Absol: Bad Omens

Everyone's faces went even paler than the snow when they saw that the usual Route 210 was completely buried under a thick layer of snow, with not a trace of the road left visible.

They gasped in shock, their hearts sinking.

Grandma Dracelia didn't hesitate, her concern overriding everything else.

"Allen!"

"Cynthia!"

She shouted, her voice carrying through the frigid air as she sprinted, frantically scanning every direction—left, right, forward, and backward. The others quickly followed her lead, spreading out to help in the search.

Mayor Monny turned to face the group, his voice firm. "Alright, release all your Slugma!"

The intention was clear: use Fire-type Pokémon to melt the snow and ice blocking their path. Soon, one Slugma appeared, then another, and more followed.

"It doesn't matter if you find them or not. You must return after searching no more than a mile. You can't go too far!" Mayor Monny reminded them urgently.

"Yes, Mayor, don't worry." they responded in unison, determination in their eyes.

The group split up, scouring the area for any signs of Grandma Wilma, Allen and Cynthia.

Help soon arrived from Eterna City in the form of Professor Carolina, accompanied by Officer Jenny and her police force.

"Alright, you all, get moving!" Officer Jenny barked. "Don't waste any time. Start the search immediately!"

"Yes, ma'am!" the officers responded in unison.

The search team quickly spread out across the vast, snow-covered landscape, their voices faintly echoing in the crisp mountain air. Minutes stretched into what felt like hours as they scoured the area, until a breakthrough came.

"Oh my Arceus... this is the roof of Grandma Wilma's daycare! There was an avalanche here! Everyone, help!!!"

Professor Carolina's legs gave way at the sight, and she collapsed to the snowy ground in shock. But only for a moment—gritting her teeth, she pushed herself back up and immediately began digging through the thick snow with her bare hands.

"Cynthia, don't be afraid. Grandma's here… Grandma's here…" she whispered, her voice trembling.

Minccino, who had always been there to help with chores at home and in the lab, felt its heart ache seeing its trainer in such distress. The same pain it felt from the possible loss of little Cynthia.

It remembered the young Cynthia it had cared for—watching over her when she was small, vulnerable, and filled with innocence. Unable to hold back its emotions, Minccino sniffled and wiped its nose with a paw, then joined the frantic effort to dig through the snow, pulling with all its tiny strength.

It would have been easy for Allen, Cynthia, and Grandma Wilma to escape the cave. With Magby safely in its Pokéball, there was a higher chance they could have made their way out together.

But they didn't. Because standing in front of them was a Pokémon that greeted them in an unexpected way.

Grandma Wilma's arm shot out, preventing Allen and Cynthia from moving forward. In her mind, she considered the possibility that this could be the first step of an ambush—a strategy to create an opening before an attack.

Cautiously, she held her ground, ready to assess the situation before making her move. Allen was also helpless in this kind of situation.

This was the very reason why every child often dreams of becoming an adult in the first place—to have the power and autonomy to make decisions, to protect the ones they love, and to control their own fate.

He noted his own partners out of the corner of his eye. Cynthia, in times like this, rather than fear, showed more curiosity. Only Grandma Wilma seemed truly concerned. Then, Cynthia noticed it too and turned to face Allen, sharing a look with him.

"You're the Absol that lives in the temple above, aren't you?"

Grandma Wilma called, just loud enough to cross the distance but not loud enough to startle the Pokémon. The grave expression Grandma Wilma adopted, however, made Allen grimace.

"We're trapped here. We didn't mean to disturb you. If you're willing, could you allow us to stay here a little longer? There are many searching for us outside, so it's not wise to stir up any trouble."

A threat.

Sure enough, Allen sighed. He had expected this.

Absol lived in the mountains, far from civilization, and it rarely ventured down from its alpine home. People didn't know much about Absol, and most definitely didn't want to deal with the Pokémon.

It wasn't hard to draw such a conclusion. In the records from books he'd found in his aunt's room, he had come across one or two children's tales that described Absol as a "walking disaster"—that if children didn't sleep or ate too much, the Absol would come.

Those stories had always made it seem like the Pokémon was an omen of doom.

Now that it had come to this point, what was he supposed to do?

Should he remain silent?

Then what was the point of him being transmigrated or isekai'd into this Pokémon world?

Being a stupid kid who already knew something but still kept silent, only to regret it later?

"You want us to follow?" Allen suddenly asked.

"Allen?" Cynthia was taken aback, as was Grandma Wilma. 'What on earth?'

"Is it dangerous here? Are there criminals around? Is there an ongoing threat? Is there anything we should avoid? What—"

For a moment, amidst the confusion of Grandma Wilma and Cynthia, it seemed like Allen was asking a series of nonsensical questions. But to their surprise, for every question Allen asked, Absol responded by shaking its head!

"Okay, so, is it something on the mountain? Is it close by? Hmm, is someone trapped or injured? Or—"

But he was cut off by the absol nodding rapidly, then turned away, giving them one last glance as if asking them to follow before leaping forward.

Allen exchanged a look with Grandma Wilma and Cynthia.

"Grandma, someone's injured. We should follow Absol."

"Allen, you're still just a kid. You don't understand what this Pokémon is capable of—"

"Grandma, I know. Trust me. My aunt often read those stories to me before bed. The walking disaster, with eyes as red as a Krabby's shell and the iron will of Girati—"

"Allen!!!" Grandma Wilma's voice was sharp and filled with sudden panic, her eyes wide with fear.

'Oops, don't say its name,' His froze, the words hanging in the air like a curse.

The banished one.

Of course, if there's the only one with the two almighty, it's not complete without the one who started the conflict. 

"Grandma, what's wrong?" Cynthia asked, her voice trembling as she glanced back and forth between the two of them.

Grandma Wilma grabbed Cynthia's hand and leaned in, her voice barely a whisper. "You don't say its name, Allen. Never, ever say it aloud, or you'll invite it in. You don't speak of it… not here, not anywhere."

"I understand, Grandma," Allen replied helplessly.

"We'll talk about it later," she said, trying to steady herself, but her hands trembled. In the darkness, two pairs of red eyes stared back at them.

If it were just her and Aria, Grandma Wilma might have been indifferent. But with the children under her protection, she couldn't let anything happen to them.

She had no choice but to comply. It was as if, suddenly, they were the hostages in this grim scenario.

With a resigned sigh, she turned to Allen and Cynthia. "Follow me closely, okay? Don't wander off, and keep an eye on each other. Understand?"

"Yes, Grandma," they both replied.

The Absol rushed ahead initially but didn't get too far, continually stopping to make sure Allen and his group were still following.

The terrain seemed easy, but it gradually slowed them down. This meant they were always right behind the Pokémon, which suited everyone just fine.

"I don't think... Uff, I've ever heard of an Absol," Cynthia said, her voice filled with curiosity as Grandma Wilma held her hand and helped her climb onto a large stone.

"I get the rough idea," she continued, catching her breath. "They're leading us to something dangerous—wonderful—but…"

"Grandma, their whole thing is warning people of disasters, dangerous events, things like that," Allen cut in quickly, a bit annoyed by the misunderstanding.

"I say, Allen--"

"Grandma!" Cynthia suddenly shouted, startling both Allen and Grandma Wilma. When they looked forward, they saw it.

A person wrapped in a layer of snow. A portion of the snow had already fallen off, revealing his dark orange clothes. The person was unconscious, and his body was stiff.

"Hey, it's really a person!" Grandma Wilma was surprised by this discovery.