Chapter 10

The place beyond the moon

I stood up after the Mightyena got away from me. I saw that the female who had attacked me before was backing away from Rien and so did an aged, male Mightyena who had attacked Delilah. There was another male who refused to leave Feather but the Pidgeotto Pecked him, making him go away rubbing his nose.

"Serves you right, Gordon." The aged Mightyena strictly told him. "We apologize for attacking you, Representative. We haven't eaten anything for days."

I opened my mouth and then closed it again. I was speechless. I was always told of how heartless the predators were and how scary and evil but that pack in front of me was nothing like these descriptions. They were dying from hunger and they could have killed us but they didn't. They knew who I was and I could even say I felt sorry for them, seeing how horrible their condition was.

"It's okay, we understand." I managed to say after I got over my shock.

"I'm Rod, leader of the only Mightyena pack left in Aesler. Well, the night has fallen and the Dagger Range isn't a safe place for Pokemon of any sort. It would be our honor if you stayed with us."

I looked at the others who raised their shoulders a tad reluctantly. I decided there was no reason for uncertainty. "I guess that's fine." I replied.

Rod nodded. He turned his back to us and headed to the other direction. We followed him. I noticed that the other Mightyena reverently waited for their leader to pass in front of them before they began walking.

We took an uphill path and soon enough we reached a small plateau. A big rock formation stood to the opposite side of the path and the top of a mountain towered above it. The path from which we had just come was well-hidden with the foliage of the trees hiding it from above and thick bushes hiding it from the sides. On our left stood a precipice which revealed an enormous forest standing many meters beneath it and extending far until it met the foot of some other mountains.

"Here's where we gather." explained Rod. "The pack spends the day here so you know where you can find us. The caves where we sleep are over there." he pointed on the right of the plateau with his muzzle. "The first one is the one where you'll sleep. The pack will stay here as there's a disscussion that needs to be made. Have a good night."

We wished them good night too and headed towards the caves. The rocks formed something like a staircase which led to a plateau lower than the first one. Several caves stood on the rock walls all around the plateau. We headed to the first one and entered it. It had no decoration and no furniture inside except for the covered in hay floor. We fell asleep as soon as we lied down.

~*~

The next morning we woke up and headed immediately to the plateau. A rather moving sight awaited us there. Not only Mightyenas had gathered to the plateau, but other Pokemon species too. There were two female Fearows, a male Zangoose and a female Seviper. The last ones were sitting side by side, seeming to have forgotten everything about the rivalry between their species. Rod was sitting on the top of the rock formation and spoke about hunting strategies. Then he noticed us and waved to us, calling us to approach.

"Today, we have the honor to have with us the Representative and her partners. I hope that all of you will treat the visitors as hospitably as possible" Those who weren't aware of our presence turned their heads toward us surprised. We slowly approached the group of Pokemon and sat next to them. Soon, they averted their gazes from us focused to the Mightyena leader again.

"We won't go hunting today." Rod announced and most of the Pokemon seemed relieved. "We're far too tired and prey is rare and difficult to be caught; we would only be wasting our energy. However, we have many pups here that need food so whoever wants to bring some to them is free to go hunt."

There were a few Mightyenas, the two Fearows, the Seviper and the Zangoose that left immediately, heading to different directions. "Not you Lara." Rod addressed a female Mightyena, the same one who attacked me yesterday. She was ready to follow the hunters.

"Why not?" protested Lara.

"You'll be the one in charge now. I have to stay with our guests."

"But father-"

"Do what I say." Rod told her in a calm but stern voice.

The Mightyena obeyed, returning to her position and Rod jumped off the rocks and approached us. "Would you like me to show you our beautiful mountains?"

"Sure!" Rien replied enthusiastically as the dark type took the lead.

"So, that's your daughter?" asked him Delilah as we were taking the path which led away from the plateau.

"Yes." He laconically replied but even that single word showed how proud he was for her.

We remained silent for a bit. We soon reached the forest that could be seen from the plateau. After walking through thick foliage, we reached a lake of moderate size. There, we stopped to drink some water and rest. Rod wanted to learn about our adventures so we told him and then asked him to tell us about the Mightyena pack.

"Mightyenas and other predators were exiled to the Dagger Range when Jicicle rose to power." Said Rod. "Those who joined his side where allowed to stay in the cities but those who resisted were restricted in this Range. That's why you don't see many predators around Aesler. They either are soldiers or are living here.

"The lack of prey in the Range made the predators fight each other and soon many kinds of Pokemon were extinct. The only ones that remain in the whole Range are my pack and the six other Pokemon you saw. We decided that our only way to survive is to stay united so we now consider them members of the pack."

"But, that's great! You managed what the civilized Pokemon didn't. Um… not that you aren't civilized but, you know, everyone thinks that you're some kind of… er…" stammered Feather while his face had taken a red color.

Rod laughed. "I understand what you mean young one! There's no need to worry, you didn't wish to offend me."

"Okay..." Said Feather but the blush didn't leave his face. "I mean that you seem to be so close to each other and care for the other Pokemon, even if they're not of the same kind. Poorness has made many of the Pokemon selfish and bad in contrast with you; difficulties have united you."

"Yes, you're right. However, this won't last forever." Said Rod. We looked at him puzzled. "Nothing lasts forever. The unity was lost when the Representatives disappeared and the same will happen to our pack someday."

"So, do you believe that the Pokemon of Aesler will unify again someday?" I asked the aged leader.

"Of course! The real question is when will that happen? It can happen really soon," he glanced at me, "or it can happen in a million years. Nobody knows!"

"I'm not sure how probable that "soon" is." I said uncertainly.

"Well, Representative, is there a reason you believe that?" Rod asked me with a smirk.

"I'm a kid and I'm weak. No one really seems excited when meeting me and everyone acts like I can't understand many things."

"Examples?"

"Some doubted me," I said and I remembered Lyol and his conversation with the other Lapras, "some pointed out that I can't help," I remembered Tark who forbid me to help in the battle, "and well, the other one didn't get to talk to me a lot. Only children seem to truly believe in me." I said and looked at my friends while I remembered how the kids in my village admired me.

"So, I'm a kid too?" asked Rod laughing. I looked at him surprised.

"I think that you can restore Aesler to its former glory, Jolty. That's what we need: the innocence and kindness of a kid. Everyone's way of thinking is way too complicated and as an "uncivilized" Pokemon, I tell you that complicated thinking doesn't always lead to a solution. The only reason we survived was because we simplified things as much as possible and started living as our wild ancestors did."

When we finished resting, we followed the path back to the plateau. We sat there with the other Mightyena and waited for those who had gone to hunt. As soon as we arrived, Rod's young daughter approached us with a rather annoyed expression.

"Dad, please do something about Gordon! He's getting on my nerves!" she complained.

"You know that I can't do anything about him, Lara. You'll have to be patient and handle the situation yourself." Rod replied. The female Mightyena left with a sigh.

"Is something going on?" asked Rien.

"Well, it's a complicated situation. Lara is the only female without a mate in the pack and there are quite a few males without a mate so she has problems with all these guys."

"Why doesn't she choose someone so everything is settled?" Delilah asked the Mightyena.

"She's the daughter of the leader; she can't do whatever she wants." Rod replied with a sigh. "She has to find a strong male who can lead the pack."

We heard paws tapping on dirt and soon, those who had gone to hunt appeared. Their prey was only some bird Pokemon and a Spoink. Feather looked away when he saw a dead Pidgey in the mouth of a Mightyena. The cubs approached the hunters who gave all the food to them. However, the male who had attacked me approached our group. He was holding a Spearow and a Spoink. He let the Spearow fall in front of us.

"I thought that you'd need food." He told us solemnly. "You're our guests and you're kids." He called another Mightyena who came and left two apples. "And these are for you." he addressed Feather. "You don't eat meat so…"

The Mightyena seemed a bit shy. I could say that he was about twenty years old. "Thanks for your offer but you should better give them to the children. They need them more than we do." I said with a smile. The others nodded and the Mightyena seemed surprised.

"Okay then." He grabbed the Spearow with his jaws. "You can keep the apples though. No one eats apples here." He smiled. "Nice to meet you guys!"

We saw him leaving the Spearow to the puppies and then he approached Lara. He coughed and she turned around. She smiled and a blush appeared on her face. The male Mightyena blushed too and left the Spoink down.

"And that's Bright." Said Rod. "He's a promising youngster though a bit shy, nothing like the other males."

Lara pushed the Spoink away thanking Bright but he refused to take it and backed away. At the end she thanked Bright and took the Spoink. They nervously smiled to each other and as Bright backed away, he stumbled. He laughed embarrassed and left but he had a broad smile on his face.

We were watching the scene amused as the sun was setting. A Poochyena came towards us calling Rod. "Tell us a story, Rod!" the kid told the aged Mightyena.

"Alright I will." Smiled the leader. "You can come with me." He said to us and we followed him. All the kids sat in front of the leader and so did the Zangoose, the Seviper, a few grown-up Mightyenas and we.

"What fairytale will you tell tonight, Rod?" asked the white-colored, two-legged Pokemon with the red stripes.

"You're worssse than the kidsss, Sssteven!" hissed the snake-like, dark blue-colored Pokemon with the strange yellow and purple markings and the two long teeth. The two Pokemon laughed.

"Today, I'll tell you the story of a Mightyena called Leedan. Leedan was a lazy Pokemon. He never did anything important in his life because of that lazyness and lived off of the hard work of others. One day Leedan went to the "place beyond the moon", like every living being in our world."

I assumed that "the place beyond the moon" was the way Mightyena said "he died". Rod paused to see if anyone wanted to make any questions but everyone seemed to have understood.

"At the beginning, he used to have a bright light surrounding him, a sign that he was still remembered by those who were still alive. When they too died though, Leedan's light began to fade. Soon, nobody could see him because he didn't have the light anymore. Leedan was panicked and decided to speak to Merne, the wisest of the Mightyena residing to that faraway place, unreachable to us here. He travelled to Merne's living place and met him. Merne's light was so bright Leedan had to talk to him with closed eyes. Merne listened to his problem carefully and then he said:

"It's natural that your light faded, Leedan. That light indicates how much you helped the other Pokemon when you were alive. You didn't work so you didn't offer anything to the world or you family and friends. You neither did a great deed so you would be remembered through eternity and thus you left no mark in the world of mortals."

"Leedan understood and bent his head. He walked away ashamed and his name was forgotten forever and his form was invisible to the others. We only mention him through this story to show everyone what happens to those who waste their life pointlessly. Now, time to sleep, youngsters!"

The cubs thanked Rod for the story and headed to the plateau with the caves. "It was a great story, Rod!" said Feather.

"We tell this one to the children to show them that they must work hard so that their existence has a meaning and so that they would be remembered and praised by future generations. We're trying to inspire them to become a hero and maintain their pride as a Mightyena and living being." Explained Rod. "Well, I'll have to speak to my pack right now; this sortage of food is stressful for all of us. You can stay if you wish to."

The aged Mightyena jumped on the rock formation once more and with a howl he asked everyone to gather. He began speaking about the lack of prey and what the pack should do. The full moon had appeared bigger than I had ever seen it. The tops of the mountains as well as the firs were crested with moonlight and, combined with the moon and the stars they created a beautiful and wild scenic. I stayed there staring at it until I felt my eyes closing…