Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Destination Unown
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The ground feels coarse and rough under his fingers as James slowly stirs awake. Quiet waves fill the relative silence, although it sounds more realistic than the sleep aid videos he was used to falling asleep to.
Seawater splashes up into James’ face, and he groans, lifting his head just enough to hold it above the waves washing in. He blinks, scanning the area through bleary eyes and soaked purple hair. Salty ocean waves keep sloshing up and down the tiny beach in a gentle rhythm, and there’s a grassy field dotted with flowers split by a small dirt path just up ahead. At the edge of the pale sands is a small, abandoned fishing hut, and a wooden dock reaching out into the water, but the area seems devoid of life.
Did he get defeated by the twerps again? Where is everyone? Blast offs usually leave them all in the same general area… So they should be nearby, right? James sluggishly stands up, saltwater dripping from his drenched uniform. He shivers, and squeezes some of the water out of his torn shirt.
“…Jessie? Meowth…?” Heavy footsteps pull him out of the water and further up the beach, his wet footprints leading from the water up to the grassy area just beyond the shore, and James shakes his head. “Guys…?”
James staggers forwards, staring at the unfamiliar skyline as he continues on his way. Nothing around him seems remotely familiar. Where was the city? Any towns? No main roads were anywhere in sight. A small beach like this would be a perfect place for any trainer to surf away from, but there’s only a lightly tread dirt path leading through the hills.
The thought of the hidden move prompts his hands to pat at his sides. Pulling out his pockets, looking behind him if he dropped his bag. Nothing.
No items, no map, no communications, and no Pokémon.
And no Jessie or Meowth.
…Well… Guess he’d better start searching a bit harder, then.
It takes a while, but after almost twenty minutes of wandering lightheaded along the dirt path, the outline of a gate comes into view just to James’ left. His wobbly footsteps speed up. Salvation at last! Maybe someone here has a phone he could borrow—- He takes a few tumbles over pebbles and stones, and adds a few more rips to his once pristine uniform in his hurry, but he finally makes it to the town gate. James leans against a large rock, breathing heavily.
His dramatic entrance is noticed by a red-clad guard and his Buizel standing at the gate, as well as a few townsfolk nearby, all for some reason in older traditional clothing. They all blink in surprise at James’ haggard figure. “H-Hey, you there! Are you alright?!” The guard steps toward him as he stumbles forwards again, and James lets out a breathless laugh, not even comprehending the guard’s words.
“Oh, fantastic…! People! Have you, by any chance… seen a lovely lady with long, red hair and a Meowth around here…?” James mumbles out, still trying to catch his breath. He’s so lightheaded, his vision is full of stars, everything is going dark. “I… think I’m… lost…” James hits the dirt, and all he can hear as he falls is shouts of alarm, the rest of the townsfolk running towards him as he blacks out.
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James wakes to the sharp smell of medicinal herbs and tonics lingering in the air around him. He feels sore all over, but at the very least, he’s warm and dry now. And whatever he’s laying on is rather comfortable. Small wins, James.
He grumbles and rubs the sleep from his eyes, trying to adjust to the bright lights above him. His head feels like it’s full of Cottonee. Where is he…?
Suddenly, something eclipses the lights in a dark shadow. James squints up at it until the figure starts to come into focus. It looks to be a child, maybe fifteen or so, wearing similar traditional-looking clothes to the other townsfolk James vaguely remembers seeing earlier. They have a dusty red scarf tied around their neck, and a big round woven hat sitting on their head of messy, dark hair. Something clicks in James’ mind, and he bolts up, immediately gripping his head as he stumbles back. He nearly trips over the blankets placed on the floor as he backs up to the wall, then points at the random kid standing above him. “Where… where the hell is Jessie?! What’d you twerps do this time?!”
The child just tilts their head in confusion, and James slowly starts to realize they aren’t who he thought they were. Two tiny hands rise up, and start moving in a…. very familiar manner.
“Sorry, I don’t know what you mean.”
James blinks. “…Wait. You aren't Ash.”
They shake their head. “No. My name is A k i r a,” They sign, spelling out their name letter by letter.
“Oh. Uh…” James looks to his side, then returns his gaze to… Akira. “I apologize, Akira. There is a certain twerp that usually makes me find myself in situations like this. Your hair looked sort of similar for a second there.” He fiddles with his hands as he speaks, now feeling quite sheepish. After getting a good look at Akira, he now realizes the similarities between them and Ash were only really visible if you were halfway blind. Their hair is similarly messy and dark, but it’s somewhat longer, and their blue-grey eyes are more narrow. Akira looks a bit older, too. Plus, there’s no Pikachu perched on their shoulder. That should’ve been a dead giveaway.
Akira blinks, still just as confused as they were when this guy with salt-crusted purple hair was first dragged into the medical wing. “Who are they? Ash. Are they in town?”
“I doubt it? I… actually don’t know where I am, or how I got here. I just washed up on the shore, I guess… But if he isn’t here, then that’s all the better! It’ll give me some time to look for Jessie without him and his annoying friends getting in the way—-” James states, crossing his arms with a huff. Whatever is going on here, it was obviously the twerps’ fault! It always is! Everything that has ever gone wrong with Team Rocket’s plans has always been Ash’s fault!
Akira suddenly leans over the bed closer to James, their eyes sparkling with curiosity. “Did you fall from the sky, like me?! Is that how you can understand me??” They sign excitedly.
James leans back, putting his hands up defensively. “Uhhh, what?? You’re going to have to slow down a bit, kiddo, did you say fall from the sky ??”
They nod. “Yes, I came from the giant rift in the sky!”
“The what ???”
“Akira.” A stern voice sounds from the doorway, and Akira immediately straightens up. A woman with short blue hair, a serious expression, and a uniform similar to Akira’s is standing in the entrance to the medical wing with her arms tucked behind her back. The symbol on her arm seems vaguely familiar to James, but he just can’t put his finger on what it is…
“Captain Cylenne!” Akira quickly signs, then gives a quick solute.
“I hope you aren’t heckling our guest, Akira. I’m sure there’s something better you could be doing with your time than interrupting their rest.” Cyllene lightly scolds, and Akira lowers their gaze to the floor.
James tries to wave it off. “Oh, no, it’s alright, miss—- I don’t mind. I think they were just a bit excited, is all—-” He explains with a slightly awkward grin.
Cyllene walks up to the edge of James’ bed, looks him up and down, before extending her hand. “I’m Cyllene, captain of the Galaxy Team’s Survey Corps. And you are?”
She obviously doesn’t recognize him, or his uniform for that matter. That’s probably for the better. James shakes her hand. “James, of Team Rocket. It’s a pleasure.”
“Likewise. I’m glad to see you’re in good health, James. You looked like a drowned Rattata when you showed up at our gates. You are rather lucky to have found yourself here, where you can get the proper medical attention. Now,” Cyllene clears her throat. “Do you recall how you arrived here in Hisui, James? We assume you washed up on Prelude Beach, but we haven’t been able to find any evidence as to how such a thing could have happened. No new shipwrecks or anything of the sort have been found around the Prelude Beach area.”
James looks back and forth between Akira and Cyllene as he thinks. They are both staring at him intently. “Well… I regret to inform you, but… I don’t actually remember…? I remember going to bed last night, but all of today is just… gone, up until I woke up on that beach—-” James holds his head for a moment, trying to recall what had happened to him, but the only thing his mind supplies is the sound of the waves and the feeling of sand on his face. “Hisui… Is that where we are? I’ve never heard of Hisui before.”
“Yes, you are in Jubilife Village, in western Hisui. From the sounds of things, it is very likely you are another Skyfallen, like our friend Akira here.” Cyllene explains, pointedly ignoring the silent, excited fist-pump dance Akira is doing behind her. “Skyfallen are strange people from beyond the space-time rifts, fallen to us from the sky, missing portions of their memories. Akira fell to us a few weeks back with only a handful of their memories left. You are quite lucky, James. You seem to still have most of your memory intact, if all you have forgotten is how you ended up here.”
Silence befalls their little group for a few moments as James tries to absorb everything that’s being explained to him. He is alone. In a region he’s never heard of. No Jessie, no Meowth, no Pokémon, because he supposedly fell out of a rift in space-time also what the hell even is that —- His breathing gets a little shaky. “S-So, what you’re saying is, it is very possible I accidentally fell through space and time to… here…? Wherever or whenever here is…? And as of right now, you have no idea how I can get back…?!”
…Cyllene slowly nods.
James faints.