{T/N: Here's an offer; 813 stones and I'll release the whole arc.
That aside, someone suggested I Translate another Pokémon fic after this one. Problem is, I think most of the good ones are translated already. So I'll leave the task of searching for a good one to ya'll...
Criteria:
- It must be untranslated.
- Preferably Completed.
- No Pokémon-philia.
- No Harem.
- No Hentai.
- Between 361 to 993 chapters long.
- Most importantly, it must be compelling enough for ya'll to be willing to throw Power Stones with reckless abandon at it👀...}
~~~
As it turned out, Ho-Oh indeed had the effect of bringing good fortune...
Case in point; the next day, just after Caleb woke up, he saw a Pokémon in the forest with blue dual horns, a deer-like appearance, and a blue-and-black color scheme.
It was standing behind a thick tree, only half its face visible, gazing at him from afar.
Caleb: "..."
It was the legendary Xerneas, the Life Pokémon with the Fairy Aura.
"Bii!" Celebi happily jumped onto Caleb's head, perching on his black hair as it looked at Xerneas opposite them.
Ignoring the sneakily peeking Xerneas, Caleb lifted the tent flap and called out to Dragonite and Hydreigon, who were still sound asleep inside, "Time to get up and have breakfast! We have a lot to do later!"
Mimikyu and Lucario were already up, sitting by the fire tending to the pot above it.
Soon, Dragonite and Hydreigon rubbed their eyes and emerged from the tent one after the other.
Old father Caleb, now wearing a Celebi hoodie, went to prepare utensils and the bowls and basins for the Pokémon to eat from.
"Wuu?"
Dragonite blinked its large eyes, reached out a claw to pluck Celebi from Caleb's head, and placed it on its own head.
Celebi: "..."
Caleb glanced back jovially, pleased to see his Pokémon getting along harmoniously.
The three heads of Hydreigon beside Dragonite simultaneously yawned; it still wasn't fully awake.
"Ah~ open wide!" Caleb approached it. Hydreigon opened its mouths without even opening its eyes.
Caleb took out three Chesto Berries from his inventory and tossed one into each mouth.
Hydreigon chewed noisily, then skillfully spat out the inedible pits.
Caleb patted its large head and said, "You can sleep after eating!"
"Roar!"
Hydreigon responded gruffly, then stuck out its tongue and gave Caleb's hand a warm, wet lick.
Caleb: "..."
After taking care of his Pokémon, he finally took out a small stool from his inventory, sat on it, and began eating his breakfast.
He took a sip of hot porridge, then turned to look into the forest.
That Xerneas still hadn't left...
Caleb thought it was probably the effect of his Viridian Power and the Child of the Forest title that had attracted it.
The S-rank title Child of the Forest's effect was that it greatly increased affinity when facing wild Pokémon living in forests.
Xerneas was a Pokémon that lived in forests. It possessed the special ability to give life, which was somewhat similar to the healing power of his Viridian ability.
Thinking this, Caleb tentatively used the Viridian Power to sense Xerneas's inner thoughts. The next second, he sensed a surge of curiosity.
He was taken aback for a moment and looked over somewhat puzzled.
Xerneas seemed to have also noticed Caleb's little move. Instead of closing off its mind like that Mewtwo had, it initiated communication with him.
Xerneas: >..The aura on you is very special..<
Caleb: '...Thanks?'
Xerneas: >..I have never seen a Pokémon like you before..<
Caleb shoveled a mouthful of food: 'I'm not a Pokémon; I'm a human.'
Xerneas's voice sounded even more curious: >..Human?..<
Caleb continued eating: 'Yes, I am human.'
Xerneas: >..Human... Mmh... What kind of Pokémon is that?..<
Caleb finished his meal, put down the bowl, thought for a moment, and explained in simple terms: 'Humans aren't Pokémon. You can think of them as another kind of creature.'
Xerneas seemed to understand vaguely. It looked at Dragonite and the other Pokémon nearby and said: >..They all like you very much..<
Caleb followed its gaze, nodded, and said: 'They are all my companions. We are traveling around the world together.'
Xerneas didn't speak again, just silently watched the scene from over there, seemingly deep in thought.
By then, Lucario and Dragonite had also worked together to take down the tent. Caleb stepped forward to put it in his inventory, then turned to clean up the trash he had left behind with Mimikyu.
After finishing everything, he recalled Mimikyu, Lucario, Hydreigon, and Celebi into their Poké Balls, then mounted Dragonite, ready to continue searching for the 'mountain peak piercing the clouds'...
Before leaving, he bid farewell to Xerneas, "We're leaving now."
Xerneas looked up at the human figure on Dragonite's back and asked: >..Will you come back?..<
Caleb thought for a moment before replying: 'Maybe, maybe not.'
Seeing this, Xerneas didn't continue the conversation.
Caleb said goodbye to this X-Deer and flew into the sky with Dragonite.
They flew and flew. The forest and Xerneas below gradually turned into a small black dot until they disappeared from view...
Dragonite glanced at the cloud layer above and asked: "Wuu?" (Should we keep going up?)
Further up, the air would become thin, and the temperature would drop lower and lower.
Caleb skillfully took out a cotton-padded jacket from his inventory and put it on, saying, "Yes, up we go!"
"Wuu!"
Dragonite nodded, suddenly increased its speed, charged through the cloud layer in one go, and arrived below the dome of the sky.
Caleb's luck wasn't as good as Dragonite's, so he simply left the task of choosing the direction to it.
Dragonite's lake-green eyes showed an expression of serious thought. After a moment, it cried out, turned around, and flew towards the east.
That direction was also the direction Ho-Oh had flown yesterday.
Just then, a voice came through the telepathic link from Fumitaka: <..Beep beep! Caleb, please open your mic for communication!..>
Caleb opened his 'mic' and replied, "I can hear you."
Yuna: <..We plan to leave this Instance today. Before we go, is there anywhere you need our help?..>
Caleb thought for a moment and asked, "Do you know about location 'Above the Clouds and Sky'?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a blue light appeared in Yuna's eyes. Her advanced psychic ability, Foresight, was triggered at this moment.
A moment later, she recovered from that special state, her eyes filled with lingering shock.
She relayed what she saw: <..I saw you and Mewtwo, fighting in the sky... Hoopa... Hoopa turned into its Unbound form, summoning many Legendary Pokémon..>
Caleb: "..."
He had already experienced this once.
"What was the result?" He asked.
Yuna took a deep breath and said: <..I don't know..>
"I see..."
From Yuna's oracle, he did gain a key piece of information.
That his direction was correct; the place 'Above the Clouds and Sky' was indeed above the clouds.
As for the battle with Mewtwo or something... he'd deal with that when the time came.
Caleb sighed, feeling the future was vast and uncertain. If they really fought, he was afraid he'd be blasted to bits by those Legendary Pokémon...
Witnessing a Legendary Pokémon battle like in the movies firsthand would be good, but Caleb only wanted to be a bystander, not participate himself.
'But... the future can be changed, right?'
Just as Caleb was pondering, Dragonite suddenly let out a warning cry.
Caleb quickly snapped back to attention, turned his head, and saw a familiar green figure flying over from the atmosphere.
It was Rayquaza...
'So Ho-Oh really does bring good luck to those who see it.' Caleb thought.
His current location was already very close to the atmosphere, which happened to be Rayquaza's territory.
In the movies, Rayquaza had sensed Deoxys passing through the atmosphere and chased them to the North Pole.
The reason Rayquaza appeared here was likely because it sensed the situation here based on air currents.
Caleb had a general idea, but Rayquaza shouldn't attack him like it did Deoxys, right?
This Rayquaza was extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, it caught up to Dragonite, flew past it, and blocked the way ahead.
Caleb's will stirred slightly, ready to use the Warp Beacon to escape at any moment.
But Rayquaza didn't attack him or Dragonite. It just floated there, craning its neck to look over.
Its eyes held the same curiosity as Xerneas's, as if it had never seen a creature emitting such a strange aura before.
Caleb thought of the scene before time travel where Rayquaza had blocked Mewtwo's attack for him.
He thought for a moment and released his goodwill towards Rayquaza...