So, I'm not sure how many of you noticed that The Lapidescence registers as Completed. If any of you recall I may have stated that I had one more chapter left before concluding the arc. Admittedly, the last chapter I had planned was not set in Kanto and was supposed to be a surprise reveal of the fate of a certain character none of you were wondering about. As such, I find myself unable to summon the energy to put the events of that chapter into words. I know the Johto arc isn't a popular arc (If the reviews, favorites, and alerts are any indication) but I do have things planned for this group that I seeded a little in this chapter.
In this chapter is a small shout out to Kienzankoda ito help set up something if he gets around to it.
Agent of chaos has recently updated a little gem that I've admittedly overlooked. In case you ever needed to know how to kill, cook, or avoid another Pokemon in the Poke Wars, Agent of Chaos has you covered with Poke Wars: An Orrean Rangers To Things You Should Not Be Fighting. It's a riot and I definitely recommend it to anyone who has time if you want a good laugh.
Rand0mness4 has also recently updated his story: Poke Wars: The Tears to Weep. So please send it some love if you have time.
August 26
The air inside the cavern was cool and quiet. Drops of water clung precariously to their stony perches on the ceiling. In time each one slipped off and joined the others in one of the countless reservoirs below. While most of his team found the damp air comforting, it made Blaziken feel uneasy. Banette's ghostly flames and the embers from his wrist cast spindly shadows off the stalactites. The ghost assured him they wouldn't be giving away their position. Had there been anything remotely threatening in the area, there wouldn't have been any slowpoke to talk to.
"…Hello … newcomers…" A slowpoke greeted them, even though Blaziken had been standing there for over five minutes.
"That's gonna get annoying," the ghost sighed then looked to Miltank, Roserade, and Blaziken.
"So you saw a kid?" Blaziken initiated and glanced at the corpse of a withered old man on the ground.
"Yeah. Yellow hair, scrawny little thing and scared outta his mind the moment he saw me."
"Wonder why that was," Roserade rolled her eyes. "So you couldn't catch him?"
"What was I supposed to do? Set him on fire? I…," Banette brought his hand to his chest as if in humble apology, "am not a fast ghost."
"One who can apparently sense when people are scared. Or annoyed." Miltank added.
"The range I can sense negative emotions is limited. Once he got enough distance he started to calm down and dropped off my radar. He'd have to be really sad or scared again for me to notice and even then, it's not like I can pinpoint his location on those feelings. The most I'd get is general direction. Plus, you happy folks make sensing him a lot harder.
"We might be able to track his scent if we send tubby," the haunted toy offered.
"…to our…cave…" the slowpoke finally finished. Blaziken cleared his throat. "Munchlax's sense of smell is good, but I'm not sure even he can track that kid across all this water. And don't call him tubby!"
Banette raised his hands in defense.
"… If you… are …thirsty…" another one of the slowpoke started to speak.
Blaziken sighed, glanced to the others, then uncrossed his arms. "I know this is probably gonna be an unpopular decision, but we might be better off leaving him here." The Hoenn starter braced himself for the looks of shock and alarm but was surprised to find them nodding in agreement.
"The kid's got plenty of water and if he's desperate he can eat one of the slowpoke," the ghost replied.
"Bane!" Roserade chided.
"Oh, like they'd even notice!" the marionette Pokémon hissed back.
"Banette's…" Miltank proceeded cautiously, "…partially right," then winced when she heard a tiny yes from the ghost. "We have enough issues and mouths to feed without adding another one."
"…feel free… to drink …some water …" the slowpoke then began the agonizingly slow process of pointing to a pool of water next to him with his tail.
"Agreed then. What about him?" Blaziken motioned with his chin towards the corpse.
"Oh, him? I don't think he's going anywhere," Banette snickered. "We could bury him or there's always," Banette motioned for one of his Will O' Wisps to hover just above the body. "Cremation," he grinned.
Blaziken shook his head. "That's not what I was getting at. What killed him? I highly doubt it was any of these guys."
"…or get… some rest…" the slowpoke's tail then shifted a few degrees to point to an empty part of the cavern.
"Ah, the cause of death. I coulda told you that." Banette floated down to the body and lifted the rags around his waist. The putrid smell from the body intensified. Beneath the rags the others could see wet bandages, now stained brown and black. "Something up top tried to gut him, so he ran down here. Now I'm not one of those healing humans, but it looks to me like the wound got infected and… well you guys can figure the rest. I checked him to see if he had anything we could use, but all I could find was this." Banette's hand dug through the rags until they pulled out a pokéball, but instead of the signature red and white coloration, the top hemisphere was gold.
"I tried releasing whoever's inside, but the button must be busted cause it didn't open." Banette proceeded to throw the sphere back and forth between his hands. "I even tried to break the damn thing, but it's ridiculously sturdy. Fireproof too."
He tossed it over to Blaziken who effortlessly snatched it out of the air. The fire starter turned it in his hand then gripped it with the force he knew could shatter stone or at least bend steel and found that the ball did not yield.
"…I hope… you don't mind… me asking…" another slowpoke from the herd started to speak out.
"If it didn't have a Pokémon to protect him, why hold onto it?" Roserade said when Blaziken passed it over to her. "It has some markings carved into the top half, though I'm not familiar with human language."
"I know the language. They're not perfect but those markings look vaguely like the letters G and S." Banette offered. The revelation was greeted with stunned silence.
"Hold on, you know human letters?" Roserade's tone grew more and more skeptical as Banette's smile grew to obscene lengths.
"There's a lot ya don't know about me, Rosey. But yeah, I can write and read their language. Took me a couple of years but I eventually taught myself how."
"That would've been nice to know a few days ago," Miltank angrily tapped her foot against the stone. "We know the one destroying all the human settlements is being done by a Pokémon called Entei, but Whitney and the others are completely in the dark about this. Why didn't you tell us earlier? And don't you dare say-"
"-You. Never. Asked," Banette smugly replied then dodged the spray of pebbles that Miltank kicked at him. "All your big, important talks happen in the morning when I'm not around. Cacturne's the only one who fills me in on what I've missed and he only knows stuff when he's swapping sap with Rosey."
If not for all the moisture in the cave the heat rushing to Roserade's cheeks would've set her on fire.
"What is that even supposed to mean?! Whatever you're insinuating, we are not doing anything like that! W-we are just talking!" the Bouquet Pokémon sputtered, then glanced at the others who suddenly gained a deep fascination with the surrounding stalagmites.
Blaziken coughed into his fist. "Let's get back on track, guys. Maybe the old man kept this ball for sentimental value? May has a few ribbons that she still keeps on her even now," the fire starter suggested, watching Miltank take hold of the ball.
"What I'm wondering is, if there's nothing inside then why won't it open? Or if someone is in here, then why are they still trapped? I imagine you've all noticed it's easier for us to break out of our pokéballs." A row of nods answered back.
"…Is Entei… still out…there?" the slowpoke finished asking.
"Shouldn't we leave it here?" Roserade took the ball back in her blue bouquet and made for the old man's corpse until Banette snatched it from her.
"Let's not get too hasty. I don't see why we should leave it with him. The corpse sure as hell ain't gonna use it," the toy scoffed at the notion, the defunct pokéball spinning on the tip of his finger.
Blaziken crossed his arms, the flames on his wrists flaring in disapproval. "Not cool, Banette. What if it belongs to the kid?"
"If that's the case, then why was it ass-deep in the old man's corpse? Here's a thought. Let's imagine that I agree with you and leave this thing here, hmm? How's it gonna help that kid survive?"
"And how exactly would it benefit us to have it?" Roserade countered.
"It probably won't, but its shiny and I want it and… we have a guest," Banette's usual mirth dissolved upon seeing Clefable at the cavern's exit.
"You guys need to come outside. We might have company." The others wasted no time following her out of the cavern. Several minutes passed when one slowpoke's usual dopey expression gradually morphed into one of annoyance.
"Dammit… Liroy. You went … too fast… and ruined… everything. Next time… let me… do the… talking."
"So what're we in for?" Banette started.
"It's a large group about a half a mile away. They're moving slowly and I don't think they're aware of us yet," Clefable explained between each floaty jump.
"What about May and the others?" Blaziken replied, finding it harder to keep pace with everyone than to outrun them.
"They're still asleep. I figured they could use the rest. Cacturne set up a spike wall around them but he's rooted to the ground so he can maintain it."
"This group, do you think they're hostile?" Roserade huffed as she fought to keep up.
"Couldn't tell you. I just thought you'd like to know so you can make the call," the fairy confessed before her last bounce brought her out of the cave and into the warm night air.
"I can scout ahead and see if I can get a read on them. I'll be discreet and let you know what I find," Banette offered. Blaziken nodded and watched the ghost fly into the night.
Cacturne didn't turn to face them, instead his arms were both raised and aimed down the path that led into the wasteland ahead. The thorns at the base of his arm stub elongated until they were almost a foot long.
"Just give the word and I'll turn them into pin cushions," the cactus scarecrow murmured. Blaziken held his tongue and waited for Banette to return. Minutes passed and Blaziken reminded himself of the ghost's earlier confession on his lack of speed. He could only hope he was being discreet and not teasing them from the shadows. The last thing they needed was a mystery group on high alert.
Now that I think about it, why did I agree to let Banette scout? Did I just make a terrible mistake?
"I can make them out now, Blaziken." Cacturne announced, adjusting the angle of his arms. The Hoenn starter's night vision couldn't compare to the Scarecrow Pokémon's but he could make out a small glowing speck rising from the wasteland.
That doesn't give us the right to wipe them out when we have the option of getting away, Glaceon's voice resonated in his mind.
"Blaziken?" Cacturne hissed. "Am I firing or not?"
What if it was a group of innocent humans or Pokémon? Or if it wasn't, could he accept the consequences of not getting the first strike and weakening a potentially hostile enemy? This wasn't like the Onix or Golem or Ursaring. Was he prepared to kill without provocation?
"I can hear them talking about noticing us. They're not sure who or what we are," Clefable announced.
"Cacturne, hold your fire. If they're not hostile and we attack them, then we're no better than the wild Pokémon we've had to fight."
"Now don't start the party without little old me!" Banette cackled, floating down from above.
"What are we in for?" the pink cow prompted.
"We're lookin at one Raichu, a pink fluffy thing on two legs, and twenty-three four legged things with yellow fluff. I don't sense any hostility from them though, just fear and sadness."
"The pink one sounds like a flaaffy and the yellow ones must be mareep," Miltank explained.
"Anything you know that could help us?" the Hoenn starter asked.
The pink cow's eyes scrunched close, tapping her head with her hoof until something came. "They're not violent, but they can be if ordered to attack by whomever they deem as their leader."
"So if that Raichu's hostile, the others will follow," Cacturne frowned. His arms had not lowered.
"Okay, here's the plan. Banette, Miltank, and Roserade will guard the car. Cacturne and Clefable will give me some covering fire if talking to them fails," Blaziken instructed.
"Making you the welcoming committee, oh captain, my captain?" the ghost smirked.
Blaziken nodded and started walked casually towards the group. Well, as calmly as one could walk when heading towards an electric firing squad.
"They can hear him," Clefable whispered. Not that she needed to, given they were a kilometer away from the Hoenn starter and several meters above him. Cacturne lied prone atop the flat surface of the mesa overlooking the slowpoke shrine. His arms were outstretched over his head, each one armed with needles long enough they protruded from his shoulders and palms. Roots had already started to spread from his body into the stone, anchoring him to the ground and removing recoil from his list of worries.
"That would explain why the group stopped moving," he eventually replied.
"How can you even see them from this far?" the fairy marveled. Even with her night vision she could only make out the faintest twinkle of light in the distance.
"What my kind lack in speed we make up for in endurance and visual acuity." The fact that the raichu's group was using any light source at all made finding them child's play.
"He's greeting them," she announced.
Cacturne didn't reply immediately, not wanting to distract her from the conversation. He could see Blaziken was only a few meters from the group, though Cacturne wasn't sure if that was enough distance to dodge their strikes. He refocused his sights on the raichu standing at the head of the group. The flaaffy stood a few steps behind him.
Could I skewer both of them with the same needle if I applied enough force? Maybe I could fire two shots at the same time?
A gust of wind swept across the mesa, nature's playful reminder that he had to account for the wind as well. Clefable was quiet. While not long, the length of silence seemed to stretch his perception of time.
"Do they sound friendly?"
Clefable didn't answer immediately, her eyes still closed in concentration. "They sound… I dunno, worried? Tired? Who could blame-wait…"
Cacturne visibly bristled during her pause, the needles all along his body twitching and ready to fly.
"Yeeees?" he prodded.
"Right, sorry. He just offered them some water which got their attention. They're following him back here. Okay, well that was easy."
"Doesn't it seem a little too easy?" The fairy cocked her head to a side.
"What's to stop them from turning on us the moment they find the water?" Cacturne remained rooted, literally and figuratively, to his place on the edge of the mesa.
"We didn't do that with the Houndoom."
"Cause we're trained Pokémon and they're-"
"Wild?" the fairy filled in. "Hate to burst your bubble but they're probably farm Pokémon like Miltank. You know, the one who's been healing and helping feed everyone? I'm guessing the humans who ran the farm must've died and now they have no idea what to do or where to go. Does that make you feel better?"
The cactus was quiet for a few heartbeats. "No. Not really."
"You have some trust issues."
"Before I might've agreed with you, but the way things are now it just seems prudent. This could all be an ambush with Blaziken none the wiser. I have them right where I want them, I could take out that raichu and flaaffy before they even knew what hit them."
Clefable looked mortified at the thought. "You're not actually going to do that, right?" Cacturne turned his head for the first time since they climbed up the mesa and looked at her, his golden eyes unwavering.
"If it meant I could keep Harley from harm, I would. I'm sure you'd do anything you could to protect Whitney and keep her alive. Wouldn't you?"
Clefable turned away but eventually nodded with a grimace.
"I really hope it doesn't come to that," Cacturne confessed. "I mean, what were the chances that we just happened to meet the friendly pack of houndoom? How many times is that gonna replay itself out here? Maybe we can trust this group, but if the world is going to keep being this way, that's gonna change. The hardships the pokémon and people out there are facing is going to change them and we will have to change too if we wanna make it out there."
"It's a pretty grim way to live."
"It's the only way we can survive."
Clefable walked over to the edge of the mesa, staring down at the shrine below.
"Are you going to come down and at least meet them?"
The scarecrow shook his head. "I'll chill up here. You know, in case something goes down and they try to make a run for it."
"Suit yourself," she sighed and stepped off the edge.
"…Hello … newcomers…" a slowpoke began again, drawing the raichu's glance.
"Just ignore them, they'll be at this for a while," Blaziken sat cross-legged on the ground and motioned for the raichu and flaaffy to join him. The mouse nodded, easing himself down to the ground while the mareep drank their fill from the pools.
"Woulda never thought ta come down here. Much obliged," the raichu managed a hollow chuckle as the flaaffy plopped onto the floor beside him.
The exhausted eyes staring back at him were painfully reminiscent of May and Drew's. Asking them about the world they came from, the nightmares they'd left behind, seemed wrong on several levels. Who was he to peel open those wounds again? And yet, the others were depending on him to get them through all of this alive. The more he knew, the better their chances of surviving the day.
"I was… hoping you could tell me of the lands beyond here. I'd be happy to share what my friends and I have seen. We're heading north of here in hopes of finding a place with humans."
The raichu's tail stiffened on the ground, head turning slowly to the flaaffy who mirrored his grim expression. The silent exchange was enough of an answer.
"Ah'm sorry, partner. The places Fluf an me passed wit humans were all burnin," the raichu admitted. Tiny arcs of electricity suddenly jumped between them. When Blaziken had asked earlier, they'd explained it was a way electric types communicated.
"Rai's neglected ta mention that we only saw two places where humans coulda lived. Reckon ya might have better luck further up north," Fluf quickly added.
Blaziken slowly inhaled, sliding his claws across the feathers on his head, and released the breath through his beak.
"Did you see what caused the fires?"
Both Pokémon shook their heads. No sparks flew between them.
"If ah had, ah'd given'em a piece of my mind," Fluf growled.
"The places that were burning, how long ago was that?"
Rai lifted a paw to his chin, his tail gently lighting up when the thought came to him.
"Ah'd say bout a day ago. Place was still burnin strong when we passed'em."
A heavy silence dominated the cavern, broken only by the slowpoke's oblivious offer to have them rest.
"Ah'm sorry if that wasn't what'cha wanted ta hear," Rai added when the silence lasted beyond his comfort. Blaziken waved at the air with his claw.
"We'll… manage. I appreciate you letting me know what's in store for us ahead. Maybe I can help you a bit with what I know. Where were you and your group heading?"
"Anywhere wit wide open fields and pasture for the herd," Fluf explained, motioning to her sisters still drinking from the pools.
"Are there none where you came from?" Blaziken wasn't sure how much more fields of desolation he could take. The electric types shook their heads.
"The fields down Route 32 up ta Valley City are fine, the only problem were the damn zubat swarms comin in at night. Folks who made it through the first night of these changes were picked off by those damn bats."
"After the first few nights we got tired of waitin fer their attacks, so we decided ta take the fight ta them. Damn suckers were fast, but we learned in the first nights that zubat don't find wool full of electrical charge ta be too tasty," Rai gave a dark chuckle.
"Path ahead should be pretty peaceful seein as Rai an me took care of the zubat swarm in the caves ahead," Fluf clarified. Blaziken stayed quiet for some time. While he was happy to hear the road north would be relatively uneventful, he couldn't find the words to soften the news of the road going south.
"I guess it's my turn to give bad news. Beyond this cave is miles and miles of dead forest and razed cities. There was some normal forest beyond the ruins of a city but if you're going by foot it might take you and your flock several days to get there."
Blaziken had expected the news to hit them harder, but the two seemed more relieved than disappointed.
A sigh escaped the mouse. "Guess that saves us the trip. Much obliged."
"If you don't mind me asking, where will you go from here?"
The raichu glanced around the cavern, their ever-hospitable slowpoke hosts were offering them a place to sleep now. "Reckon we can rest here a day or two an make our way back. There's a lotta mareep out there with no owners an plenty of pasture ta go around."
For the first time since they'd met, Blaziken noticed the mouse didn't sound exhausted. "They're probably scared an lost. Fluf an me can round'em up and find a place for'em. Heck, we could start up a farm again. Ellen taugh-" Rai abruptly paused. Fluf's expression turned equally dark. The name might as well have been a knife, carving away the small smile he'd had and revealing the raw grimace underneath. The flaaffy's paw came to rest on his shoulder. Rai's arms didn't move, though his tail slowly coiled around the electric sheep.
The cavern grew quiet, the rest of Rai's statement scratched at his throat as he swallowed it back.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry. I know it doesn't compare, but I sympathize. We lost a lot of good friends just to get here."
"Some mornings ah forget that it happened, and ah think it's jus another day. That it was all jus a nightmare." Rai shook his head, his yellow cheeks wet with tears. "It was mah fault." Sparks between the two launched anew, a thousand conversations carried through the volts between him and the lamb.
Blaziken felt himself walk over, kneeling and grabbing the mouse's paw just as the deluge of sparks ended.
"You can't think like that. They wouldn't have wanted you to." Blaziken's stare bored into Rai's eyes. "None of us had control that night. When the change happened to me, there were people that I hurt or even killed. My coordinator, May, she was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time where I couldn't hurt her."
"That's what yer friends are guardin up top, right?" The flaaffy's voice held no accusation, but her stare was hard and heavy. Blaziken could only nod.
"Yer lucky then," Rai lifted his head, his paw grabbed Blaziken's claw with a strength that belied its size.
"If they're anythin like my Ellen an Marie, ya take care of'em, ya hear. Don't ever let'em come ta harm." Blaziken nodded and shook the mouse's hand.
One of the mareep sidled over to them. "Rai? Are we sleepin here tonight?"
Rai forced himself to smile and nodded. "Go'en tell the others. Fluf an me won't be long."
Blaziken stepped away from the pair and made for the cave's exit. "I'll let you guys get some rest. My group and I plan to head out first thing in the morning. I don't think we'll see each other again, so I wish you the best of luck."
"Ah wish you the same. Heck, if yer ever back round these parts, stop on by and we'll hopefully be able ta return yer kindness."
"I'll keep that in mind," the fire starter smiled and was about to step into the tunnel until he paused. "If I see any mareep, I'll send them your way."
"Much obliged." Rai replied.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter and let's not forget, next month is April and you all know what that means. I shall be doing my annual update of The Nonsense on the first along with contributions from the other writers, so there's that to look forward to. I've got something amusing prepared that sheds some light on how certain events in The Incipience may have gone down. And with that, I'd be grateful to get some feedback on this chapter.
Till next time.