Hello again everyone! I hope you are doing well. I had my concert on Friday, and it went great, which was quite the relief. Today my band got to record at RCA Studio B, the studio where Elvis recorded pretty much all of his hits, which was really cool. What Lies Beyond and I have finally worked out most of the issues with the interconnections of our stories. I would suggest that you go check out Shifters and Shadows for more of Bane's story. By the way, congratulations if you find the Shakespeare quote in this chapter.
NOTE: If you haven't checked my story since the 25th of march or earlier, try backing up a few chapters to find where you left off.
NOTE 2.0: Re-uploaded this because I missed a paragraph.
Review responses:
WyldClaw: Cyrus is not Jacob's grandfather, although the grandfather was an associate of Cyrus. It seems that you are going through chapter by chapter, so you should get here eventually. I feel that your exclamations about other chapters don't require responses.
GlaceonFan: Thanks! I am still considering that. I don't remember there being a plasma bomb at any point in the games, are you referring to the bomb team Plasma used to awaken the Lake guardians? If it's not that I have no clue.
Caitou zzzzzz: Mew is just about completely consumed with anger at this point, and would honestly try and kill Avery.
I returned to consciousness, and immediately felt panicked. The cell that I was in was small, the outside of it once again a circular lab, full of incredibly complicated looking equipment. I could see Cecile in the center, strapped down to what seemed to be an operating table, struggling against her bonds. Pluto was standing in the center of the room. I could see Bane, Oliver, and Frost in the cells across from me, but everyone else was probably in other cells around the room. Bane had a desperate look in his eyes, and his hands gripped the bars of his cell. Pluto looked around, expectantly.
"Well, it seems that everyone is awake." He said, jovially. "You know, if I were a bit younger I would stand here and gloat about my victory." He glanced over to someone I could not see. "Start the procedure." He snapped, and instantly a middle aged man in a white lab coat began briskly walking towards Cecile.
"No!" Bane yelled, and banged his fist on the bars.
With a flourish, the man picked up a syringe full of a clear fluid, brandished it in the air, and then injected it in Cecile's arm. I looked away. Cecile cried out in pain, and I could hear her panicked breathing from here. I chanced a look up. The man had undone the restraints, but Cecile made no move to escape. She began glowing with a strange, piercing light, and her form began to change.
I was pulled from this grotesque sight by a sudden chill in the room. Pluto was backing away from the door, as ice formed on the handle. The door rattled on its hinges, and then blew open, as a fully formed blizzard forced its way into the room. A beam of Ice shot through the storm, freezing the bars on Frost's cell.
She gave a shout of triumph, and hit the bars with an Iron Tail attack, shattering them instantly. Frost then began hounding Pluto into a corner. Miranda had somehow escaped her cell, and ran and grabbed a key that the man had dropped. She ran over to Bane's cell, and tossed the key inside.
Bane unlocked the door, and then quickly ran around the room, releasing everyone else. Reaching me last, he turned the key in the lock and ran over to Cecile, who seemed somewhere between human and Pokémon.
I turned my attention to Pluto, who was backed up against the wall. The snowstorm dissipated, and two glaceon, one slightly larger than the other stepped forward, encircling Pluto along with the rest of us. Pluto remained silent, a neutral look on his face.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" A voice asked from behind us. The larger of the two glaceon whirled around, shouting "Mew!" I turned around as well, to see the pink Pokémon floating lazily in midair behind us.
Mew laughed, and it was a cruel sound, devoid of humor. "I thought you were smarter than this, Avery. I expected you to think things through before coming here. You see, ever since I was released by Arceus a few days ago, I have had one thought on my mind. Revenge!" Mew seemed to savor the word. Pluto shifted, impatiently. "That is why I approached Pluto – to strike a deal that would benefit both of us. He gets rid of several thorns in his side, and I get to have –" Mew said before being cut off by Pluto.
"Mew, that's enough, get on with it already!" Pluto snapped.
Mew looked slightly amused. "Shut up, I don't need you anymore." A sphere of force appeared around Pluto, blocking his cry of outrage before it could reach our ears.
Mew resumed his monologue, but it was muffled. The voice of Arceus whispered in my ear. "Bearer of the moon-pact, have no fear. I am watching." Then it passed, and I could once again hear Mew, and just in time. "-and so no one can stop me!" Mew said, and then began glowing with power. Avery unleashed a blizzard, but Mew merely shielded itself, and waves of energy began radiating out from Mew.
I leapt in front of Avery, and I felt dark energy stirring inside me, nullifying the huge psychic blast. "Fool!" Mew shouted. "The last umbreon who tried this disappeared with the breeze, his energy overwhelmed!" I could feel it happening. My energy was expending itself to nullify Mew's attack, rolling off of my body in wisps.
Suddenly, a foreign energy seeped into me, augmenting my power. My body visibly burned with dark flame, and I began walking towards Mew, with slow, deliberate steps. Mew ended his attack, and began charging an aura sphere.
Miranda, having scaled a pipe that ran up a wall and across the ceiling, leapt onto Mew's back, breaking his concentration. Mew fell to the ground with the sudden change of weight, and the aura dissipated into nothingness.
I rushed over and put a paw on Mew's chest, the black flames evidently paining the cat-like psychic. I looked over at Miranda. "Thanks, that speed things up quite a bit." I said, and she nodded. Looking around again, I saw that Oliver and two of his Pokémon, a Greninja and Lucario, had Pluto surrounded, his prison of force having dropped along with Mew.
"Get off me, you filthy mut!" Mew hissed, struggling against my paw, his psychic powers locked off by my dark aura.
Bane had left Cecile's side, and was advancing on Pluto. "It's over, Pluto. You won't hurt anyone ever again." He said.
Pluto laughed derisively. "Very well, I am caught. But know this, you will suffer. You have cut the head, yet the body may lash out." He said, spitting at Bane after the last word. A look of rage came across Bane's face.
Bane grabbed Pluto, his claws digging into Pluto's arm, drawing blood. "Get off of me, you inhuman dog!" Pluto cried, but Bane only tightened his grip.
"I am more human than you will ever be." Bane said, barely audible for me as he whispered. He released Pluto, who sank to the ground, clutching his bleeding arm.
"The police are on their way, they will deal with him." Oliver said, slipping an odd looking device back into his pocket.
Avery stepped forward. "As for Mew…?" He said, questioningly. As if on cue, the voice of Arceus boomed like thunder in the room, and Mew's expression changed to one of terror.
"Did you take me for a fool, Mew? Did you think me blind to your hatred, or gullible as a newborn? I let you go because I hoped you to better than this, greater than petty revenge. But you have proven me wrong, and this time your punishment shall be without end!" Mew vanished before my eyes, and the presence of Arceus left the room, the dark fire surrounding me extinguishing itself.
I heard the sound of footsteps, and three police officers entered the room. Oliver waved them over, and they relaxed, recognizing their region's champion instantly. "Here's the prisoner." He said, dragging Pluto to his feet by the uninjured arm. "If you are looking for charges against him, try Crimes against Humanity, Kidnapping, and probably Murder and Tax evasion." He said, coldly. "I'm able to testify for the first two."
"Thanks, Oliver." One of the cops said. "This guy sounds like a real scumbag." They handcuffed Pluto, and lead him off, prodding him along with liberal use of a nightstick. Bane looked rather dubious as they left, but said nothing.
I heard Cecile groan from the center of the room, and Bane rushed over to her. I looked over, and saw what exactly had changed about her. She had large ears, covered in light purple fur, marking her as being hybridized with a delcatty. Her eyes seemed to slant slightly downwards, shifting her facial structure slightly. Her fingernails had lengthened into small claws, and she had a mantle of fur in that same lilac color about her shoulders. Despite all this, the most noticeable thing was the tail. The length of it was covered in tan fur, but it was tipped in a puff of purple.
She was silent for several long moments, but eventually mumbled something incoherently. Bane visibly relaxed, and then picked her up, making towards the exit of the room. Everyone else followed along, besides Miranda and I.
Miranda looked over at me, and I met her gaze, momentarily lost in the emerald wells of her eyes. For the first time I was truly struck by how beautiful she was. "Let's get out of here." She said, and we followed behind the others, eventually exiting the twisting, ice scarred halls, and up a flight of stairs into the forest beyond.
The forest was illuminated with naught but moonlight, but we quickly discerned where in the forest we were, and with about an hour's walking we reached Cecile's home. We were still trailing behind the group a bit, and Miranda stopped outside the door. I stopped next to her, waiting expectantly.
After a few seconds, she spoke. "I have decided that I want to go see more of the region, and I want you to go with me." She said, decisively.
I raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't really sound like I have much of a choice in the matter." I said.
"No, you don't." She said, sounding satisfied. "And you better get used to it." She added, a few seconds later.
"I guess I'm going to have to." I said, cracking a grin. Miranda smiled, and then went inside. Cecile was lying down on a sofa, evidently asleep. Avery and the other glaceon approached us.
"So, I have been told that both of you used to be human." Avery said. "I won't pretend to know you well, but I had the same thing happen to me. If you ever happen to be up north, feel free to stop by. I have quite a few people who drop by regularly to bring news, so we shouldn't be hard to find."
Miranda nodded. "Thanks, we will be sure to do that." She said. The two glaceons walked away, leaving us alone once more. I took another glance around. Bane was sitting down at the table, chatting quietly with Frost. Oliver was being stomped by his Lucario in a game of chess.
Seeing nothing to do, I went upstairs, Miranda following close behind. We went up onto the bench, and laid down, Miranda snuggling up next to me and letting out a content purr. The moon was fully risen, shining down on us as we drifted off to sleep.