Side Story: Ho-Oh's Diary

My name is Ho-Oh, and by the time you read these words, I have already been beaten. — From the Diary of Ho-Oh.

………

Who am I?

For this question, I could not find an answer for a very, very long time.

The place where I was born was a towering, majestic tree that pierced the clouds.

When I opened my eyes, this great tree was already there, standing amidst a maze of overlapping valleys, as if it had existed since the dawn of time.

In the beginning, there was nothing inside that great tree. I would often stand upon its crown, pondering two questions:

Who am I?

Why was I born?

To find the answer, I left the great tree that nurtured me and began to fly toward the place where the sun rises.

At that time, there was nothing else in this world.

Everywhere I looked were tall, dense jungles and boundless green plains.

I flew in a daze, forever unable to find the answer to those two questions.

How many years have passed since then?

I can no longer remember.

I just kept flying, lost and bewildered.

I do not know when it started, but a strange new kind of creature appeared in this world.

Their name was "human."

As the years drifted by, I watched as they used their industrious hands to build tall, towering structures they called "houses."

Perhaps out of curiosity, or perhaps for some other reason, I flew over their heads countless times, observing their world.

They seemed to have discovered my presence as well; whenever they caught sight of me, they would halt whatever they were doing and look up toward the sky.

Until one day—

I arrived at a tall tower built by humans.

The people there said to me, "This is a tower we built for you. Please stay here for a while!"

Thinking that I had nothing better to do anyway, I settled down in this place called the Brass Tower.

I heard them give me a name.

Ho-Oh.

Ho-Oh?

Who is that? Is it me?

I did not know.

Whenever I stood atop the tower and looked down at the humans praying to me, an indescribable feeling would well up in my heart.

It was here that I came to understand this world.

Through these humans, I learned of "Trainers" and "Pokémon."

Pokémon—they were wondrous, magical creatures.

Am I, too, a Pokémon?

I did not know, but I felt that I was.

Gradually, I began to grow fond of this beautiful world, where people filled with hope lived side by side with Pokémon, walking hand in hand into the future.

I thought such days would last forever.

Until that day arrived...

That day, a bolt of lightning struck, and fire engulfed the tower. The flames spread rapidly, and three Pokémon lost their lives in the blaze.

The fire burned for three days and three nights, and when a torrential rain finally extinguished it, almost nothing of the tower remained.

Looking down at the humans who had lost their home and the three Pokémon burned to death, I used my power for the very first time.

The radiance of a rainbow flashed, and within that divine energy, the three Pokémon were granted new life.

I had foolishly believed these humans would be overjoyed.

Yet when I looked upon them, I saw only expressions of terror upon their faces.

From that day on, I left that place and embarked upon a new journey.

As I resurrected those three Pokémon, I realized I had found the answers to those two questions.

I am Ho-Oh.

My existence is to make this world a better place, free from pain and despair.

Yet, relying upon ourselves alone is far from enough to achieve this.

This was what I learned from the years I spent mingling with humanity.

We needed humans whose hearts were pure and kind, who harbored a deep love for this world, to walk alongside us.

Entei, Suicune, Raikou, and that little one who loves to linger in the shadows.

I would select a suitable human, bestow upon them a feather imbued with my power, and leave the trials to Entei and the others.

The human who successfully completed the trials and reached the summit of Mount Tianshan would receive my blessing.

They would earn the protection of Entei, Suicune, Raikou, and myself.

I had thought this plan would proceed smoothly.

Until one day, I encountered that bird with the orange feathers.

To be continued...