moved boxes from end to the next, with only Asher helping me. Since he is in my unit and didn't really have anything better to do until I gave orders, he and his boyfriend decided to help me move boxes.

Not once did I say a word as I was thinking of all the things that could've gone wrong under my own leadership. I mean, no one could listen to me. I'm the youngest person to be appointed Admin. Even when Courtney was promoted years ago, she was in her late twenties. She still looks like she could be as old as me, but she just doesn't age.

Now that I'm writing this down, I'm starting to realize only Maxie seems to be the one who has aged. Tabitha and Courtney both seem so young, despite being in their thirties and forties. Was there some way I'd be ageless? I hope not. It would be horrible for people to mistake me for a nineteen year-old for the rest of my life.

I had more thoughts much worse than that as Asher, Tristan, and I packed and moved things to my new room. At some point, Asher seemed to have noticed. While Tristan went out of my room once we were done moving my things into it, Asher didn't.

Instead, Asher had me sit on the new mattress and stood in front of me, crossing his arms. If it wasn't for his dorky glasses plopped onto his face, he would've come off as intimidating.

He asked me, "what's going on?" calling me out on my behavior.

I had realized that while Asher was my only friend, he also works underneath me. The last thing I would want was for him not to take me seriously. He couldn't be worrying about me the entire time.

So, I gave him the best one-worded answer I could think of. "Nothing."

That didn't persuade him at all. I should've known. We've been working together for ten years, and have been friends since the moment we've joined. I just should've known how he would've responded.

"Ember, something's bothering you. Are you nervous about the new Admin position?" he asked me.

I didn't answer that time. I physically could not answer him. I think the air in my room must've gotten dry or something because I was going to answer him. I had a good answer for him on why I wasn't nervous or scared or anxious about this new position. Why would I be?

The answer was simple: because I was.

Asher sighed and plopped down on the bed beside me, getting in close to my personal space. It wasn't that I disliked people getting into my personal space, but there were just times that I just wanted to be left alone. Asher was different. He loved invading other people's personal space, whether he knew it or not. Now wasn't the time for it, not with what was about to happen.

"You came out of Maxie's office as white as an Alolan Vulpix," Asher pointed out, "something's wrong. You know you can tell me anything, right?"

For a while, I didn't want to tell him anything, but I realized right then was the only time I could be open with him. As soon as I walked into the room to meet the people in my group, I would be introduced as an Admin. Maxie briefed me on everything that would have to happen.

On the bright side, when I was in our meeting, Maxie did congratulate me on how determined I was. He noted that I was able to think about the task at hand first rather than my friends, which was exactly what he was looking for in an Admin. I guess, now that I think about it, that's why he wanted me for this job. Unlike most people here, I knew the severity of what would happen if Team Aqua got away with Torrent Day.

It still didn't make it any easier, especially since he pretty much told me that my only equals are Tabitha and Courtney. I don't think that's a good thing. Think about it. For years, I've been a Grunt. While I didn't get along with many of my peers, I did along with Asher. If he was a Grunt from another section, like Courtney's battle side or Tabitha's logistic's side, then I wouldn't have that big of a problem, but he was under my leadership. If people saw that I treated him as an equal, I wouldn't be able to have control over my group.

So, I expressed that to Asher. I told him everything that was going on. Even though I didn't show it, nor will I ever truly admit to it, I wanted to show signs of weakness, that this was going to hurt. Instead, I just told him how things were going to be and that's it.

If I remember correctly, these were the exact words I said to Asher:

"I'm an Admin for Team Magma. The moment Maxie introduces me to you and the other Grunts in the group, it would be best for the both of us if we stayed out of everyone's sight unless it's something to do with the group itself."

Asher was not pleased with my response. I could tell. He's one of the few people I can figure out how he's truly feeling. Maybe that's because he says exactly what he thinks too.

"Are you saying we can't be friends anymore, Ember?" he asked me after I told him. "After everything we've been through?"

I knew Asher would be upset, but I didn't think he would be that angry with me. As if to prove his point, he stood up and towered over me as I sat on the bed. I didn't look him in the eyes. I couldn't, not when he was upset with me. It terrified me that if I were to look at him, I knew I would be shaking more than when Cami uses Earthquake.

"It's not that," I told him. "It's more of the fact that I need people to respect me. If they see that I'm friendly with you, they might think that I'm giving you special treatment and won't take me as seriously. You're under my leadership. I need people to be obedient and not second guess my authority. That means you too. Besides, we have more important things to worry about, like preventing Torrent Day from happening, than worry about something like that. It's best if we kept things professional."

Now, dear reader, I understand the confusion you might have. Asher even expressed it very well as he left my room and during the first meeting I had with everyone. But I had a good reason for doing what I did. Asher was good at keeping secrets. Years of friendship taught me I could tell him anything and he wouldn't tell a soul unless he was certain I was alright with information getting out.

Unlike him, I wasn't. It wasn't that I couldn't keep a secret, but I knew the consequences of important information leaking out. That was the kind of responsibility I didn't want on me, not when I already had so much to worry about.

When I walked into that room for the first time, I wasn't sure what to expect. Asher, yes, I had expected him, but the others I didn't. It was a small group, which was a bit surprising. During my briefing, Maxie made it sound like it was a rather important group, but there was hardly anyone in it. I knew most of them, but that was because I worked with a lot of them when I was under the logistics side of things. There was only one person I nearly had to do a double take when I saw her in the room.

Amber.

Now, I won't go through all the specifics as to what happened because a lot of what happened was figuring out the group's strengths and weaknesses. I've always known that Asher was a much better battler than he was anything else, so that didn't surprise me.

What surprised me was how well Amber cooperated. With every test I threw at her, whether it was recalling back previous missions or asking her how she'd deal with a certain variable in a battle, she would give an answer that was either what I wanted or better. She did this all without trying to be rude about it too.

I remembered looking at Maxie when I was done with my assessments, and he told me that she was going to be the strongest member in my group. That was a bit shocking to say the least. Maybe that was why Amber always had to pick a fight with me or cause drama of some sort when I was around. She wanted to prove that she was stronger and better than I was.

While I write that, I just can't help but want to keep a closer eye on her. After all, this was Amber we were talking about. A person can't just change overnight, can they? I mean, she never seemed like the kind of person to put everything into a project like I did. She had other things she wanted to worry about, like gossip or not taking the dress code so seriously. Now, after the assessment of my group to figure out how I would use each and every one of them, she seemed like a different person.

Whatever the case was about Amber, I realized I was going to have to look into it another day. This wasn't because everything that happened today was exhausting, but because I had other matters to worry about: getting Cami, my Numel, back.

Now, dear reader, in case you're wondering, yes, I got her back. She's curled up in a ball sleeping on my bed as I'm writing this. Thing is, she came with a price. Not as in money, but something a bit worse. I just didn't have a choice. Cami meant everything to me that I would do anything to keep her and Mikie safe. Having one of them used against me was humiliating.

Not as humiliating as the person who figured out my weakness and exposed it.

See, I had an address as to where I was supposed to go, but it wasn't anywhere close as to where Team Magma's hideout was located. It was because of this, I had to find a way to get there without getting caught. There weren't any Fire-Flying type Pokémon in Hoenn that I could catch and hitch a ride on. Trust me, I thought about that option, but it was a lot more work than needed to be. For starters, the two Fire-Flying types I could think of were Ho-oh and Moltress, but they were legendaries who were found in different regions. Even if I had access to go somewhere like Kanto or Johto, they'd be hard to catch.

And yes, dear reader, I understand that I could catch a Pokémon other than a Fire type. After all, I will remind you, I do have Mikie, who is a Dark type Pokémon. I'd just prefer having a team that's dominantly Fire types, even if they are weaker to Water types. Plus, Crobats—which, if you don't know, is a common Pokémon for any member of Team Aqua and Team Magma to use—are annoying to fly on.

I still got to my destination on time though. Mikie just had to use more of his strength to carry me on his back. It was exhausting for any Pokémon to carry someone and run as fast as they could. Again, I was lucky, in an odd sense, that something like that didn't happen. I was also lucky I didn't have to go by any large bodies of water since Mauville City had water on the far west side of it. The meeting place was on the southern side of the city, in an abandoned house.

Regardless, I kept Mikie outside of his Poké Ball, but I kept a tight grip on his capsule just in case something bad would've happened. Even as we walked inside, I had him stay by my side rather than have us split up. It was smart because walking in, there was absolutely no light. The windows were boarded up, preventing any of the moonlight from creeping in. While we walked around, I felt Mikie shivering by my side. It was cold, and I was wearing nothing but my old uniform.

As we walked, I felt something clamp onto my leg. Not knowing what it was I swung my leg around, trying to shake whatever creature hand sunk it's sharp teeth into my leg.

For a moment, I thought it was all a trap, even as I fell down and kicked the creature off of me. Mikie stood in front of me, growling, almost as if he had sensed someone. He did.

"Cha!" a small voice cried out as something thumped onto the ground.

"Chewtle! There you are! How many times do I have to tell you to stay inside your Poké Ball?" a familiar voice chastised as a beam of light hit the ground, wrapping around whatever creature had bitten my leg.

It wasn't long after that when a flashlight nearly blinded me. That was a mistake I should've realized. I went to that place with nothing more than my partner, Mikie. My mind was too distracted on getting Cami back that I didn't even think about bringing a flashlight, extra food, or whatever it was I could've needed for a long trip.

"You came?" the same familiar voice from before asked.

I looked up, seeing the light moving upwards, so I could see the face of the person who kidnapped my Pokémon. Of all the members of Team Aqua that could've been in on it, I wasn't expecting it to be Brook, the newest member. It just proved my theory on how nice people were until they joined Team Aqua.

Except, he wasn't alone.

"O' course she would come. Even though she be a part o' Team Magma, she ain't completely squiffy,'' Sebastian Scott claimed.

Hearing his voice, I wanted Mikie to bite his leg off. He growled even more, but I didn't give him any commands to do anything else. I couldn't. They had Cami. If I wanted her to come back peacefully, I couldn't do anything at that moment. All I could do was listen and hear what they had to say. That was the most annoying part of all.

The two flashed their flashlights, showing a door. As they walked towards it, I stood up and followed them inside. It was much more well lit being that they had candles flickering inside on tables and old bookshelves. I waited until they both sat down at one of the tables to follow suit. It was there I found Scott rolling Cami's Poké Ball on the table. I knew it was hers even before he gave it to me. The scratches and scuff marks were all in the same places as they were before.

For a while, there was silence. I don't know why they weren't saying a word to me when they wanted me there for some reason. I was at their mercy, and it was the worst feeling ever. These two men could've done nearly anything to me, like pry valuable information out of me, and I might have done it. That's what I thought they wanted me for. Even though we were all Grunts, or at least, they thought I was a Grunt, we didn't have valuable information, but I was the one who snuck plans out of Team Aqua's base. It was much more than any Grunt has ever done before.

But what they wanted in return for Cami was something I wasn't expecting. "We needs yer help," Scott explained.

I was in so much shock when he said that, dear reader, that I remembered looking down at Mikie to make sure I wasn't going crazy. Yes, Mikie looked very shocked to see that as he stopped giving the Aqua Grunts his menacing glare and looked up at me, tilting his head in confusion.

"You've seen the plans that were on Archie's desk. That's why you snuck into our base yesterday, wasn't it?" Brook questioned.

At first, I thought they wanted me to confess. It was obvious, at least, I thought it was obvious. Why else would these guys be questioning me like this? I remember my palms sweating as I stayed quiet, wondering if they wanted me to return the favor and give them Team Magma's plans or even a chance to sneak into our base.

I wasn't going to let that happen, and thankfully, that wasn't what they wanted.

"Ye saw wha' we be up t', so ye should know we be workin' towards th' same goal," Scott pointed out.

I called them out on that. I did see what their next plan of attack was going to be, and where they were going to try and steal, and what they item they were after. It had nothing to do with what they were claiming it to be.

Of course, I was smarter than to say what I saw, and said something along the lines of, "that's Tauros shit. If we were working towards the same goal, then we wouldn't be in this mess."

"And what is Team Magma's goal exactly?" Brook asked.

"To stop you from letting Torrent Day from going on. I mean, can't you guys see the consequences with that?" I told them. "If there's no land, there is nothing for us to live on. You're forcing humanity into extinction. Hell, you're forcing Pokémon into extinction, and I can tell you, we are just preventing that from happening."

"'N wha' about Groudon?" Scott argued.

Groudon was the key to Team Magma's success. Yes, if used incorrectly, we could cause a drought, but it wouldn't be world spread like the floods Kyogre could cause. Kyogre is the reason Torrent Day would happen. Once they got their hands on that Legendary, all Hell would break loose.

I wasn't clueless on that fact. I knew the risk Team Magma was putting the world at; however, the risk was much less than what Team Aqua was doing. People just couldn't live if society was submerged under water. We didn't have gills or anything that could allow us to breathe underwater. They had to have realized that.

And these two Grunts claimed they did, leaving me shocked.

"Look, we be here t' ask fer yer help wit' a mission Team Aqua doesn't know about 'cause we know wha''s at stake in twenty-two days," Scott claimed.

"We need your help. We want to stop what's going on, believe it or not," Brook explained. "But both sides are in the wrong with how to go about it."

"Why do you think I will help?" I asked.

Of course, for a split second, when I asked that, I was so caught up in what was going on that I forgot what I came there for. Damn Aqua Grunts for talking about work that I got distracted. They had Cami, and they reminded me by Scott lifting up her Poké Ball in front of him, twisting it in his hand.

"Do ye wants t' see yer beloved matey again?" Scott questioned.

That silenced me, forcing me to listen to their side of things.

I will skip the dialogue that happened and explain it quickly, especially since I think I hear someone walking outside my door. The last thing I need is for Maxie to walk into my room and read this because then he'd think I'm working with the enemy, when I'm not. I'm truly not. The only reason I agreed to help them was because I needed to stop them.

Or...maybe they knocked sense into me that I could help them. I'm not entirely sure.

Look, it's weird for me to even consider working alongside them, but they had Cami, and even though they only had my word, I knew they could easily tell Archie who it was that stole their plans, meaning I could easily be targeted the next time I saw them. That didn't settle well with me. But, their words made sense as to what they were doing.

Long story short, Brook was from Galar. In Galar, there is this phenomenon called Dynamaxing. It only works in Galar though, and both Groudon and Kygore aren't found in that region. This phenomenon only works with a thing called Wishing Stars, and in a couple of days, there is said to be a huge meteor shower. The chances of there being a Wishing Star in this meteor shower should be at a zero percent chance due to the fact that it is only found in Galar.

But that's where things get strange. Brook showed me a book of his research, and everything seemed to line up perfectly. The way the stars were aligned, the part in which they were falling to and from, and just everything in between...it made sense in what they were saying. I didn't want to confirm it there, doing a bit of research here to double check on it, and everything I found in the library at headquarters matched up.

"If Dynamaxed Pokémon comes to Hoenn," I remembered Brook concluding, "it could change everything. And not necessarily for the better either. Last year, during the Pokémon League, everything grew dark because the power from these Wishing Stars, Dynamaxed Pokémon, and everything else that links up to it because too much. If one of our leaders finds out about it, things could get a lot worse."

"We needs ye t' help us find this 'n keep it a secret from our leaders, deal?" Scott asked.

Again, I didn't have a choice, so you know what probably happened, dear reader. I just don't know how much they plan on keeping their end of the deal. Were they really trying to keep the Wishing Stars away from their leader? Could this be what Torrent Day was? The day that someone Dynamaxed Kyogre, dooming everything and everyone?

It was like Brook said. Things could get a lot worse if this was found out and used. I just have to do some more research before I figure out what I'll do with this information. I just didn't have much time because I was given a timeline as to when this meteor shower was coming.

And I only had a week to prepare for it.

Signing off,

E. Flame

Author's Note:

Happy Valentines Day everyone! And thank you all for sticking around. I know, 5 months to wait for an update is an awfully long time, but time has gotten away from me. Hopefully, I can update this book more often than I did last year as I do plan on finishing it.

Again, thank you all for returning and giving this book a chance. I will try to have an update for you all by next month (hopefully sooner).

For now, I'll leave you with this chapter's question: I want to know, who is your favorite Galar-native Pokémon?

Take care, y'all.