This is a fic based in the TCG-only region of Holon (introduced in EX Delta Species).
Chapter 1
The Night Sky over Holon City
Fitz toggled the switch. With a soft click, the lights flickered to life. There was a chair, a small desk, and a bed. His new, white-walled Holon City apartment looked disproportionately large in its blank state, like a canvas void of paint except for one dot of color.
The atmosphere of the entire city was permeated with this sense of vacancy. Walking the streets of his neighborhood (which could hardly be called a city) heightened Fitz's awareness of space, of emptiness in particular – an unnerving sensation brought on by the maze of urban ruins from abandoned labs and the defunct Research Tower dominating the skyline.
Professor Avery's lab was near one of the abandoned sites. He'd seen it while interviewing for his new position as a lab assistant at the Delta Species lab, coordinated by Professor Avery – crumbling gray brick with green tendrils of moss and ivy scaling the walls, reaching upwards towards the sun.
Fitz placed his suitcase and his backpack (with his skateboard attached to the front) in the center of the stone-tiled kitchen floor. He retrieved a PokéBall from a side pocket. "Come see your new home," he said as he gently tossed the ball into the center of the emptiness.
There was a burst of white light, which seemed to disperse and then retract into itself, then taking the form of a quadruped Pokémon – a Jolteon. Its coarse, prickly yellow fur seemed to glow and softly crackle, overflowing with electrical energy thanks to the flow of natural magnetic energy on Holon Island. Evidently pleased by this surge in power, the Jolteon seemed to vibrate with happiness as it bounded around the empty apartment.
"You like it, Ziv?" asked Fitz, approaching the Jolteon, who had paused in front of the large window. It led out onto a balcony.
Ziv let off a short pulse of electricity, its fur glittering with tiny sparks, to show its approval.
Fitz smiled. He opened the door to the balcony, and stepped onto the concrete platform. A temperate breeze tickled his skin. His balcony was on the back side of the building, and he could see a wooded area not far from the apartment complex.
"Let's unpack later," he said. "Tomorrow is our first day at the Delta Species lab. I bet we're going to spend a lot of time searching for Delta variant Pokémon, so let's head out into the woods right behind this building and explore a little."
Fitz and Ziv followed a dirt path through the trees, taking the time to examine its natural phenomena. The dirt itself was very dark. Among the rocks, the fading sunlight glinted off black polygonal crystals, which were fused into geometric clusters. It was late spring, and the temperature was cooling as the sun approached its low point in the sky.
A quiet metallic whirr attracted Fitz's attention and he froze before discretely turning to face the sound. The Pokémon, a Magnemite, hovered around in a strange swerving pattern. Within moments another Magnemite appeared from the trees. The way its movements intertwined with the first Magnemite seemed like a dance, propelled by forces beyond Fitz's understanding.
"Oh, Magnemite must love this island," said Fitz. "With all the magnetic energy. I bet there are tons of them here. And I bet there are Beldum, too."
There was a rustling in the shrubs aside the path. To Fitz's surprise, this time his eyes found not a Pokémon, but a human emerging from the green foliage. She looked to be in her mid-20s – around the same age as Fitz – with curly brown hair that was cut short, falling around her ears. She wore a plain black t-shirt speckled with colors and carried a wooden box with both hands. Upon making eye contact with Fitz, she said, "Oh! Hey, I haven't seen you before, are you new to Holon City? I'm Jules. Oh, don't mind me coming out of the woods like that. I'm a painter. And hello to you, Jolteon!"
Ziv's fur made a static cackling sound, which was its chosen method of greeting.
"I'm Fitz. I'll be starting as a research assistant for Professor Avery tomorrow," Fitz replied.
"Oh, another researcher, huh? Well, Professor Avery is doing good work. Ever since the incident, there have been tons of Delta variant Pokémon on this island."
"I've heard that," said Fitz. "I was actually looking if I could find any. Is there something special about them – some way to tell if they're Delta or normal?"
Jules chuckled. "You should probably ask Professor Avery! But…" A fleeting look of concentration passed over her face. "If you look at them closely enough, after a while, you'll see an aura around them. The aura changes depending on their Delta type. Some of them are hard to see even for people who live on Holon, though. I heard Professor Avery was working on something to amplify the visual aura."
"Oh, that's cool. I'll probably find out about it tomorrow." Fitz looked around, his gaze falling once again to the black crystals mixed into the rocky edges of the trail.
"This forest is called Mirage Forest, by the way," said Jules. "If it's your first night, you'll want to get somewhere the sky is clear. Trust me on this." She grinned. "Well, it was nice to meet you! I've got to get home."
"Nice meeting you," Fitz replied, and Jules was off just as abruptly as she'd arrived.
Fitz made it out of Mirage Forest just as the sun set. He cleared the last of the trees and found himself back at the apartment building. Then, in the open sky above him, he saw what Jules had been talking about: ribbons of glowing green light, flowing like a celestial river through the deep, dark blue color of a freshly turned night sky.
He reached into his backpack and retrieved two PokéBalls. Looking to Ziv, he said, "Let's let all of our friends see it!"
Ziv's ears perked up excitedly. Fitz tossed both PokéBalls into the air. The white flashes turned into Decidueye and Noivern.
"Let's enjoy the aurora for a while," said Fitz. "Then… I've gotta unpack."
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 (below)
******
Chapter 1 (below)
******
Chapter 1
The Night Sky over Holon City
Fitz toggled the switch. With a soft click, the lights flickered to life. There was a chair, a small desk, and a bed. His new, white-walled Holon City apartment looked disproportionately large in its blank state, like a canvas void of paint except for one dot of color.
The atmosphere of the entire city was permeated with this sense of vacancy. Walking the streets of his neighborhood (which could hardly be called a city) heightened Fitz's awareness of space, of emptiness in particular – an unnerving sensation brought on by the maze of urban ruins from abandoned labs and the defunct Research Tower dominating the skyline.
Professor Avery's lab was near one of the abandoned sites. He'd seen it while interviewing for his new position as a lab assistant at the Delta Species lab, coordinated by Professor Avery – crumbling gray brick with green tendrils of moss and ivy scaling the walls, reaching upwards towards the sun.
Fitz placed his suitcase and his backpack (with his skateboard attached to the front) in the center of the stone-tiled kitchen floor. He retrieved a PokéBall from a side pocket. "Come see your new home," he said as he gently tossed the ball into the center of the emptiness.
There was a burst of white light, which seemed to disperse and then retract into itself, then taking the form of a quadruped Pokémon – a Jolteon. Its coarse, prickly yellow fur seemed to glow and softly crackle, overflowing with electrical energy thanks to the flow of natural magnetic energy on Holon Island. Evidently pleased by this surge in power, the Jolteon seemed to vibrate with happiness as it bounded around the empty apartment.
"You like it, Ziv?" asked Fitz, approaching the Jolteon, who had paused in front of the large window. It led out onto a balcony.
Ziv let off a short pulse of electricity, its fur glittering with tiny sparks, to show its approval.
Fitz smiled. He opened the door to the balcony, and stepped onto the concrete platform. A temperate breeze tickled his skin. His balcony was on the back side of the building, and he could see a wooded area not far from the apartment complex.
"Let's unpack later," he said. "Tomorrow is our first day at the Delta Species lab. I bet we're going to spend a lot of time searching for Delta variant Pokémon, so let's head out into the woods right behind this building and explore a little."
***
Fitz and Ziv followed a dirt path through the trees, taking the time to examine its natural phenomena. The dirt itself was very dark. Among the rocks, the fading sunlight glinted off black polygonal crystals, which were fused into geometric clusters. It was late spring, and the temperature was cooling as the sun approached its low point in the sky.
A quiet metallic whirr attracted Fitz's attention and he froze before discretely turning to face the sound. The Pokémon, a Magnemite, hovered around in a strange swerving pattern. Within moments another Magnemite appeared from the trees. The way its movements intertwined with the first Magnemite seemed like a dance, propelled by forces beyond Fitz's understanding.
"Oh, Magnemite must love this island," said Fitz. "With all the magnetic energy. I bet there are tons of them here. And I bet there are Beldum, too."
There was a rustling in the shrubs aside the path. To Fitz's surprise, this time his eyes found not a Pokémon, but a human emerging from the green foliage. She looked to be in her mid-20s – around the same age as Fitz – with curly brown hair that was cut short, falling around her ears. She wore a plain black t-shirt speckled with colors and carried a wooden box with both hands. Upon making eye contact with Fitz, she said, "Oh! Hey, I haven't seen you before, are you new to Holon City? I'm Jules. Oh, don't mind me coming out of the woods like that. I'm a painter. And hello to you, Jolteon!"
Ziv's fur made a static cackling sound, which was its chosen method of greeting.
"I'm Fitz. I'll be starting as a research assistant for Professor Avery tomorrow," Fitz replied.
"Oh, another researcher, huh? Well, Professor Avery is doing good work. Ever since the incident, there have been tons of Delta variant Pokémon on this island."
"I've heard that," said Fitz. "I was actually looking if I could find any. Is there something special about them – some way to tell if they're Delta or normal?"
Jules chuckled. "You should probably ask Professor Avery! But…" A fleeting look of concentration passed over her face. "If you look at them closely enough, after a while, you'll see an aura around them. The aura changes depending on their Delta type. Some of them are hard to see even for people who live on Holon, though. I heard Professor Avery was working on something to amplify the visual aura."
"Oh, that's cool. I'll probably find out about it tomorrow." Fitz looked around, his gaze falling once again to the black crystals mixed into the rocky edges of the trail.
"This forest is called Mirage Forest, by the way," said Jules. "If it's your first night, you'll want to get somewhere the sky is clear. Trust me on this." She grinned. "Well, it was nice to meet you! I've got to get home."
"Nice meeting you," Fitz replied, and Jules was off just as abruptly as she'd arrived.
***
Fitz made it out of Mirage Forest just as the sun set. He cleared the last of the trees and found himself back at the apartment building. Then, in the open sky above him, he saw what Jules had been talking about: ribbons of glowing green light, flowing like a celestial river through the deep, dark blue color of a freshly turned night sky.
He reached into his backpack and retrieved two PokéBalls. Looking to Ziv, he said, "Let's let all of our friends see it!"
Ziv's ears perked up excitedly. Fitz tossed both PokéBalls into the air. The white flashes turned into Decidueye and Noivern.
"Let's enjoy the aurora for a while," said Fitz. "Then… I've gotta unpack."
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