A/N: Hello, everyone! This here's a project that I've been working on since last November; it started out as a NaNoWriMo attempt, but after that fell through, I decided that I still wanted to continue writing it. This first installment of The Caged Heart Chronicles is a Pokémon Colosseum novelization, but I can tell you right now that this is not simply going to be a repetition of the Orre games. What would be the point in writing this, after all, if I was just going to rehash a game and story that already exist? CHC: Renegade is Pokémon Colosseum, to be sure, but it's also going to be more than that.
So, without further ado, let's begin!
Eclo Canyon. Situated in the depths of an Orre desert, this dark scar on the face of a sandy plain cloaked a metallic nest in its rocky depths. A Skarmory perched far above at the face of the canyon, steely gold eyes fixed below. Not a soul had stirred around the hideout all day, and yet the silver condor would not retire from his post. Nothing escaped the bird's view, not even in the inky darkness of a moonless night such as this one.
Unbeknownst to these watchful eyes, the true threat would come from within the very hideout they were guarding.
The black night turned to a bright yellow as a deafening crash rocked the barren land. The Skarmory squacked. Torn from his perch, he beat his crimson wings furiously to stay airborne. Steel chunks flew through the air, and half of the building was now engulfed in tongues of orange fire.
Below the guardian bird, thick smoke masked a willowy figure that trudged through the smoldering debris. Shades obscured the teenager's eyes and his left hand was cupped over his nose and mouth to shield him from the dust and smoke, but he made his way into the room that was the source of the explosion. A small machine the size of his arm still hung from its resting place on a torso-shaped stand, miraculously surviving the disaster that had consumed its surroundings.
The teenager smirked. This device was what he was here for, what he had come to take from those who had used it - abused it - for far too long. He wasted no time in unhinging the machine and strapping it to his right arm, its orange coils alight as it sensed that it was now in use. The boy turned in the opposite directed and bolted, amber eyes scanning the vicinity for a companion he knew was waiting for him.
Sure enough, he heard a series of loud barks coming from a black, fox-like creature standing guard at a hole in the wall created by the blast. Though his eyes narrowed as they were stung by smoke, the Umbreon's gaze never left his trainer's.
The boy nodded to him as he ran. "Koray, let's move!"
Koray did not hesitate to dash after his trainer, but frequently glanced backwards should any enemies have emerged from the base. They neared an enormous, hovercraft-style motorcycle that housed a delicate-looking feline creature. The Espeon's big, purple eyes looked on at the pair racing towards the vehicle as if urging them to keep moving, and the teenager felt his pace quicken as his gaze met hers; they were being followed, and he was absolutely certain of it when he heard the lavender feline let out a panicked mewling.
The boy flung himself onto his motorcycle and Koray leapt beside the Espeon, pressing against her as if to comfort her. The teenager looked to the damaged base and could see, silhouetted by the flames behind them, a crowd of men led by a huge, muscled figure continuing to race towards him. Cursing under his breath, the boy retrieved a tiny device from one of his trenchcoat pockets and slammed his thumb against the single button that was on it. Eclo Canyon was now completely engulfed in a blinding, white light, an even harsher blast making its presence known in the desert. That ought to stall them, the boy thought, at least for now.
Even more importantly, the hell that he had spent the past seven years trapped in was no more.
He raced away, eyes focused straight ahead of him. He would not look back; he would never dream of it. His ties with that heinous group had been severed once and for all.