A cold, fell wind rolled down the mountainside, blowing strongly through the field of snow at the base of the rocks, the blustery air accompanied by the foreboding sound of creaking wood and thin slush sliding onto the ground. I raised an arm up, holding a ball of swirling energy in my paw, the aura sphere shedding a faint, blue light onto our surroundings, and I scanned ahead, furrowing my brow as I took in the sight of the numerous icy, abandoned shacks. I gave the straps of the treasure bag a tug, feeling my aura tassels bounce against the leather, but stopped in my tracks when I heard something thud into the dirt, my ear twitching at the noise.
"Oh wow... wow!" I relaxed when a wiry mink skipped past me, pausing a couple steps away and spinning around, flinging flakes of snow off of her tied fur sleeves. Her whiskers bounced as she spoke, her voice filled with her usual childlike enthusiasm. "So is this the village we're supposed to go to? Is it, Bill, is it, is it?"
"I think so, Erin." I nodded, turning around to check on my other two teammates, brushing crumbs of sleet off of my chest, my fur ruffling even more as the wind suddenly changed direction. A cream-furred fox, hot on my heels, winced as the gale buffeted her, her nine fluffy tails whipping wildly to her side; the blue sea lion at the rear of the group simply drew one of his seamitars and stomped forward, the supplies in his hiking pack jostling noisily.
"Th'place looks deserted!" Cyan remarked, stabbing his blade into the dirt and stroking his mustache, and I followed his gaze, staring at the various patches of ice that had formed on parts of the houses. Some of the frozen patches covered up holes that had been blasted into the walls, others creeped up from the bottom of the planks and logs, and one roof in particular had been iced over and then shattered, leaving the inside to be flooded with snow. "This Froslass that Officer Magnemite was talkin' 'bout sure wrecked this place t'th'abyss an' back, no wonder he was wantin' us t'help catch her!"
"He didn't mention anything about the Pokemon living here, though," Rose chimed in, padding up to my side, her eyes lost on the ruined house. I reached out and gently tousled her headfur, and she leaned into my paw with a worried sigh, wiping her nose on her scarf before continuing. "I hope everyone was able to make it out okay. If she's frozen anyone solid and taken them away-"
"I'm sure everybody's fine, Rose!" Erin cut the fire type Pokemon off, hopping back over to us and rocking back and forth on her heels, packing a couple snowballs together and slipping them into her sleeves, playfully swinging them around in the air. "We'll get this mean old Froslass and bring her back so she can't do anything like this again!"
The Mienshao ended up statement with a short nod, and Rose smiled slightly and shook her head; I grinned when I saw the fox's expression brighten. Cyan was less than thrilled, however, scooping up a blade-ful of snow with his seamitar and letting it slide onto Erin's head. The younger explorer paused, flinging her couple of snowballs into the air and shaking the cold slush off instead, shimmying her entire body around until the sea lion stopped. "Y'think you're gonna save th'day by hittin' this kooky ol' lady with a snowball? Quit playin' around, Erin, an' get a throwin' stone or somethin' ready instead!"
I opened my mouth to nip their griping in the bud, but there was a flash of light in the corner of my eye, accompanied by a strange, whistling buzz, and I grimaced as a sudden chill ran down my newly-weighted paw, no doubt from a stray snowballs falling into my aura sphere. I let my arm fall, getting ready to shake the slush off my wrist... and then I stopped when I saw the ball of solid ice that I held between my pawpads, still giving off a soft blue glow. My muscles tensed, and I hunched down, waving the frozen aura sphere at my teammates to get their attention, letting it plummet to the earth once an addled cackle rang out above the wind.
"Well, I guess we can give up on trying to pull an ambush," I quipped dryly, scanning around the abandoned village for any sign of where the blast of ice had come from, and Rose stepped up to my flank, letting out an exhale as she stoked her inner fire. The air surrounding us grew warmer with each passing second – I silently thanked Arceus once again for the fox's continued existence – and Erin scrambled back to my other side, climbing onto Cyan's backpack and stuffing her paws into her belt pouch, rooting through berries, bottles and bandages alike.
Slowly and cautiously, the four of us wandered into the village proper; I sidled up against one of the ruined huts, taking a moment to focus my energy, my aura tassels hovering slightly off of the treasure bag as metal claws sprouted from my pawspikes. Rose moved past me and peeked around the corner, looking right, then left, her fur bristling while she searched for the hidden Froslass. Cyan and Erin kept close to the both of us, the former walking backwards, wearing a wary glare as he readied his seamitars, and Erin let her fur sleeves hang limp as she flattened herself against her friend's bag.
I glanced at Rose again, and when the fire type nodded at me, I elbowed one of Cyan's legs, beckoning him to follow along as my partner slipped out of sight, a couple of her fluffy tails pressing at the wall. The Samurott peeked over his shoulder and grunted, shuffling along as quietly as he could, smoothing out our footsteps with the flat of his blade.
The four of us stayed on guard for a good few minutes, the air heavy with tension as we slunk from house to house, staying behind as much cover as we could while searching for the elderly Froslass, eventually ending up near a half-built cabin at the edge of the village. Rose suddenly stopped when we got out of the wind, strands of her headfur falling into her eyes, and she ducked into her scarf, shaking her head to clear her vision. I reached over and pinched a few locks, pulling them back behind her ears, and peered over at the side of the mountain, rising high above our heads, so high that the peak was hidden by the clouds.
"She's really good at hiding, huh?" Erin piped up, raising her head and resting her chin in her paws, cheerfully kicking her legs in the air. Cyan reached over his shoulder, but I sent him a short wave before he grabbed the Mienshao's tail. "I can't see her and I know the snow the best out of all of us, heeheehmph-!"
Everyone snapped around to stare at the fighting type, a small chunk of ice having frozen the front of her nose, turning her remark into a panicked series of grunts, and I looked back at the mountain, peering across the village at one of the houses. I sucked in a breath when I saw an arch of ice swirling above a figure in the distance, and I ducked low, guarding my own mouth behind my forearm as I called out to my teammates. "Hey, get down! She's over there, on the other side!"
My warning came just in the nick of time, as Rose dove into the snow, and I stumbled out of the way of the icy wind that the Froslass sent our way, Erin still yelling mutely as she tried to pry the ice from her mouth. Cyan hopped forward and brought his swords around to his side, grunting as the dangerous gust hit him full-force, and I saw a few frozen crystals start to form in the ridges of his arm's scabbard while I picked myself up. The Samurott deftly cleaned his armor off with a swipe of his blade, and Erin manged to free herself, standing on her tiptoes and flinging the chunk of ice away with a small, confused frown.
"Erin, hold on t'me!" Cyan growled loudly, marching a few steps ahead and stabbing his swords into the snow. The sea lion briefly looked at Rose, then at me, and gave us a grumpy glare, jabbing his helmet towards our foe. "What're you two waitin' for!? Go!"
Erin flung her arms around her friend's neck, and before either Rose or I could reply, water suddenly surrounded the younger Pokemon's body, and he propelled himself forward with his seamitars, jetting through the snow at breakneck speed. I glanced at the Ninetales at my side, and she nodded, tails curling and uncurling as she dashed towards one of the other houses; I swung my metal claws in the air a couple times before heading in the other direction.
Chilling gales still ripped through the village, accompanied by the sound of Cyan shooting a water gun right back at the Froslass, both attacks sometimes colliding and shattering to pieces in midair. The shards of ice and water turned to a sparkling mist that rose even above the roofs of the huts and shacks, and I heard a yell of shock once the cloud had faded. "What the- where th'heck did she go!? Bill, Rose, look out, we lost her again!"
I paused near the corner of a house, taking Cyan's warning to heart, breathing hard as the cold started to nip at my feet, buried ankle-deep in snow, and I blinked when something phased right through the rotting wood – and phased through me as well. Turning and watching the shadow ball fly into the distance and then vanish from sight, I grinned cheekily, squatting down and digging my paws into the snow, pushing it out of the way until I could finally see the brown, damp soil underneath. I carved the dirt up somewhat with my claws, then grabbed a pawful, squeezing it and packing it into a glob of mud.
"Ooh hoo hoo...! There you are, little'un, please come home now, hide and seek is over..."
My fur stood on end when I heard the ice type sweetly speak up behind me, and I swiveled on my heels, only to get slapped hard in the face for my trouble, once, twice, thrice! I lost my focus as pain stung me, my claws losing their luster, then dissipating into motes of aura, and I reflexively jumped back before the Froslass could strike again. I massaged my sore cheeks with a free paw, narrowing my eyes when I watched the old Pokemon miss her fourth slap, spinning around and getting dizzy in the process. She burst into another round of cackles, the ribbon on her waist dragging on the ground as she tried – and failed – to stifle her laughter; I could see the withered gait to her hovering and the cloudiness in her eyes.
Footsteps, coming from the other side of the house, got us both to sharpen up again, and the addled elder raised her arms skyward, seemingly wanting to whip up another gust of cold air, but I lashed forward first, slamming my paw into her head and smearing mud across her face. The Froslass screeched as I pushed her over, flailing her arms about blindly, but I had only just pinned her down when she smashed her palm into my belly, winding me. I doubled over, heaving as my strength drained away, and a deathly chill ran through my fur, just underneath my blunted chestspike, ice snaking around and constricting my torso.
A gasp escaped from my throat, and I almost immediately started to cough the air back up, a few tears leaking from my eyes as the Froslass stared me down, the clods of mud freezing to her face as she suffocated me. I bent my knees, weakly trying to shove the ice type away, but easily dodged my kicks, snickering again as she inched closer and closer to my face, pushing me up to the nearby house, wearing a strangely nurturing look. "Don't cry, my dear, I'm here-"
"Aha, ahaaaa! I found you, you mean old lady!" Distantly, Erin screamed, causing the aging Froslass to stop not even an inch away from my mouth... and then I grimaced when she jolted forward, smacking her forehead against mine with a loud, splattery bump. The world darkened, just a little bit, and mud dripped down my nose even as the ice type loosened her grip on me, a half-crumbled snowball sliding down her neck and rolling onto the ground.
"Cyan, you help Bill, okay? We can deal with Froslass!" Rose ordered, her voice thick with both worry and anger, and I shut my eyes, not feeling up to even paying attention anymore. Someone grabbed my shoulder and peeled me off of the cabin wall, and something flatter and smoother ran across my front, poking the band of ice on my torso before slicing into it.
The entire thing audibly cracked, then melted, soaking my torso completely, and I opened my mouth and inhaled as much as I could, making a loud and rather obnoxious sound in the meantime. Sweet, delicious, cold, fresh air flooded into my lungs, and I wheezed in relief, letting Cyan raise me into a sitting position to help me recover. The sea lion walked around me, standing guard as I wiped at my matted fur, and he reached over and dropped something into my lap; I had to raise my legs somewhat to keep it still, and, after a few moments more, I snatched it up.
It was an oran berry. It looked so inviting, I couldn't help but bite half of it off in one go.
"You doin' alright now?" I heard my teammate ask, and I gulped down the fruit and nodded gratefully, feeling my fatigue start to fade. "Geez, this ol' lady's worse than w'thought!"
I popped the rest of the oran into my mouth before reaching up to massage my forehead, still pounding from my brief inability to breath, and I glanced past my teammate at the Froslass, mulling her earlier remarks over as Rose and Erin ran back and forth to corner her. Cyan reared back before spitting another shot of water at the icy ghost, and she whirled around to stare at the Samurott and I when the stream splashed into her.
"What in the world are you doing? You musn't try to hurt your elders-" I shivered a little as the Froslass scolded Cyan with a wagging finger; the water type crossed his swords defensively, and I tried to get back to my feet, only to stumble and slump back onto my knees. Our foe was interrupted when a large stone smacked the kooky Pokemon's raised arm, and the corners of my mouth twitched upward in satisfaction, ever-so-slightly, when I watched Rose close in and let loose with a flamethrower. "Aaarrrurur!"
The Ninetales jumped away, letting the ice type yell in pain, and the old Froslass slowly stopped hovering – the edges of her ribbon just barely grazing against the snowfield – and crumpled into unconsciousness, my partner's attack having finished the job. The harsh gales that were blowing down the mountain seemed to slow down as soon as the ghost had fallen, and soon enough, the abandoned village was entirely, eerily, deafeningly silent. Even the wet, snow-soaked wood wasn't creaking or shaking anymore
I took another deep breath, then made a second attempt to stand, valiantly staying upright on my wobbly legs before I let myself lean into Cyan's side, grabbing onto one of the pockets of his hiking pack. My whole body still ached, the treasure bag feeling heavy on my shoulders. "Sorry, Cyan, but I think I'm going to have to hitch a ride with you on the way back."
"Bah, that's fine, Bill-" Cyan said, stroking his mustache with a small smile, but he hunched over with a wince when Erin and Rose jogged over to us a couple seconds later, the former pouncing on to Cyan's backpack, carrying the old, fainted Froslass in tow.
"Yaaaaay, we did it! That wasn't too bad!" The Mienshao cheered, tail whipping around and whiskers bouncing as she celebrated, and she looked around the village from her perch, her eyes widening to the size of saucers when she noticed me. "Oh, oh no, Bill! You look really tired, are you okay?"
The younger explorer lay the Froslass down, grabbed my pawspike, and tugged on my arm, and I managed to crack a grin even as a wave of weariness flooded over me, glancing over at Rose when the cream-furred fox worriedly nudged my hip with her nose. I reached over to the Ninetales and tousled her headfur, scratching behind her sad, flattened ears, then reached out above my head. "Heh, I'm okay, but if you could pull me up, I'll be even more okay."
Erin giggled at that, and as Cyan squatted down to offer me a seat on his hiking pack, I caught a glimpse of Rose smiling in relief.