NOTE: my first story. the title may change cuz i didnt really have a good one in mind... i dont expect this to be very good or very liked but if you dont like it, please dont be mean. i just needed a place to finally get this idea out! comments are appreciated :)
Rating: T for possible language and violence.
- Disclaim: i do NOT own Pokemon. -
xxx
Clouds were heavy and saturated with rain over a dark forest near the summit of Mount Pyre. The mountain was shrouded in mist, like it always was, as night settled in silently.
Beneath one tall pine tree in the middle of the woods, a lovely young Ninetails was hurrying to gather her siblings together to sleep. The six rambunctious Eevee romped about, biting each other's ears and tackling and squeaking happily.
"Settle down!" the Ninetails coaxed, swishing her many silky tails irritably back and forth.
One of her brothers suddenly rolled and nearly knocked her hind feet out from beneath her.
"Nidd, get in the nest!"
Two of the others attempted to start climbing the tree, but the Ninetails tugged them down by their tails.
"Rena, you should know better," she scolded one of her sisters. "Now, all of you, before I have to resort to using a Flamethrower."
"You always say that, Dahlia!" whined the second-youngest, a little Eevee boy named Rhodo.
"I mean it this time! Your mother put me in charge before she left, so you need to listen to me. Sleep time—now!"
Groans of disapproval rose from her siblings as they crawled, tails tucked between their legs, into the hole in the tree trunk and curled up amongst each other.
Dahlia shook her head. They weren't her blood-siblings, obviously, but ever since she'd found them struggling for their lives in the desert only a few months back, she couldn't bring herself to leave them on their own until they were old enough. She couldn't consider herself their mother, seeing that she wasn't but two years older than Hallow, the oldest of three years, so she was content with the title of their eldest sister.
"Well," she said, flipping the long crest of fur away from her crimson eyes, "I think you all need a good sleep."
The largest Eevee padded his way to the hole where Dahlia peered in at them. "You promised you'd take us to the very top of the mountain tomorrow."
"It's a long way there, Hallow," she said, and gave his cheek a gentle nuzzle. "You better get some rest if you wanna take that big hike."
He gave her a dismissive look as he turned around. His ears twitched, he glanced around at the other Eevees, then back at his oldest sister. "Where's Tucker?"
Startled, Dahlia's eyes darted from one brown furball to the next. She counted Rena, Nidd, Itasca, Rhodo, Hallow… but Tucker, the youngest, was not among them.
"He's around here somewhere," she said, though uncertain of her words. "You all relax while I go find him. If I come back and any one of you is gone, you'll all be in big trouble." She moved away from the tree and trotted into the woods.
Raising her muzzle to the breeze, she searched for Tucker's scent. He couldn't have gone too far, he was barely four months old, and this wasn't uncommon in the least. Tucker would wander away from the group out of simple curiosity on numerous occasions, but usually he was too tired to attempt an escape before bedtime.
Dahlia called his name across the forest, but the only sound she heard was the chortling of Taillow in the trees and her paws scuffing the soft dirt. Above her thunder growled like an angry Ursaring, and guilt washed over her at the thought of how frightened Tucker or any of the other Eevees would be.
Her sharp eyes caught sight of a sleek brown shape in the darkness up ahead, something no doubt alive and moving. The silence was being broken by a pitiful squeal for help. Squinting, Dahlia saw the unnatural shapes of two misfit Pokémon, a Banette and a Duskull named Midge and Heath, hovering above the cowering form of a juvenile Eevee.
Dahlia was quick to react. She charged forth, bearing flame between her jaws, and leapt at the Duskull, seizing him beneath her strong forelegs.
Heath's glowing red eye shook at the sight of her from beneath his mask. "Oh, crap! Dahlia! We were just-"
"Save it!" she barked, spewing embers from her fangs. "I want you two away from my brother and away from me!"
"Let's book it, man!" yelped Midge, waving his puppet-like arms. "Remember how bad she beat us last time!"
"And I hope it teaches you a lesson!" Dahlia stepped off of Heath with a snort. "You leave my family alone or-" She paused upon catching a whiff of something strange, something she'd never smelled before.
Tucker, who had hurried to seek refuge beneath his sister's belly, sniffed the air as well.
But before she could make any conclusions, the ground began to tremble. It was gentle at first, but soon it became a great quake.
"The mountain's coming alive!" Midge shrieked. "It's the end of the world!" He and Heath vanished into thin air.
The trees were shaking terribly, raining pine needles down on the two fox-like Pokémon below. Tucker called, "What's happening?"
"I'm not sure," replied Dahlia, trying to sound unafraid. "I think something's going on underneath the ground."
The rumbling only became louder and more violent as the mountain's other inhabitants began to scatter. It wasn't long after that there was a massive explosion that knocked Dahlia and her brother clear off all four paws.
Mount Pyre had erupted. While ash plumed from the broken peak, lava began spilling down the sides like hot blazing fudge down a giant ice cream sundae. It washed away the gravestones, flowed over the rock faces, knocked down trees.
Dahlia was frozen in place; she watched almost helplessly as molten rock flowed treacherously toward them. Toward her family.
"Tucker!" she cried. "We have to run!" But knowing he wouldn't be fast enough, she snatched him up gently in her maw by the loose skin on his fluffy neck, and she bolted.
By the time she reached the tree, her legs were aching. She set Tucker down briefly to speak to the frightened Eevees, "We have to get to the water. It's a long way down but it's our only chance!"
"But we can't swim!" whined Itasca.
"We'll think of something once we get there. Let's hurry. The mountain just blew up and lava's coming this way."
Though Dahlia was much faster than her siblings, she kept their pace to guide them. They were halfway down the mountain when Nidd tripped and tumbled with a pained cry.
Dahlia skidded to a stop. "Keep running, all of you!" she told the others, then turned to Nidd, "Can you still run?"
"I got hurt!" he said quietly, raising a wounded paw.
So she picked him up and carried him off in pursuit of her siblings, who had managed to create a good distance between them. It took a long time, but when they finally reached the base of the mountain, all the Eevees collapsed in fatigue.
Now she had to think of a way to get them all across the lake. Even she couldn't swim, so it had to be large enough for her as well, whatever it was.
"Dahlia!"
At the sound of her voice, Dahlia pricked up her ears. Her friend Nada was an older Nidoqueen who didn't show herself much, and here she stood looking frantic.
The Ninetails said, "I need a way to get my brothers and sisters across the lake, out of danger."
"I can take them," Nada told her with a glance back at where the lava had reached. It was well past the mountain's midsection, well past where Dahlia's tree had been. "But what will you do?"
"I'll manage somehow," Dahlia replied.
Nada didn't seem convinced. However, she gathered the exhausted Eevees at her feet and ushered them toward the shore, "Little ones, climb on my back. I'll get you somewhere safe."
Dahlia could only watch her family crawl up between the Nidoqueen's long spikes. Once in place, they gave her a questioning look.
"Go with Auntie Nada," she told her siblings, "I'll be there soon."
Nada looked at her over her shoulder, "You watch yourself, dear." And she waded into the water to begin her swim across the lake.
The air was now filled with smoke and the sound of panicking. All around Dahlia were other terrified Pokémon fleeing the mountain, from Murkrow to Shuppet and many more. Those who couldn't find their way across the water, like some Vulpix and a few Numel, stood hopelessly on the sandy bank.
She hung her head. Not even she could withstand a lava flow. If this was it, she wouldn't be able to watch her young family grow up. Maybe some of them would evolve. Maybe some of them would have trainers. Maybe they would start a family of their own.
No, she thought, I'll be there for all of that. I'll make it. With renewed determination, she decided she would make an attempt to swim. Perhaps the dangers of water were all mind-induced.
The lava was much closer—it was now or never. She gathered her courage, closed her eyes, took off at a sprint, and just before the water's edge she leapt a great distance away from the shore, so far she was almost flying.
But then she was falling.
The water hit her like a suffocating cloud, and suddenly she found herself surrounded by cold wetness. She didn't know what to do next. Kicking with her hind legs, she sought a way to the air, but she wasn't sure which way that was.
Scared now, she opened her eyes, during which the cold stung them. A dark shape was approaching, something particularly large; she made the mistake of snapping at it. Water filled her mouth, her throat, and she felt the world slip away as the shape seized her by the ears.
xxx
personally i hate this first chapter but im hoping itll get better. reviews?