I apologize for this taking so long to get out, it took far longer than it should have. I had already completed it when I posted the first chapter, but was discontent and rewrote it, and then rewrote it again. Though it was a long time in the coming, I am fairly happy with how this turned out. Enjoy.
I did not know how fortunate I truly was for a time, nor exactly how perilous a world awaited me above ground. That is not to say the underground was as safe as I had anticipated, as I would soon learn, but it easily beat and army of brutal water Pokemon, swarms of feral bugs, and an angry, giant, fuzzy cat with more gigavolts at its disposal than I have hairs on my head.
In related news, Lawrence. He was crafty, practical, and he could keep a level head in a fight, but he wasn't a survivor. He could fight for his life- and always keep it, but he had difficulty coping with the rigorous stress that came from surviving in a lawless world.
He managed however, managed with what I could only describe as borderline delusional hope. He hoped that every step would take him to a spot of earth that had not been cultivated with the priming and watered in blood, hope that every morning he woke the violence would cease, hope that we may yet find a place where bloodlust did not rule before goodness-fool's hope. Every step found its way to shed blood, every morning was a fight for survival, and every night he'd only hope: maybe tomorrow would be different.
As to where his history is concerned, fate would see him as a recent arrival from another region: Sinnoh. Only those who could fight survived the shattering, and as a seasoned gym trainer hailing from Sunnyshore City for most of his youth- fighting was second nature. In his adulthood he proved to be particularly adept in mechanical and civil engineering, experience in what could be called one of the most complex (and impractical) buildings in Sinnoh was an ally in his endeavors to fulfill a career. He eventually moved to Johto (In within what I can only speculate as a year or two prior to the priming) as to follow the workforce demands: as many cities within this region were undergoing renovation; including but not limited to a new Contest Hall within Goldenrod City. Though construction was not his forte, he conferred with a group of developers to help construct the daunting building, which he worked on for the better part of the year in which he resided here.
He never really mentioned his relationships in Goldenrod much; I speculate such conversations would bring about memories to grim for him to bear. He has given ample reason for me to believe that he was actually within the contest hall with his colleagues for its grand opening when the initial priming began, but he always avoided elaborating on the night of the priming. Besides: such speculation discredits his testimony as to how he arrived in the sewers.
When confronted about his friends and family in Sinnoh however, his views were stunningly optimistic. Even as the situation looked more and more dire he would always say "Hey, at least it can't get any worse". He must have truly taken those words to heart, even as the days grew dimmer and dimmer, as time and time again he was proven wrong.
To myself, he was something of a father figure. For all his delusional hope he was wise, for all his flippant behavior he was serious, and for all his childish acting he still remained steadfast and mature. Perhaps his delusions gave him the strength he needed to face the world- for at this point I believe I have seen too much of it to believe that this epidemic has not touched every corner of it, but I fear that once we have confirmation, such blissful ignorance will be shattered. Even now, we sometimes hear him sob in his sleep. He has been wounded in one of the most barbaric and intimate ways the world can to a man, and whatever protection his denial gives him will be soon stripped away. We can only hope to help him when the time comes.
Speaking of such emotional trauma, my day would start on a dreary note and quickly take a turn for the worst, but I would live, I found purpose in this new unforgiving world, and most importantly I learned to become thankful for such impossible luxuries.
AUGUST 18th
My first memories came back to haunt me that night, the scenes were painted within my mind in a vivid, deadly dream. The memory of corpses would hound me for a time, and while it was a dream- the mind can sometimes make dreams so lucid they seem more probable than reality.
My body was spayed back over the wet concrete yet again. My hairs stood on end as they did before, and the young girl's death grip was as present as ever; her hand right above a bracelet on my wrist. The bodies were still cast over the concrete like broken toy soldiers, but they were under a crimson and intimidating sky, and the buildings that rose around us were worn and haggard. This was a memory so I should have been able to predict what was coming. But this was a nightmare, in which all hells were possible. I steeled myself, wary of what was to come.
As before, a body toppled and red, pointed legs scampered across the asphalt along the corner of my eye. Then the dream deviated as the bearer of those legs came into view; tall, armored, massive, terrifying variations of their lesser cousins. The stars on their forehead gleamed a violent and mortifying gold, and their dark eyes all turned towards me. 'Craudaunt.'
They abandoned the other corpses- my mind's vicious wish for terror winning out over stoic reality, and moved slowly, almost unbearably so, to where I lay on my back. I attempted to move, to roll away from the terrifying entities that had taken the past and inserted themselves into it, but my limbs were dead at my sides, unmoving. I was just like the dead behind me, my body intact, but stagnant, never to move again.
The Craudaunt began their bloody work on the girl next to me, ripping and tearing her apart with their massive claws and feeding through mouths unseen. They began with her limbs, and slowly worked their way inwards, and I, a prisoner in my own body could not even look away from the madness.
The girl was not as receptive to the situation. Her dead eyes sparked suddenly alive and wrought with fear, and she screamed and begged and prayed for help, and I heard and took in all of her hopes and wishes, but was powerless to grant her the intervention that anyone but I could easily afford her.
If the Craudaunt were bothered by the prospect of live meat, they didn't show it, and they continued their work. It was a small mercy that she did not suffer alone for long, a single Craudaunt turned its dark eye on me.
I awoke gasping for air to fill my empty lungs; my night terror had tried and nearly succeeded in smothering me with fear. Lawrence was nowhere to be found, but his absent flashlight and present backpack suggested he was checking the sewers. I lay there alone and awake as reality again set in, my breathing slowed, and the mental wounds festered, but closed. I was alive, and absurd as it was, I was overjoyed for that much.
Lawrence entered the room seconds after I had recomposed myself, already clad in traveling equipment and flashlight in hand. "Good morning" he said, and I chuckled at the irony of the statement. He ignored my response he continued "None of my Pokemon are awake yet. We'll have to go through the sewers the old fashioned way." He said, waving his flashlight for emphasis "Go to the bathroom in the corner, we wont be coming back here." He grabbed his backpack and left, spinning on his heels and whistling a carefree tune.
I took his advice and found it easy to relieve myself, having nearly soiled my pants only minutes before. In a way it almost seemed symbolic, in as much of a way as voiding in a dank corner of a dark, underground room could be. The finality of his words "We wont be coming back here" left a bittersweet taste in my mouth. This room was the first safe haven I had ever known, but at the same time it was too impractical to remain, and this place was all to close to memories I would sooner wish to distance myself from. In light of my night terror, and my new, unusually optimistic attitude, I was hopeful for what the rest of the world held for us. Despite my previous skepticism the night before, I myself had unknowingly put a piece of my heart into the vague possibility that the rest of the world was untouched by this chaos.
After I finished my business I did a double take of the room, to assure myself we had not left anything behind. Satisfied that the room was indeed emptied, I attached my tool belt and approached the girl. As proof that my nightmare was only just, she was peacefully dead and unmarred. I took a moment to look at her in greater detail.
Her black hair was not unlike my own, but longer, and held in a ponytail. She wore simple jeans and a gray coat. Her eyes were glazed over after so much time unneeded and dead, but a single streak of startling blue still remained intact. She was smaller than me, if she were to stand she would only come up to my shoulder, which was sensible for someone whom I could only guess was several years my junior.
Lawrence had attempted to convince me to leave her the night before, to turn a locker here into a makeshift coffin, and leave this room as her tomb, untouched below a city of phantoms. It was an apt proposal, but I vetoed it- in my dogmatism I would not accept a job half finished, and my compulsion to take and bury her properly was as powerful as ever. Lawrence seemed displeased by my decision, but he said nothing.
I recalled the night terror and I checked my own wrist, and behold; a small silver band with a dark stone placed within it rested on my left wrist. I would only wonder as to how it escaped my notice previously, but I assumed that a near death experience would inspire such a mistake.
Without further ado I hefted the young girl over my shoulder as a fireman would, and shifted on my feet to adjust for the extra weight. Once I felt as though I was ready to walk, I stepped outside and saw Lawrence, less than patient but waiting nonetheless.
He looked at his watch and explained to me "Its currently around noon. If we make good pace like we did yesterday, we could be out of the city within several hours." I nodded slowly, satisfied, he turned and peered into the dark expanse before us, and we commenced our walk through the urban labyrinth.
We did not make pace as we did yesterday, when we were quick and frantic to find safety, as opposed to now when we felt only the present but waning fear as we slowly traversed the sewers. We made infrequent attempts at conversation, but each time we would either believe to hear something and fall silent, or be reminded of our predicament and silence ourselves. Eventually we stopped trying.
I distracted myself from my night terror by pondering small details about myself, hoping that something would give me a glimpse at my past. I held little regard for it, as it was unlikely such a personal and insubstantial possession would be of any use to me, but curiosity beckoned, and I wondered on.
Water had long since ceased dripping through the storm drains, the missing element creating a void of noise that was both reassuring and uncomfortable. The damaged walls and sliced cables we passed ominously became all the more frequent and noticeable with flashlights at our disposal, and the silence between us was pregnant with caution.
Several hours into our journey we sat down for breakfast.
"How long until we reach the water treatment plant?" I asked, leaning against a wall as Lawrence removed one of the electric lamps from his backpack and turned it on, lighting up most of the surrounding area and allowing us to turn off our flashlights
The man paused from releasing our meal as he checked his watch and then closed his eyes to consult his mental map of the bowels of Goldenrod "At this rate, I'd say about an hour or two later than I thought. That assumes we don't stop for anything though" He resumed removing the meal and the fragrant smell of deli meat and tomatoes danced through the air, tickling my nose.
He distributed the sandwiches, my own was gone in several massive bites, his persevered longer as he ate it slowly. I leaned against a wall as I took a sip from my canteen, flinching as I felt something warm against the back of my head, before turning to find another sliced power cable, still warm to the touch.
Having seen my canteen Lawrence finished his current bite "Drink as much water as you want. The water treatment plant should have plenty we could take" he said, before resuming to eat his meal.
At the mention of water I glared into the waterway with suspicion, before turning my attention back to the cable; touching it lightly 'Its still warm'. "How long do these cables retain electricity anyways?" I asked, honestly surprised that even now the cables held some power, if only in the form of heat.
Lawrence seemed less impressed "They don't" he said looking at my oddly "Is that one still charged?" I neglected to answer as I pressed my hands against both sides of the split wire, and feeling their warmth in spite of all professional opinion.
My gaze turned back towards the water, again wrought with suspicion "What water Pokemon are there around Goldenrod, I only saw Corphish" I asked, seemingly changing the subject, but cautiously keeping my eyes still on the water.
"That's actually kinda weird. I don't think that there are many Corphish in Johto. Here in Goldenrod you'd usually only find your garden variety Magicarp, Horsea, Quilfish, and of course Tentacool and Tentacruel too." He busied himself with the remnants of his sandwich, even as the final two names echoed persistently within the confines of my mind, the water's calmness was shrouded in distrust.
'Tentacruel, why weren't they on the surface? Surely they are opportunistic, one would assume that they would venture into the city'
A feeling of foreboding suspicion took root in my gut, the kind where you were anticipating danger, but from where or what was uncertain. The two jellyfish Pokemon seemed to fit nicely into the mystery, but where?
'But Tentacruel and Tentacool are mostly made of water, if they stay out in the sun too long, then they dehydrate.'
'But then again, they could travel by water. There is an entire system of waterways just beneath the city: attaching to the sea. A passageway that has been badly damaged ever since the invasion'
My eyes fell upon the water, gone still in that instant.
'And my premonition is correct, we are very much in danger. We are being hunted.'
My suspicion had proven correct as three shadows burst forward from the water, two Tentacool and a Tentacruel, each in trajectory to strike Lawrence. My hunch had been correct, the Tentacruel and Tentacool had taken to the sewers in light of yesterday, and either our food or our flesh had attracted the massive Tentacruel and his two un-evolved lackeys.
The predators were disadvantaged: any ambush relied on the prey's ignorance, and I had been far from ignorant.
I was in motion in the instant before the water erupted, my legs flew forward and kicked my senior away as the jellyfish Pokemon launched themselves, and I had retreated as the Tentacruel landed where he had been the instant prior. It turned towards me, eyes betraying annoyance towards myself, towards the prey that would deny it an easy meal.
The smaller of the Tentacool- whom I had nearly forgotten, aimed to take advantage of my focus on the larger Pokemon to launch a foul-smelling glob of ink at the spot I was standing. I skipped back a pace from the unknown substance that landed far too close to myself. Seconds later a hissing ensued as the ink ate away at the concrete floor, dissolving it with ease 'Well that's not supposed to happen'.
My victory was short lived, the Tentacruel leaped once again- this time to my flank, reaching forward with it's deadly arms. I dove to the side; a distance I had thought to be far out of the predators reach and to the side, but the incoming attack turned and stretched, locking me within my adversaries powerful grip, as the miniscule needles within its arms searched for passage through my leather jacket.
My saving grace I assume, was again the anatomy of a Tentacruel. Tentacruel lack a complex anatomy, and to this extent a functional digestive system, meaning they are for the most part unable to consume prey fresh, as there exists no capacity to consume or digest prey. Tentacruel generally hunt by using nearly-microscopic needles to paralyze prey to prevent struggling, then a second injection of acid that would liquify the insides of the prey, allowing for a Tentacruel to consume the already digested nutrients via its proboscis.
Much to my fortune, the leather-polymer jacket I wore surprisingly provided protection against the small probes in the predator's arms that would inject me with paralyzing venom. Predator instinct was a stubborn thing, guiding creatures for thousands of years, the Tentacruel would wait for the paralysis that would never come, so in this respect, I had time.
Of course, based on the demolished walls, they didn't need poison to kill me.
As I was embattled with the two Pokemon, Lawrence was forced to fend for himself against the larger Tentacool, recovering from my kick seconds after the attack ensued. He turned and attempted to clumsily roll from his back to his feet, before quickly fumbling with his belt and bringing his wrench to bear and descending upon his assailant with a series of furious swings from all directions.
The Tentacool attempted to back away from the man's aggressive assault, launching another glob of ink at him: landing on the denim jacket he wore. Lawrence ignored it first, then swore as the foul smelling substance ate away at his coat, quickly tearing it off and throwing it at his opponent in a bid to obscure the jellyfish's vision.
It worked, the dissolving fabric clinging to the Pokemon's head, and Lawrence pressed his advantage. He quickly lunged forward and brought his wrench around in a diagonal swing: smearing the Pokemon's soft water-based body across the wall, with Lawrence only slightly worse for wear from the encounter.
With myself ensnared, the second Tentacool moved to avenge its pulverized brethren. This one was more cautious, keeping a good distance as Lawrence and itself circled each other- the former attempting to keep the enemy between himself and the Tentacruel.
It was the Tentacool that launched the first attack this time, flinging a glob of ink at a clumsy Lawrence who was forced to attempt to dodge each projectile by lunging right, only for another glob to nearly hit him as he ducked beneath it. Lawrence lunged forward, swinging his wrench to catch the Tentacool between it and the wall, but failed as the Tentacool manipulated the weak telekinetic powers that kept it afloat, falling down and back, before surging forward to reclaim lost ground and force Lawrence back with large amounts of acid.
Lawrence struggled and dodged each collection of acid as the floor grew increasingly treacherous- the acid turning the walkway which we had arrived on into a minefield. Lawrence swore as he realized this, his first step in the acid slowly working away at his shoes even as he was forced to dodge the onslaught.
Fortunately the Tentacruel was not inclined to aid its ally, more interested in its meal. Unfortunately said meal was still locked in its grasp and very, very opposed to the prospect of being consumed.
The Tentacruel grew bored and curious, and much to my misfortune, it opted to experiment with its food, giving me a curious squeeze that forced the air from my lungs and made my bones groan, before letting up, only to squeeze again, harder this time. And it did so again, and again, and again.
By the sixth playful squeeze my vision was dim, my body aching, and my lungs starved for oxygen. Lawrence was still frantically attempting to advance on the Tentacool, who halted him with another spray of ink. The situation was hopeless, each squeeze came a few inches closer to ending my life, my struggles against the steel grip that bound me were futile, and there was little hope that Lawrence could intervene on my behalf.
'Please world, if there is such thing as a miracle, if there was ever a single thing I have done worth rewarding, I'd like to cash in those chips and get myself one'
Four loud cracks echoed through the tunnel as an unseen force flung the Tentacool Lawrence had been fighting into the water and turned slamming against the Tentacruel and throwing the two of us to the ground even as half of it spurted into a fountain of blood.
Even though we had crumpled in a mess of limbs and tentacles, the struggle had not yet ended. Tentacruel bodies were redundant and tenacious, capable of withstanding massive trauma in most places while still retaining bodily functions.
The gray bonds that held me were loosened for only an instant, only just long enough for my hands to withdraw my knife from my belt. The Tentacruel resumed strangling me, but this time I was armed- yelling triumphantly as I plunged my knife into its mass of tentacles and drew it across, splitting them in two and freeing me.
Of course, I knew that freeing myself was only half the battle. I growled and spun, bringing myself to face my once-captor and plunged my knife into it with savage intent, twisting it for good measure. The Tentacruel howled and attempted to swing what remained of its arms at me, but not before I planted my boot in its head and kicked off of it, sending myself away from it and into the wall while knocking it into the water.
I cautiously righted myself so I was leaning against the wall, my breath haggard as I eyed the lump of tentacles sinkning in the water. It flailed violently for a moment, and then sunk. I eyed the surface warily and counted.
One second
Two seconds
Three seconds
Four sec-
The Tentacruel rose to the surface, unmoving and covered in what I could only assume to be blood and some other substance. Ink- I realized, taking in the dark smears on the ground where the Tentacool had fired upon Lawrence. The once deadly predator bobbed on the surface of the water, smoke beginning to rise where ink clung to its body as it was reduced to a pool of blood within seconds.
I collapsed against the wall, tasting gunpowder in the air as I haggardly gasped for breath, my heart throbbing against my black T-shirt. 'But that can't be right' I thought to myself 'If he had ammo, why didn't he use the gun before?' Besides, said person was currently heaving his lunch into the waterways. Even as I laid there against the wall, I felt sympathy for him. He knew there was a possibility that we would have to fight for our lives, but there was a difference between anticipating and doing.
Another form- presumably belonging to my savior- was at my side, this one smaller and more lithe than Lawrence's, checking my coat for acid or obvious stings. I was still too winded to move, and simply allowed it, catching my breath.
But there would be no rest for the weary.
My arm protested as the person's hand took my own and dragged me forward, pulling me to my feet and ending my reprieve, I yanked my arm away from the grip and leaned against the wall obstinately.
"We need to move quickly!" The person panicked "Other Tentacool and Tentacruel probably heard you struggling!" The thought of more giant, killer jellyfish inhabiting the sewers gave me the second wind I needed to take off in a sprint, hoping that Lawrence and our unidentified savior was in pursuit.
I sprinted ahead- flashlight in hand, passing two tunnels and approaching a third when I sensed the presence in the water beside me. I gasped in surprise, and stumbled into a duck as pink needles passed a hair's width above my head, imbedding themselves several inches into the wall to my left. Our savior was correct, we were no longer incognito.
I failed to recover from my stumble before more needles flashed in the darkness and raced towards where I was awkwardly attempting to catch my balance. There was no time to act, to recover and dive forward again. Death was coming, and Houndoom was well on its way.
Those needles would surely pass through me like a bullet, ripping me to shreds.
But the pain that accompanied evisceration never arrived.
A large gray blur passed in front of me, faster than I could track it, and a thousand small pings tapped against its hide as the needles ricocheted off of its body. A metallic buzzing- one that sounded like an echo from within a suit of armor- followed, accompanied by a flash of light as electricity shot out from the blur and surged through the water. Several small forms- Tentacool I realized- were visible as the lightning passed through the water, outright vaporizing the water-composed jellyfish as it touched them.
I threw out my hands and caught myself against a wall as the blur passed- an intense light now radiating from it, so bright that it hurt to look at it. Footfalls pounded the pavement behind me, and as I got readied myself to run again, I turned and saw the woman who saved us earlier, and several seconds later Lawrence sprinting past me with new vigor, successfully overtaking me in our race of life and death. I could have sworn I saw a competitive, playful smirk on his face as he bolted past.
Then the unthinkable happened. He tripped.
The moment seemed to take forever, that sliver of time when his feet left the ground up until he landed face first on the concrete. It was a mistake worthy of any bad monster movie where a random bystander would fall and the protagonist watched helplessly as a ridiculously slow monster descended upon and devoured them. But this wasn't just some third-rate actor-this was Lawrence, and this wasn't a cheap film- the fatal blunder was very much reality.
Then the monster made it appearance.
"Lawrence! Check your right!" I yelled, as I dashed towards him, hoping to fend off the danger that was about to befall him.
Rather than looking, Lawrence immediately tucked in his arms and rolled to his left, away from the Tentacruel that seemed to materialize next to where he had fallen. The maneuver bought him precious seconds for me to run closer, and would have given me more if he hadn't hit the wall.
Cornered and vulnerable, with myself still too far away to intervene, Lawrence raised something in his hand and roared, hurling the white and red object towards the Tentacruel.
I recognized it immediately, and rejoiced silently as the pokeball soared towards the Tentacruel and nailed it in one of its two eyes. If it was a pokemon with a degree of physical competency, there would be no room for the Tentacruel to evade, and too high for it to reach and attack.
The pokeball bounced off the Tentacruel harmlessly, leaving it more annoyed than hurt, and continued its slow crawl towards Lawrence. I chastised myself mentally, he didn't have time to reach for a pokeball, whatever he threw was what he had been holding at the start of this chase. The metal blur came to mind. It was still lighting up the tunnel ahead, but barely within viewing distance and entirely oblivious to what was transpiring behind it, but if some of Lawrence's Pokemon were awake, maybe mine were as well.
A nano-second of doubt struck me as I reached into my coat to withdraw one of the capsules. What if I was wrong? What if whatever sprang out of it was still asleep, or the pokeball was empty, or worse yet, whatever was inside was just as dangerous as the Tentacruel on the outside.
'No. Not time for that, every tenth of a hundredth of a second spent doubting myself is time wasted. If things take a turn for the worse, I'll have to wing it.'
My hand whipped out of my jacked holding one of the pokeballs- hopefully one of the right ones, as though I had done it a million times before. "Now or never!" I yelled, my voice holding more confidence than I felt, my hand swung into a powerful pitch launching my Pokeball at high speeds towards the Tentacruel- aiming for the dome of its head. Killing it could wait, for now driving it back alone was my goal.
The pokeball stayed true to its course, zipping through the air towards the Tentacruel, which now had Lawrence shrunken against the corner as though his life depended on it. It cracked open an instant before impact, bright light erupting and transforming into a figure with brown regal wings, large tufts emerging from its head, and feet that ended in long, sharp talons.
The bird rode its inertia, taking full advantage of my speedy pitch, and sunk its talons into the top of its target's head, its powerful wings supporting it as it carried its prey through the air, then setting it down and pecking furiously at its face. The Tentacruel was too caught off guard to defend itself properly, flailing hopelessly as beak and talon dug and tore through its flesh in large rakes, before giving one last pathetic shake and ceasing.
The bird held onto its foe cautiously, pecking it twice more experimentally, and satisfied that the predator was indeed dead, turned towards me and cocked its head.
Noctowl. Nocturnal so it shouldn't have much issue seeing in the sewers. Very intelligent, potent psychic powers. No beard, so its not that old...I think? It seems just as potent with its talons...perhaps psychic powers ferment with age. No not ferment, but grow stronger? Probably, assuming that the beard theory is correct. Strong wings, to carry a Tentacruel. Fast thinker too, was ready to fight coming out of its pokeball, was I a trainer? Also, didn't flinch at drawing blood, instinct? Aware of situation from within pokeball? Possible. Adept bird of prey.'
I paused and glanced at the mangled remains of the Tentacruel that threatened Lawrence's life a minute before 'Very adept bird of prey. Certainly adjusted awful fast.'
"A little help down here please?" a soft, panting voice requested.
I glanced to my right, almost forgetting Lawrence was wedged into the corner where the wall met the ground. I gave him my hand- which he accepted gratefully and hoisted himself up as he calmed his breathing, "Where did Officer Jenny go?" He asked, sounding more curious than concerned.
"Officer Jenny?" I asked, puzzled.
Lawrence cleared his throat "Yeah, you know, turquoise hair, about eh tall, just saved us both from a very painful death"
"You know her?"
Lawrence brought his hand to his forehead in exasperation "Yeah, sure, I know her. Any idea which way she went?"
I scratched my chin thoughtfully "I imagine she followed your Pokemon"
The tunnel was dark again, said Pokemon was no longer in sight.
"Alright then, suppose we should be gentlemanly and show her the way out" Lawrence proposed.
'I'm pretty sure she had a gun with her, and I'm pretty sure she knew how to use it. Courtesy aside, I'm certain she would be a great help, maybe she could spare some ammo for the empty gun we have, that would be useful.'
"Alright" I said, once switching on my flashlight in the dim tunnels "You" I turned towards Noctowl, who cocked its head in response "Keep watch, if anything is close to us, give us a heads up." Noctowl nodded in reply.
I turned back towards my senior "Lawrence-"
"I gotcha kid" he said with a curt nod, and resumed his speedy run through the tunnels, presumably in the direction of the exit. With Noctowl now watching our no-longer vulnerable flanks, Lawrence were given both a luxury and a duty; you can focus ahead, you must focus ahead.
Concrete blurred into a messy gray smear as we sprinted through. Thankfully, while twists and turns were frequent in our path, it was relatively straightforward- a single path with with no forks. No sudden coveys from which a sly predator could shoot out and ambush us, and no way for our quarry to slip through- no snares that we could not find.
Time drew on, and though we continued unopposed save for the aching in our legs, not all remained stagnant. Sure signs that we had either exited the city or were nearing such and exit became evident. Fewer manholes and storm drains littered the ceilings, less light filtering into the shaft, and we had no choice but to slow so we could steady the flashlights in our hands.
The tunnel grew more narrow, and the walkway lowered and came closer to the water. Such were dangerous developments, narrow tunnels meant less room to maneuver- neither I nor Lawrence would be able to perform the rolls and dives that had saved us earlier. Lower walkways meant we were closer to danger, only offset by Noctowl's vigilant watch.
On the other hand, this translated to greater advantages for our surprisingly fleet of foot friend, whom to the best of our knowledge was still with the Pokemon from earlier. The decrease in space would make projectiles easier to account for and intercept, and electricity was much more effective on the Tentacool than their needles were on it, so the inability to dodge was hardly detrimental.
'I'm reading to much into this, just focus on reaching her before it becomes necessary for her to put my theories to the test. Secure the asset, her survival until then is in her own hands.'
The scales tipped further away from our favor around another corner; the pathway ended entirely, narrowing gradually until it was but an inch-wide ledge above the water. Lawrence shot a glance at Noctowl who in turn shot a look that seemed to say "I'm doing my job". Lawrence nodded, kneeling down over the ledge of the walkway and stuck his wrench into the water, testing its depth.
The wrench sunk down just over halfway, passing through about a foot of water before meeting the ground beneath the surface. Satisfied, Lawrence vaulted over the edge into the water and turned to me, gesturing for me to do the same.
I groaned as I reluctantly stepped over the edge and into the cold water and shifted my feet uncomfortably as I thought of what may have tainted the waters- rain from two days ago? Blood from from the day after?
Lawrence, ever perceptive, noticed my reluctance, and sought to properly motivate me.
"Whats the matter, city boy got dirt under his nails?" Lawrence, ever perceptive, noticed my reluctance, and had no reservations towards teasing me for it.
"City boy don't want Tentacool " I growled in retort, his ridicule striking a little too close to the truth.
Lawrence ignored me, running his hand over the concrete on the walls, feeling water that had splashed up onto them "She came through here".
I walked several steps ahead and felt the walls, noticing how high up the water had splashed "She was running from something"
Lawrence nodded "We should too. You may see a Tentacool yet"
His words sent a shiver down my spine, we had lingered to long. Tentacool and Tentacruel may not be community driven, but when they saw a threat, or felt their territory was encroached upon, they handled the threat. The destruction in the sewers indicated that there was a vast difference between a territorial Tentacruel and a predatory Tentacruel. One would not give us the chance to fight back, and the other was already dead.
A sinking feeling swelled in my stomach as again I looked at the water behind us, a world of danger lying beneath the calm mirror that was its surface. I shuddered again, and beat the feeling down my skin still crawled, my heart beat against my ribs violently, and my eyes darted back and forth across the water as we continued our walk through the urban labyrinth.
Lawrence's footfalls sent ripples through the water like a cannonball, My own breathing-so vital and normal to hear-sounded raspy and noisy, Noctowl's wing beats thundered in my ears with the power of a storm. Every small sound the three of us made rung like a symphony of morbid anticipation, music that only I could hear. Throughout what remained of the trek- the mile wide footsteps and the hour long minutes- Lawrence and Noctowl remained weary, but neither felt what I felt, or if they did, they didn't show it. They didn't feel this fear.
I recognized it, it was the same feeling I had when we were being sneaked up on by the Tentacruel, only amplified. It was the feeling prey felt when they were being stalked, and they knew they were being stalked, but couldn't do anything to fight against those that were stalking them.
I yanked on Lawrence's sleeve and motioned for him to let me whisper in his ear, I did not know if our predators could understand human speech, but it was better not to risk it "We are being followed" Lawrence blanched visibly, and tried to turn around, but before he could look behind us I grabbed him roughly by his shoulder "Don't look back" I whispered harshly "They'll strike if they realize we are onto them".
Lawrence exhaled an inhaled, attempting to control his breathing "What is it? I can't hear it." he whispered back, a facade of calm slipping over him.
"Tentacool I think, Tentacruel wouldn't be able to submerge in this water"
"What makes you think we are being followed?" Lawrence inquired quietly.
"A hunch, the same one I got before we were attacked before the Tentacruel" I recalled the occasion, either minutes or hours before.
"You mean when you kicked me?"
"Yes"
"Lets run on it then, it was right before" Lawrence whispered warily back "So we can't look back where they are, can we fight them? Outrun them?"
"No, we can't outrun them with the water slowing us down, and they know we are a threat, if they are stalking us, its only because they think that they have the advantage" I whispered.
"So why haven't they attacked us yet?" Lawrence asked "If they hold the advantage, and they think they have surprise on their side, what are they waiting for?"
'What indeed?' I wondered, turning over the hints in my head, looking for the answer. They were confident they could kill us, and they thought we were dangerous enough to organize to achieve that end. They were much stronger than us, and they could chase us down if we were to run. I thought on this for a few more seconds. "I don't know" I replied dejectedly.
"We need to know what will set them off so we can avoid doing that. If we want to figure that out, we need to know why they haven't attacked us to begin with" Lawrence whispered harshly "Maybe they want to corner us, then eat us?"
I shook my head at his suggestion "No, Tentacool don't have the means to eat prey as big we are. Think about it, the Tentacruel tried to eat me, I think, but the Tentacool that you fought seemed intent on turning you into a puddle of acid. They are territorial, not hungry"
"Are they doing this for sport then?" He guessed again "Practicing, taking pleasure in the hunt?
"Tentacool don't hunt, they can't, I think they just grab whatever swims too close to them" I explained "Besides, they know better than to take it easy on us. Do you feel that tension in the air? It's malicious intent, thirst for vengeance. They know we killed several of them" I took in a sharp breath of air as the answer struck me "That's it!"
"What's it?" demanded Lawrence.
"We aren't the only ones in these sewers, and we aren't the only ones that fought them" I exhaled.
Lawrence cringed "They want us to lead them to Officer Jenny, clever bastards." Lawrence swore "What can we do?"
"We keep on going" I said "Any sudden changes in behavior, and they'll notice something is up, we won't make it three steps before they melt us"
"The hell?" Lawrence protested quietly "We just lead them to their next victim and all die together? What kind of plan is that?"
I growled and Lawrence backed down "I think I have a plan, to buy us some time to run for exit, but we need to get closer for it to even have a chance of succeeding."
Our steps were painful and deliberate for the remainder of our walk. There was no doubt that both Lawrence and Noctowl now felt the same sense of dread I had. In an ironic way, Lawrence's intense struggle to avoid acting differently with a lack of ignorance made him seem suspicious, every last step seemed calculated, meant to be the exact same distance apart, with no drift whatsoever, and his breathing had a glaringly forced facade draped over it.
Noctowl, for its knowledge, was seemingly indifferent. It maintained the same near-silent wing beats it had before without the meticulous strain that Lawrence had. 'How has it adapted so well?' I wondered.
It was around the time that this thought crossed my mind that I began to notice light coming from around the corner, indicating that we had either found the officer from earlier or the exit to the sewers. Either would spring the ambush that had been set for us, it was near time for our own trap to spring.
"Noctowl, here, take a break" I said as we drew closer to the corner, holding out my arm so that Noctowl could land on it. Noctowl complied and wrapped its talons around my arm. Lawrence steadily took note of my actions before continuing to focus on the act we were playing out. 'Just one corner more'
My time in the sewers, though limited, left my eyes unprepared for the light around the corner. I winced and turned slightly away from the intense light, Lawrence grunting and doing the same, Noctowl shifted and ruffled its feathers in obvious discomfort.
When our eyes adjusted to the sudden light, we all peered down the tunnel towards the source; tendrils of bright sun flowing through the crusty, worn fingers of a steel grate. Water flowed freely between the bars, into a small, natural reservoir below. Beyond that one grate: escape.
About halfway between us and the exit, the woman trudged through the shin-high water slowly, the pokemon I had seen earlier flying beside her, a small for splayed over its back.
'The body I recovered' I realized, reprimanding myself for so hastily running away, and reprimanding myself again for not realizing I had not forgotten anything. I could not afford to lose things so carelessly, not when the stakes were this high. 'Focus, the stakes are higher than ever, you can't get distracted on something you might accidentally do later'.
I nudged Lawrence lightly with my elbow to get his attention, then nodded to warn him to get ready. "Hey!" I hailed, still walking nervously as I waited for a response.
The woman turned our way in response, her red eyes wide with surprise "Your alive!" She yelled back, lowering her guard.
The distance between us shrunk further 'How much distance could they cover before we could act? How close do we have to be for them to spring the trap?' I mentally asked myself.
"Yes, you have my gratitude for the assistance" I yelled back "But why did you bolt so quickly, the light bulb would have been a huge help" My eyes darted towards her and the exit, the most obvious signal I could think to make without alerting the Tentacool.
"It has a name ya know, its Magnezone" Lawrence said, to which I roughly elbowed him in the ribs to silence him.
Jenny seemed to notice this, and seemed more wary by our odd behavior "I thought you were behind me most of the way, by the time I realized you were gone I thought you got killed or got separated."
Lawrence and I continued our walk towards her, and she was now wary, no doubt ready to turn on her heels and flee at any moment 'That good' I thought 'We can't be much more than ten feet away, is this close enough?' A stab of panic ripped through my body, feeling like someone had sucker punched me in the stomach 'Too close'.
I spun on my heels "Noctowl, whirlwind!" I commanded, allowing Noctowl to launch itself off of my arm and flap its wings in strong strokes that created powerful gusts of wind behind us. I allowed myself I grinned with both relief and horror as the strong winds pushed the water back in waves, launching small blue blobs-about a dozen in all- back through the tunnel. Several collided with the walls, a couple of which were actually crushed by the change in momentum, but most were unharmed.
Lawrence was off the moment I turned around, sprinting down the tunnel and splashing with every step while yelling "Don't just stand there! Run damnit!". A second later more splashes joined his, and both quickly grew further away.
Noctowl landed back on my shoulder, making me wince as its talons sunk into my flesh searching for grip. Noctowl, to its credit seemed surprised as blood spurted from the wound, and slightly ashamed as I grunted with each arm swing as I begun sprinting, this wasn't enough for it to abandon its purpose though, as it continued firing distance moves down the tunnel, attempting to keep the pursuers at bay.
I closed my eyes and didn't stop until I felt the warmth of the sun on my skin, then opened them.
"Shit!" I swore, almost colliding with the metal grate "There isn't a door here?" I asked, directed towards Lawremce.
Lawrence roared, swinging his wrench against the bars in desperation to no effect. I turned back towards the Tentacool, in the precious seconds wasted, they had nearly recovered the distance we had gained from our slight of hand.
"Noctowl! Use reflect!" I commanded, fighting the panic in my voice and lifted my arm creating another roost for it. Nowtowl quickly hopped on, wrapping its talons around it to avoid breaking the skin. And make a gesture with its wings, eyes aglow.
A second later, a Tentacool launched itself at us from the water, tentacles outstretched and prepared to snap us our bones like toothpicks. I held my breath in the instant that it was airborne, silently praying that I had not miscalculated in my quick thinking.
The Tentacool was halted midair by an invisible barrier, bouncing off of it with a hard thud. I released the breath I had been holding.
"Screw it!" Lawrence yelled "Magnezone, break this thing down!" I heard a loud clang as metal struck metal, Magnezone's adversary rapidly giving way under its brute force. The fight was short, ending with a terrible screeching as the bars bent, and a splash as their mangled remains hit the water.
I silently rejoiced as the last obstacle gave way, giving us freedom to leave the watery labyrinth. Jenny ran through first, hopping deftly over the destroyed grate, followed by myself with Noctowl atop my shoulder, and finally Lawrence with Magnezone at his side.
We had done it, by whatever miracle or luck, we had survived our first brush with death. I couldn't help but break out laughing in joy, Jenny did the same. A few seconds passed between the two of us before I wondered what Lawrence was doing and I ceased laughing. In the absence of my fervent laughter though, a new sound became apparent, pinging.
The Tentacool were tenacious and vengeful. They were not content with us simply leaving their territory, not after eluding them so long and killing several of them. They would only be content when we were dead and our bodies could no longer be even remotely compared to a human corpse.
And it showed when all of them lined up, each rapidly shooting pink needles at the only thing that separated us from them, determined to beat it down with their pink hailstorm. Small fractures running across the surface indicated it was working.
Lawrence stood in front of the exit, his back towards us as he watched the cracks grow and stretch across the surface of our barrier. His eyebrows furrowed and his face morphed into a scowl as he looked at them, the gears in his head turning, no doubt wondering if we should flee inland or find a way to stop them.
Lawrence finally made his decision "Magnezone use magnet bomb!" he said, pointing his finger at the nearly faded barrier before any of us could react.
Magnezone complied, several small metallic rocks materializing in front of it, and then tossed them down the tunnel. A blast then shot out next to the target, tearing what was left of our reflect to shreds and tossing needles away from us with the force of the blast. Lawrence didn't wait to see what became of the Tentacool before issuing another command, even as our ears rung with noise from the blast "Again, on the exit way!".
Again, Magnezone complied, and again, the attack ripped through its target, reducing the tunnel to rubble, filling the exit with an assortment of mismatched rocks. Lawrence stared at the rubble for a second, before turning away, and releasing a sigh of relief as he stepped out of the water flow and onto the dry grass beside the exit way.
Lawrence dusted off his hands and then rubbed them together "Okay people, that sewer kicked us up just barely outside the city, and there is a storm that seems to be coming up behind us" he said, gesturing towards massive thunderclouds that hung over the center of the city but I recognize the place, and according to the map the water treatment plant isn't more than a twenty minute walk from here, and the clouds still look a few hours out so lets get a move on"
Lawrence turned away and began walking towards a dirt path that I presumed led to the water treatment plant. Jenny shot me a questioning glance, to which I shrugged and began walking after him, and heard her jog over to after her moment of indecision had passed.
Lawrence stopped suddenly and turned around "Hey Magnezone, what's the holdup? This path goes through some woods so we need someone to help keep us safe".
In truth I had forgotten about our steel guardian, still beside the sewer exit, unmoving. It paid Lawrence no heed, putting all of its attention in to watching the tunnel exit.
Magnezone then put forward both its arms and shot a continuuous weak bolt of electricity into the small stream as we all waited for something to happen. We were rewarded when our ears were greeted with a terrible shrieking- the kind associated with the terrible pain of a dying animal. Only when the shrieking stop did Magnezone cease pumping electricity into the water.
There was no doubt now: the Tentacool were dead.
Lawrence looked pale at the actions of his pokemon, but Magnezone returned to Lawrence's side once the bloody deed was done. Lawrence just stared dumbly at the sewer exit, unaware of the world around him.
Jenny walked up to him after a few moments and shook his shoulder "We can't stay here" She said.
Lawrence shook himself out of his stupor "Sorry, you're right" He then turned towards Magnezone "Good job, you did what you had to do, and you kept us safe. Wouldn't have made it out of there if it wasn't for you. Just help us get to the water treatment plant and you can take a rest, okay?" Magnezone buzzed happily, having been oblivious to its trainers concerns. Lawrence turned back and started heading down the road, Jenny in tow.
Lawrence and I both came to understand why Magnezone did what it did, mercy simply was not an alternative. But when did this brutality begin? Where did it come from, and where did it end? I looked at Noctowl on my shoulder, still ashamed of having accidentally cutting it when it first landed on it, and yet having ripped an offending Tentacruel to shreds. Lawrence's concerns were neither unnecessary nor unwarranted. But at least these pokemon were still our friends, in all their might we could still depend on them, even when I was separated from mine by a lifetime of memories.
So no matter how it had happened, one thing mattered. No matter how brutal the means, the Labyrinth had fallen.
