Hey, I'm back! After immersing myself yet again in the world of my original story, The Oppression, I began writing a new story based off that world. However, after a couple of chapters of writing, I knew the original needed a long awaited update as I was a terrible writer when I made the original series. So now, I am rewriting the original series and removing A Shadow Looms for the time being. Unlike the original, there will be accurate descriptions and characters, a plot that makes more sense, character development and I'm hoping It will turn out as epic as I plan. Though the original In my mind was pretty cool, the writing was not clear enough to give anyone entertainment besides the author. I hope you enjoy this rewrite of my series. Without further ado, let us begin.
A dark shadow spread over the desert, confounding the sight from all who dwelled in it. Armies razed through villages, terrorizing and pillaging at every turn. The army front lines were led by some of the most dangerous, evil, and sadistic Pokemon in all of the known lands. They were petty assassins, rogue warriors, and thieves. They were known by two words that were hallowed throughout the land by all who were free: the Shrouded Soldiers.
It was midday when the shadow came, swallowing the desert with their shadowy whims and desires. The sun was blotted out so no light would even shed on the now tattered and torn landscape. Most of the residing Pokemon had fled the area, hoping to find refuge from this terrible onslaught. The Shrouded Soldiers continued to wreak havoc, unchecked and without the slightest mercy. Anyone foolish enough to stay in their way would meet their permanent end. It seemed nothing could stop these marauding warriors.
At least, that's what Master Darkrai, the leader of the Shrouded Soldiers and conqueror of many lands that was feared by many. Just by looking at this nasty piece of work, you would know instantly that he was the mastermind of this great evil. His pitch dark skin contrasted with a large red mouth and cold blue eyes. He stood on two, stilt like feet that came out of a jagged waist. He had flowing white hair that always stood up despite any wind, and to top it off he had a torn red cape. He was truly the embodiment of evil itself.
"I'm telling you, Colonel Weavile, that this is our most successful assault we have had in years!" The dark ruler proclaimed, clenching his fists. Colonel Weavile, the purple bodied, red eared and dastardly sharp clawed hands and feet who stood next to the Master shrugged and nodded.
"Don't you think it's kind of odd that those wretched meddlers haven't shown up yet?" Colonel Weavile suggested, scratching his head, careful not to scrape or cut his own face.
Darkrai laughed and then smiled at Weavile and said, "I think they turned tail and ran back home after their humiliating defeat at Storm Plains."
"I don't know, Master." The Weavile said uneasily. "Claws is not one to easily give up. He'll pursue us to the edge of the earth until this force is history."
Darkrai started to reply but then stopped as one of his messengers, a rather nervous, mud colored Cubone approached, watching his every step as if there were traps ready to spring at every step. Darkrai whirled and proceeded to smash his fist against the Cubone's bone helmet, turning the messenger's knees to jelly and causing him to collapse. But the Master wasn't done yet. Grabbing the Cubone by the scruff of the neck he hauled the Pokemon very close to his face at eye level.
"This better be terribly important!" The Darkrai growled ferociously. "You have interrupted the conversation between me and my Colonel! I could have you executed for this!"
The Cubone tried to speak but could only manage a small whimper. Enraged, Darkrai slammed the Cubone into a nearby stone cliff.
"Spit it out you miserable excuse for a messenger!" Darkrai fumed.
"Sergeant Fangbone told me to tell you that Scythe Plains has arrived!" The Cubone said nervously, expecting to meet an untimely end at the hands of the fiend.
"Scythe Plains, you say? Don't you mean Claws?" Master Darkrai asked quizzically.
The Cubone shook his head and said with tears streaming from his eyes, "All of them! There is Claws, Scaler, Trident, Beak, and even Ivymore!"
Darkrai threw the Cubone aside impatiently, who scuttled away as quickly as he could. He turned to the bored looking Weavile and said, "Well, looks like we have quite a twist in our plans. Why don't you tell Fangbone, Weavile, to prepare the white flag of truce? I believe it is time I had a chat with my dear friend Claws." He said with a devilish smile forming on his face.
"Enemy forces in sight!" Talons, the tan feathered, owl like Noctowl advisor of General Claws hooted. "Will we engage them?"
Claws, orange skinned and blue winged Charizard stood on a ridge, behind him standing his own personal army he owned among the Scythe Plains War Council. Turning to his advisor, and back to the battlefield, he shrugged.
"I'd prefer not to lose unnecessary losses against an army that is three time bigger than ours. What's the terrain like?" The Charizard asked his assistant.
Talons did a quick study flyby of the desert, returning a few seconds later. "Scorched, lots of sand fused to glass, most villages up in flames. Our enemy seems to get even more merciless every time we meet them." He said with clear sarcasm on the last sentence.
"We'll need to take care of those fires. Civilian safety is our top priority. We'll send… What is he doing? What's wrong with that arrogant Empoleon?" Claws growled angrily.
"What is it sir?" Talons asked in question.
"We are trying to live out this war, and Trident is just charging forward like there is no tomorrow!" Claws said, a little more calmly this time. But his anger was still clear. "I need you, Talons to direct the army with Beak. I'm going to go stop Trident!" Without another word, the general took off, catching the wind with his thin blue wings.
As the Charizard general flew above the scorched battleground, he noticed that Trident was leading his forces of water Pokemon through the remains of a once bustling trading town. Bits of shattered merchandise littered the street, the only intact thing in the town. Lighting down next to Trident, who was surprised to see the Charizard leader here, stopped.
The Empoleon was unlike most Empoleons. Instead of his usual blue coloring, he had a sort of turquoise skin, along with a light silver lining on the edges of his flightless penguin wings. His talons were a light orange color and he had an unusually sharp Empoleon crown that nearly hid his light blue eyes. Those eyes bore into Claws, with a look of confusion encompassing all other emotion.
"…Claws? What are you doing here? I thought you were back there commanding your own army?" Trident asked in confusion.
"Call off your attack! We can't afford to charge head on into the strongest army in the world? Who will fight for peace when we recklessly sacrifice our own armies?" Claws demanded.
"We can't afford to not take this opportunity! There is an opening in their right flank! There is a small chance that if we concentrate our forces there, we can go in to their ranks and smash everything in their camps!" The Empoleon argued fiercely. Though it may not look like it, Claws and Trident was best friends since their childhood.
"A ten year old war can't be decided by this small chance. You need to think these things through!" Claws shot back almost instantly.
Defeated, the Empoleon called to his forces, "Stop! Fall Back!" His forces instantly turned around as Shrouded Soldiers began to climb over the wreckage of the village to confront them. A ball of fire from Claws mouth quickly dispelled the soldiers. Trident, meanwhile, kept a squad of Murkrow away with a stream of water that had more force than a full force punch from a Machamp.
"We should get out of here!" Claws barked over the sounds of the march of the Shrouded Soldiers. Trident shook his head.
"I think we'll be just fine!" Trident replied. He gestured to the sky above and saw the form of a tan and brown feathered bird with a short red beak carrying a green, humanoid Pokemon with twin blades sprouting from its wrists. It had a red underbelly that matched his red cheeks and mouth. It was a Sceptile and a Pidgeot, ones that were very familiar to the Charizard and Empoleon.
"It's Scaler and Beak!" Claws said with a grin. The Pidgeot deftly swooped down and landed next to the two surprised but very happy generals. The Sceptile climbed off the Pidgeot, scratching his head.
"Looks like you two could use some help." Scaler said in his small but confident voice.
Claws nodded, saying, "Trident decided to pull on ahead without us. Now all of the enemy army knows we are here!"
"They already knew we were here in the first place." Beak chimed in.
"Yeah, I guess that nothing was really lost." The Charizard general replied as he scanned the enemy lines approaching. "Looks like the Shrouded Soldiers are not too happy that we thrashed their friends."
Scaler shook his head and pointed his reptilian finger at the army's white flag. "Nope, looks like Darkrai wants to have a little chat." He said. "This could be bad. We are going to have to face Darkrai alone. This could all be a ruse to trap us and destroy us."
Before they could move to summon their own armies and bodyguards, Darkrai's army surrounded the five generals. An elite force of Nidoking, Blastoise, and Aggron made up the personal bodyguard that surrounded the Master Darkrai, who was also flanked by Weavile.
Darkrai raised his hand, a signal for his personal guard to leave his presence. However, Weavile still remained his claws primed and ready.
"Why it's General Claws…what a pleasant surprise. It's very interesting that you are not surrounded with your normal repertoire of bodyguards." Darkrai said in a chillingly calm voice.
Claws stepped forward, his temper rising inside of him. "You know I'm no coward. You can strike me down right now and I will fall without any fear in my heart!" He growled as his advisor Talons landed next to the Charizard general.
"Sir, the army is on its way." Talons whispered, his gazed fixed on the sadistic Darkrai.
"Call them off. I will have no lives lost today on my behalf!" Claws commanded. "I know this is my final battle. It will not be our army's final one as well!"
"Claws, Claws, Claws… so brave…so courageous…so very, very foolish! You will fall!" Darkrai moved with blinding speed and slashed at the Charizard general, who nimbly dodged the attack and retaliated with a burst of flame from his mouth. Darkrai shrugged the fire off and began charging up a sphere of dark energy. Claws flew at Darkrai who released the shadowy energy and caused the Charizard to be trapped in a cell of shadow. It took only seconds for Claws to break through.
Meanwhile, Trident had fallen victim to Weavile's claws, a large gash visible in his turquoise stomach as the Empoleon continued to fight on. Scaler was lying, unmoving, a scar stretching from his face to his red underbelly, blood oozing from the wound. Beak was tending to the fallen Sceptile, already knowing that the general was on the verge of death. It was a terrible sight as the surrounded Shrouded Soldiers cheered their ruler and colonel on.
Claws, though uninjured so far, was growing tired. He had dodged three shadow balls and three slashes from the fiend's jagged claws. But the evil ruler was unwavering, launching attack after attack. The Scythe Plains general, however, hardly had gotten in any attacks in this barrage of lightning fast strikes.
"You're weakening, Claws!" Master Darkrai said with a wicked grin.
Claws didn't respond, huffing and puffing as he tried to regain his breath and composure. He was indeed weakening, but soon he would enter a failsafe defense that all Charizard possessed, powering up his fire attacks greatly. That is if I can survive to that moment from this menace. The Charizard thought as he rose into the air for his final confrontation. Talons, who was aware of what was about to happen, swooped through the air over to Claws.
"Sir, you don't have to do this! We can always escape to fight another day!" The advisor spoke over the cheers over the soldiers.
Claws looked at the Noctowl with steely determination. "There will be another day. But I won't be the one to fight. It will be a new generation of leaders to free the lands from Darkrai's tyranny!"
Talons paused, realizing what he was speaking of. "You mean Draco?" The owl asked, referring to the Charizard general's son.
"Yes. Now go! Leave this place! Pass the word among the army to leave this place and go back to Scythe Plains. Play on defensive until the new generation of heroes is ready. Go!" Claws handed Talons a map wrapped in a leather covering. Talons took the map and examined it curiously. Claws said his voice weak, "This is what Darkrai wants. Keep it safe. Now go, fly!"
Talons took off as a burst of shadow energy hit the Charizard, staggering his flight. Talons flew wearily towards where the Scythe Plains army waited. Meanwhile, Claws had reached his limit. His eyes turned red and his body reached amazing temperatures. He opened his mouth and a raging inferno spewed from his maw, trapping Darkrai effectively and burning him. Claws kept up the assault, overcome by instinct.
Trident had fallen, lying in a puddle of blood, slain by Weavile. Beak and Scaler were also lying nearby, also killed by the evil colonel. Claws was the only one remaining, but on the verge of collapse. He seemed to actually intensify his attack for a moment as Weavile sliced his throat. The Charizard fell, already dead before he hit the ground. The Darkrai was suddenly released from the inferno and fell to the ground. Quickly recovering, he stood over the dead body of Claws.
The Master of the Shrouded Soldiers laughed maniacally as his soldiers cheered for him. Weavile, though he had killed all four of the generals, seemed to get little to no attention. His jealousy grew inside of him, almost to the point of taking action. He then stopped himself.
Someday I will have my vengeance. The colonel thought, a plan already forming in his mind.
Talons flew far ahead of the army as the desert terrain quickly changed into a lush but dark forest. Dark clouds still blotted out the sky, and a torrent rain pelted his feathers. Loud cracks of thunder boomed, just like the conflict going on in his mind. His closest, dearest friends were all dead. It seemed all hope was lost. And that wasn't very far from the truth.
Far ahead of him, he could see the land change again to tall, light green grasses and the green, bug like Scyther moving about the plain. It was Scythe Plains. Dominating the distant skyline was a large, gray stoned fortress surrounded by many smaller, widespread villages. Talons himself lived in one of these villages, with his wife and two children. Soon, he reached the fortress, swooping into one of the larger windows into a long hall dominated by a large door at its end. Its columns that held up its roof all had short poles with red flags on them. The red flags all had a two scythes crossed like an X, the Scythe Plains insignia. The door at the far end was guarded by two green leaf covered, humanoid, and white haired Roserades. Talons landed and walked on his two feet over to the door.
"Please enter, advisor Talons." The two Pokemon said in unison as they opened the door.
Talons strode, downcast into the room. It was a lot larger than he remembered as it used to only accommodate one Pokemon. As three more moved in, it was expanded. It had a red and gold colored carpet, and two bunk beds each with two bunks.
In one of the bunks, a small, blue and white colored penguin with a yellow beak and short webbed feet sat. In the one above it, a small tan and brown feathered bird with pink claws and angled eyebrows also perched. A green skinned, red bellied and yellow eyed reptile was clinging onto the bedpost of the lower bunk of the second bed. And finally, an orange lizard with a tan belly, stubby legs and arms, a tail with a burning flame on its tip, and finally a pair of deep blue eyes on its face.
The orange lizard, a Charmander, stood and looked at Talons. "Uncle Talons! Where's dad? Is he home yet?" The Charmander asked energetically.
Talons sighed and looked at all the other Pokemon, who were now climbing from their bunks. The green reptile, a Treecko, leapt nimbly off the bunk and next to the Charmander. The blue penguin, a Piplup, lazily got up to greet the Noctowl. The tan bird, a Pidgey, continued to sit on its perch but its attention was now fixated on Talons.
"Its…it's complicated, you see, Draco." Talons said quietly.
"You can tell us, Talons!" The Charmander, Draco exclaimed with a light of innocence in his blue eyes.
Talons looked at the Pokemon surrounding him, Draco, Razor the Piplup, Blade the Treecko, and Ace, the Pidgey. They were all so innocent, so young. Now they would have to face news that would change their life forever.
"My sons, I'm afraid your parents… have passed." Talons said in regret this time.
A wave of silence passed over the room. The four young Pokemon were very close to their fathers as their mothers had already passed, especially Draco who could hardly remember his mother and knew his father Claws all of his life.
The four Pokemon began to sob quietly, and even Talons was streaming tears.
"Who could have done this?" Draco bawled.
Talons paused for a moment, wiping the tears from his face. "It was Weavile. It was Weavile and Darkrai." Talons croaked, his voice overcome with emotion.
The Charmander rose to full height from his seated position. Though tears still streamed from Draco's eyes, his face became hard and serious. "I promise that I will live up to my father's legacy and become a general someday. I will make my father proud!" He proclaimed.
All of the sudden, Talons realized there was still hope. Hope in this Charmander. Hope In these young ones. Then he added, especially this Charmander.
Meanwhile, in a fortress hundreds of miles away in the Shrouded Plains, stronghold of the Shrouded Soldiers, Darkrai sat in his throne chamber and brooded. His throne was as twisted and dark as the evil rulers mind, and his room seemed to exude dark and unearthly properties. It was a perfect chamber for an evil mastermind such as himself.
"Curse Claws for his cleverness! Entrusting that Noctowl with what I seek. The map to the key of ultimate power has eluded me once again! The power of legends is destined to be mine! This I swear or my name isn't…" Master Darkrai stopped, thinking he heard something. He dismissed it as a movement of a Pokemon in a nearby room. But truthfully, it was something far more sinister.
It was Colonel Weavile, concealing himself in the shadows, invisible to the naked eye. Ultimate power, he says. I'll just have to see to that myself. He thought as his master plan became clear. Soon, it would be Weavile on that throne, not the tyrant Darkrai.
And that would be such a good thing, either.
Well, what do you think? I think I did a much better job than most of my recent stories. Since I am on summer vacation, I will be updating pretty frequently. Please let me know what you think by reviewing my story!