"'Cause I don't want to leave without you buried by my side.
I'd rather kill the one responsible for falling stars at night."
I Don't Care If You're Contagious – Pierce the Veil
Prologue
Anna…
Wake up, wake up. My eyes opened and I gasped. It wasn't like waking up from sleeping, or even regaining consciousness, it was like.. Coming into being. I was confused and disoriented, and heard a whimper come from my arms.
I looked down to find my Emolga, Mochi, clutching at my shirt with his small paws. "Mochi!" I breathed and held him tighter. I had absolutely no idea what the hell was going on, but having my pokemon with me was a relief, even if it was slight.
Glancing upwards, I took in my surroundings. I was standing near the edge of a cliff. Nervously, I scrambled back from the precarious drop. The cliffs stretched out for as far as I could see, barren and skeletal. Thick clouds choked the sky, looking more like smoke than rainclouds. A strong wind was picking up, making me think otherwise about what those clouds might hold.
I struggled with my memory, but it was like running down a dark tunnel without the light at the end getting any closer. I was broken from my frustrated thoughts by a melancholy voice carrying over the wind.
"Antoinette Hawthorne!"
My full name spoken by the voice raised goose bumps over my skin. My eyes shot towards the offender, who was standing on a cliff adjacent to the one I was standing on. My pulse went all over the place. I had no idea who this man was, but my body was reacting on its own accord. "Excuse.. me..?" I stammered, not able to muster up anything else.
He stood still, his posture tense but confident. Tea green hair spilled out from a ball cap, which was blown off suddenly by a gust of wind. He caught it without even looking.
If my strange reply caught him off guard, he didn't show it, and instead continued, "Why don't you understand the good in what I am doing? Please, Anna, this is a fight you can't win. Fighting you like this is the last thing I want to do, but I will not back down. I will not give up on this."
I swallowed hard. The good in what you're doing? Not going to give up on this? Would you maybe want to explain what the hell you're talking about first? Is along the lines of what I wanted to say, but again my body took control. I spoke.
"I won't! I'm not going to give up either, I will defeat you, and I will defeat Team Plasma!"
Before I had a chance to even think about my strange outburst, the man shook his head sadly, "You will lose. I don't know if I can spare you this time."
I opened my mouth for a biting retort, but my words caught in my throat as I noticed a large, dark shape rapidly approaching from the horizon. When I could make out what was making a beeline for me, I stumbled back so fast I nearly tripped over my own feet.
Zekrom!?
The legendary pokemon was now right before me, hovering over the mysterious stranger. I noticed the malice in the pokemon's eyes as it stared at me, and panic began to flutter in my chest like a Pidove trapped in a cage. "Moo.." I said quietly to my pokemon I still held in my arms, "I want you to get the hell out of here. Now."
I loosened my grip on my Emolga, but he shook his head vigorously from side to side and held tighter to my shirt, looking up at me as I looked down at him. He wouldn't leave me.
The man lifted his hand into the air and powerful electricity began to crackle over Zekrom's body. As he did so, lightning also began to come from the clouds, striking the cliffs surrounding them. I tried to fight past my growing panic and wracked my brain for some kind of plan, but I could only come up with one: Run. I was prepared to turn around and run wherever my legs would take me, when a giant orb of flames dropped from the sky and engulfed Zekrom.
An explosion ensued, and I was blown away, literally. My ears were filled with the sounds of my own screams as I was thrown backwards. I landed messily on my feet but still continued to skid backwards for about another foot.
As the smoke cleared, I shakily returned to a standing position. I gaped at the new sight, at what had just saved my life.
Reshiram!?
What were both of the legendary pokemon doing here? Is Reshiram protecting me or did I have to find a way to escape it too?
My thoughts raced faster than the wind, which had picked up considerably and blew my hair every which way. I held it back from my face with my hand as Mochi made his way to my shoulder. I could tell he wasn't taking his eyes off of Reshiram, with an expression that I was sure mirrored my own.
Reshiram landed on the newly cleared spot on the cliff in front of me, its giant white wings still spread wide. It let out a roar so fierce it shook the cliff we were standing on. Zekrom and the man didn't even flinch. Surprisingly, me either.
Reshiram craned its neck to look at me and let out a soft snort, small flames coming from its nostrils. I recognized that look; it was the same look Mochi had given me many times during battles. Caring, protective, loyal.
"Reshiram," I began slowly, taking a few cautious steps towards it. It looked at me for a moment longer, its blue eyes beginning to glow before it returned its gaze to Zekrom. A growl vibrated its body.
My words had been confident just minutes ago, but the fear I was feeling was suddenly overwhelming. I began to run towards the legendary pokemon.
"Reshiram, no!" A felt a tear escape down my cheek, and the world seemed to slant. I froze as everything grew blurry. It felt like someone had stuffed two cotton balls in my ears. Something was not right, but I supposed I should have realized that in the first place.
I could barely make out Reshiram as it took off into the sky. Flames were collecting in its mouth, and I noticed with horror that a beam of electricity was forming in Zekrom's.
"No.." my voice was barely a whisper. Suddenly, I was falling, but I wasn't sure where. I was sure I had been standing far from the edge of the cliff, but the drop seemed endless. I thought I heard my name being shouted.
An explosion rocked me to my very core, and the world went dark.