Music in media: Come Sail Away by Styx

12 January, Wednesday, 3:45 p.m. | Winter

Framed by a window's shadow, Rae awoke to sunshine in snow in a cabin. She felt the bed rock with the waves and got up with a bout of panic.

"You look pale," said a dulcet voice. It belonged to a woman with shoulder-length brown hair, almond-shaped eyes. She sat by the door on a wheelchair. Rae figured she must be another passenger aboard the ship bound for Castelia City, a fact the woman affirmed with a cruise ticket. "Come, let me help you." She reached out to Rae and helped her out of bed. "O heavens, you're shivering. Your clothes aren't built for this climate." She then wrapped her Bouffalant leather jacket over Rae who muttered a word of thanks.

"Are we safe here?" Rae asked.

The woman nodded, then turned her chin to the door. "It's locked."

Based on her accent, it seemed this woman wasn't a local either. She was Calliope, she said, a mother separated from her son, Linus, and her Deerling, Otis. Rae realised then that she didn't have her Pokémon with her as well. In that instance she recalled seeing the Shadow Triad on the ship a moment before surrendering to sleep. Raising her voice, she declared they were the ones behind this and hoped they didn't hurt any Pokémon they took. But what could be their motive? She put the question at the further end of her mind. She had to focus on getting out of this cabin first.

"How do we get out without a key? Or a Pokémon?" She voiced her concerns.

A Purrloin-like grin snuck onto Calliope's face. "Have you ever picked a lock?" When Rae shook her head, the woman added, "I understand. It's a nifty skill to have. Find me something long and thin, will you?"

Rae studied the lock. It was spherical with a hole in the middle. It was the kind of lock she never once came across. She supposed she had to stick something in to unlock it somehow. It couldn't be that simple, could it? Calliope told her it was a privacy lock. How very secure then.

Rae held the thought captive as she rummaged the cabin while feeling Calliope's eyes seared into her whenever she opened a drawer of the bedside dresser (there were four in total, all empty) or looked behind a poster (unfortunately these were blu-tacked to the wall and she could find no nail) or swept her hand underneath the bed only to collect dust. If Chilchil were here, it'd be great. His propensity for picking up shiny things would come in handy. Tabutabu's enhanced hearing would inform her of any item in the vicinity which would roll left and right in syncopation with the rocking ship. Noko-Noko was huggable fluff. Her presence would be comfort embodied.

Rae's most interesting find was a quote scribbled in the insides of the lampshade: "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." She wondered if Calliope was familiar with it because she sure wasn't, and the woman told her it was the final line to a famous book published in Unova a century ago. Calliope interpreted it to mean it was futile to try to escape the past, because all our efforts in moving on, in forging ahead, would only take us back.

"It's a cycle, really," Calliope said with a tiny laugh. "The past and the future are bound to each other like this. We call this pitiable state of theirs the present."

Calliope was quick to recall her cynic mirth with a hand to her mouth. In doing so, she found a viable way out stuck on the ceiling.

"Do you think you could reach that?" She tilted her chin towards a thin red tube, quite like a portion of a blood vessel, above them and made a circular motion with a finger. "An unbroken glow stick. I wonder how it got there."

Rae hopped onto the bed, but she merely scraped air. She needed to be higher. She tried tiptoeing, but the constant lurching of the ship made maintaining equilibrium a tricky business. She switched to jumping, but the more she jumped, the further her hand was from the glow stick. It was as if the item was resisting chemiluminescence out of fear of being cracked, being broken. Then at last she snatched the lampshade and swatted it about till it slapped the glow stick off the ceiling, along with a short sticky tape.

"You did it!"

Calliope clapped and wheeled herself towards the door after Rae handed her the stick, broken and shimmering due to her firm grip, which could only be attributed to her immense anxiety. If Rae allowed herself to let go, she feared she would lose the only opportunity at leaving the room, see it slip out through the gap between the door and the floor, and roll away and away like a downhill stone. With fists clenched and unclenched, her nails digging into her palm, then rising, then digging, gentler and gentler, Rae retrieved serenity out of her anxiety while watching Calliope insert the glow stick into the hole of the privacy lock.

The outside doorknob had a small round hole in the centre for emergency access, according to Calliope who presently pushed the glow stick till it was no longer able to budge, like a bullet lodged in its target. When pushing failed, she began twisting and turning clockwise and counterclockwise till half of the glow stick was in the mechanism. Then she applied pressure. She had the precision of a surgeon, yet also the malicious air of a soldier at war. Her figure bent slightly forward, she persevered in silence as if waiting for a response from the dead lock. At last, a faint click of surrender.

Pulling the glow stick out with one hand and brushing her hair to the back of her ear with another, Calliope gave Rae a sideways glance.

And again came her dulcet voice. "It's open."

The rest of the world opened up to them too. First emerged the musky smell of the red-carpeted floor, smoothened and charred to signal a Fire-type Pokémon had lumbered across it recently. Perhaps a Charizard, because of the flame-shaped mark peppered all over. Or a Smeargle masquerading as one, tail dipped in black paint. Both Pokémon were seen onboard earlier.

As Rae pushed Calliope in her wheelchair onto the corridor, she was instantly overwhelmed by the rows of doors on either side in front of, beside and behind them. She expected knocks and slurs, any indication of life trapped in them, only to be met with overwrought silence. She wondered if Cheren, Lenora and Icosa were in there somewhere, waiting for rescue, and if she could truly bear walking away like this. Her conscience gnawed at her, forcing her to look at her shuffling feet.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Calliope asked if Rae had her phone with her since the woman never had one. She and her son shared a phone and he was using it while eating, scrolling through the highlight reels of several dozen streamers and friends. She took the phone from Rae and punched a few buttons. Moments later, silence.

"The signal's jammed," mumbled Calliope. "Come, Rae, we should speed things up."

By that, she meant Rae sitting on her lap as she wheeled them all about the ship. They were the only souls they could ever see, as if each and every other person or Pokémon had disappeared or never boarded the ship. The screech of wheels was softened by the carpet and they followed the trail of black flames till they reached a flight of stairs, having exhausted every nook and cranny of the basement.

Rae fidgeted and looked at Calliope. "How do we get up there? We didn't see an elevator anywhere."

"You'll be surprised. This is no ordinary wheelchair."

They began tilting backwards, their heads soon parallel to the stairs, their legs pointing to the next floor up. They zoomed up the stairs and landed with an "oof". The traces of fear etched in Rae's face were replaced with a bright smile now.

The carpet on this floor was green and leaves were littered on the floor this time. Rae's eyes bulged. These trails weren't made by wandering Pokémon, but trained guards making their rounds. With the Shadow Triad onboard, it could not be more obvious.

"The Elemental monkeys," said Calliope, as if reading her mind. "You're thinking of the Shadow Triad, aren't you?"

"Do you know them too?" Rae spluttered.

Calliope nodded and ran her fingers down Rae's hair. "They're infamous."

As with all wanderings, the pair came to a stop when the trail ended at the kitchen, probably where the Shadow Triad spiked the food and drinks. It was spick and span, all surfaces cleanly scrubbed and smelling of Nomel Berry soap. Utensils and cockery were hung orderly against the walls though the one furthest from them swayed with weakness.

"Who's there?" Rae's question prompted the pan to stop. The culprit must be shivering and peeing their pants now. Calliope brought them closer towards the source. At the corner of the kitchen was a bin, though it wasn't properly lidded, which meant the culprit's hasty retreat would soon become their undoing. Rae lifted the lid and pinched her nose. Beside her, Calliope resisted the urge to retch, bile rising to her throat, threatening to spill, but she wouldn't, not in front of a girl she had to take care of. "A Trubbish?"

The Pokémon's ear-like tufts lowered, its knots loose, as it lay its bulging eyes on Rae and Calliope. If not for the oval eyes and large triangular teeth resembling broken glass, Rae would have mistaken it for a garbage bag.

"Hold on," cried Calliope. "This smell..."

Before Rae could stop her, Calliope undid the Trubbish's knots and dug her hand inside, a series of squelches filling the languid kitchen air, accompanied by the Pokémon's belches. A thin layer of toxic gas escaped Trubbish through the cracks of its sewn body, but Calliope did not care. Her hand went deeper and deeper. Rae furrowed at the sight. Her yelp came too late, when Calliope drew a yellow floral tuft out of the trash, both her hand and the tuft dripping with black sludge.

"It's Otis's..." The recognition compelled Calliope to dig further, her heaves and pants making Rae shiver. This was one extraordinary woman burdened by care and concern, Rae thought of Calliope. This went on for a few more minutes till, at the bottom of the belching Trubbish, the woman found a silver key. Surprise rushed into her so quickly a smile leapt onto her lips. "Look, Rae! With this, there's hope!"

Rae looked at her quizzically. How was a random key like this supposed to bring them hope? How was Calliope so sure the key could unlock any of the rooms here at all, save to say all of them? The woman was brimming with confidence, and that was enough.

They went back down to the basement, the ride bumpy, and unlocked every door, as Calliope expected. The passengers pooled out of the rooms and one of them rushed towards Calliope for a tight hug, accompanied by the fast trot of a Deerling whose forehead gave the sense that something was missing. Rae barely got off Calliope before the boy plunged into his mother's lap, his green-Abra-with-blue-ears hoodie falling off his head to reveal a black mass of hair.

Rae's eyes widened in recognition. "It's you!"

The boy, whose name she recalled Calliope mentioning was Linus, exhaled, his breath heavy with mint. "I remember you! Did you get the badge?"

"I got two!" Rae felt lighter than ever. "I wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for you!"

"Slaaay!" Linus chuckled then stopped himself with a frown which quickly morphed into a blank face. It was so unreadable he exuded an eerie aura that made nearby people and Pokémon back away. "We should leave."

"We're in the middle of the ocean!" Someone hollered.

"Or maybe not," Linus grumbled and petted Otis's head. The Deerling licked his chest. "Good Otis."

Otis bleated. Rae smiled at the sight. It wasn't simply that Otis was a Normal-type, but that if there was hope for all these people and Pokémon, then somewhere out there, wherever Cheren, Lenora and Icosa were, she was certain they would be safe and sound.

"Why don't we check the rest of the ship for your friends?" Calliope raised the question as she judged Rae's trembling lips.

Rae and Linus, in the meantime, were quick to get acquainted with each other, Linus being a year older than she. The trio joined the crowd as they made their way two floors up to the entertainment zone lined with shops, bowling alleys, theatres, and kiddy rides. The captain's cabin was also on this floor. A blue carpet covered every tile and everywhere was damp to the touch, as expected of a Simipour. Now there was no way to identify a path to follow.

Thankfully, there was no need for that. Limping against the crowd from the direction of the bowling alley (apparently it was locked and the key was left dangling outsidek were Icosa and Pop Roxie, the latter doing whatever he could to placate the riled passengers. Circling round their feet were Noko-Noko, Chilchil and Tabutabu who were all too jubilant to meet Rae again, already into her arms, ignorant of their combined weight, when Icosa, bearing a haggard look, brisk-walked toward her to hand her their Poké Balls.

"One of your friends?" Calliope studied Icosa. "You look like you've just gone through something traumatic."

Icosa tched at her. The thought of a wheelchair-bound woman criticising him was absurd beyond borders, as if she herself didn't have trouble with trauma, judging from the happy-go-lucky state with which he believed she was parading. "What do you know? I don't enjoy tiny spaces with Normal-types in them, especially those that refuse to get in their Poké Balls."

"Bad man!" Linus elbowed Icosa's gut, only to bounce off. "Don't talk bad to my mother!"

Icosa looked between the pair and laughed before diverting his attention to Rae. "But of course, they probably just miss you."

"They do," said Rae as she set the three Pokémon on the carpet. "Have you seen Cheren and Lenora?"

"About that..." Icosa's eyes slanted to the ceiling. "Pop Roxie and I walked past the staircase and caught a glimpse of them at the deck with the Shadow Triad."

"Are they alright?"

Icosa nodded. "Why don't we find them? The child should stay here with his mother. Maybe go get some ice cream or something."

Linus kicked Icosa's shin and the latter suppressed a laugh with a distorted smirk before bending forward, his shadow towering over the boy's, and pointing a finger gun to his forehead.

"Hoi there, matey," Icosa said with a high-pitched voice. "One more time, and ya walk the plank."

"Icosa!" Rae urged him to stop and he let go.

"I don't know who you think you are, but don't meddle in our affairs." Icosa turned on his heel, headed for the stairs and in his wavering figure, raised a hand to beckon Rae to follow.

Before Rae went after him, Linus warned her with a burning gaze and Calliope gave her a stern nod. Rae apologised on behalf of Icosa, noting that he usually wasn't like this, that his aggression was due to being forced to sit with his fear of Normal-types, even though Rae wasn't sure if "fear" was the right term.

"He could learn a bit more compassion," said Calliope. "But you should go now, lest you face his wrath."

And go she did, her Pokémon trailing after her enthusiastically.

They were halfway up the stairs when they caught wind of the ongoing conversation in a backdrop of a faint singsong voice, a melody whose source Rae could not pinpoint, and saw, through the gap, Cheren and Lenora comfortably seated facing the Shadow Triad, no harm done towards them. The ship began moving again, onward Castelia, drawing a string of expletives from Cress. Icosa motioned for her to be quiet and had her return her Pokémon except Noko-Noko back into their Poké Balls. They stopped in their tracks to eavesdrop on the conversation. The sea breeze tousled Rae's hair and Icosa held it down. Any movement now and they may well be exposed.

"Seems lively down there," mumbled Cilan, then coughed into the side of his fist. "As we were saying, it's time for Unova to have a new King."

"How does that relate to us Gym Leaders?" Cheren scowled. Given his fatigue, Rae guessed the conversation had begun not long ago.

"Like I said," Chili butted in, "the Gym Leaders and the Unovan League altogether are the new dictatorship. Sure, sure, each place has its mayor, every one of them except Drayden a puppet to the Gym Leader of that town or city. Even after we stepped down, the mayor of Striaton still comes to us for advice and all that Granbullshit."

"You want to overthrow this system," clarified Lenora while banging the table. "Do you not see how ridiculous this is?"

"You're the ridiculous ones." Cilan stabbed the table with a salad fork just inches shy of Lenora's open hand. "You don't get to decide everything. Now that the Elite Fours and Champion are knocked out and the League out of use, you are still the ones with the final say."

"Gym Leaders are selected based on their strength and power," Cheren said. "I applied for the spot when it was open. They took me in because I was suited for the job."

"Yes, yes." Cress let loose a perfunctory laugh. "The schoolteacher speaks up. Where's the principal anyway? Why are you the only staff left in the school? It's not just power or strength. It's influence. Your influence is far-reaching unlike the principal."

Chili removed the salad fork from the table and spun it with his fingers. "We know it's hard to see the issue when you're the issue."

"And how does a new King help?" Lenora bellowed.

"How, you ask?" Cilan crinkled his nose. "One word: equality. We know now nothing is black and white. So why won't you be more transparent? Sack the mayors, leave the Gym Leaders? You won't be grasping for straws anyway. Just see how every Gym Leader deals with the current crisis. It'll prove our point."

Rae thought that Cilan was right. So far, Cheren and Roxie were the ones stepping in to help their cities, the mayors absent. She figured this would be the trend for all the other towns and cities.

Icosa, disgruntled, recalled that Team Plasma and Neo Team Plasma, as observed by Shauntal in her book The Liberation Frontier: An Autobiography of Ghetsis, had "no need for a King... N was a puppet, Colress a scientist driven by desire. Ghetsis was the true King of Team Plasma and Unova needs no despot like him". He told Rae the Shadow Triad's goal was likely to make a distraction with the musical crisis and rescue Ghetsis from prison. Even then, Icosa wasn't certain if such a large-scale distraction was necessary. He didn't know why the Striaton Gym Leaders would suddenly reveal they were the Shadow Triad. Who, then, did the triplets fight a year ago, at P2 Laboratory? Even Shauntal had no answer for that question.

"We do not know. Even if we knew, why would we tell you anything?" said Cilan smugly.

Icosa nudged Rae and asked what he missed while preoccupied with his thoughts. The ship was accelerating now and he had to hold on tight to the railing and push Rae close to his chest so she wouldn't fall off the steps. Fighting for balance in her new position, Rae relayed that Cheren had asked about this "new King".

"In any case," Cress said, "our job here is done... Castelia City is within reach."

Enshrouded in mist, a dusky cityscape crept into view against an ill sunset, as if Castelia was a city churned out of lapping waves.

"Simipour, Surf!" cried Chili.

A huge wave swept onto the deck, covering the entirety of the Shadow Triad and their Pokémon. Cheren and Lenora held onto each other as they slid to the far end of the deck, united in a piercing cry. The water splashed onto Rae and Icosa, the latter's grip of the railing slipping for a second before he grabbed hold of it once more, only for his hand to fall again when the ship shook and was, for a moment, skewed before tilting back into position. If not for Noko-Noko, resting vertically on her tail, her head supporting Icosa's back, they would both have tumbled down the stairs and scored a few bruises, maybe even a concussion. A muffled apology by Pop Roxie came through the speakers.

When the foam and the water slithered off the deck, the Shadow Triad was no longer in sight.

Rae and Icosa hurried up the deck to help Cheren and Lenora up, just in time for the lights of Castelia City's Prime Pier to beat down on them.

"At last, safety."

Yet Rae could not shake off the presence of the melodious voice she heard when on the steps. It was akin to a mirage, or it was swept away by the wave. What pricked her ears instead was the unexpected doom jazz instrumental looming ahead.