A Story of Stories - Part 1: A Flaming Past...
On this long forgotten day of summer, we find a boy named Adrian
sitting at home, bored, and too young to really get a job. "Hmmmmmm...."
he wondered, "Mom, I think today would be a good day to checkup the pokémon
at the center."
"Funny, I was thinking the same thing!" she came in and
said to her son, "I guess we could go today..." She was working on something
on the computer before she came in. She looked for the one spot where she
had left the pokéballs from the last time she got them checked. She
used to be one of the best trainers, and she never yelled or scolded her
pokémon. She was now old, and didn't care too much about the training
or battles or most things pokémon. She found the balls and her purse.
They decided to walk to the center since it was a nice cool day.
"Tell me about some of your pokémon," Adrian said
to his mother as they walked on a well worn path.
"My pokémon are not mine; they are not under my
total control," she stated, "They are governed by their own will, and they
are my friends." She had nine pokéballs with her and they kept walking.
"In this one," she held up a solid red pokéball, "is a charizard that
has been passed down this family for millennia. Her name is Charla, named
when she was born as a charmander."
"Yeah, I know her, sorta. She has helped me on more than
one occasion, likes watching TV, and you let her out every few weeks to go
hunt."
"Correct! She is quite possibly the smartest charizard
in existence. She can tell you about herself since you will be inheriting
her and the other pokémon I have when I pass-away."
"Wow... I would like to hear her tell her story," Adrian
said as his mother held another pokéball, which was solid blue.
"This is one holds a blastoise, but it is not as old.
His name is Cannon, so named for the potential that he had as a squirtle.
He was all about brute force when he was an infant. He towered over all of
his kind when he was growing up. Over the centuries, like Charla, he was
taught how to read, write, and speak our language. He can tell you more about
himself, as can all the others, they all know how to speak our language.
I just know brief history on all of them," she paused to get and hold up
another ball that was yellow and black. "This one holds a raichu, whose name
is Lightning, so named since she had the brightest yellow fur as a pikachu.
Now her fur has turned solid black except for the little yellow dots on her
cheeks," she smiled as she remembered seeing how Lightning could trash any
ground pokémon without breaking a sweat. "This one," she held a ball
that was red on top and a very white colored red on the bottom, "has a rapidash
named Dasher. His parents were racers, and since they loved the feeling of
wind rushing over them, they named their first born Dasher. He does have
siblings, but they are probably too old to truly race any more. He probably
has a good dozen years left thanks to the pokéball."
"Well, we are almost there," Adrian pointed to the center
slowly coming into view.
"I guess you could hear what they have to say for themselves
when we get home," she said as she put the ball back. They walked into the
center and were greeted with a friendly nurse.
"How may I help you?" she asked.
"I'd like to get these pokémon checked," Adrian's
mother stated as she put on the counter nine pokéballs.
"Okay. Chansey, I'd like you to take these pokéballs
to the checkup room.
"Chansey! Chansey-chansey."
"It'll take a little while, so why don't you sit down
on the couch and read a magazine," the nurse said as she left to the checkup
room to checkup the pokémon.
"I wonder what magazines they have?" Adrian asked as they
made their way to the couch. "Hmmmm.... Not real good selection.....," looking
around and under some of the magazines, he finally found something of interest.
His mother didn't feel like reading a magazine, so she sat and waited patiently.
After about half an hour, the nurse came out and said,
smiling, "Your pokémon are in tiptop shape and have good manners! They
all feel okay and just want to relax a little bit in the sun when I told
them the temperature outside. Hehe... they were really nice and cooperated
nicely with me!" She handed back the pokéballs to Adrian's mother.
"Chansey-Chansey!" the Chansey agreed.
"Thank you very much, bye!" Adrian's mother said as they
left the building.
After some uneventful walking, they reached home and Adrian
immediately sat on the couch and turned on 'ye olde radiation toob.' (THE
TV IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW)
"I wonder what's on," he said as he flipped through the
channels. "Cool, wrestling!" After he shouted this, a pokéball opened
by itself. It was Charla.
"I loves watchin' people wrastle!" she said as she hopped
over the couch and slammed on the carpet in front of it. She seemed less
than six feet tall, head to toe.
"Remember my grandmother's teaching about how to control
the temperature of your flame, now," Adrian's mom told Charla.
"I remember. 'S okay," she said. She had gotten so used
to talking in human that she started slurring just like Adrian did sometimes.
They watched as a real big muscular guy strutted down
the ramp, making his way to the ring. "Ladies and gentlemen, Bulk Logan!"
the ring announcer shouted into the microphone. The crowd, and our little
audience, whooped and yelled and cheered! After the announcer shouted the
name of the other wrestler, the match was under way.
After the show was over, our two TV watchers sat, pleased
with the show.
"What else is on?" Charla asked Adrian.
"I don't know... let's check," he said picking up the
TV guide. "Hmmm.... nothing good at this hour."
"Hmmph," snorted Charla, "Over a hundred channels of TV
and nothing good is on!" She almost flamed up at the ceiling. "Oh well....
might as well go hunting." She got up and headed toward the back door. "Be
back in an hour!" she yelled as she left. She flew up and over the horizon
as seen from the house. She loved to fly around and be wild, even though
she knew that she had manners and discipline. She finally found her pray:
a wild mankey in a forest outside the town. She did a 'sonic slam' attack
to knock the mankey completely out. She picked it up and made for home. Once
in the yard she went to work on mankey, ripping the meat off bones. Soon
it was just a pile of bones that was once a pokémon. She started to
work at eating the marrow in the bones when Adrian came outside.
"Whoops! Sorry, I didn't know you weren't finished," he
said as he shielded his face from the mess of blood and some inedible guts
in front of Charla.
"It's okay. Just hold on a sec," Charla said as she finished
the marrow from the bone. She then flamed all the blood off her face and
arms and incinerated the gore on the ground to ashes. "There. What was it
you wanted?"
"Well.... I just wanted to know.... your history, uh,
I mean, you-you know," he stumbled.
"Oh, oh! Ya, I know. You want to know the life I lived
all these thousands of years. Hmmm... A long tale it would be.... Let's start
by finding a good spot out of the way where it's just you and me. I'll tell
your mom." She stepped in and told her that they will be leaving for a few
days and to not worry. Adrian's mother knew what was going on; she did the
same when she was his age.
Even though it didn't look like it, Charla was an incredibly
strong flyer. Adrian rode on her back as they flew to a mountain that had
no life on it or in it; a perfect spot she had remembered. They found a good
spot to land as well as sleep.
"That was an awesome ride!" Adrian said as he fell off
her back dizzy. He regained control and stood up, looking at Charla's tail
flame.
"It's suiting that I tell another in this long living family
of humans who befriended me more than two thousand years ago. You are Adrian,
named after an ancestor of yours I once knew. He was the son of the man who
tamed me. That man who tamed me was named Crimson, for the long crimson stripe
he was born with that seemed to separate his left side from his right. That
man was a great man." She paused, remembering him. "You're almost like him,
in a way." She then heard a small rumbling noise. Adrian looked down at his
stomach and smiled.
"I guess since we're here, we might as well eat," he said
trying not to sound anxious.
"Might as well!" she said, smiling back at him. She then
flew off in search of pray. This time she found a couple of scyther attacking
a nidorino. In one swoop she knocked all three of them unconscious. She picked
up the scyther and nidorino and flew back to the where Adrian sat patiently.
"Wow!" he gasped.
"I couldn't pass up the three-for-one offer these three
set up for me!" she laughed as she set them down. Since scyther had tough,
almost steel like shells and blades, Charla had to gut them. "This will only
take a minute," she announced. She flamed the shells dry after she removed
all the meat. This almost formed a full suit armor, complete with helmet
and shin guards. "Try it on," she said to Adrian.
"Uh... how do I put this on?"
"Here, let me put this on you," she held what was the
scyther's chest and slipped it on Adrian's shoulders. "Hmm.. A good fit,
right?" she asked, remembering the previous times she did this to his ancestors.
Adrian looked bewildered, "Uhhh... Yeah, it does fit a
little snugly, but it's fine." He then tried to get up, but fell over on
the armor. CLANK! While on the ground, he asked, "Done cooking the meat?"
"Yes, it's finished, but it might be a little dry. Why
not put a little nidorino blood on it for flavor."
"Hmm... worth a shot!" He picked up a piece of cooked meat
and dipped it in the nido's blood. Not sure if it would be good, he sniffed
it, then made a big bite into the cooked meat. "Not bad, not bad at all....
munch"
"I knew you'd like it!" she said as she got done gutting
and cooking the other scyther. "I like scyther cooked, but nidos taste good
raw." After another half hour, they were full, and Adrian kept the scyther
suit on. "Now you really look like Crimson," she said as she looked at Adrian
with the full scyther suit on, "he had the skill and power to kill scyther
with his bare hands. I remember him in a blood stained scyther suit of armor;
he even left the wings on the back!" She paused, remembering watching him
snap the head off one and clear the shell it had of insides. "He was so skillful
in his kills, even more than me! It was this that captivated me; a human
had learned the ways of the wild hunter. I was watching him from far away
when I saw him jump on a scyther and snap it's arm clean off the body. The
scyther screeched, but he continued, and off came the head. He used the fallen
arm as a weapon and as a tool for gutting that scyther." She paused as Adrian
took this brutal scene in his mind.
"I didn't know anything could kill a scyther in such a
manner, let alone a man." Adrian stated as he envisioned it.
"He could, and did often. As I came closer, he sniffed
the air and turned his head. He looked straight at me, with eyes that could
shatter a boulder into powder. I held up my hands and said that I would pose
him no threat. He looked at me, bewildered. It was obvious that he understood
me when he asked 'why'. I sat down and told him..." she stopped and closed
her eyes, "I was the outcast of the group of charizards that had inhabited
an island off shore a few miles. I was hated by the elders on that island
because I had been accused off killing another out of jealousy and anger.
I never did such a thing, but the (um.... e-v-i-dence? yeah!) evidence showed
that I did. My parents never believed it, but it wasn't up to them. I was
damned by the elders. I had to leave that island since it became hostile
for me; everyone wanted my guts to feast on. I was about five hundred years
old at the time." She paused as she remembered Crimson's reaction to this.
"Crimson looked surprised. He couldn't believe what I told him. He then looked
into my eyes. I started getting teary eyed as he stared at me with cold iron
eyes. He said that he would take me under his wing, so to speak, after he
told me his name. He would keep me company until I could find another charizard
that was not of that island. I came with him to a small village after he
killed another scyther. He carried the meat and armor of that scyther with
him also. I gasped as I saw the village; It was made from the various hides
and platings that pokémon in that area had. One person stepped up
to him; she had on a thin scyther suit that was stained pink. Another slowly
came to his feet and walked to him; he wore a robe made of nidoking skin.
'I've come back with more than a kill, a charizard!' he said to the people
as he pointed to me. The people that were in front of him greeted me. 'I
am Tiki' the woman said, 'I am a doctor here.' She took off the scyther head
she had on to reveal her face. She almost looked like your modern day nurses
at the hospitals." She stopped, smiled, and snorted a little fire. "It is
getting late," she said as she looked up to see a full moon.
"Think we should go to sleep?" Adrian asked. Charla nodded.
"Okay!"
They looked around to see if anything looked comfy to
sleep on. Adrian looked over at the nido hide that Charla left when she gutted
it. Then he felt the armor's inside; it was smooth and soft. He decided to
just lie on his back and let the plating be his pillow. He then looked over
and saw that Charla was getting comfy on the hide. He grinned, looked up
at the sky, and fell asleep within a few minutes.
He began to dream.....
It was a silent, dark forest. He looked up and saw a harvest
moon. He looked over and saw a strange being he had never seen. "Mew?" it
said. Adrian got up and looked at the ground; it was covered with ashes.
He then looked at the creature, which said something again. "Mew?"
"Who are you? I don't understand," Adrian finally said
to the creature.
"YYYYYOOOUUUUUU WWWWWIIIIILLLLLLLL KNNNNOOOOOOWWWW SSSSSSOOONNNNNN......."
Adrian didn't know where it came from, but he suspected the creature.
"Why am I here, in this forest? Why is the moon red?"
he said, slowly.
"YYYYYOOOUUUUUU WWWWWIIIIILLLLLLLL LLLLEEEAARRRRNNNNNNNN........"
came the voice, "NNNNNOOOOWWWWW...... WAKE!" it shouted, loud enough to wake
the dead. Adrian saw the forest slowly disappearing into white. He tried
to shield his eyes, but the white was incredibly bright. He then woke in
a cold sweat.
"Huh?! What!? uuuhhhhh..." he had shot up from the sleep,
but fell back down, drained.
"AHH! Are you okay?!" Charla yelled as she saw Adrian shoot
from his slumber.
"Hmmmmmm.... I think so..."
"You gave me a fright! You slept for more than a day!
I was going to fetch a doctor today, but you woke; what was it that you saw?"
"I saw a creature, a strange one I had never seen before.
It looked at me and said something. Ughh.. I don't feel to hot.."
"You need to eat. I got and prepared a nidorina. The meat
is tender and easy to digest. Have some." She had a chunk of cooked meat
in her hand and handed it to Adrian. He began to eat slowly, but that changed
on the second bite. He never noticed that he wasn't wearing the scyther suit.
After he had eaten, he felt a little better.
"Thanks for the meat," he said as he leaned on a rocky
wall.
"What did that creature say, if you don't mind me asking,"
she asked.
"It said something that sounded like 'new,' but it wasn't
'new.'"
"Hmmmm..... Strange. I've never encountered something that
said that."
"Its head looked a little like a cat's, cute little hands,
big feet, and a long thin tail. Its eyes were a lighter color of blue then
that of your wings. It seemed.... harmless... in a way. Hmmph." He pondered
a second. "Will you continue with your story?"
"Yes, I will."
"Crimson presented his kills as well as his new friend.
'What is your name, charizard?' was the first question out of the old man's
mouth. 'I'm Charla' I told him. Crimson translated when he looked at me funny.
'Well, Charla, welcome to this village! It has been ages since any of us
has seen one like you. You do not need to explain yourself as to why you
here. You can live with us as long as needed.' I thanked him and I thanked
Crimson. 'Crimson,' the elder called, 'you have done well again. We cannot
thank you enough. As I understand, you will be leaving soon, correct?' Crimson
said that he was, and to not worry. As long as they had the scyther armor
and weapons, they could catch their food easily. He then looked at me and
said, 'Will you join me on my adventure?' I was happy to accompany him; it
was the only thing I could do to show kindness to him when he agreed to help
me. He then asked me if he could fly on my back, since it was a long trip
and flying would be fastest. I said hop on, we're going!" She paused to reflect
back to that moment. "He told me where to go as we flew into the sky." She
sighed, with a little flame coming out her nostrils. "It was a long journey;
we found countless kinds of pokémon. We even saved each other's lives
several times! Ahhh..., but then he wanted a family. He told me to fly back
to a town we passed on one of the trips, and sure enough, he found a young,
beautiful woman named Kate. She even invited me to the wedding! It was like
we knew each other from the beginning." She was a little teary eyed at how
much kindness and love they had toward her. "They had one child, a boy named
Adrian. Kate decided on that name and we agreed that it was a great name.
Sadly, Kate died of a disease unknown to them at the time. Crimson was heartbroken,
and so was his son, who was only six years old at the time. The little boy
turned to me and said, 'It is sad that mommy has gone, but it seems.... now.....
that you will help guide me through this life.' *sniffle* He looked at me
with solid blue eyes, not wavering or teary. I said to Crimson that he had
a strong hearted son, and that I would do what I could to make sure he lived.
Crimson, it seemed, was the only one who understood what I said, because
the little boy looked at his father bewildered." She looked over at Adrian,
sitting on a rock, listening to her, absorbing her words, motionless. "I
spent more years with them, then Crimson died of old age. He had asked me
to put his red stained scyther suit on him a few days before he died. His
son, who had a wife and a child then, dug the grave and made the box, using
only his strength and some tools. I attended the wake that was held for him.
There were hundreds of people, all of them lives he touched in some way.
His son asked me to stand in front of the crowd to say a few words after
everyone else had said their part. I don't think anyone knew what I said,
but they didn't need to; all who spoke said basically the same thing. When
I was done, I made a plume of fire that lit the entire place with light,
since it was nighttime when it ended." She paused and cleared her nostrils.
"None were more sad than his son and me. We stayed at his grave for one whole
week; not moving nor flinching. In that one week, winds gusted to forty miles
and hour. Rains poured hard, as if fleeing from the sky. The sun shone and
baked the ground at one hundred fifteen degrees Fahrenheit for fifteen hours
straight on two days. We sat, and endured it all. When it was exactly a week
later, his son rose from the ground, stood beside me and said, 'Come, we
must feast.'"
She stopped and looked over at Adrian. He was sitting,
almost in a trance, staring at her tail flame, since her tail was the source
of light in the now dark sky. "Adrian?"
"Hmm.. yes?" he said lightly.
"You've been sitting there, silent, almost in a trance."
"Sorry, I've been concentrating and absorbing all that
you have said. I hope the rest of those generations are just as interesting."
"No, they aren't, except one. I'll tell you after we get
some sleep. Don't you scare me like you did last time, now!" she said, smiling.
"I'll try not to!" And with that, they both got comfy
against some rocks and scattered plant life.
Adrian fell asleep after Charla did this time. He began
to dream.....
"Adrian.... Adrian....." A voice called his name. He opened
his eyes to see a vast sea of white and pearl color flowing all around him.
"Where... am I?" he asked.
"You are dreaming..... This place is in your mind.......
Open your mind and you will see me....." Adrian tried to do as commanded,
and succeeded. An image of an old man with a solid line down his face and
body stared him in the face. "I am Crimson. It is good to see that Charla
is still alive, and that this family line still lives. You are the first I
have contacted, since she told you more about me than she did previous times.
Your mind wondered so long and so far that you have given me a link to the
living world. From your mind I can see that your world is corrupted, and
pokémon are used as tools for fighting. Because of your devotion to
her story, my idea of pokémon will be born again, in another human
of high rank and power. From your mind, there should be others like me; possibly
the original captures of your mother's pokémon. A lot of things happened
with your ancestors; the convergence of all these different pokémon
to one person is no coincidence. Continue to listen to her stories, as well
as the stories of the others, and you will have the power to change the future
for the better!"
"Change the future? What?!"
"In my time, people could predict the future in various
ways. Of all the different ones I heard, they all agreed that, in thousands
of years, the world would be plunged into chaos by wars. All the wars would
be fought using pokémon. Needless to say, the end of pokémon
is what was predicted. I am telling you this now so you know that these stories
of past lives have meaning. When you wake, Charla will begin by hunting;
she will catch a nidoking; she will present you with the plating; she will
tell a story. Listen to it, absorb it like you did the rest. It will empower
you some day." As he finished, the sea of white began to go dark, and Adrian
awoke.
"Ughh..." he slept in a bad position and had aches. "Charla?"
She was nowhere to be seen. Must be out hunting.
It turned out to be true; she came back with a nidoking.
"I couldn't believe the luck I had when I saw this big lug running around!"
She dropped her kill in front of Adrian and began to gut it. "These guys have
incredibly tasty meat! I'll cook you some after it's all cleared out."
"I'll try it rare this time."
"Are you sure? Okay..." She handed him some of the muscle
from the nido's arm. Adrian looked over the blood enriched meat and started
to eat it.
"Soft, meaty.... wow!" he couldn't believe he was eating
it raw, but he loved the taste. He began to feel a little different after
he was done eating. "Huh, what's this?"
"It's the nido's hide! It would make a good mat or blanket
for you, but with all the plates, it could make good protection in a battle."
She then handed Adrian the hide.
"Hmm... It's a little thin, but very strong. I'll keep
it."
"Mmm hmm. Well, shall I continue my story?"
"Yes, please continue."
"It was a number of generations after Crimson's son's
that a strange event happened.."
"I stepped out of the man's home and was going hunting.
The person who was in charge of me this time was named Nicholas. He was already
married, but his wife didn't like the fact that I was there. She finally
left after having one child, a kid named Steven, who was sixteen and had
a job at the time. He never blamed me for his mother's leaving the family,
and Nick was sorry that she hated me. Anyway, I found another nidorino and
proceeded in killing it and having it for lunch. There was something strange
in the thing's blood. I didn't know what it was, but it would be too late
when I figured out. I brought home the kill, like always, and began ripping
the meat out of it. I normally just gut everything, since I am in no rush.
Nick came outside and saw what I bagged. 'Good hunt today, ehh,' he said,
since I didn't get anything the day before. He came close to me, and.....
and... I jumped on him....," she paused, remembering that frightful event,
"and I bit his arm. I came to my senses when I saw what I had done. I released
my jaw and got off him. I swear, if I chomped any harder I would have cracked
his arm. He got up and yelled to his son to go get the doctor. We lived close
by a small hospital which was run by several doctors and a bunch of nurses.
He ran and found the nearest doctor and told him what had happened. The doctor
picked up some items, and ran as fast as he could to the backyard of the
house where Nick was slowly bleeding to death. The doctor immediately began
to disinfect the wound then started to bandage it. I sat a few yards away,
sad that I had bit him. My back was facing him and my head was down. 'How
exactly did this happen?!" the doctor almost shouted after he was done helping
Nick. 'Charla bit me, but I know she didn't mean it. It must have been something
in her latest kill.' Nick said. The doctor said to me, 'This charizard? Well,
it should be locked up for doing something like this so it doesn't happen
again.' 'NO!!' Nick shouted, 'She has been in this family for a lot of generations,
and nothing like this ever happened!' I said that he was right. The doctor
looked bewildered, 'What did she say?' Nick must have looked at me, 'She
said that I was right.' Steven must have been confused when he said, 'I thought
you didn't understand her language.' 'It seems that I can, now,' Nick said,
slowly. 'Well, I'm getting out of here, the bill will be in the mail!' the
doctor said as he walked back to his hospital. It was a few days later when
I noticed a difference in his height. 'I didn't know humans could still grow
when they were middle aged.' I said looking at his new height. 'I can't fit
into my own shoes anymore,' he said, 'Could this have something to do with
that bite you gave me?' 'I think it does,' I said to him. He was now a couple
inches taller than me. Another few days passed by. He was a whole foot taller
than me, and most of his clothes couldn't fit him. His legs stopped growing
after that; only his feet began to grow and arch, like mine. 'I think I know
what's happening to you,' I told him, 'You are becoming a charizard!' He
began to take on more changes: his arms and legs began to grow heavy with
muscle, his neck began to lengthen, his head grew horns, and a tail shot
out of him after a few weeks. His hands and feet remained five fingered,
and he grew claws that could cut diamond. He had remained outside all this
time, afraid that he would smash things, and I brought him food when he needed
it. His tail flame grew with intensity, and began to glow white. He began
to scratch at his skin, which began to flake off his body, revealing a white
skin underneath. His eyes never changed; they were still the pale green he
had since he was a child. The hair on his body fell to the ground, except
for a long stripe of hair in the middle of his head. He slowly began to grow
taller by the day, topping out at eleven feet! Two months of changes passed
and soon he had a throbbing pain in his back. 'Can you please rub my back,
Charla.' he stated, not asking. I reached up and began to rub his white back.
'Ahhh... Thank you Charla, for all you've done for me these past months.'
'I couldn't just leave now, could I?' He relaxed, and hunched over. 'Charla,
please move out of the way, quick!' he yelled, holding something back. I
darted away just as it happened: his wings burst from his back in blood and
gore. He let out a roar load enough to make mountains burst into atoms."
She looked at Adrian, who had his eyes closed. "Are you awake?"
"Yes...., I am. I'm just envisioning it in my mind. Please
continue."
"All right..."
"His wing span reached a whopping thirty feet! The crimson
blood color against his white body began to stir some emotions from within
me. I walked over to him as he retracted his wings. He turned and looked
at me; his pale green eyes staring me in mine. With his giant, muscular hands,
he reached out and grabbed my hand softly and lightly pulled me his way.
'What you have done to me is irreversible. How you took care of me, I should
only pay back. In the light of a terrible event, you were calm, and thought
things through back then, in your world. You are not a charizard to me....
You are a beautiful person of grace and intelligence far acceding the limits
thought of your species. This world will know who you are: the mother of
the most omnipotent being of existence.' These were his exact words. I had
helped to create the most powerful being on the planet then. I couldn't resist
him. He took me under his arm and he flew me to a large mountain range hundreds
of miles away in a few minutes. He then set me down and flamed what was left
of the blood off his back. 'Charla, I will take care of you for as long as
I live. But I fear that will not be very long.' I looked at him: bulging
muscles on his chest and limbs, flat stomach, a flame hot enough to incinerate
me, able to fly faster than the speed of sound several times over. Something's
wrong? 'Because I was once human, I fear that my life span has been severely
shortened. Hm... I suppose we should get started by hunting. I did get the
urges of a normal charizard, you know.' He leapt up and shot to the nearest
forest. I guess scyther are everywhere and breed like those no tomorrow,
because he brought back six of them, all dead and dripping blood, half an
hour later. 'Five of them are to eat, this one is to test my flame on.' He
picked one up and threw it in the air. It flew high in the sky and started
to fall. Then he blew a flame so hot, and so concentrated, that it looked
as if he gave off a solar beam! The beam of pure, raging heat hit the bug
and incinerated it to nothingness. No shell, no ash. 'Ha!' With one hand
he cracked the shell of another scyther, and squeezed all the meat out of
the torso. He then snapped off the legs and put them in his mouth. He chewed
through the legs as if they were just crusts of bread. He then flamed the
meat from the torso a little, and handed it to me. 'You know I like it raw,'
I said to him. 'I know, I know.'"
Adrian took all of this in and saw it happening in his
mind. She didn't have to tell him what came next; he could tell. "So, what
did you name your son?"
Looking a little surprised at what he said during her
pause, "Oh, it was.... White-Flame. How did you know it was a male?"
"Just a guess, but it could've easily have been a female."
"Hm.... Well I thought of the name when I looked at his
tail flame; it was white. His skin was not white, though. It was a deep crimson,
deeper than my color. He also had golden eyes; something that shocked both
of us. sigh.... The years passed by. We went back to his original house.
His original son was still living there, with a wife. They had been married
barely a year when we came back. 'So, you finally came back, Father.' he
said with a bright smile on his face. 'Father? That?!' were the first words
out his wife's mouth. 'It may seem strange, but he was a human once, just
like you and me. But an accident happened, and he slowly changed into what
he is now. My, you look godly!' Nick stomped over to his son and picked him
up in his giant hands. 'Heh, you've grown a lot! I wish I could have seen
it.' He hugged him without crushing him and placed him back down. 'So, who's
your ma- I- I mean wife?' he said, pointing at the woman. They looked bewildered,
then she said, 'My name is Tiki, and I run a local hospital facility during
the day.' I thought it odd that she was named 'Tiki,' but I didn't say anything.
Life was normal after that. Nothing big happened until he started to wither.
'I'm dying...' Nick said, wheezing. 'I told you this would happen to me.'
I looked at him; the once god of pokémon now looked ancient. All the
muscle he once had was gone. He couldn't even stand. 'There's something I
want you to do before I pass on, Charla. Please, take me to a clearing far
from trees.' I did as told, but was shocked at just how much he weighed.
'I will teach you the secret to a technique I call 'Heavy Fire.' As the name
implies, there is a way to create and blow heavy fire. Look into my eyes....'
I looked at him, and he reached out with giant hand and touched my head. I
instantly felt a flow of knowledge from his hand. 'Now, cut my wings off...'
I looked at him as if he went mad, 'Cut your wings off?!' 'Yes..... and bring
two large bowls to catch the blood.' I was shocked. I called over Steven's
now twenty year old son, Kevin. 'Could you bring the two largest bowls in
the house, as well as a scyther blade?' He was born with the ability to understand
me somehow. 'Right away!' He brought the bowls and the blade a minute later.
Nick fell on stomach. 'Now, cut one off and catch blood until the bowl is
full, then flame the wound shut!' he almost shouted. I placed a bowl against
his right side and.... I began cut the wing. He let off a haunting yell that
caused me to jump, and the blade glided straight through, cutting the bone
and muscle. The wing fell off him and flapped as blood gushed out of the
open hole. The bowl filled quickly and I flamed the wound shut. 'AAAHHHhhhhh.......
Thank..... you..... Charla.... Now.... the other...... one.....' I couldn't
do that again. I hugged his neck, 'I'm sorry Nicholas, I can't do it..."
She stopped speaking for a few minutes, trying to regain
herself. Adrian got up and went to her. "Are you... all right?"
She almost began to cry, but she stopped trembling and
said, "Yes..... I will be fine. Please, I must continue...." Adrian sat next
to her, just in case.
"'I'll do it.' came from Steven. He was old, but had enough
strength to swing the blade. 'Shhtovon,' Nick was trying to speak in human
language, 'yoooowll..... mmmushhht..... d-d-dooooo..... it-t-t.....' Steven
looked at what was now his father, 'I will not let you down.' I got the other
bowl ready to catch the blood. Nick screamed, 'NNNOOOWWWWW!!!!' Steven brought
up the blade and let it sing through the air. A clean cut; the wing fell
off and flapped; Nicholas yelled; blood flowed like a river. I flamed the
wound shut when the bowl almost overflowed. 'Ch-ch-ch-char-la..... Dri-nk.....'
I looked at the bowl; in it I saw my reflection. I bent down and sucked up
some of the blood. It burned with heat. 'Sshhhhhonnnnnn.....,' he wanted
to see his son, White-Flame. Kevin was way ahead of me; he already brought
out the charmander, now towering over others with a height of four feet.
'Char?' he asked. 'Dddrrrrinnnnnkk.......' White-Flame saw the bowl that
was in front of me, and drank the rest of it. As soon as he was done, he
looked up and blew a white hot flame. 'He finally blew fire!' I shouted.
Nick motioned his hand to me. 'Cccooommme....' I came near him and he reached
up with his giant hand and touched my head. He spoke to me through the connection.
'I want you and White-Flame to save my wings. Do not worry about them decaying;
they will not. Tell Kevin that I want him, his father and mother, and everyone
that falls in the line of this family to drink one small cup of my blood.
It will always stay as it is now, and will never move until one dips a chalice
into its space. Someone in this family line will receive instructions as
to what my wings will be used for when the time comes. Now.... tell everyone
to run, as far as they can still see all of me. Go....' He took his hand
off and began to move. 'Hurry, we must all leave, quickly!' I shouted to
the others. I picked up the wings and the bowls and flew off to a safe distance.
He was right, the blood in the bowl never moved. White-Flame, Steven, and
Kevin made their way to where I was. In the distance, we saw what Nick was
doing. He stood up on his feet, lunged his head high, and did an ICE ATTACK!
How this was possible I'll never know, but he somehow blew a freezing breath
that made the area around him begin to snow. I also saw that it began to
rain in that area as well. These are the things any fire pokémon fears,
since it can cause death. The snow began to build; the rain began to pour
with gale winds. In one quick action the whole area froze into a solid block
of ice.. but we could still see tail flame burning inside!! I couldn't hold
it any longer; I flew to the ice, White-Flame in hand. 'CHAARRRR!!!' he screamed
as he saw his tail flame slowly withering. I couldn't believe it either.
Then a voice called to me, '...let him touch the ice...' I walked up to the
frozen cage and released White-Flame. He ran to the ice and tried to claw
his way through. '....you will always have my blessing.....' the voice came
again, '...now he will be complete....' It was Nicholas! 'Char?!' White-Flame
was becoming charmeleon! I couldn't believe it! He gave me one last look
and then flamed hot enough to make the sun seem like just a warm place! I
took White-Flame away from the ice just as it happened. The frozen cage exploded
into boiling rain, which quickly disappeared. We then walked back to the
house. There was nothing left of him in the field; no ashes at all. I still
remembered the message he told me, and so I told it to Kevin, who then told
it to Steven and Tiki. The bowl of his blood remained solid until Kevin dipped
a chalice into it. He scooped up a little of the blood and drank, 'It's burning
within me.' He handed the cup to Tiki, who did the same and passed it to
Steven. His experience was a little different, 'It was almost as if I drank
liquefied fire!' White-Flame, a charmeleon now, began to say something, 'What
were my people like?' It was the first time he said a word besides 'char.'
I may as well take you to them I said to him. I had been exiled from that
place long ago, but I must show him who we are." Charla stopped and looked
at Adrian, who was leaning against her, with his eyes looking in a fixed part
of space.
"Tired?" he asked looking up to her.
"Tired, no. Tired of talking, yes. Charizards do not make
good speakers. Hm... I've told you more about me than I told anyone
in your family. I think it's time we leave for home, now."
"But you left a cliffhanger: what ever happened to your
son?"
"I took him to that island and everyone saw us come in.
All the faces I remembered were still there, unchanged. My mother was the
first to say something, 'I am glad you are home, again.' My father stepped
forward and shouted to the rest of the charizards there, 'SHE HAS COME BACK!'
Everyone came to greet me, and my son. 'What?! I thought he was concealing
his wings! Look, it's a giant charmeleon!' He was big, almost too big for
the trip there. At seven feet tall, and all muscle, he was taller than nearly
all the others, including me. 'He is named White-Flame, for how his tail
flame burns.' Everyone looked. No one's tail flame shone that brightly. 'Who
was the father?' asked my father. He was a god is what I told him. Then I
told exactly what had happened to create him, and how he died. 'Your prophecies
were true, Ash. She would come back with the white flamed child,' an elder
said to another. The elder Ash was the oldest of this group at around six
thousand years at that time. He stepped forward and said, 'The prophecy also
stated that this child must stay on this island. In about two thousand years,
he will be called upon to help save the world. What you do now could effect
the outcome of the future world. I can't tell you what to do now. None of
us can. You must make a decision.' I decided to leave my son in the care
of my parents, and to fly back to the human family I was used to." She looked
up. "I wonder how he is, if he has his father's heart, if he's a father now...."
"Everything is all right, Charla. Now, if you want, we
can leave." Adrian said, slowly.
"Thank you for listening so well Adrian. I don't think
any of your ancestors sat through a story like you did! They mostly fell
asleep about half way through." They packed everything they had and went
home.
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