The next three days were low key compared with what Fen had grown used to. To get back on Faoz's route towards Glyciak Mountain, they needed to follow the path going to the volcano Arkan. But given the remote location of Mt. Aura, they crossed almost the whole width of Ractyl's Belt in doing so. Their route was certainly unconventional, judging by the awkwardness of the mountains they crossed, and they frequently had to resort to rock climbing around the edges of them.
Until this morning the weather had remained misty and stormy, though no rainfall was on the same level as the one on the night of Fen's last emotion attack. While the civilised 'mon on the mountains were still not as friendly as Ryu said he remembered, they were usually happy to fight when challenged. These battles were a little more restrained than those with wilds, but they tired and bruised just the same.
Fen didn't mind the fights slowing them down slightly; he knew that he needed the practice for their supposed challenges ahead. Plus, he had improved enough for Ryu to finally start fighting with him, and they passed many interesting hours discussing possible strategies and combinations.
On the fourth morning since Mt. Aura, they left the mountain belt and were crossing a rocky valley separating them from the volcano. The sun was out for the first time in days, to Fen's relief; he'd had to wear Cyan's coat for most of the intervening time, and while he was glad to have the water protection, the itches he was getting were becoming unbearable.
He sniffed the air now, unsure why he had until he picked up a smell of ash. He felt a tingle of excitement with it, even though Arkan was already visible in front of them. There were two features that distinguished it from the surrounding mountains: one was its colour, a charcoal black that seemed to almost glitter in the sunlight, standing out from the sea of greys they'd been crossing. The other was a jagged circular opening at its peak, though no steam or lava seemed to be rising from it.
Fen had to remind himself that the volcano was only a landmark to cross, not an end point of their journey. Still, he'd been intrigued by the place ever since Cyan had told him what a good idea it would be to go there, and that information was clearly playing on his instincts too.
They climbed for a few more hours, hardly reaching a third of the volcano's vast altitude, before seeing a couple of yellow-and-white furred Pokémon emerge from an opening in the rock. The taller one, who had a stick in its tail and tufts of fur falling from its ears, eyed them both curiously, particularly Ryu. Then it hurried past, chasing the four-legged 'mon running ahead of it.
Intrigued, Fen got closer to the opening. It was twice the size of the tunnel that went into Mt. Aura. He could see light in the distance, and hear a murmuring of voices, but the most striking feature was the heat. It felt revitalising after so much travelling.
"Do you think this is the place Cyan lived?" he asked Ryu.
"Dunno, but I'm not going near it," came the voice, oddly far away. Fen turned and was alarmed to see Ryu standing back from him, his face and paws practically dripping with sweat.
Ryu noted his reaction and smirked. "Y'see, I think my whole coat's gonna fall off if I get much closer to there."
Fen tried to gauge the temperature on Ryu's scale, but frustratingly found it impossible. To him, the temperature was perfect. "I didn't realise it would be too hot…"
"I mean, it's a volcano," Ryu said. "It's what I expected."
Fen looked between him and the opening awkwardly. He really had a strong urge to go inside. "Uh… do you mind if I take a look in here?"
"Nah, it's fine," Ryu said. "We've been travelling pretty hard recently; I don't mind a rest. This seems like a pretty safe area. I can check that we know where this Smouldered Pass is, then look for water or something."
Smouldered Pass was the next marker on their route – a gnarled, ash-coloured forest judging by their map illustration.
"Are you sure?" Fen asked.
"'Mon, I'm not staying here." Ryu smiled. "I can see what you wanna do. Just call me when you're done, uh… being warm... I won't go very far."
Maybe it was just because he was keen to get out of the heat, but Fen doubted that Ryu would have been so accommodating on their first few adventures. He was happy for the change.
"I won't be gone long," he assured.
Ryu nodded affirmatively. "See ya later then."
Fen turned back to the volcano opening and began walking inside. The thickness of rock blocked out all noise from outside, magnifying the sound of his feet padding against the surface. For once, he could really feel the temperature in here, the heat washing over him; it felt as comforting as what he imagined a hot bath would be like for his human-self.
The voices he'd heard from inside became clearer, but it was still hard to make out words. All Fen could tell was that a squawky voice was talking very excitedly with a much more level-sounding one. Then before he knew it, the tunnel opened into a room.
The brightness of the area he stepped into was dazzling. He instinctively squinted upwards, away from the light, and saw that the room had been constructed all the way to the volcano's open mouth, its arch-like walls following the same shape as the mountain's exterior. The room seemed to be built around a high, circular podium of rock, which stood directly below the mouth.
As he lowered his gaze, trying to take everything from the vast room in, he was stunned at the number of Pokémon in front of him – it looked well over a hundred. And though there were more species than he could count here, their colours were all similar hues of reds and yellows to his own. Flaming tails and manes were in abundance, and he quickly realised that this, rather than any natural light, was what gave the room such an intense glow.
He then noticed that almost all those Pokémon were staring right at him. A few of them whispered to each other. A huge Arcanine, whose head alone was almost the size of Fen, strode very slowly over to him, and laid down vertically to meet him closer to eye-level.
"Greetings, Chimchar," he said, his hoarse voice echoing in the silence. "What is your relation here?"
Fen looked at him blankly. "I'm sorry?"
The Arcanine seemed to suppress a smile at his words. "What I mean to say is, you appear rather dazed by everything. Have you any family here? And if not, you must be seeing this place for the first time?"
"No, I don't have any family," Fen said slowly. Why are they asking this now? "I have a friend who used to live here, I guess… but this is my first time here."
At this, without warning, the Pokémon gathered behind the Arcanine broke into a rapturous spate of claps, cries, cheers, and blasts of fire into the air.
The Arcanine raised a paw slightly and the crowd quietened again, though their eyes remained fixed on Fen. "Well, I welcome you to Arkan, the largest home of Fires in all of Kyunn. You can call me Ark, and while I may be our leader by name, we are all in one family here."
Fen attempted to smile back, but he hated having so much attention on him. "Thanks," he said quietly. "I'm Fen."
Ark's look softened. "Ah, I apologise if we intimidate you," he said, drawing a few chuckles from the crowd. "Hopefully what I ask next will be more enjoyable. Are you aware of our initiation ceremony, regarding newcomers like yourself?"
"Initiation?" Fen repeated hesitantly. "No, I don't–"
"No matter!" Ark roared, and the rest of the crowd swelled in noise again. "You appear to be by yourself, Fen, which makes it very simple. The initiation is this: pick one of us to fight. It is entirely your choice who. Nothing rests on the outcome… except your pride, of course." The emphasis he put on pride suggested that this fight was, in fact, very important indeed.
What else would Pokémon have done for an initiation? Fen thought with an amused smile. He turned back to the eager-eyed crowd, who all seemed to be trying to suppress their excitement, and his smile faded. Now, how am I supposed to choose one of them out of this many? I recognise a few species, but I'd never thought about them in the context of picking fights…
"Hey, pick me, pick me!" An orange and black Pokémon broke the silence, flapping frantically above the crowd to make itself seen. Fen didn't know the species but recognised the squawks as the first muffled voice he'd heard from outside.
When Ark turned to look at the bird he quickly shut up and dropped a few feet lower. "The choice is entirely yours, Fen," Ark reminded him.
Even if the bird had broken some code of conduct, Fen was very glad to have someone put themselves forward. "Okay," he nodded at the hovering bird. "I'll take you on."
A slight pause, then another burst of cheering came from the crowd. "Very well!" Ark declared. "Charro, the Fletchinder, will fight our newest Fire, Fen!"
Ark nodded to a few Pokémon behind him, then before Fen knew what was happening a set of arms pushed him forwards, escorting him to the east side of the cave where a wide rectangular box had been marked out in the ground. This area was more scorched than any other.
He was situated on one end, with the Fletchinder named Charro landing at the other. Lowering himself into a fighting position, Fen felt oddly confident, which puzzled him considering he knew nothing about this Pokémon other than the fact it could fly.
There wasn't time to consider that, though, as Ark roared "Begin!", and the crowd burst into life once more.
Charro took off and almost immediately swooped towards Fen. The bird was too fast to avoid, its beak ramming into his face. The crowd 'oooohed' as he fell backwards. I can't be waiting for an invitation to attack, then, Fen thought.
He quickly sprung up, jumping four feet high towards Charro. The bird jerked back his upper body but pulled his wings in front of them, leaving them exposed to scratches. While Fen couldn't hang in the air long, he landed good swipes with both hands. It brought a squawk from Charro who shot out a burst of fire in response, though it disappeared into the air above Fen as he landed.
Fen looked for Charro in the air and saw him flying upwards, ready to build speed for another aerial assault. Once again, the bird's wings tucked into his body as he dove at Fen. This time Fen managed to scramble backwards from the beak, but Charro kept flying forwards and his long legs kicked out, knocking Fen to the floor for a second time.
Charro had already begun his previous routine by the time Fen could face him again. He tried to think above the hum of the crowd. He seems to just use the same attack with his beak, and while it's too fast for me to reliably avoid, the hits haven't hurt too much. He's quick, but not overly strong…
An idea came to him. He held his arms up, and when Charro descended a third time he tried to grab a hold of the bird's head. He was a moment too late however, getting another beak to the face while his arms only clutched at hot feathers.
He heard a couple of chuckles from the crowd now, and had a growing number of aches, but he fought to retain focus. Come on, this could still work! I just need to know the exact time he'll attack…
Recently he had discovered a rather strange technique, but one that succeeded in its own unique way. Once a fight had begun, it had become clear that regardless of his opponent's intelligence, they expected him to fight like he meant it. They would be enraged, and attack him at once, if he showed them any kind of disinterest. As it turned out, he was very good at faking such a thing.
He had only previously done this taunting on a 'mon to act as a distraction for Ryu to attack. Nevertheless, he got onto all-fours now and pretended to scratch himself with a back leg. Though his eyes faced away from Charro, he kept him in his periphery.
The crowd howled with derision and Charro squawked, launching his usual attack. Prepared for it, Fen managed to grip one hand on Charro's beak and the other on the side of his head, but Charro squirmed furiously to free himself, and Fen lost his hold a moment later, throwing himself away from the bird.
Charro kicked him backwards before he could attempt a scratch flurry, but was hovering low to ground, trying to work some energy back into his wings. Fen saw the opportunity for a fire attack, and breathed in.
He was suddenly overwhelmed with the energy he felt; the strength of fire in his stomach was barely enough to contain. He didn't know what this meant, but there was only thing he could do mid-action: exhale.
What he released wasn't embers but a raging stream of fire, like a flamethrower, which forced his jaws open wider than he would've thought possible. He was so stunned that the fire disappeared almost immediately, making him lose balance and tumble over.
But Charro had been left on the ground, smoking a little from the attack. When the bird tried flapping his wings again, it only propelled him a couple of feet. He lunged weakly at Fen with his beak, who was easily able to swerve it and land four twin-scratches on Charro's body. Charro toppled over, and with a final effort held up his wing in acknowledgement, before it flopped to the ground, outstretched with the rest of him.
Fen heard Ark shout something about the fight being over, then the crowd suddenly rushed towards him, handing out a mixture of congratulations, slaps on his back, a few words of advice… but he was preoccupied with himself. The rush of energy he'd felt when breathing in had died down slightly, yet his body still felt different.
As soon as he'd known that his fire came from his stomach, he'd become roughly aware of the feeling inside him. Now, not only was the sensation stronger than before, but he could feel the warmth in in his hands and feet too. Has… something changed inside me? How did I even do that last attack?
"Hey uh, Chimchar? Fen? You there?"
Fen refocused. The crowd was dispersing, and in front of him was a quadrupled 'mon that looked a bit like Ark but smaller, with lighter fur and wider ears – a Flareon. It offered him a paw up, which he gratefully took.
"Are you okay? The 'mon here can go pretty wild when spectating fights… I mean it's cool, but equally exhausting when you're in the middle of it."
Fen smiled at his honesty. "Yeah, I'm okay."
The Flareon nodded. "But 'char, that was a great fight you had! I've battled Charro a few times and that strategy you used wasn't one I'd thought of. I guess fighting 'mon in the air requires some different thinking, huh?"
"Uh… yeah," Fen said vaguely. He shook himself. "Sorry… I'm trying to figure out how I breathed that much fire at once."
"Oh, you think you learned a new technique?" The Flareon looked happy. "They say that since the heat of Arkan is way hotter than most climates you'll find on Kyunn, Fire abilities come more naturally to us here. I felt something different when arrived, too."
Though it sounded slightly outlandish, the theory made more sense than anything Fen could think of. "So… the greater heat of this place released some extra fire I had, or something?" he asked.
"I think so. Not an expert on that stuff, though." The Flareon paused. "I'm Leo, by the way. Ark asked me to help show you around here, since he figured you could do with a little less attention than you were getting. Oh, and since I know your name, don't worry about the Fire greeting. Unless you really want to…"
Just then, Charro came flapping slightly breathlessly over to them. Despite losing, he looked in high spirits.
"H-hey, well battled, 'mon! Though I went a little easy on you, being new and all… but still! You're strong for jus' a hatch." He turned to Leo. "I told you I hadn't seen this guy before! Didn't I tell you?"
"Yeah, and it was a lucky guess," Leo sighed. "I know you really can't see Natu from the volcano's peak."
"Oh, you know a lot about being that high, do ya?" Charro chirped back triumphantly. "I won the bet, so you've gotta give me a free hit in our next fight!" He addressed Fen. "You don't know it Fern, but it's thanks to you that I'm finally gonna get one over Leo! If there's anything I can do to welcome you–"
"Thanks, Charro," Leo said, flicking an ear at the bird. "Your name was Fen, wasn't it?"
"Yeah."
"Oh, sorry!" Charro squawked. "It's just, y'know, I thought of Monferno, and Fern, and… well, I…"
"It's fine," Fen said quickly. "Uh… what is a hatch?"
Charro blinked at him. "A 'mon that hasn't evolved. Like, they look the same as when they popped out of their egg. Roughly."
Leo nodded. "You… might wanna get used to introducing yourself though, Fen. Everyone here'll be keen to talk to you."
"Are new 'mon not very common here?" Fen enquired. Everything he'd heard and observed so far suggested as much.
Leo frowned. "Not really… the fact that this climate's only possible for Fires rules out a lot of species. I was actually the last new 'mon to walk in like you just did, since I was hatched an Eevee."
Fen faintly remembered Eevee as a species with too many evolutions to keep count of. "Did you always want to evolve into a Flareon, then?" he asked, interest piqued.
Leo looked at the floor sheepishly. "To be honest, it was a bit of an accident... I came across the stone while by myself, and only realised after touching it that it must be a special one. I could've left it there and gone back home, but I was a little excited and… basically, it just happened right then. It took some time to adapt to all the changes that brought, but I'm really glad I did it, especially since I can live here now."
"So, Fen," Charro took over, slightly impatiently. "About time we showed you 'round the place, huh?"
Charro had begun almost before he could formulate a reply. "I guess we'll start with what you're sitting in. This is The Arena; every full moon we have a knockout right here to find the strongest 'mon. An Infernape's our current champ, actually, so I guess you could pick up some moves from her. I'll be challenging as soon as I evolve again, though," he declared, lifting his beak proudly.
"We have a flamethrower competition, too," Leo added. "Ark's still the best at that, so good that most 'mon have stopped trying to beat him. Though I'm told it's been ruining his voice, so hopefully he'll retire soon." He said the words with a tinge of longing.
Leo and Charro started showing him around the rest of the cavern. There was a wall with numerous cubby holes carved into them, which Fen was told served as a temporary supply storage for any 'mon heading out. The cubby holes were manned by a tall Pokémon that Leo told him was a Delphox. Fen had worried that not knowing a species name was treated as an unforgivable sin to Pokémon, but neither of his guides seemed to mind it.
Then, they passed an area in a mostly deserted corner, where the volcano rock had been elaborately shaped into a series of small rooms, which were only enterable from one side. "Most 'mon here are happy to sleep anywhere in the cavern," Leo explained, "but these places are for anyone who needs a bit of privacy, for whatever reason."
As Leo predicted, all kinds of Pokémon stopped Fen as they walked, slowing them to barely a Shellos-pace. Unlike Leo, they all did the Fire greeting with him, but he wasn't able to consistently repeat the power of his flamethrower on Charro. His throat started aching from the quantity of embers breathed.
Many asked who it was he knew from Arkan, to which he told them Cyan, and a few difficult moments arose when he was pressed on who his family were. "This Quilava can't be the only Fire you know," another Chimchar, who he could distinguish from himself mostly by the greater effort she had put into ordering her disorderly hair, was telling him. "At least one of your parents must be, right? Or…" her face darkened, "don't tell me you were abandoned at hatching? Oh Mew, I didn't realise–"
"It's not like that," Fen said hastily. "I just… can't tell you who my parents are. That's all I can say. Sorry."
Maybe saying I was an orphan would make me look a little less suspicious? he wondered. But I don't want the pity of everyone here, either – if that is how they'd treat a Pokémon without parents...
From that point on, Fen had Leo to thank for skilfully deflecting away any enquiries about his 'family'.
Towards the north end of the cave, a number of bags and empty buckets scattered the floor. A couple of bird Pokémon closely resembling Charro were resting.
"In case you wondered where the food and water here came from," Leo said, "we send out a group of Flyers each day to retrieve some from down the mountains. They're out right now, though."
"I managed to get today off, otherwise I'd be out there too," Charro interjected helpfully.
Fen had another glance at the mass of bodies in the cave. "They must be carrying a lot to feed everyone."
"Oh yeah!" Leo said. "A couple of Charizard we have can carry about four bags at once. It's lucky that Flyers are more used to being in the rain, what with the rough weather we've been having lately."
Fen slowed. The weather. He'd been so caught up in the heat of the volcano, the welcoming he'd gotten, his fight with Charro… it was like he'd forgotten why he was here.
But why am I here? he thought alarmedly. I'm wasting time! Where's Ryu now? Did he find water okay?
Both Leo and Charro seemed to be wondering why he'd stopped. "Sorry. Just… remembered something," Fen said, though he didn't start walking again. "You say the weather's been rough here? How so?"
"Well…" Leo frowned. "There's been a few storms that just suddenly appeared out of nowhere. We had to crowd into the corners of the cave because the rain was coming down so hard. A few 'mon seemed to think there were ground tremors the other day too, but I didn't notice them."
"Hey, I heard some rumours of earthquakes further north," Charro said. "Y'know if that's true?"
"There was one in Sanguin Town while I was there," Fen said.
Charro's wings inflated in surprise. "Huh, who would've thought? Although, I wouldn't be able to feel them even if I tried…"
"So why do you think this stuff's happening?" Fen asked. The blank looks he got back left him little option but to elaborate. "I mean, with these earthquakes, storms… this weather isn't normal for Kyunn. Aren't you a bit worried about it?"
Leo's ears lowered slightly. "Sure, it's unusual," he said slowly. "But… there's nothing we can do about it, is there? And besides, the fact that the weather isn't normal means I doubt it'll stay like this for long. I don't see any reason to worry." Charro nodded in agreement.
Fen looked to the floor, trying to suppress a scowl. I didn't expect anything different, but still… How can they not be concerned with what's happening? Pokémon here treat nature with so much trust, like it can't do any wrong. But I… I know there's something wrong, I just do! Even if this doesn't make sense to anyone else, I have to believe it… I've come all this way…
"Fen, is something wrong?" Leo asked concernedly.
Fen looked Leo in the eye. Something seemed to want to stop him saying the words he needed to, but he forced his mouth open.
"I… I need to leave."
It came out louder than he wanted. Leo and Charro stared at him, shocked into silence. He could see a few Pokémon in his periphery stop and observe him with a similar surprise.
"You're just leaving?" Charro exclaimed. "But… what're you doing here? Why'd you come so far? We're not close to any kinda towns or… y'know, other places for Fires to live! Especially if you came from the north! There's nothing good that's south of here!"
"I know," Fen said, sighing. He lowered his voice. "I'm looking for an Absol. I was told the most likely place to find one was on Glyciak Mountain, so that's where I'm going. Basically, I think something's wrong with the weather and natural disasters that Kyunn's been having, and I want to find out why."
Leo and Charro continued to stare at him. "Fen…" Leo looked at him worriedly. "Absol? Glyciak…?"
"D'you know how cold it is up there?" Charro squawked, eyes bulging. "I've only flown over it once, but by Entei… I thought my wings were gonna snap! And your reason for going is that something's wrong with the weather?! Are you serious?"
"I am serious!" Fen said impatiently. "Look, if I explained my reasons in full, not only would it be a long story that I don't want to tell, but I doubt you'd believe it anyway! Okay?"
Charro let out a huff, turning his beak away. "You're crazy," he muttered. "Have fun getting frozen, then." He began beating his wings to fly off.
Fen realised that he might've been too strong. "Charro, I didn't mean to offend you–"
But it was too late. In a matter of seconds, Charro had already swooped far away to another corner of the cave and was gesticulating something with his wings to those around him.
"Ignore him," Leo said. "He gets like this sometimes. The thing is, we both just assumed by how you arrived, turning up with no supplies and all, not knowing anyone, that you were staying…"
"My partner's got our supplies," Fen said quickly. "He's outside here because he isn't a Fire. But that's another reason why I need to get going."
"Uh… right." One of Leo's legs pawed at the ground. "Of course you don't have to stay… while I agree that this journey sounds pretty dangerous, I won't demand to know your personal reasons for doing it."
Fen brightened up. "I appreciate that, Leo."
Leo nodded back. "Were you going to leave now? Is there anything you need from here?" He glanced up through the volcano's gap. "The birds on shift won't be back for a while if it's food you wanted…"
Fen looked around, wanting to try and savour this place for the little time he had left. His eyes fixed upon the huge bank of rock in the centre of the room, which they'd been navigating around the entire time. "What's this place about?" he asked.
"Oh, that place?" Leo grinned. "You've made a good choice; if I was gonna show you one thing before you left, it would be the crater. C'mon, follow me."
Leo trotted off towards the bank, Fen close behind. I hardly could have explained things to Charro much differently, he thought sadly. Maybe my tail flared again and he just got the wrong idea? Ugh...
Leo walked around the rock until they came to a rough set of carved steps. "Here we are," he said cheerfully. He climbed up the steps, until his front legs and head were peeking over the edge of what Fen now realised wasn't just a bank of rock, but a massive circular hole. Fen scrambled up so he could do the same, then looked down.
The only word he could produce was "Wow", and it felt woefully inadequate. Only a few metres below them was pure, bubbling, blindingly orange magma. Watching it flow almost silently, thicker than any normal liquid, was mesmerising. Yet after about 30 seconds Fen got a most unusual itching sensation on his body, and it took a moment for him to realise what it was: he felt too hot. He pulled his head away slightly.
"Bet you wondered how this place was so warm?" Leo was grinning. "It's this." He too had retreated, though remained close to the crater.
"Yeah…" Fen murmured. The hotness seemed to have made his initial amazement retreat, and a more rational part of his brain was whirring. "That magma… this must be a properly active volcano," he said. "You – everyone here – you're living inside an active volcano. Is that safe?"
"I... don't know what you mean by active," Leo said, giving him another odd look. "But I mean, of course it's safe! 'Mon have been living here for generations – I think they'd know if something bad was going to happen. You know, uh..." he leant closer to Fen, "Ark, as he's known, comes from a long line of Arcanine apparently. The volcano wasn't named specifically after him, if that's what you thought. It's way, way older than that."
Fen briefly stuck his head back over and couldn't help marvelling again at the sight. Maybe I am overreacting… I should trust that the Pokémon here know what they're talking about. But still… if that were to erupt, who knows what would happen…
He finally stepped away from the pit, and Leo followed. "Thank you, Leo," he said. "I'm glad I could see this place, even if I can't stay. It's truly amazing."
He meant it, in terms of the skill involved in essentially carving out a mini town from volcanic rock, and the ingenuity of these Pokémon's food system, using the volcano's opening to their advantage. As well as being able to see the inner workings of the volcano from so close.
"Hey, don't forget the flamethrower you learned how to use!" Leo chirped back, before his face became serious. "I think we should tell Ark that there's been a misunderstanding with you here, and that you were never staying to begin with. Do you mind waiting just a little longer?"
Fen twiddled his thumbs anxiously. "No, that's okay." Leo was too nice for him to be any more impatient.
Ark was napping in a quiet corner of the volcano. Leo hesitantly nudged one of the Arcanine's huge paws with his head, to which he woke, blinking dreamily between Leo and Fen. Fen explained his situation as vaguely as he could, and fortunately, perhaps due to his tiredness, Ark didn't ask for further details.
They walked past the crater again on the way to the entrance, and Fen found quite a few Pokémon casting him bemused looks at him. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that word travels quickly in here, for what is essentially one big house. And I can hazard a guess at who this particular word came from...
The continued looks started to irritate him. Ugh, they probably think I'm as crazy as Charro does. Maybe if I was just an ordinary Pokémon, with no amnesia or human memories, I would be as content living here as everyone else. But I'm not, and until I work out my emotion attacks, my old life and everything else, I can't be content at all… Not to mention I'd be leaving behind Ry–
He felt something move under him and froze. Leo had stopped too, but was only looking concernedly at him. "Did you feel something?" Fen asked quickly.
"I'm… I'm not sure," Leo replied, a little nervously.
Fen glanced around to his side that wasn't obscured by the crater. No-one seemed to have been disturbed. Had he imagined that tremor? Surely… this place has been dormant for generations… there's no way that was anything serious…
"I'm imagining things," he said, mostly convincing himself. "I really need to get going. Sorry that I couldn't stay longer, Leo, but maybe–"
BANG.
A sound like a shotgun went off inside his head, and the ground lurched, throwing him helplessly to the floor. He had gone deaf – or at least, all he could hear was an awful booming noise that rattled his whole body. The ground underneath him shook relentlessly.
He knew immediately what this was, but comparing the magnitude of this earthquake to the one in Sanguin Town would be like comparing his weakest embers to one of Ark's flamethrowers. He clawed desperately at the floor, looking for a grip, but the crater's bank he'd fallen against was too smooth. He felt paralysed with fear.
After what felt like hours, the tremors died down enough for his ears to pick up distant wails of despair, a sound he felt like making himself. The earthquake had sucked all the energy from him, and when he lifted his head, which itself took a great effort, he saw a terrifying symmetry with almost all the rest of the cave. Every Fire Pokémon, save for the birds which were screeching hysterically above him, was flat out on the floor, struggling to move.
Then his breath caught as another rumbling came. Another earthquake? No… this one's different… it feels less deep, as if the source of it is coming from somewhere closer… but where could that–
He heard a scream from above. "ERUPTIOOOOON–"
Then, the ground literally threw him; the rock floor he had laid on exploded upwards, hurling him through the air as easily as a Machoke tossing wood. He felt his head crack against a wall and then saw himself falling face first, helpless to protect himself.
A cry just escaped his mouth when it mingled with another. He felt something bite hard around his leg, and suddenly he was floating above the ground, head dangling upside down.
Looking frantically around, he saw Leo alongside him, also upside down, held up by the claws of one of the large birds he'd seen earlier. Then a voice, clearly straining, screamed in his ear.
"I can't carry you far!" It was Charro. Charro! "You need to get out before this whole place collapses, okay?! Don't worry about us, we'll be fine! Just get to the exit! Follow the others!"
Fen was released from the Fletchinder's wings before he could reply. Ahead, every single ground-based Fire Pokémon was running to the entrance tunnel, many already trying to cram through ahead of others. Fen had no thought other than to do the same, his body powered by an extra burst of energy he didn't know he possessed.
The floor shook a few more times on the way, but Fen knew this wasn't an ordinary earthquake. The number of Pokémon turning their heads with a look of horror made it clear that what Charro had said was right – their volcano home was falling apart.
He and Leo scrambled outside together, and when Fen finally looked behind him, it was even worse than he'd imagined. Huge chunks of rock had broken off the volcano's heights, barrelling downwards like an avalanche. Out of the very peak, which had been clear moments before, ash was exploding outwards, rapidly turning the world around it into hazy blackness.
Leo punched him in the side, screaming something unintelligible in the din. But Fen understood the message: run. All he could see were two red figures moving away to the right, and they followed them. Fen couldn't tell whether it was the same path he'd travelled up, but it was a path – that was all that mattered.
They'd reached a narrow platform when a crack to their right made them both twist their heads around. A piece of volcano had crumbled off into a hundred rock fragments, which now tumbled in their direction. When Fen looked ahead again, Leo had already hared past him. He turned back to the rocks, and got a horrible, petrifying sense of helplessness. This rock avalanche was coming too fast, and too wide, and too high… no matter what he did in the next three or four seconds, it was going to hit him. Leo hadn't dallied, which gave the Flareon a chance to run past it, and Leo was quicker than he was.
"LEO!" Fen cried desperately. It blew heaps more ash into his mouth and made him almost double up in pain. Leo didn't seem to hear him, but Fen started running anyway. He didn't have much of a choice.
Hoping for a miracle, he closed his eyes. Really, he feared the worst.
