Vergil's point of view:
Alicia is safe, as is he rest of the group. We are outside Mt. Moon and there don't seem to be any cursed pokemon around.
"Cole", I yell as I nervously look around for any signs of my dear freind. But there is no answer. "Did you see Cole or the old man who was with him?", I ask Nurse Joey who is helping a wounded girl besides me.
"Sorry, no", he replies wih a sad tone in his voice. "Cole was hit with paralysis poison. Not deadly by itself, but there is a big chance that he couldn't run fast enough to get out of the cave. I 'm sorry Vergil, but I need your help to take care of the people here. Floyd is also unaccounted for"
My help?, I think. Why would he need my help? There are tens of men older and stronger and I bet with more knowledge than a sixteen year old. So why need my help specifically? To prevent me from going back in the cave to search for my friend, or he thinks I am a special person because of who my parents are? So sick of it. I am not some special snowflake, nor a child to be kept alive. Cole is my number one priority right now. The rest of them can go screw themselves.
"I am going after him, take the people to Pewter", I say and get lost inside the dark dusty entrance of the cave.
Barely a couple minutes after I enter, I hear footsteps and coughing. "Cole", I shout in excitement, although my lungs are filled with dust. However, a few figures appear right in front of me. Some of them are pokemon, but I instantly make out a sillouette of a man, who I almost immediatelly recognize as Grandpa Bill. "Where is Cole?", I immediatelly ask, grabbing him by the shoulders. Unable to speak, the man points to the exit of the cave.
I help grandpa Bill walk to the exit, and behind us the rest of the figures follow. When we exit, the old man coughs and catches his breath, as Nurse Joey hands him a bottle of water. The pokemon following us are Persian and Bayleef. I rub my eyes to get rid of the dust, to see Bayleef is carrying a man on its back. It's Floyd.
Nurse Joey's point of view:
Thank Arceus Vergil returned, and not alone. The old man is fine, while Floyd is unconsious carried by his pokemon. I hand the man a bottle of water to help him clear himself of the dust he inhaled, and immediatelly run to Floyd. As Bayleef touches him on the ground, I see his pupils have a soft purple color.
"Something psychic", I think to myself. Nothing can be done about him now, so we must continue our way, we are still not safe enough here.
Next to me, Vergil anxiously asks the old man where Cole is, and he replies he ran to lure the pokemon away, before the cave fell in. Vergil collapses and cries at the news, but I don't have time to comfort him.
"All right, let's get going", I say as I clap my hands to get everyone's attention. Carry the wounded, there will be time to rest in the nearby center. People immediately obey, and surprisingly so does Vergil.
Misty's point of view:
Seems our worst fears have come to life. The horde of cursed pokemon is led by one of the strongest pokemon in Kanto. Zapdos. It flies above the town, circling around it, sending thunderbolts that hit the ground and buildings with great force. Some houses are already on fire, as is part of the wall. My trainers stand firmly besides me, ready to take whatever comes our way.
Suddenly an explosion is heard, as part of the wall surrounding the town collapses. Before the smoke settles, a horde of cursed pokemon storm the place, as we unleash a round of atacks.
"Azumarill, go", I say and throw a pokeball in the air. The while-blue pokemon materializes a couple yards ahead of me. "Use Aqua Jet", I order as my pokemon flashes its arm white. Although a fairly big and slow pokemon, this attack is extremely fast. Thin jets of water are hurled at the cursed horde, and with extreme precision knock them out instantly. Fierce battles erupt all around me, as my trainers unleash their full strength against the horde. Despite the fact that most cursed pokemon are electric, the trainers do well.
"Save your strength for the big boss", Donna says as she appears besides me. "We can take care of these things. Swampert, use Earthquake", she immediatelly commands. Her Swampert, standing in the middle of the battleground, unleashes a tremendous shockwave that knocks back a great number of pokemon, unfortunately some of ours too. When the dust subsides, some electrodes have used magnet rise just before the earthquake hit, and the attack didn't affect them. With great speed, the cursed pokemon approach Swampert and use selfdestruct.
An immerse light engulfs the battlefield, forcing all the trainers to cover our eyes. A couple seconds later, the explosion subsides and a horrid sight comes into view. Swampert has been torn apart by the explosion, as well as the electrodes and many more pokemon in the surrounding are. Barely recognisable, Donna's pokemon misses an arm and its head is leaned back, having its neck broken. I immediatelly turn around to see Donna, who has fallen on her knees. "Swampert", I hear her say in a low voice.
"Stay with me", I tell her and go back to commanding Azumarill. "Come back", I say and withdraw the pokemon.
"Golduck, go". Golduck is one of my best and oldest pokemon. His psychic capabilities have no limit, and it has saved me countless of times. "Surf", I command as soon as the red light vanishes. The red crystal on my pokemon's forehead shines a light blue, as the water from the ground rises simutaneously with Golduck's hands to form a tidal wave. Standing in awe, the trainers withheld their attacks, as Golduck pushes his arms forward, unleashing the tidal wave on our foes. Cheers and applause is heard as the enemy pokemon are pushed back, and some of them even incapacitated.
"Hit them with everything you got", I command the trainers who have their spirits up. Then I order Golduck back in the pokeball, as he needs to keep his strength for later. I know the others will be no match for Zapdos, so I need to keep my pokemon's strength for the one on one battle that is about to come.
Vergil's point of view:
Grandpa Bill said the cave collapsed right after Cole entered it. He says he couldn't have survived it. But I don't believe it. I won't accept it. Cole could be paralyzed inside the cave, maybe wounded and unable to walk. He is waiting for me to go rescue him. First thing I will do when we reach the center is look for a paralyzing heal. Then I will run back and save my friend. It is faster than going back and carrying him to the pokecenter.
Finally, the pokemon center is in sight. Seems destroyed though. But I don't care. I let down Floyd's stretcher, and run towards it. Nurse Joey calls out to me, but I don't bother listening to him. Someone else can carry Floyd on my behalf, and if the pokemon center is dangerous, I am willing to take that risk. Every second counts when it comes to saving Cole.
Misty's point of view:
As the enemy numbers grow, so do the pokemon the trainers send out. Now attacking in full force, the trainers have let out all of their pokemon. I plan to send them away once Zapdos is here, there is no point in having them around as they will get in the way the same way civilians would. Zapdos is still circling around the town, as if it's marking the area of attack. Thunder occasionally contacts it, as if it gathers up energy for something. Even in this distance, its distorted features can be noticed. The once yellow and black spikes on its wings are now curved, with some of the black ones having turned to grey and deep purple. The once bright electric yellow color has now turned sickly, and its eyes shine an evil red, as all cursed pokemon do, visible even in this distance.
Vergil's point of view:
As I enter the pokecenter, leaving the group behind me, the smell takes me aback. I immediatelly exit the building, having an urge to throw up. A corpse was sitting on the chair in the reception, emitting that sickening smell.
Nurse Joey's point of view:
The body shows signs of early decomposition. It must have been here for at least three days. I cover my nose as I examine the scene. Poor nurse. I met her once. A fifty-somewhat years old kind lady, she never had children or family, save for her beloved chansey, which lay dead next to her. When the curse hit, many years ago, it was decided that this pokecenter needed to close due to being way overexposed to danger. This woman protested, and took up the danger of keeping the pokecenter up and running. She practiclly lived out here, and only went to Pewter a couple times a week for supplies. She died protecting this place, a true hero all these years helping people who exited the cave. I decide that she will be buried here, in her home. That's what she would have wanted.
There is blood in a few places, and after examining the scene, I come to a verdict as to how the crime was committed. It was bandits, given how the place is picked clean. And no small amount of them. This had to ahve been full of supplies. The first person to come in, possibly a male, approached the nurse, caught her by surprise, slammed her head on the counter and stabbed her brutally at the back of her head. Signs of struggle are still visible, indicating thw woman died painfully. I immediatelly push these thoughts away, trying to focus on the matter at hand. As for the chansey, it has a bruise on top of its head. Poor thing didn't even have a chance to save its trainer, as the punch came immediately and knocked it out. It must have sustained a brain injury, as its neck is not broken, and signs of deterioration show it must have died a couple days later.
Vergil's point of view:
Turning over every possible shelf, I can't find anything. Not just paralyzing heal, but nothing at all. The place has been picked clean. It has been already 3 hours since we lost Cole. Suddenly, his face comes to my mind. Not his sad face he has been having lately, but the happy face he always had. His sparkling blue eyes, his glowing blonde hair, his perfect smile that made me happy when I saw it. And before I know it, I start crying at the very thought.
Coming out of the storage room, I see the injured and elderly resting on beds and chairs in the waiting room, while others search for supplies in vain. A few of the still capable members carry the bodies of the nurse and Chansey outside to be buried, while Joey looks after the injured. Among the crowd, I notice grandpa Bill standing over Floyd's unconsious body.
Misty's point of view:
It came out of nowhere. Now I know why Zapdos was circling around over the city. It wasn't marking the area of attack, it was channeling the electricity in the clouds to hit. A thunder so massive struck down on us, we never saw it coming. Time slowed down for me when this happened. I saw a white and yellow bright beam forming, and the next thing I know, I was on a collapsed part of the town wall. Looking up, my sight took a little to adjust, but the buzz in my ears took more. Dizzy and disoriented, I took a quick look around and saw everyone, people and pokemon, on the ground. The ground was torn open in many places, and static electricity hit places close to the point of contact. Some trainers moved, while others did not. Pokemon close to the center of the blast were burned to a crisp, while those further away were knocked out, maybe even dead. My hearing returned as I caught my forehead and moticed some blood there. At the same moment, I noticed Zapdos descending from the sky.
"Everyone run", I immediately shouted, suddenly finding strength in me. "Run to Pewter, and don't look back, this is my fight". Some of the trainers tried to stand up, while others tried to help their friends who couldn't. Donna came again besides me.
"Every pokemon is knocked out or dead", she said, tears still in her eyes. "Get them all out of here", I command. "You did what you had to do, now I need to go all out", I say in a serious voice.
Vergil's poin of view:
Floyd is layng in front of me in a stretcher, his pupils emitting a soft purple aura. His eyes are wide open and don't even blink, as is his mouth. It's some kind of psychic effect, but whether it's good or bad I don't know. Seeing him like this takes Cole out of my mind for a moment.
"Has he moved at all?", I ask grandpa Bill. "He responds some times, but nothing much. The nurse boy says whatever it is, it is slowly fading".
"When do we move?", I ask again. Without waiting for an answer, I continue. "Pewter is just a couple hours walk from here. Perhaps it would be best if we sent a group there and bring help back. If I go, I need you to keep this here to be safe", I say and hand over my bag containing the pokemon egg I found earlier.
Since nurse Joey seems to be in charge here, I go to him and explain my plan. For some reason he immediatelly agrees. Maybe my plan is good, but maybe he thinks tha Misty's son's plan will be good regardless. Whatever it is, I volunteer to go as one of the few people that aren't hurt at all.
After a few minutes a group is already assembled. It's not much, we are 4 people with 3 pokemon who just recovered from the battle before, yet we are he best chance there is. "We will come back with help in no time", a woman from the group tells the group. As she opens the door of the pokemon center, a man in uniform appears behind it, and a few more behind him. We go out to see they are Pewter's security force. My group's mouths widen as they smile, realizing help has already come.
"You are the caravan from Cerulean, right?", the man in the front asks.
"Yeah, that's right, the woman replies, her voice clearly showing how puzzled she is. Um, how did you know?", she asks.
The man smiles. "You won't believe it", he says but is interrupted by a loud thunder, followed by a tremor on the ground.
Donna's point of view:
All the trainers still alive are either carried away or carrying others outside the city. We have no pokemon with us, but we will worry about it later. It pains me to see Misty stay behind alone, but she is right. She is the head of the elite four, and one of the strongest trainers in the area. If someone can defeat a legendary bird, it's her. The rest of us would only get in the way. Taking a last look back, Zapdos has descended from the sky and is lurking over the city, static electricity coming out of its hideous form. Its bloody red eyes are locked into one single person. Misty, standing right opposite of it. As a thunder hits, the atmosphere is lit for a second, showing Misty's fearless and determined face, returning the intimidating look, looking down on the legendary bird as if they are equal. "Good luck... Gym Leader", I think to myself. I expect to work with you again when we return to our town.
Ok, really sorry bu this chapter came out very long, so I decided to split it in two. Next up is coming the epic confrontation between one of the elite 4 and a legendary bird, as well as Vergil's arrival in Pewter. It won't take long, I will update it until tomorrow. Thanks for reading, leave a review if you wish