| Rio POV |
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
This is fine.
Just a giant metal coffin with wings yeeting itself through the air like a suicidal Skarmory. That's totally normal. That's something sane people do. May calls it "a jet." I call it "a flying panic attack with seatbelts."
I grip the armrest. It gives out a weak little crunch as my cursed energy flares uncontrollably.
That's the third armrest I've obliterated.
"I'm gonna die. We're all going to die..."
May doesn't even look up from her PokéNav. "You're not gonna die."
"We are LITERALLY flying, May. Pokémon don't fly. They don't travel 13 kilometres in the air! You know why? Because Pokémon have self-preservation instincts! And we're above the troposphere dammit!"
"Tell that to Noivern. Or Charizard. Or every Flying-type ever. And how do you know what atmosphere levels are called?"
"Those don't count. They were born with wings and a default speed of Mach 20, also I'm a smart boi."
"BZZZT! Studies show that 76% of jet passengers survive turbulence! The other 24%? A mystery :D"
"ROTOM SHUT UP!"
Null hasn't moved in 20 minutes. He might be meditating. Or dead. Hard to say. Ralts is asleep in the seat next to mine like this is normal. I envy her ignorance. I envy her peace. I envy that she doesn't know what a black box is.
I peek outside.
A cloud bumps us. The wing wobbles.
I am not proud of the sound I made.
May finally looks up, sees my face, and sighs. "You suplexed a giant mountain dragon into submission and you're afraid of clouds."
"That was on the ground. This is in the sky. You know what's in the sky, May?"
"...Birds?"
"GODS. JUDGMENT. OUR IMPENDING DEATH."
"BZZZT! Warning: cabin pressure stable. Your grip on reality? Less so!"
I clutch my seatbelt like it's a holy relic. I am going to cry. I am going to throw up. I am going to boogie swap with the oxygen mask if this continues.
I try not to think about how fast we're going. I try not to think about the fact we're above the clouds. I try not to think about how many thousands of feet between me and the ground.
I fail.
I would have rathered we ran here...
| Earlier |
The PokéNav beeps twice before the video feed crackles to life.
Professor Birch appears on screen, wild hair, dirt-smudged lab coat, and his signature bottomless coffee mug, I do wonder if he has alcohol in there instead? Poor guys would certainly need it... He blinks, sets the mug down, and frowns.
"...May. You're calling. That's either really good news or horrifying. Please tell me Rio hasn't exploded."
"He hasn't."Beat."Well. He's not dead. So... 50% success?"
May turns the camera, showing the Trishout sleeping in the center of the scorched clearing. Birch goes silent.
Dead silent.
Eyes locked on the Charmander-shaped enigma curled in my lap like a bomb that just decided to cry itself to sleep.
"…What in the name of Arceus is that."
"No clue," May mutters. "Rotom says it's called Trishout. Fire/Sound type. From another universe? Something about x-energy and a ring that cracked like a microwaved Everstone."
Birch doesn't speak. Just rubs his eyes, lets out a long breath, and mutters something that might've been "Of course this would happen during the conference."
May frowns. "Wait. What conference?"
He looks up, face grim now. "I'm in Paldea. There's a joint professor collaboration happening right now — Rowan, Kukui, Laventon, even Oak's research team showed up remotely. It's about Ultra Beasts, dimensional warping, unexplained portal rifts…"
He points at Trishout. "Exactly this."
May's jaw tightens. "You think it's connected?"
"I know it is. And if it's stable now? I want her studied. Safely." He sighs. "I'll prepare a flight. You, Rio, and the others — come to Paldea. Immediately."
May nods, jaw tight. "Got it."
"And May?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't let Rio challenge any professors. Especially not Rowan. The man benches Steelix for fun."
I wasn't planning to... But...
| Rio POV — Present |
I've been playing that memory on loop in my head.
Not because I'm reflective.
Not because I'm thoughtful.
Because it's the only thing keeping me from screaming into the void as this demon-bird-plane defies gravity and God's will.
I replay May turning the camera. Birch blinking. The way he deadpanned "What in the name of Arceus is that" like it was a Tuesday. Honestly? That line almost distracted me from the fact that we are thirty thousand feet in the air and flying on physics and vibes.
I don't even notice we're descending until something bumps.
Hard.
I jolt.
"WE'RE GOING DOWN—!"
May casually glances up. "Yeah. That's how landings work."
"You could've warned me!"
"You've been zoning out for twenty minutes muttering something about 'atmospheric betrayal.' I figured this was part of your ritual."
I glance at the window.
We're over land. Real land. Actual dirt. Trees. Safety.
Tarmac approaches fast.
Thud.
We land.
We bounce.
I die a little inside.
And then—
"BZZZT! Welcome to Paldea! Temperature: mild. Sky: clear. Odds of Rio kissing the ground? 98%!"
Rotom's right.
I do kiss the ground the moment I'm off the jet.
Hard.
Cold.
Solid.
Beautiful, not-in-the-sky ground.
"Oh sweet Arceus, I missed you," I whisper, hugging the concrete like a long-lost lover. "Never leave me again."
May steps over me like I'm a speedbump. "Get up. You're embarrassing us in front of the science people."
"Good. Let them fear me."
Null stomps down the ramp behind us with Ralts perched on his back like royalty. Ralts yawns and stretches. Apparently she slept through the turbulence like it was a massage chair.
I drag myself up.
Dirt still on my face.
Pride long gone.
Mission: Paldea.
Goal: Survive the professors.
Also maybe the multiverse. But mostly the professors.
"Don't forget to pick up Trishout." May comments offhandedly as she goes to a food stall manned by three Audinos.
"I AM NOT GETTING BACK ON THAT PLANE!"
I did... I did end up getting back on the plane...
I should've stayed on the ground.
I want to stay on the ground.
But unfortunately, someone had to go back inside the airborne death trap to retrieve the dragon toddler with anger issues and the interdimensional passport from hell.
That someone is me.
I step up the jet ramp like it's the stairs to a guillotine. My paws still twitch from takeoff trauma. My soul is hovering three feet behind me, whispering "don't do it."
I enter.
Trishout is awake.
And staring at me.
Her glowing yellow eyes blink once, twice. She tilts her head. Then — like we're besties now — she lets out a sleepy little chirp and tries to roll off the seat like a lazy housecat.
"Nope—!" I rush forward before she faceplants. I scoop her up like a sack of radioactive potatoes and hold her at arm's length.
She chirps again.
This time smugly.
Her little arms stretch, and she leans into my chest like she owns it. Like she deserves to be carried. Like this is her throne now.
My aura twitches.
"Don't make this weird," I mumble.
As I step out of the jet and back into sweet, solid reality, I immediately feel a shift in temperature — not the weather. No. The psychic death glare radiating from Ralts, still perched on Null's back like an angry marshmallow.
She locks eyes with Trishout.
Trishout locks eyes with her.
Neither of them blink.
The air between them warps.
Static sparks in the space between their stares, and I swear the sky dims for a second... Where did those clouds come from?
"Hey... hey, don't—"
Trishout lets out a triumphant little puff of flame, curling a tail around my arm as she leans deeper into the cuddle, eyes still locked on Ralts.
Ralts narrows her gaze. Her head tilts. Her little fists clench.
"Oh no. No no no no—"
"BZZZT! Warning! Two emotionally volatile small girls are preparing to engage in a battle for dominance! Odds of Rio surviving without emotional damage? 3%!"
"Rotom not now—!"
Ralts vanishes.
She doesn't just teleport. She disappears — like she became one with the shadows of every anime betrayal scene ever filmed.
I feel cold fingers of future consequences creeping up my spine.
Trishout chirps again.
Proud. Smug.
She's gloating.
"Is it too late to go back to suffocating in my egg..."
Word Count: 1401
Sooo... a fear of heights?
MC: Man was created wingless for a reason...
Well, lucky you! Guess what you just won yourself?
MC: Flight? I refuse.
Alrighty then, no Saiyan bloodline for you!
MC: WAIT, NO!