Chapter 10: The Gods of War
While walking through the forest, I had questions to ask of Krick.
"So, did you tell A'Tuin about what's going on?"
The bug nodded, "Yes, I sent a messenger last night after we found you, and this morning I got a reply saying that he wanted most of us to return. It makes sense, since the good of KESFO takes precedence over one Pokémon."
"So who's going?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"Returning, or rescuing?" the bug inquired.
"Either one," I shrugged.
"Well, both Buck and I are returning. We're needed back at base, being squad leaders. The rest of the group is returning as well. String has volunteered to accompany you, Motor as well, and A'Tuin chose a couple others to come as well."
"Okay," I nodded. "So when are you leaving?"
"We're leaving in a few minutes, A'Tuin is meeting up with us and that's when you'll see your new partners. The group will be fairly small, since it makes for ease of movement, but you'll have to be strong enough to go against Caractacus and his guards. Still...try to avoid a confrontation. It might mean the difference between victory and defeat in this war. He can't be too far however, as his base is in the forest as well."
"It's a pretty big place though," I commented.
"Yeah, and that's why you'll have the best scouts this side of Eterna!" Buck boasted. Raising a brow at him, I perked my ears at the sound of a large group of noisy Pokémon. This seemed familiar...
"Greetings," the craggy, deep voice reminding me of boulders clashing in a canyon rang out. Yep, this was A'Tuin.
"Hey," I replied unenthusiastically. I wanted to get moving, but I had to wait for the tortoise to make the exchange first. Dear Victini, this felt like when trainers traded Pokémon. So does that make A'Tuin and I the trainers in this case?
Buck and Krick, along with the rest of the exploration group, went over to A'Tuin's side, while he sent over a couple Pokémon that struck me as unique.
The first Pokémon had bright purple fur and a goofy grin on a goofy face. It hung upside down from a branch, a long tail that ended in a hand-like appendage holding on firmly. "Howdy," the Aipom hailed.
The second I noticed right away because it was a bird. While we didn't have too many birds on our side, this seemed to be one of them. Its heartbeat pattered away at a speed unhealthy in those that weren't birds, but unlike most of its fellows, the air made hardly any sound at all as it sifted through its feathers.
The Noctowl tipped its head slightly, staring at me with large eyes. "Good day," it spoke, its voice a soft burr. "I have heard much about you, Audino."
I nodded, not knowing what to say. Although I knew the owl wasn't on Caractacus' side, it was still hard to not go under the stereotype of birds versus beasts.
"These are Ares and Athena, our two best scouts," A'Tuin praised. "With Ares' nose and Athena's eyes, you won't have much trouble at all. They're both quick Pokémon as well, so you won't have to worry about them slowing you down."
"In fact, y'all might have to worry about keeping up with us!" tittered the Aipom (I think it was Ares). Her voice had a slight drawl to it, though it was higher-pitched than was comfortable.
"They're called the Gods of War" piped in Buck.
"They're soooo totally cool!" said another.
"I'm jealous of you, Audino!"
"I didn't realize that I'd be traveling with movie stars," I joked. At this, I got confused looks from everybody but Motor, who giggled.
"...Right. Anyway, looks like it's about time we be leavin' soon," the Aipom said, and I agreed. We needed to find Sabine as soon as possible.
"Ooohh! Sothisisabird!" cried Motor. A'Tuin glanced at the ghost (I think he's a ghost, not too sure) without surprise. Krick must have informed him of our bundle of craziness.
The owl, Athena, turned her head sideways to glance at the electric type. "Greetings," she replied solemnly.
"Ya've never seen a bird before?" exclaimed Ares. I was surprised she understood him, as nobody else seemed to.
"Nope!" Motor shook his head. "OnlyonTV!"
"TV?" Athena looked at us. It seemed she did as well.
"It's something that makes pictures and funny human noises, and it's very cool!" exclaimed Buck.
"I see," she replied, though I wasn't sure if she did or not.
"C'mon y'all! Let's git a move on!" Ares beckoned with her tail before leaping into the trees. KESFO waved their goodbyes, but I ignored them, following the Aipom. She probably knew her way around more than I did. And if she was as good as everybody said, then she most likely already knew where to go.
Athena followed us, silent as a ghost. Motor, an actual ghost (or not) sparked ahead with Ares, and I dragged String behind me on a makeshift bed of silk, since he couldn't actually move.
"So how are you?" I asked him. It'd only been yesterday that he'd been gravely injured. And even if evolution sped up the healing process, I wasn't sure how much it had actually fixed.
"Good," he replied. "A'Tuin wouldn't have let me come along if I wasn't."
"That's true," I nodded grimly, unable to drive away the guilt inside me. It was my fault. I'd been the one to throw that Shadow Ball, and that was why he got injured. I know it was to protect him from those ghosts, but I had been stupid, attacking before making sure he got out of there.
I remember being told about two different kinds of fighters. "There are those who fight without care for those they hurt in the process. To them, the end, whether it is power, love, or anything else, justifies the means. Then there are those who fight but are mindful of those they may hurt, though that may stop them from completing their goal. Both kinds of fighters have their positives and negatives. I hope that you will be able to balance them both within yourself."
Personally, I'd always favored the second type. The first one struck me as far too ruthless, and I couldn't figure out why anyone would be like that. Didn't they have any feelings?
But I'd become that first type in the battle against the ghosts. In the back of my head, I knew String would probably be hurt, but I had brushed it aside, telling myself he was strong enough to take it. That it was far more important to take care of the ghosts harassing him. But was it? Now that I thought of it, there were other attacks I could've used, ones that wouldn't have exploded on impact. But I had wanted to show off, and take out all the ghosts at once. String had paid the price for my foolishness. And later he'd almost died against Gengar!
No, not again. I'd told myself I'd never go back there again. But if I'd regressed already, wasn't there a likely chance I would another time?
Fear filled me, rushing up like bile, till I felt like throwing up. No! I would make sure that wouldn't happen!
"Audino?" it was String, gazing at me worriedly.
"...Sorry," I muttered. What was wrong with me? I'd been like this ever since this morning. I needed to calm down, go back to what I was like before: unruffled and serene. I was a still lake, I was a rock...
"Audino!"
"Hmm?" I jolted out of my self-induced trance. "Yes?"
It was Athena. She was giving me a weird look. "You almost walked right into a tree."
I turned. She was right. Damn. I really needed to focus...or something.
"Audino...what's wrong?" asked String in a "don't give me any crap about being fine" tone of voice. Looks like I'd have to fess up.
"String, I...sometimes...I don't know about myself," I confessed.
"Huh?"
"I mean," I continued. By this time, Athena had flown ahead, likely to give us privacy. "I've been messing up so bad lately. First, I let Sabine get kidnapped, then I lost to Caractacus and also to Enrique, who's just plain weak!" my tone rose to a shout at the last two words. "I failed you, and with my luck..." my voice dropped to a whisper, "I'll fail this time," I finished miserably.
"...Audino, I don't think you're giving yourself enough credit..." started the Cascoon.
"Really?" I retorted, "I think I'm giving myself exactly enough credit, you just don't see it." I ignored the cocoon's hurt look. "I've been trained by a human, and that should give me a huge edge over wild Pokémon. But it's still not enough...what good is training if I can't even protect you guys?" I stared at my paws, feeling lost. I'm nothing but a failure...
String sighed, "Audino, I know you're not giving yourself enough credit. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have won that battle near the Old Chateau against the birds. And if it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have been able to beat the ghosts! Granted, they weren't really our enemies, but we still won. And then you went right back in there, even through injuries, and stood against the Don himself! If that's not brave, I don't know what is!" he finished excitedly.
I gave a small smile. I still felt bitter, but there was something about his words. They picked me up from the ground and encouraged me. If I was good at fighting, he was good at cheering Pokémon up. "Thanks, String."
"No problem!" he replied. Realizing that I'd stopped, I picked up the long cord of silk that I used to pull the pile he rested on.
"Let's go!" I ordered, putting on a brave face. Yes, that was what they needed from me. KESFO didn't want somebody who moped and felt unsure of himself. Even though before I hadn't cared what the group thought, now...there were Pokémon there who were counting on me. String, Sabine, A'Tuin, Buck, even Krick. And now Ares and Athena. Though I hadn't known them long, I felt that they were probably relying on me to fight. I couldn't let any of them down. Caractacus was still a threat, and I would need to buck up if I wanted to win against him.
I started walking, pushing the guilt back. There was more than enough time to dwell later. For now, I had to be strong, like the others expected me to be.
ooo
Our group had shifted slightly while we hiked. Athena was in the lead, String and I just behind her, and Motor hung back along with Ares. He seemed to find her fascinating, and her him.
"Andthat'showIknewitwas—"
"Geng-chan right?" interrupted the Aipom. She started guffawing; there was no other term for it, "Ahahahahaha! Oh, Motor, ya make me split my sides laughin'!"
I didn't think he was that funny (more like obnoxious), but I wisely decided to keep quiet. I'd already experienced an Oran in the head. I didn't relish a second time. Unlike her companion, that monkey had a tendency to randomly explode into a burst of swearing that quickly led to throwing something at my facd. I don't know why, but she seemed to take offense to most everything I said. "Definitely the opposite of Athena," I grumbled to myself.
I also noticed that we'd stumbled across many different Pokémon on our long trek, and they all seemed to recognize us, mainly that war god duo or whatever.
"So..." I asked String. "How famous are they?" I gestured to our new additions.
"Well...I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you don't know about them, considering your powers of observation are pretty nil," he said.
"Hey, hey, stop using big words and just explain it!"
The Cascoon closed his eyes, letting out a patient sigh, "My vocabulary is not that vast."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," I waved his protests away, "Just tell me!"
"As I said before, there's a hierarchy in KESFO," he repeated. "Those that are leaders and those that are not. But there are a few Pokémon in-between, who are specialists in their field. There aren't enough of them to warrant leaders, but the unofficial ones are the Gods of War. Ares, known for her courage and savagery in battle, and Athena, known for her wisdom and craftiness. Nobody knows what they were originally called, but they eventually gained those names during their time fighting. In essence..." he finished, "they're heroes. We're lucky to have them. It shows how high A'Tuin holds you in esteem," the cocoon glanced at me.
"Hmm," I tried to think, but nothing would come to mind. "Well, cool," I shrugged.
String was about to say something, but was interrupted.
"Looks like there's trouble ahead!" Athena swooped in to land on a nearby branch. I hated how I could barely hear her at all. It made the owl seem like a ghost, and I did not like ghosts.
"What kind of trouble?" I shook my fears from my mind.
"...Murkrow, up ahead," she hooted.
"Great..." I sighed. "More birds..."
I ignored the owl's indignant look. It seemed like we would always have to deal with distractions.
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