Spirit of Mystery Part 4

Previous: Spirit of Mystery Part 3

11:00pm

So up went the tents, and out came the marshmellows. The two of them decided to have a campout, since they got better reception from the park than the center. They built a small fire, making sure it was okay with parks and rec first, which was easy because the town didn't have one. Rhys ate another marshmellow off of his stick and then kept going with his story.

Rhys: Maria couldn't get the accident out of her head for the rest of that year. Every single day she kept seeing the car dropping off that bridge as if it were happening all over again. Until one day, when she looked at the bridge, the vision was gone. She no longer saw it when she closed her eyes, and she was happy about this! She went on her merry way for months after that, up until the day she passed by the bridge once again.

Rhys: There she saw it, the accident happened again, only this time, it wasn't in her thoughts. It was a completely different car being pushed off by a completely different truck. The truck slid on the bridge as well, and fell into the water along with it. As the truck fell, Maria squinted to see there were two figures standing on the bridge. There she saw her boyfriend that died in the accident before, and standing there was a girl about his age. The two of them walked away, and the body that they pulled up from the river was that exact same girl. All she could say when she found this out was "Manwhore."

Jena started laughing, dipping her marshmellow into the fire by accident, and having to blow it out before it got too burned.

Jena: Wow, Rhys, you're not a bad story teller. But that was much more funny than it was scary.

Rhys: Yeah, I figured if I can't evoke horror from people, I can at least leave them laughing.

Jena: Yeah, I'm more afraid of real things than ghosts and monsters and such. [She looked over at Duskull, who was floating up in a tree, gazing at the almost full moon.] Well, you know what I mean.

Rhys: It just means you're not prepared for what is to come [Eating another cooked marshmellow.]

Jena: [Scowled] And what is that supposed to mean?

Rhys: Well if you're only concentrating on the real stuff, and all that stuff, then you're pretty much shutting out other possibilities, and what if those all turn out to be real?

Jena: Then I'll adapt.

Rhys: Suit yourself. You wanna tell a story now?

Jena: Nah, I'm not very good at stories. I could tell you a little about me, but I can't put it in context like a book or something like that.

Rhys: I know what you mean. So what about a boyfriend?

Jena: Nah, I've had a few, but they were pretty short-lived. There was one kid though, while I was on my way to this place from Vermilion City, I came upon this little boy who was herding Mareeps in a valley. The boy said he'd lost one of his Mareep and asked if I could find it with him. Being me, I said yes, and we searched those valleys for hours. Turns out, it was just a wild goose chase, there was no missing Mareep, it was all just a ploy to ask me out on a date. His dad found him, furious for leaving the Mareep unattended. I told him about the whole thing, and man was he so mad. So he offered me a Mareep for my help, and told me he would deal with his son.

Rhys: Hmm, and of course, you told him you don't accept charity, right? [He grinned at her, knowing the answer to that.]

Jena: I can pass up a lot of things, an electric type is not one of them. I love Mareep, and was going to ask them if I could have one anyway. I didn't have any money or anything but I would have worked on that farm for weeks to get one.

Rhys: I can relate to that.

Jena: What are you talking about? You passed up that Abra earlier today.

Rhys: Yeah, a psychic type, if it was a water type, I would have jumped all over it.

Jena: Wait, water type? That's what you're after?

Rhys: Oh yeah, I just need a fishing rod, from what I gather.

Jena: You have enough money for 10 fishing rods, why haven't you gotten one yet?

Rhys: Eh, seems like a cheap cop out to... wait [Checked his watch.] It's 11:57...

Jena: Whoa, an hour went by quick. [Checked her watch.]

Rhys: Here we go... [Picking up his radio and readying the start switch.]

Click.

Radio: --ou're on the air with Stevee. What's your question for my main man?

Caller: Ummm, hi Mr. Manio?

Manio/Radio: That is me, I am Manio and Manio is me.

Caller: Ummm yeah, so what's your favorite pokemon to use in your gym battles?

Manio/Radio: Oh that's a simple answer, finally a simple question!

Stevee/Radio: I know, right? Don't see those often.

.....

....

They waited there for a moment to hear what Manio used in his gym battles, but then there was silence. A very long silence began at that point, and Rhys held up his radio, even tinkering the antenna a little bit.

Jena: Is it still on?

Rhys: Yeah, I don't think it lost sign--

The radio began to emit waves of static, they would come in strong at first, but then the static would just fade away, and after just a few times of doing that, they began to hear a child's voice. Child was too vague, though, it sounded more like a toddler saying nonsense baby talk. Then, after a moment of that, there came a very deep, gutteral voice.

Radio: So you got the message. I'm glad you will be joining us in the games. The games will begin soon, and you will be the first to enter.

Rhys: Wh-- who is this?

Radio: You already know me, but you forgot. You forgot everything. Whether you remember it or not does not matter, you will pay for what you did, what you didn't do, and what you are planning to do.

Rhys: What are you--

Radio: We will speak again, but until then, follow me. The first one is a given, but the rest is up to you. Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Rhys turned off the radio and looked over at Jena, whose eyes were bulging as they could not get any wider. Her hand was shaking, and it was clear she was trying to say something, but nothing came out. She started to think about what he said earlier, about not being ready for what was up ahead. How could he possibly have known something like this would happen? What were the odds that they would come looking for a strange radio wave, and just happen to find one on the night that they arrive? That was far too coincidental to be a coincidence. He must have known, but how?

Even Duskull sat by the fire near him, her one red eye gazed at him, and seemed to wonder.

Rhys picked up his cover, and went to Jena, wrapping it around her.

Rhys: Jena? Are you alright?

Jena: What... was that? What happened? Why did it talk to you directly? What does it want?

Rhys: That's a lot of questions for my one to you. I don't know any of them. Sorry, wish I did. I can tell you, though, if you want to back out now, I would understand. This is getting a little too close to the deepend, even for me.

Jena looked over at Duskull, who was still looking at Rhys in that thoughtful sort of way. Then she looked up at Rhys as he hunched over her, pulling the cover around her tight, as she was shaking still. She attempted a smile, and pulled the covers close to her.

Jena: No, I'm okay, I just need some sleep. What happens tomorrow?

Rhys: Tomorrow? I want to take a look at that House of Memories. [He glanced over at Duskull, who still stared.] Then, probably do some shopping.

Spirit of Mystery Part 5