My shoes slapped against the pavement as Burgh and I ran down to Prime Pier, hoping not to lose the Plasma grunts. I breathed heavily, wishing that Fiona was a bit bigger so she could run and I could just sit on her back. The wind whistled through my hair as I adjusted my hat on my head. Sheesh, how big was Castelia City? It seemed as if Burgh and I had been running for – oh we're here. I noticed a familiar face on the dock.
"Bianca!" I yelled, waving my hands frantically above my head. I was excited to see her. Unfortunately, she didn't seem to feel the same way. As I drew closer to her, I could see that her eyes were red. Tears clung to her face, but her mood lightened as she saw me. Before I could ask what happened, she flung herself at me, burying her face in my chest. I flinched slightly, before wrapping my arms around her tightly. I leaned down and whispered quietly to her.
"What happened?" What else could I say? Her body shook against mine, her muffled wails echoing through my ribcage. I stood in shock, not sure what to do, how to comfort her. I was never good at this kind of thing… A small dark-skinned girl with wild purple hair walked toward me. She looked uncomfortable, but spoke clearly.
"Team Plasma attacked her and stole one of her Pokémon. I tried to follow them, but they got too far away. I don't know what to do… it was my fault that they got away with this."
"Iris… don't say that. I know you did the best you could." Even with Burgh's comforting words, she didn't seem to change. Iris put on a half-hearted smile and walked back toward the edge of the docks, gazing blindly out across the water. Burgh followed her and started up another conversation, but they were too far away for me to hear. Bianca had only just stopped crying. She looked up at me, eyes full of tears. She took a step back, pushing out of my arms. A small embarrassed giggle, and then Bianca stared into my eyes again. I felt warm.
"I'm sorry, Black. I didn't mean to…" She trailed off, now looking at her feet.
"No, Bianca. Don't worry. Did you see which way they went? Burgh and I will go get your Pokémon back."
"I think they went… off in that direction. Please, my Munna…"
"You stay with Iris, Bianca. You'll be safe with her. We'll go get Munna," I said, stronger than I felt. I reached out and bound her in a too-tight hug. She was warm. I let go, and nervously played with the strap on my bag until Burgh was finished talking to Iris. As he drew near me, he gave me a solemn nod before walking away.
"Bye, Bianca. I'll be back soon, with your friend." I turned and followed Burgh. It looked like we were headed back in the same direction as the gym. He waited until we were out of the girls' earshot, before talking about the plan.
"It seems like Team Plasma is taking lots of Pokémon. Iris has been working for the League for a while, she's an apprentice under Alder. She says that she's seen a lot of Plasmas attempt to steal Pokèmon, but Iris has been able to stop them. I only wish she could have this time, as well."
"Who's Alder? And the League? Do you mean the Gym Leaders and Elite Four?"
"Alder is the reigning Champion in Unova… you've probably heard his name before… Dark skinned, spiky red hair…?" He gestured, trying to remind me. I shrugged and shook my head. "Anyway, anyway. You're right, the League is made up of the Gym Leaders and the Elite Four. We try to keep the peace in Unova, by allowing select Pokémon trainers to shadow our work. The Gym Leaders can't be undercover, but their apprentices can." I nodded, to show my understanding. This was a lot of thought to take in. The Gym Leaders had secret trainers watching out for danger? This sounds a lot like surveillance to me. Burgh's awkward demeanor around Lenora was replaced by determination. Justice.
"Did Iris tell you where Team Plasma was? Bianca said she didn't see them."
"Yeah, Iris followed them back."
"But… she said she lost them. Why didn't she get Munna if she knew where they went?"
"The League needs to know where Team Plasma's headquarters are, and Iris couldn't risk that lead by fighting the grunts. They would know they were followed." Could Iris have risked the loss of Bianca's Munna purely for the good of knowing where the headquarters were? Sure, now the League might be able to take down Team Plasma, but Munna could have been sold, or killed. "What are you thinking, Black?" Burgh asked.
"I'm going to make every last one of them pay. For what they did to Bianca, and that other little girl."
"I've got your back, with that. Here we are. No need to be stealthy, we're going to take down their door guards and waltz right in." I pulled a pokèball from my bag, and released Lily. She floated beside me, and I quickly filled her in on the situation. Although a grass Pokémon, her eyes were filled with fire now. As we approached the three unaware guards, Burgh released a Pokémon I had never seen before. A deep blue cloth was hastily wrapped around its body, and a pinkish helmet-shaped head protruded out of it. It floated a few inches off the ground, keeping a watchful eye on the knights no more than a block away. As Burgh and I neared the building, the guards shifted their weight, puffed their chests out. The Pokémon wrapped in cloth disappeared in a blur of speed, and smacked into the nearest knight, toppling him over with a crash. The other two reacted quickly, sending their Pokémon to fight.
"Accelgor, use Double Team!" Accelgor rapidly shifted back and forth, creating a distorted image. It appeared to be three Pokémon, vibrating in place. The grunts' Patrat and Purrloin leaped, and flew through thin air. They fell for Accelgor's trick. "Now use Swift!" The bug tossed razor sharp stars through the air, slicing the enemy Pokémon apart. I realized that Pokémon must hold back in trainer battles, because Accelgor's shurikens were tearing into the Plasma grunts' pokèmon, shredding their fur and skin. I wanted him to turn his attack on the real culprits, Team Plasma. I rushed toward them, Lily buzzing beside me. She released a wave of psychic energy, making one collapse, while I targeted the other. I full-body tackled him, his head smacking into the concrete beneath us. He threw me off of him, into a stone wall. His fist collided with my jaw, and suddenly…
His fist is on my right. Dodge, jab into chest. Left arm comes in toward my face, I move to right. Grab left arm at maximum reach, wrench forward, throwing him off balance. Press right palm into his left elbow, pushing forward. Harder, and… snap. His arm bends in the wrong direction. Jab heel of foot into back of knee, sending him into the ground. Right foot goes into face, jaw snaps. I win.
The slipstream of thoughts shuddered to a stop, as Burgh dragged me into the building. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, my head pounded. I tore myself away from my animal instincts, hoping to gain an edge on whatever Plasma officials were here. Burgh stopped suddenly, wary of the people standing before him. Three men were in the lobby of the skyscraper, dressed like the old man in the forest… Gorm. He was there too, standing next to…
"Hello, Burgh. And Black! It's nice to see you again. I hope you pay attention this time, as opposed to that time in Accumula Town." The man in the middle looked directly at me. How did he know I was at Accumula? I didn't even recognize him, and he was the one on stage. His eyes were filled with… hatred? No, it was something else. He didn't despise the feeling, he reveled in it.
"Ghetsis," Burgh said dramatically.
"It's time I give you the Munna back, huh? Very well, here it is…" He released the Munna from a pokèball hidden in his robes. I moved to receive it, but Burgh kept a strong hand on my shoulder. Ghetsis' other hand was still cloaked beneath the folds of his robe. I gestured to Munna, to come closer. It drifted lazily across the room. The air was filled with quiet intensity. I felt the heat grow in the room, the hairs on the back of my neck now standing up. I looked up to the ceiling, and saw death.
"Burgh!" I crouched and leapt at him, shoving him out of the way as a massive spear of electricity impaled the ground. I only assumed it was aiming for the two of us. But it wasn't, yet. The Munna, half-burnt, half-crushed, whimpered pitifully on the ground. Burgh's eyes went wide, as the shadow from above swooped down beside its master, Ghetsis.
"Zero, Fire Blast," Ghetsis ordered, pointing directly at us. I dove out of the way as a jet of flame soared across the room, coating the walls in embers and throwing smoke into the air. Lily had been behind me, where was she now? She was already tossing every gambit she had at the dragon, but it didn't seem to work. I scrambled through my bag, and hurled Kaida and Oaxaca into the room. They crouched behind a couch nearby, trying to stay out of sight of Zero.
"Kaida, I need you to take down Ghetsis. Oaxaca, help Lily!" I shouted. Flames continued to batter the walls, I was afraid the building might catch fire completely.
"Got it!" They nodded in unison, and vaulted over the couch at once. I peeked above my cover to check where the dragon was.
"Black, get down!" Another wave of fire was launched toward me, I hit the ground and ducked. The heat singed my eyebrows, it felt as if the skin on my face and hands was melting off. I wasn't on fire, but I was close to being a human inferno. Kaida had leapt toward Ghetsis first, and sunk a mouth full of teeth into his arm. He screamed in pain, before smacking her with a pokèball. I watched it close around her. I felt myself shouting. Oaxaca swept through the air, launching every move he had against the monster who had killed Bianca's friend. Another Team Plasma grunt had tackled Oaxaca, and wrestled him to the ground. I was truly screaming now, my voice hoarse and ragged from the smoke. Burgh had lifted me up, and hustled out the door, pulling me into the street. An explosion racked the building, spraying glass and debris out into the peaceful metropolis. I felt shrapnel pierce my back, and Burgh slumped to the ground. I felt sobs pour out of my chest as Burgh and I bled into the concrete.
My eyes burned. I opened them to the harsh light above me. I was at a hospital once again. I leaned forward, before falling back into my pillow from exhaustion. I breathed deeply, trying to clear soot and ash out of my lungs from the explosion. A nurse wandered in, before jumping at the sight of my eyes open. She knelt beside my bed, and spoke softly.
"What?" I couldn't hear her.
"How are you feeling?" She asked, her eyes full of ambient sympathy. I coughed, feeling bile rise into my throat. She pulled a bucket from underneath the bed to catch the stomach acid now leaking out of my mouth. She reached for a small cloth to wipe my mouth. I rolled back to look at the ceiling, and she asked again how I was feeling.
"My friends are gone." I wanted to shout, but my throat wouldn't allow it. I wanted to slam my fist into a wall, but my arms wouldn't allow it. I wanted to slide a scalpel across my neck, but my mind wouldn't allow it. What else did I have to live for?
"You don't deserve to face the pain you're going through. I'm sorry. Are you okay with visitors?"
"Who?"
"A girl wanted to speak with you alone." How was I going to explain this to Bianca?
"Let her in." The nurse nodded solemnly, before walking to the door. It wasn't Bianca anymore. She was a husk of her former self. She was depression wearing a smile.
"How are you?" She asked, a small hand reaching out to touch my arm. She drug a chair closer to my bed.
"I'm sorry. This wouldn't have happened if - "
"Black, no. This isn't your fault. I know you did everything you could to help me… and Munna. She didn't deserve to die the way she did." She finished, but I waited for her to say more. I didn't know how to fill the space with words like I used to. She stayed quiet as well. I stared more deeply into her eyes, trying to find what she wanted to say to me. Instead, she leaned in and put her mouth against mine. It didn't feel like a kiss, it felt like pity. I returned it, with contempt burning in my chest. She looked down on me... and she wanted to make me feel better with such a simple gesture. One that I used to want.
"Can I do anything - " I cut her off before she could finish the thought.
"I don't want to talk." She abruptly stood, clearly embarrassed. She walked out of the room stiffly, shutting the door tightly behind her. How could she think she could fool me? I wasn't an imbecile like she and Cheren thought.
"This is not your time to die." Zekrom was there, in my head now. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cut him out with a sharp knife to my brain. I wanted to end all this, right now. "Your friends are depending on you."
"What friends, Zekrom? All of my friends are dead or stolen.They didn't deserve the life that they had."
"Not all of your friends."
"They'd be better off without me!" I heard the pounding of feet outside my door. I didn't care if they thought I was crazy. I wasn't insane, I'm not insane, I won't be insane. Just stop! I'm yelling now, thrashing in my bed. Alarms are going off, my bedsheets are on the ground, what am I doing? I'm going to die I'm going to die I'm going to kill myself I'm going to kill myself imgonnadoit imgonnadoit imgonnadoit
Author's Note:
This is a bit shorter because I wanted to end abruptly. I'll be churning out the next chapter in a couple of days.