Lost Silver: The Novelization

by Dorminchu

Chapter One: Lost

When Gold awoke flat on his back, he hadn't the faintest idea where he might be, only that it was cold and damp and his head was pounding. He assumed he had fallen and hit his head, yet found himself unable to recall where he was or how he had gotten here.

He sat up, rubbing the back of his head as the pain faded into distant humming. One self – assessment later, he concluded that he was, to the best of his knowledge, unharmed save for the headache, but his bag was missing. After shaking his head and pinching his wrist in the hopes of waking up, the Trainer figured he couldn't be dreaming. He felt around his resting place, fingers brushing what he guessed was damp wood, then a small, rectangular item. In the dim illumination he was able to make out the shape of his Pokégear, its screen black, the sickly smell of burning electronics lingering in the air.

Gold rose shakily to his feet and blinked a few times in an attempt to make sense of his surroundings, but that was a laughable folly; the room was dimly lit and blinking made no difference. A faint whimper reached his ears and he froze, trying to locate the source of the noise. The small scratching of claws against the floor and a reddish glow roughly a foot from him confirmed his fear; he wasn't alone.

Wincing from the sudden illumination, he edged away from the light until his back hit a wall, the back of his jacket now damp. Unable to move further, Gold watched the glowing thing continue to shiver, and after a moment's hesitation he decided the thing wasn't hostile. He began to inch towards the unknown creature, extending a tentative hand to touch the shaking form, brushing fur. Whatever it was squeaked in pain and surprise, shrinking back, illuminating its silhouette.

With a jolt of familiarity, he recognized the Pokémon as a Cyndaquil, and he wondered what a Cyndaquil would be doing in a place like this. But he pushed this question to the back of his mind, for as he knelt down beside the shivering Pokémon, he saw a small trickle of blood dripping from the Fire Mouse's snout, joining the pool of red that grew beneath it. Purely out of habit, Gold reached around for his bag, only to remember he had no bag. Cursing, he scanned the area around the Pokémon carefully for something that would indicate where he might be, and to his surprise he did find something.

A Trainer Card.

But it wasn't his. The number of Pokémon registered in the Pokédex counted up to 251 and the Gym Badges numbered 16. He hadn't even beaten the seventh Kanto leader. The name of the Trainer was written simply as "…". The Pokémon roster was also different. There was only one Pokémon registered: a level five, male Cyndaquil nicknamed Hurry.

Glancing around the room and seeing no other alternatives, he shrugged his jacket from his shoulders, leant down and gingerly lifted the Cyndaquil into his arms, wrapping the article of clothing around the Pokémon like a blanket. It squeaked in surprise, but then it whimpered and gave no further resistance; at this point, it probably was too weak to care who was holding it. Gold began to explore the room, searching for a way out. Upon careful observation of the walls he found his assumption had been correct; it appeared the walls were indeed constructed from damp wood, not yet moldy.

Growing uneasy, Gold walked over to the unmoving pillar in the center of the room. Upon closer observation he discovered a trapdoor behind the pillar, placed as to make it invisible from any other angle. He bent down, shifting "Hurry" to one arm as he did so, and with some effort pulled it open, revealing a small staircase leading down into what appeared to be a cellar of some sort.

He let out a sigh of relief; here was a way out. As he began his descent, the Cyndaquil shivered and fidgeted; clearly it did not want to go down there

"Ssh…it's okay little guy…I've got you…" He mumbled, careful to keep his grip on the Pokémon cradled in his arms. Each step brought a horrible creaking sound, and each time this happened Gold flinched. Minutes passed, yet there seemed to be no sign of a bottom. After another minute, Gold wondered helplessly if there was no end, if this was a trap. Thankfully he was mistaken; a few seconds later he felt earth beneath him in place of a step. Not expecting this he jumped, very nearly losing his grip on Hurry, who squealed and flailed blindly.

"I'm here, you're not gonna get hurt!" He said quickly, patting its head in an attempt to reassure the creature. It shivered feebly, and then the Unown Radio Signal kicked into life, the familiar pattern of beeps echoing off the walls, causing Gold to jump once more. The Cyndaquil whimpered, and slowly, torturously, the embers on its back grew to a small flame, not enough to burn him, but even so it was apparent that the creature was straining with all its might to keep the fire going. It knew Flash? Puzzled, Gold looked down at the Pokémon in his arms, then shook his head and hurried down the corridor.

The repetitive sounds from the Pokégear's speakers seemed only to emphasize just how very alone he was down here, wherever "here" was. The minutes crept on, and the Cyndaquil whimpered again, sounding much weaker now as the fire glowing upon its back dimmed. Gold's heart sank as he broke into a light jog, concentrating on keeping his footing as his rapid footfalls and the be-doops echoed off the walls, nearly slipping a few times in his haste to reach the end of the corridor.

After a minute or two, he slowed to a walk once more, panting heavily and casting furtive glances here and there around his surroundings, and then he stopped with a sharp gasp. A shape had appeared in his field of vision, three feet away from him. A wooden sign. It held only three words, carved hastily into the wood.

TURN BACK NOW?

Above floated five Unown, arranged to form the word: LEAVE.

Thinking quickly, Gold took one last flitting glimpse at the dying Pokémon in his arms before responding with a small, shaky nod. For a second, nothing happened. Gold frowned.

Darkness closed in.

The Cyndaquil shrieked loudly and bit down on his hand, drawing blood. Gold yelled in pain and surprise, dropping the Pokémon to the ground, where it promptly burst into flames, its frantic movements slowing to a dull twitch. Eventually it stopped moving all together.

Gold found that it was suddenly very hard to breathe. The one companion he had was gone, and he simply didn't have a clue what he was supposed to have done to save the little Fire-Mouse. Abilities didn't work like that; the Professor had never said anything about Fire-Types combusting. Swearing loudly, Gold wheeled around the unfamiliar room, now a grey blur against his frantic spinning. He screamed again as six more Unown nearly collided with him, stopping to hover in mid-air with a new message.

HE DIED.

Gold was horrified, but then shock gave way to rage. "You did this!?" He shouted, not caring that his outburst did nothing to the Unown as they circled round his head, as if taunting him for his stupidity. Barely noticing a sort of tingling in his arms he took a futile swipe at the Psychic – types. The tingling grew stronger, and his arms became numb, incapable of movement. Furious, he tried one last time to raise his arm and-

CRACK.

It happened in an instant, as he heard what he could only comprehend as a gunshot in the empty room and then the next fraction of a millisecond later, shock wore off and was replaced with inhuman agony. Gold howled and slumped against the wall, incapable of comprehending the message of pain that his nerves now screamed at him in protest. His arms were completely gone, torn off at the shoulder, blood gushing from the ragged flesh that no longer resembled anything remotely close to a pair of arms. At this point, Gold was well past shock, well past registering anything. If he hadn't been preoccupied with these events, he would have noticed the floor sinking beneath him, swallowing him as if it were quicksand. Unable to fight the darkness any longer, Gold's consciousness faded.

When he returned to the land of the living, he expected to be greeted with unendurable agony. But this time there was nothing. He wondered for a moment if he was dead. His question was answered as looked down at himself, seeing shredded legs that were torn away at the knee, dried blood staining the fabric of his clothes and skin, an ivory hue tainted by crimson.

He whimpered, realizing his tears were thicker than they should be. A scarlet drop from his face revealed he was crying tears of blood. Still shuddering a bit, the young trainer surveyed his current location. This area resembled that of the Tin Tower, right down to the pillar in the center. But this couldn't be; it was deserted, and the walls, ceiling, and floor were a horrifying blood-red. Gold tried to move forwards, and he found, much to his mutual terror and surprise, that he was floating in midair.

The immediate shock wearing off, Gold began to glide down the wooden walkway. It was then that the solitary Pokéball at his waist burst open independently, a Shiny Celebi vaulting into the air with the familiar cry.

Five new Unown swooped down from above, also Shiny, spelling out the word:

DYING.

He glanced at the Celebi, then did a double take, wishing he hadn't looked at all. The Celebi was quite literally halved; one side was decidedly dejected looking, the other was so bloodied it was practically impossible to tell that it was a Celebi. The color in its recognizable skin had faded to a dull, grayish hue of its original pink and red, its presumably delicate flesh frayed and caked with dried violet around the edges where the halves met, carrying a sickening smell he couldn't quite place. It looked at him sadly, as if to say: I'm sorry it had to be like this.

Wishing he could vomit, Gold shut his eyes briefly, and then continued his journey down the corridor, Celebi floating down to rest on his shoulder. The hallway was as quiet as the rest of the locations had been, but he had the strangest feeling he was being watched. The minutes crept by, the Celebi on his shoulder gave the occasional shiver, and Gold was conscious of murmuring from distant corners of the room, but upon glancing around the scarlet hall, he saw nothing, heard only raspy voices that were unrecognizable to him. He journeyed on, breath shaky.

And then he saw them.

Pale as he was, wasted away to nothing but skin and bone, watching him through bleak, icy eyes. The murmuring had stopped. They were waiting for him to move on, to complete the circle that had become his destination. He walked past them and they did not speak, but he felt their presence. It was the strangest sensation he had experienced during his journey here, and yet it almost seemed that they were supporting him with the same, grim determination that the Celebi had. He continued on, trembling uncontrollably, desperate to know what lay before him, but at the same time in fear of what awaited him at the end of the road. He rounded a sudden corner and-

Gold stopped abruptly, not daring to believe his eyes.

A boy, a terribly familiar boy that could not have been a year older than seventeen, was facing the wall opposite him. His colors, unlike Gold's or the rest of the figures', were muddied blues and violets. For a moment, Gold could not identify him. The boy turned to face him with a short nod. Uncertain of what he meant, Gold nodded back, and the boy smiled, one hand fingering a Pokéball at his waist, the other reaching up to scratch the Electric Mouse resting on his shoulder behind the ears. It was from this simple gesture that Gold recognized who this young man was, and what he wanted. Deciding that the only sensible thing to do now was oblige the challenger, Gold sighed.

"C'mon, Celebi." He mumbled, giving the creature a nudge with his shoulder. It shuddered feebly, slid limply down to the ground, landing with a sickening crunch on its remaining foot. With a little whimper, the Forest Guardian pushed itself up into a sitting position, quivering in fear and discomfort. The boy's Pikachu followed suit, landing with a dull thump on the wooden floor. Gold got a good look at the creature's face and was unnerved to see a mixture of grief and disgust in the Pokémon's beady black eyes, yellow fur matted and streaked with tears and grime. Unsure of what each Pokémon would do, Gold simply looked on with baited breath. He didn't have to wait very long however, as Pikachu made the first move. Its breathing slowed as the fur on its back bristled, relaxing its muscles.

So it knows Curse, Gold thought warily. But…wait a second, that's impossible! Pikachu can't learn-

His thoughts were interrupted by an ear-piercing screech. With a yell he snapped back to the scene before him, wishing he could clap his hands over his ears. Celebi had thrown its head back, its single emerald eye rolled up into the back of its socket, mouth opened wide and entire body convulsing. The scream finally died and it slumped forward, supporting its shaking body with the unmarred arm.

Perish Song. His Celebi knew Perish Song!? Pikachu snarled, flinching, and the boy tensed. Celebi whimpered in pain, its efforts clearly exhausting it. Before it could fully recover, Pikachu growled, running forward and randomly lashing out at the Forest Guardian, doing very little damage. Flail. Celebi let out another horrible shriek and Gold winced again. Why does it keep doing that?

Pikachu howled and launched itself at its opponent, unleashing a volley of blows to the Pokémon with every ounce of energy it could muster. Celebi wailed and tried to block the onslaught, but it was helpless. Gold's eyes widened in disbelief. Frustration!? How the hell did that Pikachu know Frustration? Pikachu delivered one last punch to Celebi's face, and then it backed off, panting, hovering over the Grass and Psychic type as if reveling in its misery, beady - black eyes narrowed. Celebi lifted a shaking hand to the Pikachu's forehead and dug its claws into the matted yellow fur, body glowing as Pikachu emitted a scream that seemed to reverberate around the chamber.

Celebi tightened its grip on the Electric Mouse's forehead, its energy restored, albeit partially. Pain Split. Pikachu shoved the opponent off, eyes glowing red. Gold almost cracked a grin. Mean Look? Well, that was pointless-

"SKREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHH~"

Gold's thought was interrupted by the loudest and most horrifying Perish Song the Forest Guardian had produced yet. Its voice cracked on the end of the note and this time it fell onto its side, coughing up blood.

Before Gold could respond, Pikachu's entire body was enveloped in a field of white energy, and a small sphere detached itself from the light, floating over to Celebi and phasing through the creature's forehead.

Destiny Bond.

Celebi shivered one last time, and then it stopped breathing altogether. Pikachu gave a little cry and then it too fell, unmoving. The other boy looked up at him, and as his eyes met his own, Gold finally realized what this meant. And then, in that fraction of a millisecond, the boy's head disappeared. There was no blood, just a clean stump. The darkness closed around Gold once more, and he shrieked in fear for the last time.

So he thought. He awoke in New Bark Town, next the table in his bedroom. Gold laughed weakly. Had it been a dream? No. He was still limbless, now completely transparent, and six more Shiny Unown circled around his head, now forming the words: NO MORE. His mother was nowhere to be found.

"M…Mom?" His voice sounded pathetic to his own ears. He tried again. "Mother?"

The echoes in the silence of the empty bedroom only mocked him. He floated towards the doorway, as the items in his room were coated in a thick layer of dust. He was sure nothing worked downstairs; even if they were functioning he couldn't touch them. He moved instead towards the empty door frame leading outside, and was greeted with an inky black abyss.

He glided as quickly as he could, and a small light, not much more than a pinprick, became apparent. After a while, the light became recognizable as some sort of tunnel. As he came ever closer, he felt as if a weight was lifting from his chest. Feeling slightly less apprehensive he pressed on, not knowing what lay before him, but determined to reach the end.

If there was an end.

Just as he felt he could go no further, he noticed another figure silhouetted against the dimming light. A boy, roughly his height, stood motionless a few feet away. He glided towards the figure, and saw he looked just like him, from the raven hair to the golden shorts. He stopped a few inches away from him, tentatively asking:

"Who are you?"

The figure said nothing, it only turned to face him, and Gold cried out as he saw that the boy's eyes had been torn from their sockets, dried blood streaking across the pale skin. The doppelgänger suddenly spoke, but his tone was cold, mocking.

"Goodbye forever." He breathed, lips curling into a thin, sickly sort of grin. Gold's eyes narrowed apprehensively, scanning the blackness for any sign of trouble. A silent flash of violet light enveloped him and his eyes widened.

Nightmare.

Instead of the expected effect a Pokémon would experience, he found himself sinking violently into the floor.

His world cut to black for the third and final time.

Six Unown descended into the same grey chamber where Gold had perished; first in body, then in spirit, laid to rest forevermore.

I'M DEAD.

R.I.P. PKMN TRAINER …

END ACT I

A/N: Phew! Now that was a lot of work, but I think it turned out pretty darn good. Drakinator came up with that awesome idea involving Hurry quite literally burning itself out. Read and Review!

10/25/14 - I revised the spacing. Hidden still in the works. Apologize for the wait. -_-"