Welcome to chapter 10! This is it! Last chapter! :) It doesn't really have the feel I was going for, but I think it's pretty good.
Before I forget (because I seem to keep forgetting what I mean to put here) did everybody get that the mysterious man in chapter five was Giovanni? Not that I think you guys are stupid, but it was really vague and I just wanted to make sure :)
I also made sure everybody had a line in this chapter. My bad if I forgot someone :p It doesn't really show in this chapter, but I think my writing's improving. My paragraphs have been getting bigger :)
Anyway. More notes at the end.
Enjoy!
Chapter Ten
After sorting through the Poké Balls in the bag and returning Crys' to her, Gold pulled the vial out of his pocket and placed it on the table.
Elm grabbed it. "We should analyze it. Find out what it really is."
"But I don't really have a choice, do I?" Gold muttered. "I'll die anyway if I don't take it." Crys reached a hand forward to place on Gold's shoulder, but stopped, realizing there was nothing she could say. "Besides," Gold continued with a small grin. "He gave it to his people, right? He wouldn't kill them on purpose."
Reluctantly, Elm handed the vial back to Gold. The boy uncapped it and, swirling it warily, tipped his head and swallowed the contents.
There was nothing for a few heartbeats- no one spoke, moved or even dared to breathe. Gold had an unsure look on his face, as if he couldn't decide whether it had worked or not. His eyes scanned the room in confusion, looking as if they couldn't put names to the faces.
"Gold?" Crys asked in a whisper, inching forward with a hand outstretched. Gold turned to face her, raising an eyebrow. "Are you okay?"
"I think so," he murmured. "Um…" He trailed off as if unable to remember her name.
"Crys?" she offered with a raised eyebrow and a slightly hurt expression. Gold nodded, but not in recognition.
Suddenly, Gold began to sway. The world began to spin around him until all the colours blended like a kaleidoscope, and he collapsed.
Silver was deep in thought despite the deafening noise from the helicopter. He kept his eyes fixed on the ground, trying to ignore the man- his father- sitting across from him.
"It's for the best, Silver," Giovanni shouted over the noise. "You're too good for them."
Silver glared, but chose not to respond. Giovanni reached into an inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a vial identical to the one he'd given Gold.
"I didn't know you'd been anywhere near the Whirl Islands," Giovanni offered. "We found out from your friends just before we left."
Silver winced when he thought of how they might've gotten that information. He doubted they'd asked nicely. He remained silent.
Giovanni held the vial out to him and grinned when Silver glared. "You don't have much of a choice, Silver," he reminded his son. "You'll die if you don't take it."
That doesn't mean I have to like it, he thought, dread growing in the pit of his stomach as he took the vial from the man's hand. "How do I know I won't die if I do take it?" he asked challengingly.
Giovanni shrugged. "You don't, I suppose," he admitted. "But like your friend, you don't really have any other options."
Silver returned his gaze to the vial of liquid, realizing his father was right. He could die if he took it, but he would for sure if he didn't. He removed the cap, held the vial to his mouth, and downed the liquid. Giovanni smiled.
Elm returned to the main room a few minutes after he'd taken Gold to the back to rest. He sat at the table, put his head in his hands and sighed deeply.
"What's wrong with him?" Yellow asked. She held Chuchu in her lap.
"Why did he look so confused?" Red continued, stepping forward with Pika on his shoulder.
Elm lifted his head. "I don't know."
"He forgot Crys' name," Blue said thoughtfully. "Maybe he forgets all of us."
"Maybe that's the side effect," Green offered from his spot beside his grandfather.
Oak nodded and walked forward, placing his hand on Elm's shoulder. "That's possible. But we won't know for sure until he wakes up."
Not long after Elm left the room, Gold stirred. He opened his eyes, glancing in confusion around the white, sterile-smelling room. Where am I?
He swung his legs off the side of the bed and glanced at the table next to it. His black-and-gold cap rested there beside some Poké Balls, each containing the small figure of a Pokémon he didn't recognize.
An odd shape in his pocket prompted him to reach inside. He pulled out a square CD case with a gold-coloured disk inside. Black letters on the disk's surface read 'PASSWORDS'.
He got up from the bed and walked through the only door he saw, scratching his head and staring at the disk in confusion. He had a strong feeling he should know what it was.
Several unfamiliar faces greeted him in a large, open room resembling a lab. He felt the same sensation telling him he should know these people. The feeling was similar to having a word on the tip of your tongue.
"Um, hi," Gold said lamely, raising a hand in greeting.
"Gold," a scientist, who looked much older than the one beside him, began. Gold. Is that my name? "How do you feel?"
"Okay, I guess," Gold said. "I'd feel better if I knew who you people were." The people seated at the table gave each other looks of sadness and disappointment.
They all went around the table and introduced themselves.
Silver woke up minutes later, his mind whirling. A deafening noise seemed to attack his ears and make his head pound. The space around him was small and dark, but he could see a person sitting across from him.
Silver sat up in his seat and, by chance, glanced out the window. The ground below looked terribly far down.
"Where am I?" Silver asked, turning to the man across from him. A strange feeling told him he should know this man. An even stranger feeling told him he shouldn't trust him.
"You're in my helicopter, Silver," the man responded, an odd grin in his face. "I'm taking you home."
"'Home'?" Silver repeated. "Where was I before?"
The man's smile grew. "You were being held captive by people who were only out to manipulate you. You're with people you can trust now."
Silver had no recollection of where he'd been before waking up in the helicopter, and he could see no reason not to believe the man. "Who are you?" the boy asked suddenly.
"I'm your father," the man responded. "And father knows best."
END
And there you go! The end of my first multi-chaptered story! Hope everybody liked it :) Final word count (without author's notes): 11, 011. :)
I should say for the record that the last line (just 'Father knows best') came from a Runaways comic. Just so everybody knows I didn't come up with it :p
Thanks so much to everybody who read, reviewed, added to favourites, or anything else :) It was a huge confidence boost and I really appreciate it.
See, I like the ending because I could just end it there, and leave what happens next to your imaginations. But I could also not, because I do happen to have a sequel planned chapter for chapter. :) It's really different from this plot-wise, but hopefully it'll turn out okay. It definitely gets better near the end, in my opinion.
So I guess that's it! I had a lot of fun writing this, which is part of what made me decide to go ahead with the sequel. Hopefully everybody will like it.
I don't want this to drag on, but I just want to thank everyone again. See you in the sequel! :)