Chapter 51: The Order

Mega Evolved Pokémon.

After Professor Sycamore's research came out twenty years ago, people discovered Mega Evolution. It was beyond the understanding of every trainer. Not only did the Pokémon become twice as strong after their Mega Evolution, but it also completely changed a Pokémon's body structure. It was an Evolution beyond Evolution.

However, it had its limits as well. The Pokémon that could Mega Evolve could only do so for a limited time and endured extreme pain during the evolution. While they became stable after the evolution was complete, they would be exhausted for at least a few days once they returned to normal.

Even then, it did not stop trainers around the world from pursuing this unique power. Alas, if only it were that easy.

Two conditions must be met for a Pokémon to Mega Evolve: Mega Stone and Key Stone were the first. Moreover, this was the easiest of the two conditions yet so difficult to achieve since only a few Mega/Key Stones were reported to be found by the League. Of course, some people had found Mega/Key Stones and kept their Mega Pokémon a secret.

League allowed it since it was a personal matter, similar to how the Type and Species of the Pokemon caught by a trainer were kept private, not known to even the regional Champions unless there was a criminal investigation in which they were given access to all the information about the said criminal.

The second condition was a strong bond. While many trainers thought they had an unshakable bond with their Pokémon, the reality was different.

The use of Mega Pokémon was also banned in official matches since the League was not yet ready for them to be used in Gym Battles or during Conferences.

"But how is that possible?" Aeron was the first to come out of a state of shock. Not at the presence of a Shiny Mega Metagross but the fact that it was Permanently Mega Evolved.

"So you have achieved that final step?" Misty added from the side, recovering from the initial shock. Her words confused Aeron and Nessa even more, causing them to frown. Was there more to Mega Evolution than it was told to the public? Nessa had some clue about it since she was a former Gym Leader, but the details were also unknown to her.

Steven proudly nodded before looking at Aeron and Nessa, understanding their confusion.

"Do you know about The Order?" He asked, to which Nessa nodded, and Aeron shook his head.

The Duskborn had heard about The Order from Jason, and Misty was going to explain it to him. So far, they had yet to have the time to talk about it, and thus, the conversation on the topic was delayed.

"Meta."

The metallic tank interrupted the conversation, and Steven nodded his head. "You can go hunt."

"Meta."

It disappeared soon after, teleporting away using its Psychic Powers.

"So what is this Order?" Aeron asked as he eyed the three.

Nessa and Misty were about to explain when Steven stopped them, earning a frown from Aeron.

"Let me do it so they won't get in trouble." The blue-haired boy explained.

"So knowing about The Order gets you in trouble?" Duskborn asked.

"No." Steven shook his head. "But telling about it to unauthorized people does get you in deep trouble."

"And why would you not get in trouble?"

"Because I am a part of The Order."

"Hmm?" His words brought shock and confusion to Aeron, but he did not say anything else. However, what brought a smile to his face was the fact that if not for them meeting Steven and then becoming friends, Nessa and Misty were going to tell him about The Order despite the fact they would get in trouble for it.

His heart was filled with warmth; knowing that fact, he looked at Misty and Nessa; the girls just looked away.

"We didn't know we would get in trouble."

"She is right. Who knew you needed authorization to know about The Order?"

The girls thought Aeron would scold them since they were going to tell him about this secret organization, which could get them in serious trouble. However, the black-haired boy just smiled at them before giving them a head pat.

"Thank you."

The duo blushed before the three were interrupted by a cough.

"Please...don't make me suffocate," Steven said from the side while crying internally for his bad luck with women. "Anyways, where were we?"

"The Order."

"Yes." The heir of the Stone Family waved his hand, and suddenly, a wave of energy washed over them. Nessa and Misty were not surprised, but Aeron was again left baffled.

"Psychic Energy?" He muttered under his breath as a curtain of purple energy surrounded them like a dome, and everything inside became extremely silent. 'I am not alone?' He thought to himself before his Psychic Energy calmed him down, and his attention was now on Steven.

"This will keep others from listening to our next conversation." Steven was unsurprised that Misty and Nessa knew about his powers, while he was happy to see Aeron left speechless. "I cannot tell you everything since I am under oath, but I will try to tell you what you can know for now." He explained, and the Duskborn nodded in understanding.

"The Order consists of Families with one of the two powers: Aura or Psychic." He raised his hand, and the Pokeballs of his Pokémon started floating in the air. "Psychic Energy is related to mind while Aura is connected to one's body." He pointed at his head and heart. "There are nine Ancient Families that make up the High Table and quite a few Ancient Families that are part of the Lower Table. Collectively, they form The Order."

"Which are these families, and what is the purpose of The Order?" Aeron asked while he thought about what Steven had told him so far. 'So it's not called Fighting-type Energy but Aura?'

"Stone Family is part of the High Table, and that is all I can tell you about the first part of your question." Steven was trying to stay within the limits of his Oath. "You can learn about the rest once your authorization level increases." He moved on to the next question. "The Order works in the Dark to serve the Light."

"Pokémon Police deals with human-related crimes. Pokémon Rangers deal with Pokémon Related Crimes. The Order? They deal with threats that could cause an entire Region to be erased from the map of the world."

Aeron took a deep breath when he heard the last part. "How many such threats have there been so far?"

"Seven...in last three years."

"What?!"

Steven's response left Aeron, Misty and Nessa shocked to the core.

"Although The Order has a lot of influence over the League and its decision-making, it is not some dark organization that controls the world or whatnot." Steven shook his head. "With great powers comes great responsibilities." He quoted the founder of The Order, and these words were taught to every child born in the Ancient Families. "The Order has created a special team called The Creed. The individuals who are part of this Task Force deal with these Region destroying threats, and most of the time, these are related to people messing around with the Legendaries."

Aeron had learned from Jason that Legendaries were real, but hearing from Steven affirmed that, and it also gave him the knowledge that people had actually met these Legendary Pokémon. Some had even dared to mess around with them.

'Are people so stupid?' He thought to himself before asking the next question. "How is The Order related to the Mega Evolution? And why would they try to keep the matter of Pokémon being able to permanently Mega Evolve a secret?"

"It is not a secret." Steven shook his head. "Project Mega Evolution was funded by The Order so that they could find a way in which people and Pokémon would not die during Mega Evolution."

"Die?"

"Yes, die." The blue-haired boy nodded. "Unlike the Mega Evolution that is temporary, if one wants to achieve permanent Mega Evolution, there is a 95% chance that both trainer and the Pokémon would die."

"How so?"

"Can't say."

"Authorization?"

"No. Once your Pokémon is strong enough to consider Mega Evolution, you will learn about it yourself." He pointed at Misty. "How do you think she knew about Permanent Mega Evolution? No one tells you." He shook his head. "You learn about it yourself when you are worthy of it like she is."

Aeron looked at Misty, who just gave him a wink. However, it just affirmed in his mind how strong of a trainer she was to be able to achieve what she had.

"Nayla and I only need a little push. I know we can easily achieve it." Misty said in a confident tone as she could see the concern in the eyes of Aeron and Nessa. "Don't worry."

"We will talk about this later," Aeron said to the orange-haired girl who just showed her tongue to him. He looked back at Steven and asked one last question. "Why did you agree to tell me about it?"

Nessa and Misty knew about The Order. The girls were going to tell him about it due to their relationship, but he could not understand why Steven had done so...willingly at that.

The blue-haired boy smiled before answering. "Even though you are a Pokémon poacher and I have known you for less than a day, you have become a good friend of mine, and I know you feel the same." He grinned and showed his fist to Aeron, who bumped it with his own.

The Duskborn agreed that he had found a great friend in Steven despite them knowing each other for such a little time. However, Aeron's mind was thrown into utter shock when he heard a voice in his head, and despite him not letting it show on his face, his eyes were locked on the boy standing before him.

[And also because you are one of us].