Chapter Four

Telnor Town, a small town in the eastern parts of Torren Region was the nearest town to their location which Mightyena managed to find as per the request of her new owner. The townspeople seemed to be busy in some kind of arrangement in the local Town Hall which is why the town appeared to be somewhat busy.

Sho ignored all the extra commotion since his major concern was to find a Pokécenter or any kind of healing facility as soon as possible to get his injuries treated. He doesn't blame the Mightyena he now owns for the injuries he received. He interpreted her reaction as normal for any Pokémon when their owner is no more and someone else owns their pokéball.

The crimson eyed boy considered himself lucky when the red roof of a Pokécenter was visible to him. His steps were already sluggish as they were thanks to his injuries and the fatigue from all the running was finally getting to him. Though he did get a bit of rest in the forest but the energy regained that time was spent in arriving at the town.

The people were so busy with the preparations that they didn't bother paying him heed at all. He arrived at the Pokécenter without any kind of questioning from the residents of Telnor and when the double doors opened, a gasp could be heard from the cubicle behind which sat the pink haired Nurse Joy.

"What happened for you to get in such condition?" Nurse Joy spoke up, urgency evident in her voice. Thankfully the center was empty minus herself, her Audino and the Pokécenter staff, due to people being busy with the preparations for an important event. "You need to get treated quick!"

'No shit Sherlock..' Sho grimaced at her loud voice of concern. She could have voiced in a lower volume than that. "Yeah my Mightyena got stolen and I finally was able to retrieve her from the ones who had nabbed her. She took me for someone else before realizing it and this is the result.."

No one in his right mind is he going to tell that he was locked in by some cultists in their base and was getting his memories stolen. Neither is he going to spill anything about a supposed Mythical Pokémon saving him and most importantly him committing a murder to be here. Even Mightyena sided with him, sporting a guilty look on her face.

Nurse Joy had already rushed out of her counter, quickly calling over to the other staff to get a room ready for Sho. She supported him by putting his non-injured arm over her shoulder. She then noticed how pale and fatigued he looked. Also from his makeshift bandage made by the sleeves of his sweatshirt, blood had begin to leak again.

She noticed the other staff bringing a stretcher for their patient and swiftly took him to a room on the stretcher. Audino on the other hand went ahead to check for any injuries on the Mightyena. Finding none, the Hearing Pokémon instructed the Dark-type to wait for a while.

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Sho didn't even know when he had fallen asleep due to the fatigue but when he woke up in the warm bed, he felt much better than before. Even the stinging pain on his right arm was gone. He raised the said arm to see it covered in bandages.

He never knew a bed and a pillow could feel so warm so did he knew? Having more than half of your memory snacked away by a sinister Ghost-type Pokémon isn't the best thing to happen at all. Waking up one day in a prison cell belonging to a group of utter psychopaths hellbent on summoning someone who can with a snap of it's fingers put you to eternal sleep, definitely isn't the best thing to happen to anyone at all.

Pushing all the brooding thoughts away, the seventeen year old tried sitting up straight on the bed. Using his left hand which is in it's best condition he put the pillow on his back to comfortably lean on it. He noticed that his clothes had been changed.

Currently his clothes were washed and neatly kept folded beside him while he was wearing the standard hospital gown currently. Maybe because of the blood stains, the Pokécenter staff found it necessary to wash his clothes.

At that very moment, his mind went panic mode.

'Where is the flute?!' Was the only concern in his mind. The flute is something which can summon a supposed Mythical Pokémon right in front of you. Losing it will be devastating. More than that if it falls into the hands of someone as twisted as Persephone then only Arceus knows what will happen.

A wave of relief washed over him when his left arm felt the textures of the Quartz Flute right beside his pillow. He picked it to bring it front of his eyes and examine it. It is the genuine material.

"I got lucky this time." Sho muttered to himself. He guessed that the staff washing his clothes didn't have knowledge of the flute and thus thinking it at one of Sho's possessions, kept it on his bedside. 'I need to get a backpack. I don't know whether I will be this lucky next time..'

"Oh you are awake. That's a relief." The sweet voice of Nurse Joy broke him out of his thoughts. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better than before." Sho replied, clutching the flute with his bandaged arm tightly. "Where's my Mightyena?"

"Your Pokémon is outside near the counter. My Audino is taking care of her." Nurse Joy informed. Sho was relieved over the fact that she bought his story even though it were a complete lie. Her next statement definitely proved that. "It must have been terrible for the two of you. Damn those cultists! Thanks to them there is never peace around Torren. They are like parasites spread everywhere."

From her monologue, one thing was clear to Sho. The Cult of Darkrai isn't the only cult in the Torren Region, there are even more. And these cultists have a sick tendency to terrorize people.

"But luckily we have the Augur who has sworn to make Torren a peaceful land by eradicating all the cults in the region." Nurse Joy continued after her initial pause.

So there is someone already playing hero for the people of Torren which meant he won't have to feel bad for others and instead focus on his sole objective. Getting his memories back and find out the reason why he was kidnapped by the Cult of Darkrai in the first place. Also he needs to know who this mysterious benefactor who helped him escape and even handed him this flute.

Though one doubt still lingered in his mind.

"Who's Augur?" Sho cluelessly asked.

Nurse Joy looked at her patient as if like he had grown a second head. Then again she shouldn't judge them by appearance or how they talk. He already has much on his plate that can be clearly seen by his on-guard behavior.

"The Augur is the strongest person in the entirety of Torren. He is like a Hero to everyone." Nurse Joy proceeded to explain despite her prior judgements. "Though the current Augur now is the Second Augur since the First Augur went missing a year ago, their goal remains the same. To eradicate the cults and make Torren a peaceful land."

Sho nodded in understanding. For a moment, he thought of the possibility of his benefactor being the Augur but then threw that thought away. However a person may be strong or a hero, it would go depths to save one measly teenager from one of the Cults. Albeit the Augur's primary enemy are the cults, that thought just didn't sit right with Sho's gut feeling.

There is more to it than what meets the eye. No one would go that lengths to save him from the clutches of Cult of Darkrai unless they have something to gain in return or there is a deeper connection.

"And you should know that you are lucky today to arrive at Telnor Town." The pink haired nurse continued and this time her voice held admiration in it. "The Second Augur is coming for a visit today. That is the reason everyone is busy decorating the Town Hall and getting gifts for him. After when someone stands up for you and ensures your safety, it is our duty to support them in anyway we can."

"Hmm.." Sho nodded in understand. By the sound of it, the Augur does sound like a good man, loved by the people. Definitely a Hero. "When can I leave? I need to get a backpack for myself."

"Oh sorry I got carried away." Nurse Joy sheepishly apologized. "You can leave if you want to. The only injury was in your hand and rest is fine. I advice not to put much strain on your right hand for a few weeks. Then it will be back to normal. Also a set of bandages for you to change them."

"Thank you Nurse Joy."

"Do you have a map of Torren Region?" Nurse Joy inquired, earning a shake of denial. "Yeah figured which is why I have a map here for you. There were many spare ones in the Pokécenter."

She handed him a device on which there was a button saying "OPEN". Pressing on it presented a map of Torren with a red dot indicating his current location. It is a kind of GPS.

"While you are at it, I suggest paying a visit to Professor Sylvan's laboratory a visit."

"Why?"

"She might have something useful to give out. She does give out Starter Pokémon to the trainers starting out along with the Pokédex too which is a helpful devices in knowing more about the Pokémon one owns. It is just a suggestion."

The double-toned hair teen pondered over it while sitting up straight on the warm and comfortable bed. Visiting the laboratory of a professor didn't seem like a bad idea to him. And if she provides something useful like Nurse Joy says then it is definitely not a harm to pay a visit. Perhaps it could help him with his own quest some way or the other.

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Getting discharged from the Pokécenter after a last bit of checkup, Sho made a quick tour of the Pokémart to get his necessary supplies. The money nabbed from the cult member was able to fetch him a backpack, medicinal items needed for traveling, and a few pokéballs for catching wild Pokémon.

'The items either were relatively cheap or the man had more money..' Sho thought to himself stepping out of the Pokémart. On his shoulders, hung a green-white backpack inside which he had tucked away the Quartz Flute safely. Right now he is counting the cash in hand.

Reassured that he still has cash left on him which will get him a day's meal, he did a quick survey of Telnor Town to find the laboratory of Professor Sylvan. Locating it at the southern part of the town, he walked there at a medium pace.

Reaching the lab, he found out that he isn't her only guest for the day.

Aside from a guy of nearly his age or a bit older with dirt blonde hair and green eyes, wearing a combination of dark green and brown clothes with a red scarf around his neck, there was another man dressed in a black trench coat and a fedora standing right in front of the azure-haired female wearing a labcoat.

Sho assumed her to be Professor Sylvan but it would seem that his appointment with her would have to wait because right now she seemed engaged in an argument with the man in fedora.

And by the sound of it, the argument seemed quite serious and will take time to reach a proper conclusion.

"Damn it Vanessa! Can't you just listen for once!" The man in the trench coat growled, his voice sounding desperate. "If these aren't taken under by any trainer then they would die in the wild."

'What a dra--wait! What?!'