In some ways, I had to be grateful for the chaos in the Eterna City Pokécentre. Helping Leana solve that chaos gave us a lot of exposure to the internal workings of a Pokécentre and some of the official materials that were supposed to give guidance on its operation of it.

While we didn’t get into the weeds of it, just a few days gave me a good idea that I didn’t want to work as an attendant full-time, even if it seemed to be one of the more popular options for trainers who didn’t want to retire from training but also didn’t want to loiter around the Gym and work there.

Another thing I did one evening, was to visit the Church of Freedom. It was an impressive building, crafted from dark, grey stone, with a high tower that likely gave an incredible view towards the distant Mount Coronet and might have been a way to warn of wandering Pokémon in the past, giving the people time to find shelter but those days were luckily long past.

Driven by curiosity, I tried the door, half-expecting to find it locked, only for it to smoothly swing open, allowing me entry into the wide, open worship room. It was a long room with a high ceiling and narrow windows stretching towards it, letting in sparse light, giving it a sombre, but also somewhat gloomy atmosphere.

As I walked deeper into the room, past the long benches, I realised that it wasn’t normal glass sitting in the windows, but that they were made from beautifully coloured glass, the light coming through the western windows lighting them up with incredible splendour. The windows were showing a few Pokémon and to my surprise, I had seen some of them in the past.

One of the windows showed the three beings I had seen right upon waking up, depicted around a large pillar, each on their own perch, glowing light connecting and seemingly restraining them. Another showed a flight of birds, the one in the lead being easily recognisable as Ho-oh. The depiction only served to convince me that the large avian we had seen before reaching Eterna City had been that same legend. The rainbow light was made with incredible artistry and in combination with the light of the setting sun, it bathed part of the room in that very rainbow glow, the incredible effect briefly rendering me speechless.

“Good Evening,” a kind voice called out to me, making me jump a little in surprise. I had been so absorbed in studying the windows, I must have missed the person walking up.

Turning around, I looked at robes I had seen before, only that there was no fervour or hate visible on the one donning them, There was only a polite smile, maybe slightly mischievous, sitting on the man’s face. He was a little chubby, with a receding, blonde hairline and some crowfeet on his face, making me think that he often either smiled or frowned. Given the current smile on his face, I had a feeling that it was the former.

“Ah, good evening,” I felt myself blush, feeling that I had been caught somewhere I maybe shouldn’t be. “Is it alright for me to be here?” I asked, wanting to apologise if it wasn’t.

“Do you plan to vandalise or destroy anything?” the priest asked with a cocked eyebrow and an amused smile on his face.

“Of course not!” I retorted, not sure why he would think that.

“Then you are welcome to visit and invited to the weekly worship service. If you have questions, I will do my best to answer them,” he politely offered, his smile only turning a little more amused at my offence at his earlier question.

“Even if I’m a trainer?” I couldn’t help but prod, trying to provoke him into losing his smile, “The last time I’ve met someone of your Church, the only words they had for me were filled with hate and anger.”

“I apologise for my brothers and sisters in faith, some let their zeal get the better of them.” he gave me a deep nod, not quite a bow but certainly a polite apology. And while I had managed to wipe the smile off his face, somehow, I didn’t feel good about it. The pure, polite and compassionate tone in his voice made it difficult to feel smug. “I hope you weren’t harmed?” he asked, his eyes studying me as if to search for some hidden injuries.

“It was a little scary at the time,” I admitted, before shaking my head, “But there are many scary things in this world, they were mere humans,” I shrugged, playing it off.

“As are you, child,” he retorted, his earlier smile returning, though with a little less vibrancy, “My name is Brother Jacob.” he introduced himself, offering his hand for me to shake.

“Greetings, Brother Jacob,” I shook his hand, “My name is Dani.”

“Nice to meet you, Dani,” his smile regained some of the original vibrancy, “What brings you to our Church of Freedom if your last experience was so regrettable?”

His question caught me short for a moment, making me consider my intentions. There was a part of curiosity, certainly, but looking into myself, was it truly just that? There were other interesting landmarks, both in Eterna City and also in the other towns I had visited, but none had drawn me to explore like I had wanted to here. Something about the weight, the gravity, of the building had drawn me in.

“Curiosity,” I shrugged off my introspection, turning to look at the windows again, “There is only so much knowledge in the world and while I don’t agree with what I’ve heard about the Church of Freedom, learning what you actually have to say seems to be a worthwhile pursuit,” I explained.

“A noble goal,” he agreed, before stepping next to me, following my line of sight, “That our artwork is a thing of beauty makes the lessons more appealing, doesn’t it?” there was a bit of amusement in his voice, and I could only nod in agreement.

“True,” I allowed, “What can you tell me about that image?” I asked, pointing to the first image, dominated by a white, stag-like being, the light falling through the window giving it an appearance that seemed to glow with power. I had seen depictions of Arceus before, making it easily identifiable, but the image had a certain depth to it that struck something within me with awe.

“Arceus, and the Creation of the World,” he introduced me to the artwork, before launching into an explanation, giving some details about their belief as we walked through the church, looking at the different windows that slowly told the story of their belief. It was roughly equivalent to what Claire had told me in the past, but the depth of conviction and skilful oration of Brother Jacob managed to draw me in. His ability to draw pictures with his words, to take the scenes depicted by the glass and make them come to life was remarkable. The only window where he failed to truly draw me in was the third one, the one that depicted Giratina, Palkia and Dialga.

While his voice didn’t waver and he managed to describe their grandeur and power, as they were tasked to keep order in the world and govern the forces that gave reality an underlying structure, the memories I had of them bubbled up in my mind, the impression they had left on me easily overpowering the images he managed to draw. It was the difference between seeing something hot and directly touching it, the impact was simply too different.

Finally, after we were almost done with our round, I decided to directly ask the core question. While the history and overview of their beliefs were interesting, I wanted to know what he thought about Trainers and the keeping of Pokémon.

“You know, the last time I was called a slaver and shame heaped upon my head,” I began, noticing him wince for a moment in concern, “Claiming that I’m abusing Pokémon and keeping them captive. Tell me, why should I consider anything from an organisation that despises the relationship I hold with the closest beings in my life?” I asked, trying once again to provoke him a bit.

“I can’t tell you that,” he admitted, looking a little disappointed, “On the flip side, how can I consider anything said by a member of an organisation where people abuse their Pokémon? Some mentally, others even physically, by using them in some weird experiments?” he asked back, and now it was my turn to frown. I couldn’t come up with a ready answer, not outside of telling him that I had no relationship with such people, other than a shared membership in the Pokémon League. Just like he had likely no relationship to the people who had hurled abuse at me, other than a shared membership in the Church.

“I apologise,” I admitted, offering my hand again, “Why don’t we simply talk as the individuals, Dani and Jacob?” I asked, getting a happy smile in return, as we shook hands.

“That works, yes.” he agreed, before we returned to the next window and his retelling of a story about the Skypillar, an ancient ruin on top of Mount Coronet.

And just like that, I stayed in the Church for another hour, slowly learning about the tales of Sinnoh and the Church of Freedom.

They were fascinating.