Chapter 40: That Sickening Feeling

    Scarlet was right. Arven's mom would always be with him. While he couldn't see her physically, she would visit him in the forms of Pokémon, dreams, etc. As Scarlet said, his baby sister didn't have a mom, too, so Arven had to be there for her. He had to take her back from his father before it was too late. That was what Sada was trying to say.

    Arven woke the next morning with those thoughts in mind. Today was the day. It was the day he would save his unborn sibling. He had to admit that after a month of grieving his mom, he finally found excitement again. He was going to be a big brother!

    Nemona and Scarlet were at the window in Arven's room, staring at Levincia's skyscrapers and moving walkways.

    Meanwhile, Penny sat at the end of Arven's bed, scrolling through her phone. Noticing him, she shut it off. "Are you feeling better, Ven? You slept for twelve hours."

    Arven yawned. "I guess." He was still tired, though. He wanted to return to Poco Path in the present and sleep on his comfy couch. Time travel was fun, but he and his friends didn't belong in the future.

    Arven's friends left early to check on Nemona's Meowscarada, but they promised they would return before Turo came. Arven hoped that was true, but he also feared that he would have to face his dad alone.

    The door to his room opened, and he gulped when his doctor came in. The tall man held his long hair in a ponytail, and his white coat matched well with his brown pants and shoes.

    "Good news, Arven," the doctor said, "all your lab results are clear, which means we're ready to discharge you. Your father will be here in a few hours to pick you up, and we'll send you on your way. Are you itching for some breakfast?"

    "Yeah, I don't know my dad," Arven replied. He faked a smile. "Doctor, please, I've lived alone for eleven years. I think I can handle it."

    The doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry, son, but the law is the law. Tell you this—I'll have the cooks whip you up the best breakfast ever. That will make you feel better. We also send every child off with a bang."

    "I'm not a child, sir. I'm sixteen years old. I'm old enough to make my own decisions." Alas, Arven pulled his covers close to his chest and coughed. He accidentally scooped up Celebi in the process.

    "You're not there yet, son." The doctor winked friendlily. "You still have a few years to go. Now sit tight, and we'll get that breakfast for you. You get some rest, okay? It's the only way you're going to recover." With those words, he left Arven's room and shut the door behind him.

    "Terrific," the boy grumbled, glancing at Mabosstiff and Miraidon.

    They stretched their backs and placed their front legs on his bed. Both Pokémon wagged their tails.

    Celebi moved under Arven's covers and dropped out from behind his pillow. "Bi!" it scolded, gasping for air.

    "Sorry," Arven apologized. He did not mean to almost crush the life out of the Time Travel Pokémon.

    Arven bent his knees, and Celebi landed on them. "Don't give up, Arven," it begged. "We're going to save your mom and sister, but I think the best thing you can do now is go with the flow until your friends arrive."

    "I know, Celebi." Arven nodded. "Do you think you can give me some tips? At this point, I want us to return to the present."

    Celebi did. For a while, before Arven's breakfast was delivered, they tried coming up with their own plan.

***

    Arven's tummy screamed for food, but he didn't touch his breakfast when the nurse brought it. How could he eat when he had to return to his abusive father and not his kind, AI mom? Where on Paldea were his friends? They were gone too long.

    Did something happen to them? Arven wondered. Gosh, I sure hope nothing has. But he still had a sickening feeling in his gut.

    It didn't help when the doctor returned and said, "Arven? Your father's here."

    Oh, gosh, Arven thought. Oh, gosh, indeed. At the sight of a heavy boot entering his room, his heart pounded in his chest.

    Celebi hid behind Arven's head, and Miraidon and Mabosstiff growled.

    "Stay calm, boys," he ordered.

    "Arven!" Turo dragged the rest of his body into his room and opened his arms. "Wow, look at you! I've been looking everywhere for you."

    Yeah, right, Arven scoffed to himself. The last time he saw his dad was... Wait, did he ever see him? The only memories Arven had were of his mom.

    Turo approached his bed. He didn't touch him, but he did look at the doctor and crack a fake grin, too. "Thank you, doctor, for finding my son. I've missed the little booger."

    Yeah, right, Arven scoffed again.

    The doctor patted Turo's shoulder. "No problem, Professor Turo. We'll get the discharge work ready for you guys. The nurse will bring Arven a wheelchair soon. In the meantime, I need to tend to another patient."

    Soon after the doctor left, Turo lost his smile and glared at Arven. "Well, look who it is. Who knew you and that AI mom of yours would come crawling right back into my web?"

    Arven gritted his teeth like a saw on wood. "What... did... you... do... to... her? And where are my friends?"

    "Oh, no worries. They're waiting for you, their savior, to come and rescue them, but that's not gonna happen. I have a lovely cell waiting for you at my lab."

    Arven's eyes narrowed. "I'm not scared of you." He wondered how much of that was true, especially when Turo leaned in close to his whitening face.

    "You should be," he growled, blasting hot air on Arven. "I've been waiting for this day for a long time. You, my wonderful son, are my next cyborg."

End of Act III: The Future