Snow Chapter 7:
"Ok, now put in the dynamite," Andy whispered.
"Why you gotta whisper like that?" Declan asked in his normal voice.
"Sshh. You'll anger the gods. Now, just light the fuse."
Declan grabbed his lanturn and stuck a splint of wood into the fire. He carefully closed the lamp, adjusted his mining helmet, and lit the fuse. It made a slight fizz while they took the half second they could to run to the small steel bunker which had served as their base.
"It should go off any minute now," Declan panted. While they took their time to take a breath, they kept their ears accute.
There was nothing. No explosion or anything else that remotely sounded like the next cave being opened up.
"I'ma go check this out. Something ain't right," Declan told Andy, puzzled. He ran off to the wall where they had set the dynamite.
His stomach churned troublingly, telling him something wasn't right about this situation, but he couldn't place his finger on it. Until...
"DECLAN, WAIT!"
"Huh?" Declan turned around as the fuse finally ran out, and blew up behind him. Light blinded Andy as he coughed and fell to his knees, trying to get all the dust out of his mouth. His ears ringing and his eyes crying, he got up and stumbled to the wall. He fumbled with the radio until he could connect.
"This is Graveler, over,"
"WE GOT A MAN DOWN, OVER!"
"Slow down, miner. Tell us what you mean, over."
There was no response, as Andy weeped over his friends battered body.
-][-
"When I seen my father coming out of that mine with Uncle Declan in his arms, that's when I knew things weren't going to change. We would be destined to work forever," The boy told Volkner, an odd look on his face like this was some profound statement of truth.
He sat on the steps with the boy, listening to the kid retell the tale, while the traveler sat in the rocking chair, reading a book entitled Shuckleberry Finneon. An older woman stood in the kitchen, instucting London on the proper way to cook. It was very rustic looking.
But then again, this was a very old fashioned town.
They had taken a leisurely stroll on Route 203, grinding off the numerous youngsters and lasses there after they had fled from Team Plasma. They had arrived in Oreburgh City, which reminded the traveler of some place he had been in the long past. No inns were avaliable, so the traveler managed to convince a friend of a friend to let them stay.
Jasper came running in, holding the door for his pokemon carting groceries.
"See Ester, we got everything you needed. You don't have to worry about eating anytime soon!"
"Oh, thanks, hon." The woman appeared to be in her late thirties, but her red hair was already graying out already. She wore a traditional red dress and had her hair up in a ponytail. She looked exhausted.
But that's what this life will get you.
"I carn't remember the last time we had all this stuff!" She shouted as the Duskull was still floating crates into the cellar inside, which was surprisingly roomy for the small house they had. Jasper organized it by type downstairs, making everything easy to access for future use.
"You didn't have to buy all this! This must have cost a fortune!"
"It's nothing. You let us stay here remember. You even got London to do something productive!" He grinned, looking over at the girl chopping vegetables.
She groaned. "I do my equal share-"
"Lies!"
"Jasper, I swear I will knock you upside the head if you say another word." She said reproachingly.
"That would be mighty fierce for just a little joke," He added, and then hopped out of London's reach.
"Ya'll have to leave for the gym at three, remember." Ester reminded them."You better get dressed in your normal clothes. Won't want to be looking like miners in a town full of them."
About fifteen minutes later, the three were dressed in their normal clothes and were ready to go out the door.
"Mr. Grant, are you coming?" London asked.
"I'd reckon I'd just stay here and watch over Ester and the boy," He said.
They approached the gym in high hopes, but after utterly slaughter the four trainers that gym leaders keep as pets in the gym, they found themselves faced with a family dilemma.
"Damn it dad, I'm not going to let my people suffer like this! Welcome to the new age!"
The purple haired man chuckled sinisterly. "You honestly think you can change lifestyles here within a matter of days? You think you can just let your city fall into poverty? We are desert trainers, we understand hard work and old fashioned values. But apparently you don't understand that anymore. You want to be like these modern cities who pride themselves on doing nothing and sitting all day! Just look at Castelia City!" He yelled at him.
"No, Dad, I mean I'm sick of having both man and pokemon labor only to die in the darkness of the mines!"
"Who else will do it?" He grunted. Roark stood there, fuming, fists clenched. He had no counter.
He looked over. "You have challangers. I will take my leave."
He stepped over to the trio, and noted them briefly. "My name is Byron. I am the gym leader of Canaclave City. I hope to fight you someday."
With that, he walked out of the gym, his purple hair bouncing with every step.
"You there, challangers!" Roark said. "I want to battle you but I want you to agree with me first!"
"Aren't we allowed to have our own opinions?" Jasper remarked.
"NO!" He took a drink of a clear liquid in a jug.
"Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" Jasper asked, but Roark dismissed him.
"There ain't no drinking limit in this here county. Now, if you want to battle me, you have to go underground and gather coal gems for processing. When you have five, then you have my permission to challenge the Roark-ster!" He said. He then strode off into the bathroom, and locked the door.
Click.
"Well, let's go to the underground then," Jasper sighed. "Always holding my hand,"
"How do we do that?"
"Well, first you just grab a hand and wrap your fingers around it," Jasper watched as she took the nearest hand and wrapped her fingers around it, almost like a second nature. "I honestly don't know about the second. Let's ask Ester."
With that, they departed, Volkner's face red with his hand caught in London's. Jasper smirked as they entered the town again.
-][-
"You'll need one of them Explorer Kits, but I think the only place that sells them is the minimart down the street," She told them. "Are you sure you want to do this? The mines ain't stable enough." A hint of worry came across her face.
"We'll be fine," Volkner told her. "You don't have to worry about us."
A quick trip to the minimart and they were equipped in mining jumpsuits, complete with a hammer, a pickaxe, a brush, three containers for objects and a heavy duty tablet. Pokeballs hung off another belt loop. They stepped into the mine at dusk, after eating a hearty dinner at Ester's.
Zubats. Zubats everywhere. A sea of purple covered the ceiling while a cloud of purple flapped their wings and darted every which way and that.
"No wonder Team Rocket has tons of these. You could catch them with a net," Volkner said as he used his boots to step into the foot deep coating of guano on the ground.. London clung to his arm, being deathly afraid of bats. Volkner didn't mind this, although with every step further into the cave, he felt his face get redder as London got closer to him.
"Does it get better?" She asked him.
"Hopefully."
The three stepped through the cave until their boots didn't stick to the ground anymore. They shook off any remaining guano from their boots and traveled deeper, their mining helmets illuminating the way. They finally found themselves in the underground, which was lined with supports of wood from the strongest Timburr and lamps from the hottest flames of Charmander. This was no ordinary mine, this was a heart for the Oreburgh complex. The dirt rose up from their feet, and their were holes all in the wall were coal diggers hoped to get lucky.
"See, we do it like this," They heard a voice and approached it. Intruding on the miner who was talking to another miner, he demonstrated how to pick the wall. The three looked over his shoulder and watched in curiousity.
"Now, watch Carl. Declan was a damn good miner, and you can be one." He wiped a tear from his eye. "First, you want to get the hammer. Typically you use this to smash the first part of the wall. The hardest thing to do is get all the coal, or these colorful gems, out of the wall." He hit the wall hard with the hammer, and the wall crumbled partly away from its touch.
A glint of red shone from behind the wall. "Now you see here, this is what you want. Now it's time to use your pickaxe to dig around it" He tapped the pickaxe around it and it revealed the big red gem nestled in the rock. He pulled it out effortlessly. "Now, do you get the hang of it, Carl?"
"Yeah, I think I gets it. You should attend to your visitors, Andy." The man looked up at the three out of place miners who's hair wasn't already completely black from the coal dust.
"What do you want?" He asked nastily.
"Excuse me, we're just looking for the best place to find gems to fight the gym leader," London told him.
"Of course you are. He sends a new trainer down here every week. You know what, I'll send you to the best part this time so you ain't spend to much time down here. Follow the signs from Robert until you get to Declan, and than at the end of that tunnel near the rock pile. There you'll find the best and biggest gems I reckon." He smirked.
"Ok!" London sauntered off to the mines. She towed Volkner behind her.
Jasper glanced at Andy, who was still smirking. He ran off to catch up with two.
"That'll show them. I don't mean to be cruel, but it's the only way they'll see."
The lights got considerably dimmer each time they turned a corner.
"Don't you think this is getting kinda suspecious?" Jasper asked.
"What are you talking about?" London asked. "Mines are always dark."
"London, sometimes you can be so thick headed."
They reached the wall and started mining, the helmets the only light they could see. A few minutes later and they had gathered tons of fossils and coal gems. Andy was right, this place was a gold mine.
"Okay, we have enough, we should get going." Jasper. He was getting more uneasy at the moment.
"Wait, I just need to get this fossil. It looks like the pokemon I used at the Rocket Tower," London finely picked the wall. It started to crumble.
"No! Wait!" She stuck her hand in and forcefully pulled the fossil out. The wall crumbled and she held a perfectly intact Root Fossil. However, it revealed something large and gold.
"WHO DARES DISTURB MY SLUMBER?" A deep rumbling voice said.
"See! I told you this was a bad idea!" Jasper had to rub it in.
"Shut up Jasper!" They both said at the same time.
"MY NAME IS CONFAGRIGUS! I AM ONE OF THE GREAT CIVILIZATIONS RULERS! NOW TELL ME, WHO DISTURBED MY SLUMBER!" The voice said, now irritated.
"M-me..." London raised her hand weakly.
"Okay, I did too," Jasper stepped up to the now floating sarcophagus.
"Fine, me as well," Volkner joined in.
"YOU MUST SUFFER!" The Confagrigus said. It's eyes opened up on the top of it and ghostly hands extended it's arms.
"Bail!" The three began running but froze in place as the coffin used Mean Look on them. It fired a shadow ball at the ceiling and rocks tumbled down from the ceiling, effectively trapping them inside the small dark cavern. The heroes were forced to fight.
"YOU MUST BE PUNISHED!"
"Shades, Bite!" The small croc came out in a burst of red and immediately flung itself at the evil king, biting one of the hands that extended from it's coffin. It yowled in pain.
"Cloud, Astonish!"
"Noble, Bite!"
The two pokemon appeared in a similar flash, and immediately got to work on the other two hands. Swablu was pecking the hand, while sandile and Electrike latched onto the other hand. The super effective damage was being dealt nicely.
Wisps of fire surrounded the coffin, and it launched them at the three pokemon who were in close proximity. They all were burned and fell back.
"SECONDARY EFFECT HEX GO!"
Launching several purple energy balls, they hit each pokemon on the mark. The typing was irrelevent here, it hit each pokemon. Swablu and Sandile took considerably less damage then the struggling Electrike.
"Noble, hang in there! Another Bite, let's go!" The Electrike straightened itself up and jumped, munching down on the hand as hard as it could. A critical hit and it's health was already in the yellow.
"Now Wing Attack!" The bird pokemon summoned gusts of winds to its aide and flung them at the confagrigous, causing it to flinch.
"Now, finish it off with Assurance, Shades!" Another hit with double damage and a super effective hit put the sarcophagus out of it's misery.
"RETURNING TO SLEEP. DON'T DISTURB ME AGAIN." The hands retracted in and it's eyes closed.
"We're going to die here." Jasper sunk down to the floor. With his only ground pokemon out, he couldn't do anything to clear the rocks. Skull hovered around him, having been sent out after Jasper returned the suffering croc, unable to do anything but smash headfirst in the rocks. He wasn't a gas pokemon like Haunter or Gastly, and therefore didn't have the ability to go through walls.
London realized that her bird pokemon were useless as well- Chirp was unable to even lift a rock with his psychic power while Cloud was still burnt and even if it wasn't, it couldn't do anything.
Volkner sent out his elekid and attempted to dig himself out, but it was hopeless.
They were stuck there.
An hour passed. And then another. Soon they lost track of time as the clocks ticked by. Nothing worked here, in the deepest part of the mine.
Jasper looked up from his despair. "It only takes three days to die, right?"
"Yup," Volkner said.
"Mmhmm." London murmured.
The three were in odd positions on the floor, awaiting the time to when they would run out of energy and fall asleep.
-][-
"I'd like to thank you for taking me down here, Ester."
"It's no problem. What my husband did was despicable. I understand he's tired of watching his friends claimed by this place, but he cannot just send outsiders to prove a point."
Grant and Ester walked down the stairs into the mine, not taking the cave path but instead the stairs around the elevator. They reached the ground floor.
"I'm sorry, I have no pokemon that can fit down here that would be truly useful in finding him." He grimaced, seeing that his abilities were useless down here. Instead, the small racoon followed him, energetically sniffing everything that he saw.
"Don't worry, this thing happened before. That's how myself and Andy met. I saved him, and he was grateful enough to pursue me for it." She sighed, noting the change in her husband.
They passed a sign. Official Death Count: 206. The previous five was scribbled out and a 6 was above it.
"It's terrible really, but there is nothing else we can do. No one makes machines for coal miners." She said.
"I see. When I was in the war- the same negligence was present." They arrived at the sign named Declan.
"He was his brother. The two were together like a Girafarig head and tail." She drew a pokeball from her purse.
"Machamp, Dynamic punch!"
The four armed pokemon slammed through the rocks and reduced them to dust.
"Now now, what have we got here?"
The two turned as Machamp continued to make short work of the boulders.
"I thought I told you to stay up there Andy. You're mind obviously isn't clear enough." Ester hissed at her husband, who stood there. He had a large bruise on his head.
"I can't let you do that Ester. If you save those kids, more men will die. If more men die, then this city will die. The coal will never ever dry up. There is no end to this suffering unless lives that aren't as expendable as ours are taken."
"This is not the only way," The traveler said, seeing that his cane hadn't done as much damage as he hoped.
"IT IS! YOU FUCKERS DON'T HAVE TO DO JACK SHIT AROUND HERE! COOKING AND CLEANING AND TAKING CARE OF THE KIDS IS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT I DO! I BREATHE THIS AIR, I DRINK THIS WATER WITH ALL KINDS OF SHIT IN IT, I WATCH MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY DIE AS THEY ARE RIGHT NEXT TO ME! ALL BECAUSE OF THIS!"
He threw several coal gems on the ground, and got a wild look in his eye.
"It would be best not to try anything, Andy. I understand how it is to watch your friends die." Grant told him. "Calm down, more lives do not need to be claimed in this."
"Yes they do." He threw a pokeball on the ground. "PRIMAPE, STOP THEM!"
"I'll handle this." He stepped in front of Ester.
"Zags, Hidden Power!"
"HA! Primape, Close Combat!"
The angry ball of fur got in close to the racoon and started hurling punches at it, but if found that the small pokemon was dodging each one. Primape moved slower and slower until it felt unbelievably exausted. This was just the first part of the battle, there was no way it could be this tired. It felt a shock hit its brain and put its hands up to its head, clenching it. It rolled on the ground as it tried to stop the mental pain.
"Zags, Hyper Voice!"
Primape, with an already stinging pain in it head, was tortured even more as soundwaves assualted its sensitive ears. It fell to the ground, defeated.
"There should be something done about you," The traveler walked up to the miner and motioned for his pokemon to make an attack. A cold wind froze his feet to the ground.
"Would you like to die with your friends?" His eyes met Andy, who now began trembling.
"N-n-no..."
"That's what you just subjected my friends through, though. Now, tell me, why shouldn't I unleash rocks from above to crush your body into a corpse?"
Andy had no response; he merely whimpered in fear.
"Of course not. No response. Typical of the enemy. "
"Herman!" Ester scolded him.
"You're wife saved your skin this time. Just remember that next time I may not be so kind." He waved his hand and the racoon let out a small burst of fire, just enough to melt the ice.
The Machamp had finished turning the rocks into ashes, and Grant noticed the remnants of a battle. He hobbled over to Jasper, who seemed to have the worst of it.
"Arceus? Is that you?" He smiled weekly. "It's me, Margret."
He pulled him up to his feet and then started pulled London and Volkner up.
"You're safe now."
The next few days were of rest and recuperation. Andy apologized to them, but still returned to the mines. Nothing had changed for him. Jasper, however, gave him a piece of his mind as was prepared to give Roark the same. But he had a few errands to run first.
"London, come on," He said as he slipped on his jacket.
"Where to?" She asked, curious.
"Somewhere. I'm not sure Volkner would want to come, seeing as he doesn't have it..."
"What are you talking about? Of course he'll want to come." London wasn't sure if she said this out of fear for what Jasper might do or because she really wanted to spend more time with Volkner. Not that Jasper was dangerous or anything, but he was pretty determined to get what he wanted sometimes.
She called him down and he came, and the three slipped out the door, Jasper leading the way. His Duskull seemed to have an idea where he was going. He stepped into the futuristic building on the far end of town and walked up the the receptionist.
"I'd like these three fossils restored," He told her.
"Of course," The aide said. She took the fossils into a back room, and with three flashes of light she came back, with three pokeballs. Jasper took the first two and slid the third down to London.
"Since the fossil was damaged, you may want to not use him in battle until he fully regenerates. That will take about a year." London was visably disappointed at the aide's instructions.
"Hey, at least you got one, right?" Jasper smiled at her.
"Right..." She tossed the pokeball in her purse.
"Just keep it around for kicks. It can still do things, even if it can't battle." Volkner said as they exited.
While London and Volkner were preoccupied with walking home, Jasper walked over to the corner store and stepped inside, looking at magazines. A man came to stand next to him, dressed in a miner's uniform.
"Sup kid. You got what I need?" He asked.
"Like usual. Thanks for coming on such short notice."
They each exchanged a small sandwich sized plastic bag.
"You know how to use one, right?"
"Yup," Jasper said. He picked up a a box of candy, a couple of drinks, a small bottle of liquor and a book on clearance.
He walked up to the counter and placed his order on the counter. The shop keeper scanned all the items until he got to the liquor. "Sir, I can't let you have this."
"I'm sure you can let it slide. Take a nice amount out for yourself." He slid his card over.
The man slid the card down after scanning the liquor. The parted ways, the shopkeeper with an extra hundred dollars in his pocket and Jasper with what he needed in a paper bag.
"Hey guys, wait up!" Jasper ran to catch up with London and Volkner, who were already halfway home.
-][-
"Now, you may battle me!" Roark took another drink of moonshine.
"Certainly. London and Volkner, why don't you go first?" Jasper suggested. He tossed a small CD to Volkner.
"Jasper?"
"Just put it on the center of the pokeball. The pokenav will take care of the rest." Volkner slipped the CD on and it started spinning. It slowed down and the pokeball popped it off, right into Volkner's hand.
"Are you ready yet?" London asked him. Her Natu was already on the field, waiting for a command. Roark had sent out a Geodude and Nosepass.
"Of course! Generator, come out!" He tossed the pokeball he had just used the CD on.
"Ele, Ele!" The Elekid seemed happier than usual.
"Geodude, Rock Smash on Elekid! Nosepass, Magnet Rise!"
"Future Sight, Chirp!"
"Generator, Brick Break!" Roark grimaced at the sound of this.
As the string of commands was shouted, the pokemon reacted to them. Geodude attempted to land a blow but super effective damage by a quick three punches by Elekid put him on red health.
"Geodude, Rock Tomb! Nosepass use Rock Polish!"
"Dodge it with another Brick Break!"
"Chirp, Sunny Day!"
The Natu chirped towards the sky and a bright ball of light appeared inside the industrial gym, causing a unwavering heat. The Nosepass focused on smoothing itself while Elekid smashed through rocks thrown the Geodude, who attempted to flee as it was struck down.
"Geodude, return! Nosepass, Rock Tomb!"
"Chirp, Solarbeam!"
Even though the Nosepass was faster it was dealt super effective damage as the based grass beam blasted through the rocks and hit it square in the nose. It laid on the ground, swirls in it's eyes.
"Good job you two." Roark threw two badges at them. They caught them and stepped back, ready to watch Jasper battle.
"Onix, go!"
"Venus, take your place."
Jasper stared coldly at the rock snake and Roark. The new pokemon that Jasper had aquired was an ancient bird that stood on two clawed feet. It's body and wings consisted mostly of colorful feathers and its head, pointed tail were reptilian. It screeched and hopped back and forth.
"Venus, Aqua Tail!" Roark frown again at the command. Especially since he knew that this pokemon couldn't learn this move naturally.
"Onix, dodge and Slam! How'd you-"
"Egg moves are a bitch aren't they?" Jasper answered his question quickly. "Although, that's not why I'm here. Why do you treat your people like garbage, Roark?"
"I don't understan-"
"You know damn well you do! Why do you do this?"
The rock snake tried desperately to dodge, but a powerful tail of water hit it square in the head. It then hopped away, watching as the Onix missed its move and slammed its tail against the ground.
"Venus, Hone Claws!" The Archen began scrapping her claws on the ground, sharpening them.
"Onix, Rock Throw!" The Archen nimbly dodged it. This looked like a one sided battle, and Roark was losing.
"Venus, Earthquake! Come on Roark, sending newcomers to MINE for you? You're own people have died so much, you're running out! I'll make sure this institution crumbled to the ground with you."
Tiles started falling from the ceiling as the ground shook, the Onix taking a fatal hit and going down. Roark dodged out of the way of one.
"Hey! Cranidos, Head Smash!"
"Venus, Bulldoze! Do you honestly think that everyone will listen to you, the cruel slave driver who only cares about COAL!"
The Cranidos charged towards the ancient raptor but slipped on the mass of ground that the ancient bird had pushed towards it. It stumbled and was buried and pushed forward, hitting Roark and trapping him under his pokemon. He screamed in agony.
"Jasper, stop it!"
"London, stay out of this! Or, matter of fact, join in! He tried to kill you too!" Jasper had that wild glint in his eye. London knew she couldn't stop him when he was like this.
"Stop, Stop! I'll give you anything you want! You already earned the badge, take it!" Roark threw the badge at Jasper from his pinned position on the ground. Roark was unsure he could use his legs anymore. He made no move to catch it, and it hit him in the chest and fell to the ground.
"No, Roark, I want you to suffer! I want you to feel trapped like we were, and I want you to die in the cold underground, with no one there to hear your scream. Venus, finish the Cranidos with Earthquake!"
The struggling dinosaur had managed to dig itself out, but it wasn't prepared for another hit. The earthquake claimed it's victim, and kept shaking the arena as Roark struggled to get himself free.
Archen's concentration was broken with a bang of the front door.
"What, Venus stop!" Jasper called. His female raptor hopped over to him in curiousity. Roark sighed in relief.
"It's not worth it, but they are!" Jasper pointed to the mass of Team Plasma grunts that had just burst through the door.
"It's topless girl!" One grunt said.
"Yeah, show us your tits!" Another chimed in.
"Guys, we're supposed to distract the gym leader so that Ryoku can ransack the city for the plates that that old miner family has!" The other grunt tried to get them on track.
The other two punched him in the stomach. "Bitch, you said too much."
He doubled over and fell to the ground.
"Archen, Acrobatics!"
Hone claws helped as the Archen slashed through the hastily sent out pokemon before moving onto the grunts. This pokemon was vicious, and immediately finished off the two Patrat that were sent. It looked up at the grunts with a snarl on her face, and her claws dripping with blood.
"ARCH!" The prehistoric bird cried.
"RUN AWAY!" The Archen chased the fleeing grunts to the entrance of the gym.
"It's a crisis. Roark, save your people or watch them burn. I'm not going to help you nor hurt you. You've suffered enough for your actions."
"Jasper! Help him!" London scolded him.
He responded with one word. "No." With that, he stuck his hands in his pockets and walked out the door.
"I'm s-so sorry! He just does this sometimes!" She apologized as she and Volkner pulled him from the large mound of dirt his legs were stuck in. Luckily he could still walk.
He started to cry. "He's right! I really deserve it! I haven't been a good mayor at all! I just make people work because that's all that my dad does!"
"Hey, you can always start over! You have a city to save. Go do it." Volkner put a hand on his shoulder.
He sniffed. "How? I don't have any other pokemon."
Volkner shoved a ton of potions and revives in his arms. "Solution."
With that, the two left the gym, leaving Roark to decide on a course of action.
The city was off worse than the thought. Buildings were burning and people were being beaten. Team Plasma and Galactic grunts ransacked every house, looking for these supposed plates. Jasper was busy with at least ten grunts. His Sandile unleashed elemental fangs, his Duskull threw Shadow Balls, and Archen was busy slashing and swiping any pokemon that would come.
"Uh, a little help here guys?" Jasper seemed like he was back to normal.
Quickly dispatching the grunts, they found the mass of grunts at Ester's house. She was barely holding in there with her Machamp throwing punches. The traveler's Camerupt and a new addition of a Shieldon were setting grunts on fire and headbutting them.. It was a full on massacre of pokemon and grunts.
"AHAHAHAHA! GIVE US THE PLATES OR DIE!" Ryoku cackled on the rooftop of a house. He stroked his beard wildly, watching his plan go into effect, regardless of how it worked.
"Go to the mine and get Andy!" Ester panted at them.
A quick run across town and a couple more grunts down and they made it to the mine.
"Hey! What are you doing here?" Lawrence, their Team Magma ally, had tons of grunts gathering coal in the midst of the confusion.
"What are you doing here?" Volkner raised an eyebrow.
"Boss said we have to collect coal, but I'm guessing you're here to stop me-
"Wait we're not going-" London began, but he continued.
"-So you'll have to fight me!"
Lawrence sent out a Combusken, Ponyta, and Barboach, each ready to fuck some shit up.
"Lawrence, if you want to fight, then fight the plasma grunts. We just want the only miner that's in here." London said. "I'm not going to fight you, it would be a waste. I thought you were my friend."
Lawrence stepped up to London and moved so that his head rested on her shoulder. "Yeah, but I gotsta keep up appearences, you know. So when I yell scram, run away, ok? I'll be gone when you get back."
Volkner squirmed, but Jasper kept him from doing anything.
"B-but it looks like-" Volkner stammered.
"Relax, he won't do anything. He's not interested in her. Opposites attract."
He stepped back. "Scram! My friends, make your Zubat's use Scary Face." All the Magma grunts who were gathering coal sent out their Zubats, which were useless for anything but nondamaging moves right now. Their eyes glinted in the darkness, and London took that cue to run past them.
"Come on!" Jasper pulled Volkner with him, following her.
"Wow boss, you're so badass!" A female grunt fawned.
"Yeah, you scared those trainers away!" Another grunt said.
"Relax guys, we need to get back to the base. Hurry up and load those crates into the truck." Lawrence said cooly.
The Magma grunts loaded the crates into the truck, and then got in the back, all of them happy to have done something. Lawrence got in front with his admin.
"Everybody accounted for, boss." He said to him.
Lawrence pressed a button and the truck's back cover extended out, making it seem like every other mining truck around here. He returned his pokemon and started the truck engine. All the grunts heard the radio came on and let out a magnificant singing shout.
"I'M ON A HIGHWAY TO HELL!" They sang as the truck drove through the gates, purposely hitting any Galactic or Plasma grunt in the way to Mt. Cornet.
Andy came out in compliance with the heroes- It was the least he could do after trying to kill them. However, when he saw his hometown being destroyed, he decided to go into rage mode.
"Ramparados, Primape, Tauros, attack!"
The four battled their way back to the house, where Ester's Machamp had fainted and the traveler was wrecking shit with his torterra and Camerupt, the Shieldon having been returned.
"Oh, look, It's these meddling kids again." Ryoku said, stroking his beard. He seemed to be winning the war of attrition, but at least a hundred grunts had fallen back, either with pokemon all fainted or themselves too injured to carry on. The rest of the city seemed to be fighting back as well, because Roark had started systematically, house by house, battling off the grunts.
"Now, it's time to finish you. Especially you, girl." He pointed a long, boney finger at London. "Your whore tricks-"
"WHORE?" London's eyes blazed with fire and Jasper and Volkner held her back while she squirmed to get at Ryoku.
"-may have worked on my men, who are obviously sex crazed fanatics who try and rape our females every night, but not on this old man who has ED!" He threw out three pokeballs, as a triple battle was about to take place.
"Kadabra!"
"MAGIKARRRRRRRPP!"
"Goth, Goth."
"Eww. Shades, Take position on the left." The small croc, happy it was going to be fighting again, jumped up and down enthusiastically.
"Cloud, on the right! Volkner, you be the ringleader this time." The Swablu was freed from its pokeball.
"Noble, take point!" He sent out his electrike, which roared. "Okay, start this off with Spark on the Magikarp!"
"Shades, I want Kadabra gone. Do what you think is best." The small croc looked uneasily at his trainer, but accepted his challenge.
"Cloud, that thing is really weird, Steel Wing it!" London told her pokemon.
"HA! Your weak shit can't compare. Magikarp, Flail! Kadabra, Energy Ball! Gothita, stop fucking staring and use Heal Block!"Ryoku stroked his beard even harder.
Sandile went into action first, dodging the grass ball flung at him and jumped up in the air, latching onto the Kadabra's arm with a powerful bite. While the Kadabra tried to shake the croc off, Noble slammed into Magikarp with a powerful electric charge and fainted it with one hit. It flew back into Ryoku, doubling back. The Gothita, distracted from it's intense staring, sent out a large purple block on all three pokemon.
Gothita used Heal Block. None of the pokemon can be healed or use healing moves!
"Sandile, hang in there!" Jasper shouted as it was thrown back into the dirt. The croc seemed to falter getting up.
"HA, your pokemon is fainted!" Ryoku stroked his beard even faster.
"No it's not! It's evolving!" Volkner said.
With a flash of light, Sandile became bipedal. His arms elongated and crossed; His now long snout and it's body grew larger. The pink underbody became more prominent as his claws grew larger and a smirk grew on his face. He grew up to be level to Jasper's shoulders. To top it all off, he pulled out a set of dark Kamina glasses and put them on.
"KROKOROK!" It roared, with a smirk on it's face.
"The battle is up to you, buddy!" Jasper grinned.
"Oh shit!" Ryoku exclaimed as a powerful crunch caught Kadabra in the Desert Croc's maw. He slammed him against the ground on all fours and tossed the Kadabra into the ground by Ryoku's feet. He picked up the spoons on the ground and opened his maw wide, eating both of them. Krokorok smirked as he saw that the Kadabra was defeated, swirls in its eyes.
Gothita, however, was focused so intently on the evolution of Sandile that it forgot all about its attack. It looked up to see the cloud bird pokemon toss it effortlessly across the dirt with a powerful steel wing.
"Cloud, finish it off with Pluck!"
The bird pokemon delivered an onslaught of pecks on the fixation pokemon. It dropped down and out for the count. Meanwhile, Electrike and Krokorok exchanged blows with a Snover, which was now out in substitution of the worthless fish pokemon.
"Cloud, another Pluck!"
Swooping in from above, the bird scored a super effective hit before it could catch an icy wind from its foe. The snover fell over, defeated.
"Look! You lost! Fuck off!" Jasper yelled at Ryoku, who had stopped stroking the white goatee of his.
"RETREAT!"
"But boss, tits!"
"YOU IDIOTS, WE CAN'T SURVIVE THIS SLAUGHTER ANYMORE! BACK TO THE FUTURE!"
Ryoku jumped in a DeLorean and the entire town watched as all the grunts clung onto it, resulting in a not so speedy getaway.
"K." Volkner said.
The entire town, with bruises and blood on their hands, looked at Roark, who they waited for him to say something. Their pokemon fared no better, at least half of them had fainted and the rest where exhausted.
"You have to make a speech now, Mayor." Andy whispered to him.
"O-oh, yeah, r-right." He said. He scratched the back of his head. He had never even talked to his citizens before.
"How about I do it for you?" The traveler suggested.
"T-that would be most great," Roark stammered.
"Brothers and Sisters, we have fought a great battle today. We have lost many things, including our health and our homes. But are we just going to let them come back?"
"NO!" The crowd answered him
"Rise up like a Ho-Oh in the fire, my friends. Rebuild and get stronger! Your mayor will assist you in your duties. For now, go to your friends and family, and make sure they are okay. Heal your pokemon, and take a good rest. You will need it."
He turned to the three. "I think it would be beneficial to leave. I will be waiting on the next route. Give Ester my regards."
"Why are you leaving so soon?" London asked him.
"I don't need people to ask questions." He told her.
They worked their way back to the house they had been staying in. Windows boarded up and tiles falling off, it was a wreck. Ester was crying on the doorstep, her son rubbing her back.
"What's wrong?" Volkner asked.
"Those bastards snuck around back and stole the collection?"
"What collection?" London asked, obviously concerned.
"The ones...we kept in the foyer! The elemental plates that Andy had found one day in a box with the note...that they go to Arceus!"
"We'll get them back for you!" London said.
"London, shouldn't we-"
"Oh, thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!" She hugged all three of them.
"I'm sorry for what happened to you in the mine again." Andy stood in the doorway.
"Don't worry about it. Nothing too important happened of it," Jasper said.
"Of course nothing did." Volkner rolled his eyes. "Here, I have something for you. That pokeball's for your kid, Dwight."
He looked inside the sack. In it were all the coal gems they had collected. "I can't tell you how much this means to me."
"You don't have to."
The three waved as they made their way away from the home.
After a quick trip to the pokemon center, they met Grant at the trail, smoking a pipe on top of his Torterra.
"Time to go."
It was only right to let the suffering Oreburgh City rebuild itself after a battle. No outsiders would ever know the pain.
