Chapter 1: Divine Storm
The sun filtered down through the trees, the sounds of birds filling the morning air. It was a scene of idyllic peace and tranquility. A soft breeze gently rustled the leaves of the trees along the valley floor. A babbling brook wound its way along like a glittering ribbon in the spring sun.
Peace, however, wherever it is found, is short lived. A blood-curdling shriek filled the air, the birds which had been resting in the trees nearby taking flight.
Near the middle of the valley, along with a small outcropping of rocks, a young family of absol had made their home. The white-furred wolf-like pokemon had just had their first litter together, and it was at this point that the ruckus originated.
Near the mouth of a small cave, two of the three young absol fought, while a third lay at the entrance of the cave watching. It had all started over a bone that had been discarded by their parents, and that both had wanted to play with. Of course neither had been willing to share with the other and soon the toy became a source of contention between the pair.
The larger of the combatants and oldest of the three siblings was Jen. Her snow white fur gleamed in the sun. Hanging from the blade which protruded from her head, was her youngest sibling, and the only boy in the family, Jude.
Jude had been the last to be born of the three and was by far the smallest and weakest of the group. While Jen was confident and strong, and Lex was quick and smart, Jude was small but showed great determination. Even now as he was being wildly shaken about by his sister, the youngest of the three absol was not about to back down.
"Get off me you little squirt," Jen shouted, whipping her head side to side.
She was nearly twice as big as Jude was and even able to lift him off the ground a bit with some of her fierce shakings. Jude, however, hung on tight, growling at his sister.
"You should just give him the bone," Lex commented from the cave, her attention only partially fixed on the pair. "It's garbage anyhow, and mom will be back any minute."
"Oh this isn't about the bone anymore," Jen said with a growl. "This is about showing little Jude here his place in the pack."
With this, Jen reared back and with a huff swung her head so hard that Jude lost his grip and was sent flying into a nearby bush. The smaller absol growled in frustration, trying to get himself back up.
"Just you wait," Jude snarled as he fought with the branches of the bush in which he found himself tangled up in. "I'll get out of this, and when I do you'll be sorry."
"You keep telling yourself that," Jen growled as she turned to collect the bone that they had been fighting over.
Jude struggled in the brambles and branches of the bush, trying to break himself free of their hold over him. The wet, green wood of early spring would not give way easily though, and it took a great deal for him to break himself out.
Lex watched Jude as he struggled against the bush, feeling a little sorry for her brother, but she did nothing to help him. If he ever wanted to get anywhere in life, she knew that he would have to struggle and fight for it. That was the way of the wild: those too weak to take what they wanted would end up dead at the teeth or claws of those strong enough to claim it.
Jen at this point had lost all interest in her brother, gnawing away at the bone that she had claimed as her own. She really did not care whether Jude would break himself out of the bush or not. At some point, their mother would make it back and would get him out of there, lick up his little tears and tell him just how special he was for being himself. It was sickening to watch.
Jude meanwhile had stopped his struggles. Not that he was any less angry, in fact, he was more so than ever. But he had realized that he was not going to be getting out of the bush by attacking it wildly without any rhyme or reason. Instead, he looked about at his surroundings: his sisters, neither of which were paying attention to him, the branches in which he was tangled up, nearby sandshrew which was foraging for insects nearby. It all started to click for him.
Jude snickered softly to himself. If there was one thing he was good at, it was antagonizing people.
Wiggling around in the bush, the Absol tried his best to mimic the movements of a caterpie moving about. It took a moment for the sandshrew to notice this, but eventually it did, making its way over cautiously to investigate the sounds coming from within.
Jude had to stop himself from laughing. It was all working out far too well, he just needed to get the little ground pokemon a bit closer.
Finally, as the sandshrew began poking its nose into the bush, Jude struck,the Absol kicking the little pokemon's nose as hard as he could manage trapped as he was. The sandshrew grunted and reared up, looking Jude dead in the eye.
Jude could not be happier, the whole plan had come together so far, and now all he needed to do was to add insult to injury, making a mocking face at the sandshrew.
The small earthy mouse grunted in rage, its sharp claws reared back to attack. Jude held his breath. He had to move just in time or he would end up on the receiving end of the powerful slash as well as the offending branches.
As the sandshrew slashed down at the absol with blinding fury, the little dark pokemon did his best to wiggle out of the way. Sharp claws tore through the branches which held him in place, missing him by the slimmest of margins.
Finally, the little absol was free to have his revenge on his sister. As the little earth mouse reared back for another attack, Jude sprung from the bush, using the sandshrew as a springboard for his attack on his sister.
The ground pokemon quickly curled up into a ball after this, unsure of what had just happened, and startled by the lightning fast pounce of the little absol.
Jen, so engrossed with the bone she had claimed earlier, and not expecting Jude to have worked himself out of the bush without his mother's help turned around just in time to see her brother, mid-pounce, about to impact her body.
There really was nothing that she could do. The younger absol once again grabbed onto the spike on the side of her head, though this time he was in a much better position to take control of the hold.
"You little brat," Jen shrieked as Jude tossed her about.
"Say I'm stronger," Jude growled through his teeth. "Say it!"
Jen did not reply. Instead, she used her much greater weight to her advantage. As Jude tried to toss her, she shifted, causing the smaller male to falter. That was all that Jen needed to take control of the fight back.
Jude did not even know what hit him. One moment the littler absol was in complete control of the fight, and the next he found himself stumbling over his own paws. A hard shake of his sister's head dragging him along the ground as he hung on for dear life.
Jen shook her head back and forth violently, once more tossing Jude, though this time he landed with a thud in front of Lex.
"Leave me out of this," The smaller of the two girls cried as she darted away from the fighting pair and back into the den.
"I'm going to claw you up so much your coat is going to be red for the rest of your life," Jen shouted angrily raising a paw to slash at Jude.
"Jen, Jude, enough!"
Jen turned to the sound of the voice, Jude straining to get a look as his mother slowly stepped into view. Jude shuddered a little at the tone of her voice and the look on her face.
"Fighting is one thing, but this," The female absol growled as Jen let Jude get up. "We're a family first and foremost. We don't use our claws on family, is that understood?"
"Yes, mother," the two absol pups said in unison, looking down at the ground in shame.
Jude stood in silence, the ground rocky and barren as he shook his head. The absol looked around for the others. He had let himself slip away again, slip into his own thoughts, not paying attention to what was going on around him.
Things had been hard since the death of his master, well his as well as others. Shard, a weavile and Hearth a houndoom also were his master's, as well as a certain murderous lucario.
This was the reason they were out in the cold to begin with. It was not bad enough that Hildegard had callously murdered their master before running off, but by doing so she had doomed them all to a life back in the wild.
Jude grumbled under his breath, kicking a small pebble down the way. The absol was as stubborn as ever, and he was going to use that stubbornness to hunt down Hildegard and get some well-deserved vengeance for his master, his team, and himself.
The only problem was, he had no idea where he would find her, which is why he had talked his team into helping out. Neither of them seemed overly thrilled about the idea though.
Jude did not understand it either. They both were cast out into the wild with him after everything had been taken care of. Their master's family thought that they were being kind to them, giving them a chance to live their lives in the wild, but the wild was a cruel place, one where you either killed, or you were killed.
Hearth seemed to know this better than all of them. Jude could not help but feel that the houndoom had done some terrible things before she had been captured. She honestly made his skin crawl and his fur stand on end to be around, but she had been crucial in keeping everyone together after they had been discarded.
Shard, on the other hand, was far from helpful to the group. She seemed to take nothing seriously and went out of her way to make the absol angry. She was a troublemaker through and through. She had also, however, pulled the group out of some tight jams, and aside from Hildegard may have been their master's favorite.
Jude stopped a moment and looked around. It suddenly dawned on him that neither Shard or Hearth were anywhere to be seen.
"Why? Why can't they just stick close?" Jude moaned to himself as he turned back.
The mountains they were in were steep and rugged, a good place to get ambushed or to have an accident. Jude had been insistent that they stick close together so that Hildegard could not take them by surprise, but of course, that had gone over well.
Jude hurried back down the rocky slopes, keeping a sharp eye out on the paths. He had to make sure they were safe, especially Shard. She might be the biggest pain in his rear, but she was especially weak to the lucario and would be the first one picked off for sure.
As Jude rounded a tight corner he felt his paws lose traction, his body sliding out from under him as he tried to slow down for the turn. There was only half a moment to look down, his body sliding along the mountain towards a cliff on a sheet of pure ice, one that had definitely not been there earlier.
Clawing hard into the ice, the absol tried to stop himself before it was too late, but even this seemed to be a futile last effort, and Jude closed his eyes, not wanting to see as he flew off the cliff and into oblivion.
THWACK!
The absol felt his body slam into something solid, but it certainly wasn't the ground. It felt like he had hit a solid wall. His whole body ached as he slowly opened his eyes, the sound of hysterical laughter filling his ears.
Standing just behind a small rock was Shard, the weavile bent over in laughter as she looked at the poor absol.
"Oh, Arceus! You really thought you were going over that edge. You were just going to let it happen too," She howled in laughter, almost choking as she forgot to breathe. "Good thing I got that wall up just in time. You were earlier than I thought you'd be."
"You could have killed me," Jude snapped, slipping on the ice as he tried to stand.
"Oh Judy come on, don't be like that," Shard gasped as she caught her breath. "I wouldn't have let you fall. Honest."
Jude tried once again to stand, and once more he fell.
"Don't call me Judy," The absol growled, his four legs scrambling to stay underneath him even as he tried to balance himself, the absol crashing once more to the ground and slowly sliding to the ice wall, his face bumping gently against it.
Shard once again burst out in laughter. The weavile just could not help but feel such immeasurable joy at the poor dark type's misfortune. It was all just so funny to her, and even more so since it had not been properly finished in time, and yet it still worked.
"By Arceus, Shard, I'll make you pay for this," Jude growled as he finally found his footing.
"I- I really am sorry about the wall Jude," Shard laughed, the poor weavile barely able to keep herself upright through it all. "I wanted you to slide all the way down the mountain. I was going to make a huge track of it and everything."
Jude was sick of Shard's laughter, he was sick of Shard's jokes, and most of all, he was sick of being the butt of jokes. They made him feel weak, just like his sister's always used to make him feel.
With lightning speed, if not a little lack of grace from the absol due to the ice, he pounced on the weavile. A fierce snarl emanating from him as he struck her, knocking her against the rocks.
"You jerk, you absolute JERK," Jude shouted as Shard stood up rubbing her head.
"I may have deserved that a little," She groaned, her head throbbing. Yet a moment later she once again broke out in laughter. "I must have got you good if you're this upset."
Jude once again slammed himself against Shard, the weavile being pushed back into the rocks. The absol standing over her menacingly, claws sunk deep into the icy soil to prevent him from losing his footing.
"Laugh at me again! Come on, laugh at me again," Jude growled, glaring down at Shard.
"That one was uncalled for," the weavile growled.
Jude was about to respond, but before he had a chance to, Shard had vanished in a blur, Jude turning left and right quickly trying to catch sight of where the icy weasel had ended up.
Suddenly, the weather shifted, hail beginning to fall from the sky, pelting down on the ground, the sky darkening considerably.
"Oh, Judy. If you'd just left it at tit for tat we'd not be here," the weavile's voice echoed through the mountains, chilling Jude far more than the icy precipitation.
"Tough talk from somebody who can't get herself out of bed on time," Jude spat back, knowing he was in a bit of trouble at this point.
He was tougher than Shard by quite a bit, even she would admit to that, but she did not fight fair. She would use any and every dirty trick in the book to her advantage, and then she would invent a few just to keep things interesting.
A heavy impact from above cracked against Jude's skull, the absol staggering slightly as his vision went red. A trickle of blood ran down his forehead. Shard was above him, he was sure of that now. All he had to do was get up to her.
Another ice shard came crashing down, the absol barely having time to get out of the way. If this kept up, he would not have to worry much about where Shard was as he would be buried under a ton of ice.
Tensing up, Jude prepared to strike. His body coiled like a spring, ready for the next ice shard. It would be his best opening as Shard would least expect a counter to her ice barrage.
The sound of ice falling filled the absol's ears, his legs unleashing all the tension in them as he turned and pounced, Shard's face full of surprise and fear as he lunged at her. Then suddenly a wall of flame separated the two.
"What am I going to do with you two?" An exasperated and almost motherly voice growled softly.
"What am I going to do with you two?"
Jude blinked once or twice as he looked up at his mother, tears streaming down his face. He was still furious at his sister for the beating he had just received, for being stuck in a bush, and the worst crime of all, being stronger than him.
"What does it matter anyhow?" Jen said looking her mother dead in the eyes. "He's weak, you and I both know it. He isn't going to survive to adulthood, so why coddle him?"
"I will too," Jude shouted, tears streaming down his face. "You watch. I'm going to be stronger than all of you!"
"Enough, both of you," the mother absol said sternly. "Jen, go help your father scout out that new hunting ground and tell him to make sure this time there aren't any zoroark in the area. He nearly got us killed last time he checked an area."
"Right mom, I'll tell him," Jen growled as she got up to leave. "Hey Lex, come on, we can talk about that Mightyena boy you think is so cute."
"But I," Lex mumbled, poking her head out of the den. A growl from her sister, however, caused her to bound out quickly after. "Right, I can't wait to tell you all about him."
Jude watched as his two sisters took off, leaving him alone with his mother. He huffed a little at their departure. It was so very unfair that he was the only one to get in trouble over this.
"Why do they get to leave?" Jude finally growled, looking at his mother. "She started it."
"I don't care who started it, and I really don't even care about you two fighting. It's only natural for young pups to push each other around," his mother replied, giving him a firm tap on the head for his attitude he was showing. "But you need to realize when a fight is done. You're going to get yourself killed if you keep that up."
"I don't care, everybody thinks I'm weak anyhow, that I'm going to die," Jude grumbled, rubbing his head even though it did not really hurt as much as he made it out as. "Why should I stop if all I'll ever be to any of you is a weakling who is destined to die anyhow?"
"You'll only die if you keep up your stubborn streak," The absol mother says looking off in the direction that his sisters had gone to find their father. "Your father is quite powerful, but he tends to be arrogant. He has some right in being that way, but he's almost gotten the family killed on more than one occasion."
"We survived though because he was strong," Jude said with a sigh. "If I don't grow up to be big and strong like he is then I'll never have a family of my own."
"And what is wrong with the family you have?" His mother chided. "Not everyone grows up to be an alpha and have their own family. You may not, but that doesn't mean your father and I wouldn't love for you to stay and help defend our family."
"Gee mom, thanks for all that support," Jude said sarcastically, a deep sigh escaping him as he really began to think about the possibility that he may just end up a glorified babysitter for his parent's future litters.
"Reality doesn't soften its punches, and neither do I," his mother said with a firmness that meant that the conversation was over. "You don't have to accept it as fate, but don't hate yourself when your dreams don't come true."
Jude just grumbled, turning back to the den. He really felt worthless at this point, though deep down he knew his mother was just being honest with him. He hated the fact that he was so weak, and now even his mother was telling him he was. He'd show her though, somehow.
Jude's mother kept staring off in the direction that his sister's and their father were supposed to be. She seemed fixated on that point, her bladed tail twitching as if she were about to pounce, or perhaps flee on some unseen danger.
"Jude, we need to go find your father and the girls," she said rather urgently.
Jude turned back to his mother, rather concerned about this change in mood. It was not like her to just become tense all of a sudden over nothing.
"Why so they can tease me some more?" Jude pouted, the absol pup not wanting to have to deal with his sisters at the moment.
"No, now do as your told and follow me quickly," his mother said sternly bounding off. "I just hope we aren't too late."
"I hope we aren't going to be late," the female houndoom scowled as both Jude and Shard trailed behind her.
The pair of them were bruised, sore, and a little singed from the prank, the fight, and then Hearth breaking up the fight. The houndoom was generally a lot more patient, but something seemed to be weighing heavily on her mind.
"Late for what?" Jude said with a bit of a whimper as his head, still sore from the fight, twinged a bit in pain. "It isn't like we know where Hilde is, so we can't be late to find her. What else would even matter?"
"Speaking of, didn't you say you had some sort of way to find her anyhow?" Shard said with a bit of a weak laugh, the ice type having taken Hearth's fireblast a bit harder than Jude thanks to her typing.
"I do, and she lives up in these mountains," Hearth said with a bit of a huff, the hellhound trotting quickly, looking around as if expecting an ambush. "We have a narrow window where she might be willing to help us out. So we have to hurry."
Jude and Shard looked at each other confused. The two pokemon had no idea who Hearth was talking about, or that she knew anyone in this part of the world, let alone kept in touch after being caught.
"Wait, wait, wait. You know someone here," Shard finally said as she shook her head in surprise. "Like know somebody here personally, Not just you-know-met-once-in-a-battle or something."
"I used to live around here before I moved on," Hearth replied, looking back to the weavile with a bit of a smile. "This person we're going to meet is a really old friend. And that's saying something considering how old you think I am."
"Are you sure they're still alive then?" Shard asked putting her claws behind her head in a very casual manner. "I mean maybe they died long ago."
"I kind of have to agree with Shard on this, at least as far as are you sure they're still in the area," Jude said following close behind the houndoom looking around at the barren mountains.
Jude had been wondering for some time now why Hearth seemed so cautious about moving through them. They seemed to be devoid of life. Even the rock and ground types that frequently were found in mountainous areas like this seemed to be missing. It was a little unsettling, but also made this seem like a waste of time to the absol.
"She's still around. I can feel her watching us as we speak," the houndoom said with a bit of an ominous tone.
"Ooh, how spooky," the weavile said, laughing as she followed. "The ever-wandering eye of the mysterious friend of Hearth."
Hearth paused a moment and turned to the others. Her face bore a certain seriousness and worry about it that made Jude seriously think twice about going to meet with this friend. Hearth was not one to talk much about her past, and the absol knew that it was not nice, but he knew very little about it. Now it seemed that Hearth was taking them straight into its dark heart.
"We need to talk," Hearth said solemnly. Even Shard could see the severity of the situation at hand. "I know that I haven't told you much about my past. And there's a good reason for that. My earlier life, when I was a little houndour and a bit after, I was an apprentice to a powerful witch."
"Right, and I'm a mew," Shard said, looking rather incredulously at the demon dog.
"This is serious Shard," Hearth snapped, bringing the ice type back in line. "I was learning the black arts of magic. The kind of thing that steals the essence of other pokemon. It really felt good too, addictive in a way."
"Why'd you leave then?" Jude asked in all seriousness. "Or was you being caught what broke this up?"
"No, I got caught much later," Hearth said sitting down and looking up towards the mountains. "The witch is obsessed with two things. One is a delphox who wronged her in the past, the other is power. I didn't care about her personal vendetta, wasn't my problem, though I was happy to help her with it if it meant I could gain a bit of power."
"So what, you gave up power for," Jude's question trailing off, him hoping for an answer out of the houndoom.
"I think you'll see when we get there. Talking about it here and now isn't the best of choices," Hearth said with a huff, standing back up. "Oh, and Shard."
"Yeah," the weavile said curtly.
"Keep your mouth shut around her, at least if you want to keep your tongue," the houndoom said casually as they once again set off through the mountain pass.
Shard was about to say something, but Jude shook his head. The weavile had a tendency to make things worse when she opened her mouth. Jude needed her. The weavile might be terribly weak against the lucario they hunted, but Shard fought dirty, and that would help significantly in the coming battle.
The trio walked in silence for another hour. Hearth was always on her guard, while Shard busied herself by any means she could. Jude, however, was starting to once again find his focus drifting back, back to days long since lost to him.
Jude dashed after his mother. Her paws seemed a blur under her as she raced through the forest pathways. Jude could hardly keep up with her, and he was not entirely sure that she cared about that either. Her focus was on reaching the others as soon as she could.
Lex was the first of the missing to be found, the middle child of the absol trio resting under a tree on the pathway.
"Lex, where's your sister?" Jude's mother barked, the absol wasting little time as she slowed only a moment to speak with her daughter.
"She went with dad down towards the swamps. Dad said he wanted help checking it out," Lex replied looking to her mother, then to Jude as he caught up. "Why? What's going on?"
"Something is about to happen, I don't know what," Jude's mother said hurriedly as she looked down the pathway to the swamps. "Take Jude with you to the pass up out of the canyon, I'll meet you there as soon as I can."
Lex nodded. She knew better than to question her mother when she was like this. Hopping to her feet the young female hurried over to Jude.
"You heard mom, let's get going," Lex said as she turned towards the pathway out of the canyon. "We better hurry, I don't like the looks of those clouds."
"Can't we rest a moment. I been in two fights and now a half mile sprint," Jude whimpered as he staggered trying to keep up with his sister. "I'm sure whatever it is, Mom and Dad can handle it."
"You need to go now," His mother growled before bolting off down the pathway.
Jude moaned as he tried to keep on all fours. He was tired, and honestly, he was just a little bit weak, but the world was not about to wait for him, and neither was his sister.
Lex dashed uphill towards the pathway, Jude lagging farther and farther behind with each bound. A flash of lightning split the sky followed by a peel of fierce thunder. Jude glanced up momentarily at the sky above, swearing that for a fleeting moment he thought he saw a bird that looked like it was lightning itself.
The absol shuddered at the sight. His mother was right to worry if such things were about, and yet he could not help but think that this was not the danger she felt so worried about.
Looking back at the path, Jude could not see Lex anywhere. At least he knew where she was going, and he could get there just fine, but he would take his own pace.
Trotting onward, Jude panted heavily, the absol looking around worried as the rain started to come down in sheets. He had never seen it rain this badly before, and it scared him a little.
As the rain came down harder and harder, the ground became muddy, and Jude found himself having to fight harder just to keep himself going, his paws constantly getting stuck in the sticky earth, physically exhausting him further than he already was.
Yet another flash of lightning drew his gaze skyward, as a trio of strange birds did battle with another, the fourth looking like it may have been more at home in the ocean than it would have in the air, wearing a strange crest and raiment signifying some allegiance or another. Jude wondered if it were owned by a trainer or part of one of the pokemon kingdoms, but it never got close enough for any certainty on the matter.
The battle raged on fiercely in the sky above, Jude standing there dazed as the spectacle unfolded, completely unaware of the rising water levels all around the valley, water pouring in from the storm, as well as the surrounding area.
"Jude!"
Jude snapped back to attention, the absol looking around for the source of the call, now realizing just what danger he was in as the water level was now high enough to surround the small hill he had been standing on.
"I'm here!" he cried out as loud as he could. "Where are you?"
"Keep talking, I'm on my way."
The voice was clearer now- it was definitely his father's. The young absol's heart sank in his chest. He was going to be in so much trouble, but it beat the alternative.
"I'm here dad," Jude shouted back into the storm. "Where are you? I'll come find you."
"No stay there!" his father's voice cut through the storm with great authority. "I'll be there shortly."
Jude paced back and forth as he watched the water rise. It was inching ever closer to his paws, overtaking the small mound of mud that he found himself on.
"OK but hurry," Jude tried to shout as he found himself on what was pretty much akin to a sinking ship.
Moments later Jude's father sprinted into sight, still on the higher ground. Jude honestly never felt more frightened or relieved in his life, the young absol still pacing back and forth as his father ran to the edge of the water.
"OK, it isn't too deep Jude. I'm going to swim out to you and we'll swim back together, OK?" his father said as he looked at his son.
Jude nodded, his father stepping into the water. The larger male made quick work as he swam out to the little sinking island.
"Let's go," his father said hurriedly, as he stepped on shore. "I know you're tired, but you got to swim yourself over. You're too big for me to carry. I'll swim behind you to make sure you're OK."
Jude nodded and stepped cautiously into the water. The young absol pushed himself off into the deep water and paddling to the other shore. It was at least somewhat calm. There was no current to speak of, just the turbulence of the rapidly filling water.
Jude struggled as he swam, but his father was right behind him, encouraging him as he went. The young absol tried to push through the fatigue and pain, swimming as quickly as he could to the other side.
Jude's mother quickly made her way down to the pair, watching as Jude and her mate swam to her, the female absol looking on worriedly.
"Come on Jude you can do it!" his mother shouted from the shore.
This little bit of encouragement was all that Jude needed. Pushing through the pain, he swam until his paws met muddy soil. Quickly he climbed out of the water and onto the shore.
Looking up at his mother Jude expected either severe disapproval or some form of pride, but her face bore neither of these expressions. Instead, his mother's face was shrouded in pure terror as she looked out to where her mate was.
"Swim! Swim faster!" she shouted frantically.
Jude turned to see what was the matter. What unfolded next was a scene of pure horror.
A shadow moved towards his father in the deep water, his mother shouting loudly for his father to swim faster. His father had a worried look like the panic of an animal being hunted began to set in. Water erupted as a terrifying crocodilian creature, a feraligator as he would learn much later, clamped its jaws around his father. The muffled cry of his father sounded before being dragged down under the water, never to surface again.
Jude's sisters arrived soon after, but Jude was in a daze. He could not understand what had just happened, how his father could have been killed like that. It was his fault. It had to have been his fault.
"Hey, Jude, earth to Jude," the voice of Shard brought Jude crashing back to the real world. "Hearth says we gotta camp for the night. You ok? You seem really off."
"Huh," Jude looked at the weavile blinking a few times. "Oh, yeah I'm fine."
"Look, I'm sorry about the prank. I wouldn't have let you get hurt," Shard said rubbing the back of her head.
"It's fine," Jude growled, not wanting to talk about that, or much of anything at the moment.
Shard looked like she wanted to say something, but thought better of it. Instead, she just walked off towards where they would be camping for the night.
Jude stood there, once again looking over the mountainous terrain. His heart felt heavy with the weight of the day, and the weight of days past.
"I'll prove to you I'm the strongest there is. I'll show you all that it wasn't all a waste," he whispered, turning towards the camp, the sun setting blood red against the horizons.