The Diamond Ladies – Epilogue
Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet felt their trip on the S.S. Wishmaker was one of the most life-changing experiences they had ever gone through. Cassandra would admit she had become someone different, someone better, especially after having confessed and after making strides toward redemption, even if forgiveness and understanding was not something she was going to earn from everyone after what had happened.
As anticipated, the League had instated the lifetime ban on Cassandra Silvers, Jarena Farrell, and Violet Radcliffe, making it clear to the public that they would be barred from ever taking part in League battles and tournaments due to the incident and the results of the investigation that had taken place on the S.S. Wishmaker. In the days that followed, rumors circulating the Ladies’ connection to Shadowcraft were confirmed, but very few attempts to replicate what they had done had been attempted. Though it had destroyed their careers, Cassandra was at least relieved very few others had ideas of doing the same thing they did, and she felt it was worth taking on the lifetime ban.
However, it came with its own drawbacks. The general public’s reaction to the incident had not at all gone down favorably with the Ladies. Online, fan sites that once dedicated their attention to them were taken down, while others, especially on social media, harshly criticized the Ladies for their wrongdoing and deceit as all their titles and accolades were annulled. Some of the fans of the Diamond Ladies had peacefully moved on to support other up and coming trainers, but most others had been so disappointed and disgusted by the recent turn of events that they had grown to detest the three of them. The Diamond Ladies had lost all their sponsorships and were rapidly losing money from voided contracts and no sources of income, forcing them to sell most of their assets for far less than they were worth due to their tarnished reputation and difficulty in finding willing buyers.
At first, the Ladies had tried their best to ignore the terrible publicity and slander thinking it would fade in time, but unfortunately, it had been too harsh and followed them wherever they went in public. Several incidents, including Cassandra’s hair being intentionally ruined by a stylist, deliberately being held up for over an hour with no service at a restaurant before they decided to leave, and having their property stolen and vandalized made it clear the situation had gone out of control. Death threats and online stalking had become common, though the Ladies felt if someone tried to take action and make good on those threats to attack in person, they would hold nothing back and defend themselves however they needed to. However, there was still that constant feeling of dread that they would be attacked when they weren’t expecting it and were vulnerable. Eventually, they found themselves going online less and less, which seemed to help a little, but public harassment was still relentless.
The sign that things had gone too far was when someone broke into Violet’s gym locker while she was working out and stole her Pokémon, which had become a spirit-crushing ordeal for her. She, as well as Cassandra and Jarena, did everything they could to try and get them back and track down the thief, making pleas and offering cash rewards only to be met with criticism and claims that she deserved it and “whoever stole them would be a better trainer for them anyway.” Even the police would not file a report or investigate the incident.
To the dismay of the three Ladies, they never found out what happened to Violet’s Pokémon…
While this had search been going on, Cassandra had tried to find work with the League, hoping to provide support in helping them track down and stop any use of witchcraft in League battles and tournaments as a means to make up for the wrongdoing. However, stakeholders of the League, including gym leaders, judges, and officials, felt there was no reason to employ someone who “had created the problem in the first place” and had been banned from the League as well.
Once those attempts had been exhausted, the Ladies found seeking employment anywhere in any kind of capacity seemed to be impossible with how badly their reputation had been damaged. They could not obtain even basic service jobs in public without being disrespected by employees and other customers around them simply for what had happened. It seemed that whoever employed them would have their own reputation tarnished… and no one wanted them to be a part and represent their business.
After being disowned by their other friends and family, Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet realized they were truly on their own and only had each other now. Thoughts and considerations of asking Jon and Alyssa for help had come to mind, but they had become concerned that their spoiled reputation would spread to them if they tried to support them, and Cassandra didn’t want any of this to ruin their careers or whatever plans they had for the future. And while Jimmy had offered his contact information and offered to help as well, they didn’t want to bring him and Jirachi into a dire situation that had completely ruined their lives and their future and ultimately ruin theirs as well.
It had been several months of pain, loss, and disappointment since their voyage on the S.S. Wishmaker. Eventually, they had to resort to disguising themselves whenever in public, but there were plenty of times where Cassandra felt it was just a different way to lie and the three of them didn’t want to deal with it anymore…
On Another Path
Considering everything that had happened to the three of them and the dismal outlook for their futures, Jarena was fully committed to the “Plan B” option they had talked about before, with her becoming a Buneary, Cassandra becoming an Eevee, and Violet becoming a Furret like they had been back on the cruise ship. Originally, the three of them had decided to take a camping trip by the Lake of Rage in northern Johto, booking a cabin for the three of them for a month to make it look like that was where they would be staying.
As they found out, the cabin they had paid for and had been promised was nothing like the one they had actually been given. Instead of the comfortable cabin depicted in photographs, they had been assigned the most run down, decrepit one the campground had, one that they didn’t even rent out to normal patrons due to its desperate need for renovations. When they discovered the owner’s dishonesty, it did not make them feel guilty about what they were going to do next.
Now, the plan was the same. Save for it only lasting a month.
With their lives and the lives of their Pokémon at stake, they decided to burn the bridge behind them, and give the problems and threats of their past no way to follow them. Now, with everything that had happened, they were not planning on ever coming back…
Jarena and Cassandra had given their Pokémon a choice after they had made their plans apparent to them. They could either go to an adoption shelter and hope a new trainer would help them reach their full potential, or be released into the wild. Almost all of them had gone with the latter option.
Victini had been afraid of this day and never enjoyed goodbyes, but he could understand why this was being done and felt he might have done the same in their position. Nonetheless, he promised he would check up on them every now and then if he could, but he knew it had to be farewell and it was time to move on. He knew the life of a mythical Pokémon was very long and he had to say goodbye to other trainers in the past before, but there was something different about Cassandra. Something special that he would never forget…
It was extremely hard for Cassandra and Jarena to say goodbye to their Pokémon, but both of them felt they had to do it for their own safety, and because they would no longer be able to care for them. After they had disappeared into the distance, Cassandra looked downcast and Jarena cried into Cassandra’s shoulder, still unable to understand why it had come to this.
With the most painful part of the ordeal out of the way, the three ladies had gathered the remnants of their last remaining clothes and belongings, stowed them away into the dilapidated cabin, and then set it on fire to make it look like murder scene and the work of an arsonist. They knew with so many death threats against them, the suspect could be anyone among thousands. Meanwhile, it would be over a month before anyone found the ruins, and they doubted anyone would bother conducting a formal investigation.
And then, as Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet had planned, they used some of the collected fur back from the S.S. Wishmaker incident and Cassandra had become an Eevee, Jarena had become a Buneary, and Violet had become a Furret, just as they were before.
They never did bother to secure past DNA samples or gold nuggets before the transformation.
Once it was done, they had walked away from the ashes of the dilapidated cabin and left it all behind…
* * *
Their time as Pokémon in northern Johto had been life-changing.
At first, they had explored the area around the cabin before venturing further north, away from Johto civilization. And as they had ventured further into the northern reaches of Johto as Pokémon, their first week had been challenging, trying to figure out what to do for shelter and food despite having done some Pokémon wildlife research on their species, diets, and traits. But by the end of the second week, they had found their bearings and gained a better understanding of what it would take to survive in these new environments and habitats.
During that first week, it was disorienting for them, trying to find their way around without the use of electronic devices and realizing they didn’t know where their next meal would come from. While initially there were some regrets, they still felt it was suicide to try and return to human civilization. They had felt like strangers in a strange land, and in the beginning, it was only Jarena who was enjoying the experience of being a Buneary again. Though she had moments where she questioned herself, especially when Cassandra and Violet had feelings of dissidence about this decision, she had decided to keep going with it.
And then after the first week, things had slowly begun to change. They had gotten lost together and learned to enjoy it…
Gone were the insults, the smears, the looming feeling of dread of being attacked or having their things stolen and destroyed. After having gone deep into unexplored territory that had never been traversed by humans, they had come across a curious and insightful Sceptile named Maveri and her friend Genae, a cheerful and sympathetic Audino.
Unlike the humans that had scorned them, these new Pokémon that had never seen humans before helped show the Ladies the way around the area and where to find the best sources of food and shelter, and in time, they had taken them to Starglade, their hidden sanctuary community, once Maveri and Genae felt they would be great new members of the community. It was a safe haven place for Pokémon that had never been found by humans. As Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet had discovered, it was a hidden paradise for Pokémon that some of them had spent their entire lives in.
While most of the Pokémon in Starglade were more than happy to welcome them in and join their sanctuary community, two of the heads of the community, Namrice the Swoobat and Kenna the Meowstic, had sensed the Ladies were not quite who they seemed to be and there were many secrets to the Eevee, Buneary, and Furret. When they realized this, they had pulled the Ladies aside, not sure if they should be allowed to stay considering their psychic powers had given them insight to their human past, and even traces of their Shadowcraft powers.
Almost in desperation, Cassandra had explained herself entirely, offering to help protect Starglade however they could and “earn their keep” in some way. In the end, Namrice and Kenna had decided to give them a chance, sensing their honesty and sincerity, although they still felt they were taking a big risk. Still, they felt the Ladies were genuine in their desire to turn over a new leaf and start a new life with them, and in the past, they had never before turned down honest and empathic Pokémon that had come from all troubled walks of life. In the end, they decided to welcome them and give them a place to stay. Thanking them, Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet vowed to help the community and respect their doctrine of compassion.
And when it mattered most, the Ladies had the chance to prove it…
A few days later, one of Starglade’s young children, a Teddiursa named Arisea, had fallen from one of the tree branches and landed on a jagged rock, snapping her spine and leaving her paralyzed on her back, bleeding out, and unable to breathe as she lay dying while all the Pokémon of Starglade Sanctuary had become horrified at what happened to the small, innocent child.
Reacting quickly, Cassandra used her Shadowcraft to stop the traumatic blood loss as Jarena kept Arisea breathing by trying to restore air in Arisea’s lungs while Violet worked on mending the critical damage that had been done to Arisea’s small bear cub body. Working together and little by little, they kept the young Teddiursa alive and mended the damage that had been done to her small and fragile body, one broken bone, one torn muscle, and one severed artery at a time… all while all of Starglade had been mesmerized by this never before sight unfold before them.
It took Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet all working together for twenty intense minutes to save Arisea’s life when it was on the brink of ending. But when those twenty minutes had passed and all the Pokémon of Starglade had witnessed this miracle unfold before them, at that moment life in Starglade would never be the same. Arisea was able to sit up, stand up, breathe on her own, move on her own, speak again, and her mother was able to hold her in her paws again, ever grateful to the Ladies for saving her daughter’s life and well-being after something so traumatic. Meanwhile, the rest of the Starglade community was in awe at what these three newcomers had just done for one of their own even when their welcome was somewhat dampened compared to other Pokémon.
The three of them felt something inside themselves change and awaken in that moment. They had used what had been called an “evil witchcraft” by humans to save a child’s life, leaving no trace of the mortifying incident behind. While there would be no one on social media to talk about it and no news story to cover the details, it was the acceptance and respect of this peaceful Pokémon community that meant far more than any fame they once had.
Any doubt about the three of them had forever been cast aside that day, and some of them had even referred to them as heroes. In time, they had found their place and members of the Starglade community had regarded them as the Starglade Guardians, using their powers to keep Starglade protected from human scrutiny, mend injuries and purge diseases, and protecting and saving the lives of dozens of Pokémon. Before long, the Pokémon of Starglade had respected them the way humans respect angels. But even with this, Cassandra, Jarena, and Violet had performed these tasks simply to give back and support the community that gave them a second chance at life and happiness rather than for fame or attention. And it felt far better than anything they had ever felt before.
And in the days that followed, very often Cassandra would gaze up at the stars at night, remembering Jirachi’s wish those many days ago. Her wish for happiness. When everything had become so dark and gray around her, it seemed like it would never come to pass. But with the wish in her heart and the faith in her soul, in time it did and it gave her hope, now with the love and respect of Starglade’s Pokémon giving her a feeling of belonging and purpose.
And when she saw a shooting star streak across the sky, it was as if a soft and gentle whisper spoke to her with two simple words…
Welcome home
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