Caroline made a sudden jerk during her walking, due to odd feelings that passed through her body. Said feelings emanated from Aaron's aura, and were mostly of fear and disgust. However, unwanted pleasure came off the second in command as well, which only served to confused the ginger.
"Unwanted pleasure…?' Caroline questioned in her mind, wondering what was happening to Aaron. "Along with fear and disgust… what are they-?' It didn't take long for the ginger to connect the dots of Aaron's emotions and the Bellator leader's feelings for him. Once she figured it out, absolute disgust and anger consumed Caroline, for she knew exactly what the enemy leader was doing to him. "That sick, twisted…! Is that monster actually-?!'
"Oi, Carol?" Melissa said to the ginger, snapping her back into reality. "Are you alright?"
"O-oh, I'm… fine…" Caroline responded slowly to the brunette, trying to sweep aside the anger and disgust. "My leg's just killing me, is all…"
"I can't tell her what's truly happening…' The ginger thought, feeling a ping of guilt hit her for retaining information from the brunette. "If I do, she would try to rush towards the enemy with no planning whatsoever, which means certain death, especially in her current condition.'
Melissa extended one of her arms out, offering it to the ginger. "Wanna lean on me? It would probably help," she said.
"Uh… no thanks, I'll be fine." Carol declined slowly.
"You sure? I promise I don't bite… hard," Melissa said, flashing a toothy grin smile at the ginger. But to the brunette's slight disappointment, Caroline shook her head, declining her help once more and continued to lead the group. "Hmph, fine, play hard to get." The brunette pouted. Honestly, Melissa was a little relieved that the ginger passed on the offer of help, since Melissa herself wasn't fairing well either; she didn't know why she offered to help in the first place.
The group continued through the damaged city, noticing that the sky was getting darker as time passed by. Night was approaching the region, and it wouldn't be long until it enveloped the sky, taking away most of the light.
"Y'know, I'm both surprised and relieved that Team Bellator hasn't attacked the city again," Leo said to no one in particular.
"Don't jinx it pipsqueak." Mac warned the shaggy hair captain, earning a burning glare from him in return.
"But why?" Sophia asked, curious as to why their enemy ceased such a large scale attack. "Why didn't they attack again? Team Bellator could've easily taken the city if they did."
"I don't know Sophia," Caroline responded to the white hair girl. "But I do have a theory."
"And that is?" Beth asked.
"What if this wasn't an attack?" Caroline asked the group, quickly getting their attention.
"What do you mean this wasn't an attack?" Melissa said skeptically. "Of course it was! Just look at yourself and the city!"
"Let me finish," the ginger said, continuing her explanation. "What if this wasn't an attack, but a large scale raid instead?" she asked the entire group.
"A raid…?" Beth questioned slowly.
Caroline gave her captain a small nod. "Think about it, if this was an attack, Team Bellator would've kept up their assault until they had complete control of the city, considering they had the manpower to do so. However, they chose not to, and instead decided to fall back when they completed two objectives. One: the destruction of the UDF headquarters, and two-"
"Kidnapping Aaron," Sophia said in a sad tone.
Caroline gave the ex-roserade a sympathetic look, along with a small nod. "Team Bellator's leader wanted to draw us out, and she succeeded. In doing so, she was able to lure Aaron out and capture him," she said.
"Well, that was one hell of a raid, considering their leader brought over half of her forces to achieve it." Mac pitched in.
"She probably wasn't taking any chances," Beth said. "Still, a single raid was able to reduce the city to this." The raven haired captain gestured to the burning building around them. "I don't even want to think what a full scale and organized attack would do."
"Yeah," Leo said, agreeing with his peer. "There would be nothing left but smoke."
"But this being a raid still doesn't explain why Team Bellator wouldn't attack the city again," Mac said to the group.
"That… I have yet to uncover." Caroline admitted. "For now, let's keep moving, it's getting dark out here."
Each person of the group gave Caroline their own type of agreement as they continued to follow her. For the next half hour the ginger led the group out of the city and into a nearby suburb. To the group's surprise, the suburb was completely unscathed. However, every house on every block was completely vacant, due to the people living there evacuating the area. The group kept advancing through the empty streets until Caroline gradually slowed her walking speed. They were on a street that Sophia and Melissa quickly recognized, and soon came across a small house; one that Sophia instantly knew.
"So this is where you and Aaron live?" Leo asked the ex-roserade, examining the small house when he received a nod from her. "Looks rather… small, compared to the rest of the houses in the neighborhood."
"Don't be rude." Beth glared at her fellow captain, giving him a punch to the shoulder.
"Ow…!" Leo gasped out, rubbing the affected area of the punch. "S-sorry… I didn't mean to insult…"
"It's alright, I understand what you mean," Sophia said, giving the captain a reassuring grin. "Sure, it's not as big as the other houses, but it's cozy for Aaron and I to live in."
Caroline approached the front door of the house and attempted to open it, only for the door and its knob to stay in place. "Dammit." She swore under her breath. "It's locked."
"Should we bust it down?" Mac offered, grabbing the handle of his war hammer.
"That won't be necessary," Sophia said with a small smile as she approached and leaned down next to a pile of rocks near the door. The ex-roserade examined the small pile for a few seconds before she picked up a white rock that was bigger than the others. Underneath was a key that was somewhat dug into the dirt; Sophia took the key and quickly showed it to the group.
"Aaron had a spare?" Melissa questioned. "Why didn't he tell me about it?"
"Probably to keep you from raiding the kitchen at your whim." Sophia answered, earning a small glare from the brunette.
"You calling me fat?" Melissa growled lowly.
"N-no…" Sophia quickly whispered under the glare.
"Good…" Melissa said, not letting up the stare she gave the ex-roserade.
Sophia gave the brunette an awkward smile before she handed off the key to Caroline. The ginger brushed off some of the dirt of the piece of metal before she inserted it into the door, effectively unlocking it a second later. Caroline slowly opened the door and peered inside before walking inside with Sophia following close behind.
When the ex-roserade entered the house, she immediately felt heavy amounts of dread hit her at full force. The house that gave her joy and comfort was darkened and felt completely lifeless, due to no one living within it for a month. It hurt Sophia, seeing their house void of life, but she tried to brush off these feelings as she continued to walk further in. Melissa, Leo and Beth soon followed after, leaving Mac and the rest of the group outside to guard the house. Once inside, the three new arrivals settled themselves around the living room, finally letting themselves rest after a long and chaotic day.
Going further into the house, Sophia arrived in the master bedroom, where she and Aaron used to sleep. More sadness poured into the ex-roserade's system as she thought about Aaron and the days before she knew about Team Bellator. Sophia wanted those days to return, so she could live with her beloved in peace once more.
"All the more reason to save Aaron and end this war.' Sophia thought as she tried to brush the feelings of sadness away. "But first, I need to find the dark gem, assuming Aaron has one in the chest.'
Sophia approached the bed and leaned down to look under it, quickly finding the chest she set out for. Pulling the object out and opening it, Sophia shuffled through the contents of the chest, trying to find the item the group needed. There were all sorts of trinkets inside the chest, including a couple vacant poke-balls, a strange designed scarf, oddly designed glasses, and a smoke bomb.
"Come on… it has to be here," Sophia whispered, worried that the group came to the house for nothing. The ex-roserade kept up her search through the chest until a black object finally caught her attention. It was shaped like a diamond and was translucent, allowing Sophia to see the dark misty energy that swirled within. The white haired girl slowly picked the rock up, feeling the power the gem gave off; she shivered, disliking the energy she felt.
"Is this what it's like to be a dark type…?' Sophia thought. "It's… strange…'
The ex-roserade set the gem down and rummaged through the chest once more, trying to find another dark gem. To her surprise and relief, she found another, which gave off the same energy as the last one. Trying to find more, Sophia kept looking through the chest, but couldn't find anymore within. Nevertheless, Sophia was satisfied with her find, and was quick to take the dark gems in hand to present them to the rest of the group. She left the room and walked towards her four group members who were waiting for her in the livingroom.
"Are those it?" Melissa asked, getting a nod from the ex-roserade.
"Good," Caroline said, relieved that they now had possession of two dark stones. "That solves one problem."
"Now we go and save Aaron, right?" Melissa said, getting up from the couch she sat on.
"Not yet." Caroline denied, shaking her head. "First, we need to rest up and regain our strength."
"What do you mean, 'not yet'?" Melissa questioned, slightly taken back that they wouldn't save Aaron right away. "We have what we need, meaning we should go after him right now! There's no telling what Team Bellator is doing to him at this moment!"
Caroline grimaced a little; despite the brunette's saying, the ginger did know what Team Bellator-more specifically, their leader-was doing to the commander. The sheer thought of it made Caroline sick to her stomach; she wanted to save him right now, but she knew that doing so would spell disaster for her team, given their current state.
"I know how you feel Melissa." Caroline reasoned with the brunette. "But we are in no condition to go after him right now. We have to rest we want any chance of success."
"But… he needs-!" Melissa tried to argue once more.
"What if you found him-right now-in your current state?" Caroline asked. "How would you help him? How would you fend off the countless waves off Bellator forces? How would you fight their insanely powerful leader plus the knights accompanying her on your own?" Melissa remained quiet, prompting the ginger to continue. "Like I said, I know how you feel; I want to save him too. But we can't go guns blazing at Team Bellator while we're still injured and without a plan. We need to rest up if we want to stand a chance against them, okay?"
The brunette paused for a few more seconds, absorbing the words Caroline said. Melissa sighed and gave the ginger a small nod, agreeing with her. "Alright, we'll rest up for now. But I expect you to have a plan in order to save him," she said, giving Caroline a stern look before retreating to the sofa she sat on previously.
Caroline gave the brunette nod, then proceeded to walk out of the house to give orders to the soldiers waiting outside. Beth and Leo took up their own spots around the living room to rest, meanwhile Sophia placed the dark gems on the couch next to Melissa. The brunette gave the ex-roserade a nod, confirming she would watch over the black rocks. Sophia grinned lightly in return before making her way back into the master bedroom, wanting some rest herself.
Stepping inside the room once more, Sophia couldn't help but feel dread consume her again. Much like the rest of the house, the bedroom where she and Aaron would sleep felt lifeless. Most of the contents were untouched, like the blankets on the bed. Not one wrinkle could be seen on the surface, indicating no one used it for a long time. Such thoughts hurt Sophia, which made her want the old days to return now more than ever.
Sophia took a seat on the bed and sighed as the sad thoughts roamed around her head. She, like Melissa, wanted to find and save Aaron at that moment. But she knew that Caroline was right, the group needed to rest. Had it been otherwise, it would cause certain death for them. But it also pained Sophia knowing that Aaron was most likely going through tortures she couldn't possibly imagine.
As these thoughts continued to sadden the ex-roserade, a sudden gleam of light caught her attention. Said gleam emanated from the closet, which was slightly open. Inside, Sophia could see a small bit of green clothing, which she assumed was a sleeve to a shirt of some kind. Wanting to investigate, the ex-roserade got up from her spot on the bed and opened the closet further open, revealing what had caught her attention.
To her surprise, Sophia found out that the green piece of clothing was actually the roserade outfit she had on when she was transformed into a human. The several pieces of clothing hung on a hanger, along with her green roserade mask and golden necklace hanging within it. After she gave it to Aaron, he cleaned it and put it in the closet, and it stayed there ever since. Sophia reached out her hand towards the outfit and lightly grazed her finger on the silky fabric. Through the contact, a light pulse of energy flowed through Sophia. She couldn't explain it, all the ex-roserade knew that she felt slightly stronger from the light contact.
Curious by this small discovery, Sophia took the roserade outfit from the closet and placed it on the bed. Afterward, she approached and closed the door of the master bedroom, wanting some privacy when she decided to change into her original apparel.
Melissa remained silent as she sat on the couch, waiting for what seemed like hours to her. After Caroline returned inside to inform her, Leo and Beth about the orders she gave to Mac and the rest of the soldiers outside, the brunette decided to just sit and wait. Not far from her, Caroline and her two captains took up their own spots to rest. The ginger herself sat against a wall with her eyes closed, glowing in her green aura to heal. Leo also sat against a wall that was opposite to Caroline's, only he was sleeping quietly. Meanwhile, Beth could be seen sitting on one of the chairs to the table of the living room. The raven haired captain held an ultra-ball in her hands, which housed her Ho-oh; she held it close to her chest, humming quietly to it.
Melissa sighed quietly as she closed her eyes, thinking on how the group was going to save Aaron. They didn't have a lot of options at their disposal; sure, the dark stones would probably give them an edge, but only if they actually worked. Even then, the two stones were only meant to deal with Team Bellator's leader, who was still incredibly powerful without her psychic powers. And if the group failed to defeat her and her army, it would mean that Melissa would lose Aaron, just like how she lost Ryan.
The brunette's thought trailed onto her deceased friend now, filling her heart with more sadness. Melissa missed the teen, longing to see his strawberry blonde hair and to hear his voice saying dumb puns. She could remember the goofy smile he would give to the group when their spirits soured. Melissa's friend- no, her brother was gone, and she wasn't aware that he was dead for who knows how long.
The brunette hated herself for that.
When Melissa learned that Ryan disappeared, she spent an entire week trying to search for him. Aaron of course joined the brunette in the hunt, but suddenly came to a stop a few days into it. After the search came to a halt and the investigation was put on hold, the brunette hoped that the blonde teen would be found alive somewhere.
For an entire year, Melissa has held onto that false hope.
Once Aaron informed her and Sophia about what truly happened to Ryan, Melissa wanted nothing more than revenge on the people who murdered him. She swore she would make Team Bellator pay for what they've done, along with watch over Aaron to keep him from suffering a similar fate. Melissa wanted to protect the teen just like how he did for her on that rainy day.
Melissa despised herself even more for failing to keep that promise. The one time Aaron needed her to protect him from their enemy's clutches, and she failed miserably.
"Snap out of it you idiot!' Melissa yelled at herself internally, getting annoyed by the self loathing consuming her. "Hating yourself won't do you any good! Remember your talk with Sophia, focus your hate on the people who captured him. They're the reason he's not here right now.'
Once the brunette calmed herself down, the noise of a door opening soon afterward quickly grabbed her attention. Melissa, along with Caroline and Beth, looked towards the hallway that the noise came from. Soon enough, Sophia walked into living room, wearing her roserade outfit. The clothing, suffice to say, gave her the appearance a roserade, which made the rest of the females in the room look at her in awe.
"Wow, you look incredible," Melissa whispered to the ex-roserade.
"Yeah…" Beth agreed, somewhat gawking at the white haired girl. "I'm pretty sure Leo would have a nosebleed if he saw you."
"Why are you wearing that Soph?" Caroline questioned.
"I… really don't know, to be honest." Sophia admitted, looking at the fabric that covered her arms. "I… I think it was calling to me, and now that I'm wearing it, it feels like I put on a piece of me that I haven't had in awhile…"
"Ugh…" Leo groaned lowly out as he exited his light slumber, woken from the talking. "Wh… what's with all the noi-?" As the captain's vision came to, he could clearly make out the outfit Sophia was wear, which shocked him a bit. "Wow… you… look so pretty right now." He complimented.
"Oh? Are you hitting on her Leo?" Beth questioned with a sly grin.
"N-no, I'm not! I swear!" The shaggy haired captain stuttered out, waving his hands in defense. "I was just complimenting her is all!"
"Hmph, sure you were," Beth said, keeping her small grin.
"Anyways," Caroline said to the group, getting their attention. "We should get some shut eye. We'll need the energy for tomorrow."
"Oh? You have a plan?" Melissa asked.
"Yeah, I'll tell you guys about in the morning." The ginger answered. "In the meantime, you should get some sleep. Your aura should heal you whilst your unconscious."
"Are you sure we should just sleep, ma'am?" Beth questioned. "What if Team Bellator attacks the city again?"
"If they were going to attack, they would've done it by now," Caroline said. "Besides, if they do attack again, we have soldiers all over the city who will defend it. They'll call me if they see any activity. Also, Mac and a couple squads are patrolling the area and will release some ghost pokemon to watch over for the night, so don't worry about any sneak attacks." The ginger leaned herself against the wall and closed her eyes, mewling out a small yawn while she did. "Get some rest guys, you deserve it after today." With that said, Caroline slumped over a few seconds later, indicating she dozed off.
Melissa nodded at the ginger before she laid the rest of her body on the sofa, being careful not to knock off the dark gems that were nearby. Closing her eyes and glowing in her aura, the brunette soon fell into her own sleep, snoring lightly in the process. The two nearby captains got into their own spots and drifted off as well, finally getting the rest they wanted.
Sophia retreated back into the master bedroom, taking off her mask, necklace and loafers in the process. She placed those items aside on the nightstand before slipping herself underneath the blankets of the bed. As she closed her eyes and tried to sleep, a familiar scent filled her nose. It didn't take the ex-roserade to recognize that the scent belonged to Aaron.
Sophia disliked this, she didn't want to sleep in this bed alone, not without him. The white haired girl wanted to hold onto the teen whenever she went to sleep, it made doing that so much easier. But Aaron wasn't here, and it broke her heart having to stay in the bed by herself.
Sleep came slowly to Sophia that night; she missed her beloved heavily.
The next day.
Aaron's eyes cracked open slowly as he broke away from his uncomfortable slumber. The teen checked his surroundings, finding himself in the same poorly lit room from yesterday, still bound to the large chair. The commander groaned sorely as he felt his muscles ache, due to him sleeping against metal.
"How… long… I have been out…?' Aaron thought, trying to remember the events from the day before. "I… I remember waking up in this room before, along with Viola coming in and feeding me… strawberries? I think it was strawberries… Anyway, after that, she-"
At that moment, all of the memories of what the Bellator queen did came crashing back at the teen, filling him with fear and disgust once more. Aaron could recall the unwanted pleasure he felt from her, along with every movement she did on him. The commander wanted nothing more than to hate the queen for what she did, to call her by multiple insults to lash his rage out, or do anything to spite the queen.
But to Aaron's astonishment, he couldn't bring up any hate for her.
"Why?!' The commander yelled in his mind. "Why can't I hate her?! What she did to me was unforgivable, and yet can't hate her for it! Why can't I?! Why?! Why why why WHY?!'
These confused thoughts were interrupted however, when the large metal door in front of Aaron clicked several time, indicating that someone was unlocking it. The already high fear in the commander's system increased, for he knew who was about to enter the room. The door opened, and the bright light from behind it blinded Aaron, just like yesterday. When he heard it close, the teen kept his head down, trying to avoid making eye contact with her.
"Good morning sweetheart~!" Viola cried out to the teen, wearing a bright smile on her face.
Aaron refused to look up, afraid of even seeing the queen's presence. His bound hands shook rapidly with fear when he heard her oddly sweet voice. "Is my fear overpowering the hate I have for her?' The teen thought. "It must be, there's no other way as to why I can't bring up any hate for her… unless…'
Aaron recalled Viola using a strange pink energy on her finger that, when applied to his head, instantly knocked him out cold. However, during both times she used it on him, Aaron felt an odd sensation flow through his skull, which seemed to wash away most of the negative feelings he currently held for the queen.
"Is… is that energy messing with my head…?'
"Come on, sweetheart. I know you're awake," Viola said, once again interrupting the commander's thoughts. "I can see your hands shaking with excitement~!"
The queen began her slow approach towards the chair; each step of her heels clicking against the floor echoed within the small room. The constant clicks frightened Aaron as he heard her get closer and closer. When she finally stopped in front of him, Viola took a seat on the bounded teen's lap, straddling herself on top of him like the day before. This of course terrified Aaron, who still kept his head down, not wanting to be in the queen's presence. To his horror, Viola placed a finger under his chin to bring him up. To counter this, Aaron quickly shut his eye, once again avoiding looking at the queen.
"Won't you open your eyes, my love~?" Viola pondered warmly. "I'd like to see those gorgeous chocolate brown eyes of yours again~."
Her voiced echoed within Aaron's mind, setting off alarms within him as they bounced around. To the teen's dismay, his eyes slowly opened up, following the queen's soft command and allowing her to see the brown orbs once more. This shocked Aaron, who never thought he would listen to any order given by his enemy.
"Why am I listening to her?!' Aaron thought, horribly confused by his actions.
"There we are~!" Viola cooed at the teen, gazing deeply into his brown eyes. The queen wrapped her arms behind the teens neck to draw their faces closer together, making their noses lightly touch each other. "So, how did you sleep last night, love?" Viola asked.
Aaron didn't respond right away, for he tried to think of a negative comeback. However, anything hateful he could think of simply vanished into a cloudy haze. Any hate he tried to muster evaporated in a second. Seeing no use to this, and exhaled tiredly and put up a neutral face, finally answering the queen.
"Terrible, thanks to this chair I'm currently cuffed to," he said.
"Oh dear, I'm sorry!" Viola frowned sadly, giving the commander a apologetic look. "I know sleeping on something like this can be a rather uncomfortable experience." She quickly smiled before continuing. "But don't worry! You won't have to stay in this chair after I'm done purifying you!"
The queen's words shocked Aaron, who raised his eyebrow in confusion. "Purifying...? W-what do you mean by that...?" he asked slowly.
"This," Viola said as she raised one of her forefingers in front of Aaron's face. The digit was quickly covered in the pink energy that she used before, which pulsed every few seconds. The hazy substance uneased Aaron, making him frown and slightly back away. "Whenever I use this on you, I can wash away any of the hate and filth that idiot stored within you." Viola continued. "Then, once it's clean of that junk, I'll replace it with love! Think of it as a blood transfusion, but instead of putting blood in your veins, I'm putting love inside your head!"
The queen's explanation of the energy finally answered Aaron's question. It wasn't fear that was overriding his hate for her, nor was it making him follow her commands. It was love, Viola was making him love her.
"This power does have its drawbacks, however," Viola said with a frown. "The target is usually knocked out in the first couple of tries. Also, it drains my psychic powers heavily with each use, and will take multiple tries to actually make the target love you, usually ranging from five to ten tries. But it'll be all worth it in the end…"
Aaron couldn't believe what he was hearing, he was falling for his enemy. This sick monster is destroying his feelings and is replacing them with something he doesn't want. The commander was once more frightened, because he feared this would rid of his feelings for Sophia.
"W… why…?" Aaron whispered out, catching her attention. "Why do you want me to love you? Why do you love me? Of all the people in this world, you love me, one of your sworn enemies. Why is that?"
His multiple questions made the queen go silent for a few seconds, who stared deeply into his eyes. She wondered if he was joking, but soon got her answer when his expression didn't change. Sighing, the queen dispersed the energy around her finger and lowered it, still looking into the commander's brown orbs.
"You… honestly don't remember, do you?" Viola asked, but made it sound more like a statement than a question.
"What do you mean?" Aaron asked in return.
"I... guess I shouldn't be surprised, since it did happen two years ago…" The queen let out another sad sigh before continuing. "But you don't remember that night? That mall in the city that was slowly burning down? And that trapped girl you saved from certain death?"
Her words sparked light into Aaron's eyes, who quickly remember the events of that time. "Wait a minute… you mean you were-?!"
"I was still learning how to use my powers that night." Viola interrupted. "I could've died in that fire, but you came in and saved me from that fate…"
Two years ago.
Hundreds of people could be seen walking through the vast complex that is the Castelia Mall, ranging from small children to slow walking elders. Among these people was a younger Viola, who wore a dark cloak over head, effectively hiding her hair and the vast majority of her face. Her strange appearance drew attention from several people, but she ignored most of them. To her, they were countless fools that would serve under her one day.
As Viola made her way through the mall, she spotted a crowd of people that were circled around what appeared to be a pair of pokemon trainers. Both were female, with one wearing the normal get up of a trainer, cap and all. Meanwhile, the other trainer wore more expensive clothing, showing off her wealthy status. In front of both trainers were their pokemon, the normal trainer had an eelektross, while a magmortar stood proudly in front of the rich trainer.
"Really? An eelektross?" The rich trainer taunted her opponent with a smug grin. "I guess you should start counting out my victory money right now!"
"Oh please." The other trainer scoffed back. "You don't stand a chance against me! You're the one who should give up!"
The rich trainer chuckled at her opponent before addressing her pokemon. "Magmortar, just blast that thing and end this battle. I don't want to hear anymore of her worthless babble."
To most people, the two trainers might have looked like professionals in their field. But to Viola, they were mere idiots wasting there time with pointless pokemon battles. The queen to be never understood the appeal of having two or more creatures fight each other until one is left standing, she only found it to be incredibly idiotic and barbaric.
Mentally rolling her eyes at the two trainer's bickering, Viola continued through the mall and onto the second floor via escalator, passing by multiple crowds and shops along the way. The second floor of the building had a clear view of the level below, due to the floor being opened up halfway. Narrow passageways were the only way to transverse through half of the second floor, which is what Viola had to take.
During her stroll, the violet haired girl had a view of the crowd she saw early. More people had gathered to see the small battle between the trainers. Upon closer inspection, Viola could see that the eelektross was collapsed on the floor, seemingly fainted. The rich trainer's magmortar stood above it triumphantly while its master laughed at her opponent.
Viola once again rolled her eyes at the trainer and was going to continue her stroll, but the sounds of yelling caught her attention. The noise came from the same location the pokemon battle took place, and was coming from the rich trainer as well. From what Viola could tell, she was berating a male teen in the crowd. The queen to be could only make out the grey beanie on his head along with the dark grey jacket he wore. But once again, Viola couldn't bring herself to care, for that boy could be another dumb trainer wasting his life on meager activities.
After a couple minutes of walking by several more crowds of people and various shops, the queen to be finally rode up another pair of escalators and arrived onto the third floor. This floor was mostly like the first floor, aside from being way less populated and having most of the stores closed. Viola's eyes scanned the entire area, and soon frowned when she couldn't find what she was looking. Sighing, the violet haired girl sat down on top of a decorative water fountain and groaned in an annoyed voice.
"Typical." Viola growled under her breath. "Whenever we have to go to a meeting place, father is always late. Now he has me waiting in a mall of all places, and he knows I hate malls."
That's when the question rose up in her mind; why did her father want to meet in a mall of all places? It would have made more sense to join up somewhere more secretive and away from the public eye. But for some reason, he decided to meet here, in one of the largest and most popular buildings in the entire city. Viola couldn't fathom why, and it wasn't her place to really question her father either. Whatever he said goes, and she had to obey him, even if it meant waiting for what seemed like hours on a mostly empty level in a large mall.
"Now to play the waiting game…" Viola let out a aggravated sigh, wanting her father to arrive quickly. "Again…"
"You led us to another store that's completely sold out, Melissa," Aaron said to the brunette, who was following him after they left a ice cream shop inside the castelia mall. The teen was visibly exhausted, due to the small bags that hung underneath his eyes. "That's fantastic." He continued in a tired but sarcastic tone.
"Hey, how was I supposed to know that they'd be sold out too?!" Melissa defended herself, yelling at her tired and cranky friend. "This was the last place that I could get a casteliacone! Now I have to wait until tomorrow to get one!"
"Hey guys, chill. There's no need to ice scream." A voice from behind the two laughed out, coming from a teen that was the same age as Aaron and Melissa. He wore a light blue shirt that matched his ice blue eyes. Grey jeans covered his legs, along with matching grey sneakers that covered his feet. A red cap sat on top of the teen's strawberry blonde shaggy hair, hiding some of it underneath.
"Ryan, I don't want to hear your puns, I'm not in the mood," Melissa said to the blonde teen. "In fact, for ninety-nine percent of the time, I'm never in the mood for your puns."
"Oh? Ninety-nine percent?" Ryan smiled at the brunette. "Does that mean that one percent does like to hear my puns?"
"Don't start with me, bro…" Melissa threatened lightly, baring her teeth at the blonde.
Aaron rolled his eyes at the duo's bickering, too exhausted to be bothered to intervene. "C'mon, it's nighttime and I'm tired, let's get out of here," he said with a small yawn. "We can crash at a hotel."
"Yeah, I agree." Ryan concurred with his friend, keeping his small grin. "It's been a rather long day, let's come back tomorrow and see if they have anything then."
The trio proceeded to walk towards the main entrance of the mall, about to exit into the night. Along the way, the three teens saw a large crowd that was circled around something. This intrigued Melissa, who stopped to try and see what everyone was looking at.
"Hey, guys?" the brunette said to the other two teens. "What do you think is happening over there?"
"I don't know, nor do I really care." Aaron answered bitterly, making a quick glance at the crowd. "I just want to get out of here and get some shut eye."
"Oh come on Aaron! Lighten up!" Melissa whined at the curly haired teen. "Let's go and see what's happening for a couple seconds and then we'll go! Pleeeaaase?!"
Aaron let out another annoyed groan, getting irritated by the brunette's whines. "Fine, but we're only looking for a quick second before leaving." He gave in, furrowing his brows.
Aaron and Ryan turned and followed Melissa into crowd, moving further towards the middle. When the trio arrived, they had a view of two female pokemon trainers. One had black hair that was tied up in a ponytail and wore the regular attire of any trainer. The other had long fiery red hair and wore some rather expensive gear. Between the two trainers were their pokemon, an eelektross that was collapsed in front of the black haired trainer, and a magmortar that stood triumphantly in front of the rich trainer.
Both trainers quickly zapped their pokemon back into their red and white spheres; the black haired trainer slowly and sadly walked toward the rich one, handing over several bills of money to her when she got close enough. The rich trainer proudly took the prize money, counting it out and waving it in front of her face victoriously. The black haired trainer turned around and walked away with her head down, humiliated by her loss. Several murmurs buzzed through the crowd, conversing about the battle they just witnessed.
"Well, it seems we've missed a pokemon battle," Ryan said, giving the defeated trainer a sympathetic glance.
"Ah what?! We missed it?!" Melissa groaned disappointingly. "Damn it!"
Aaron kept his eyes on the rich trainer, who seemed to chuckle to herself while she waved the prize money around. This act disgusted the teen, who frowned at the girl during her small laugh. While he did this, Aaron could overhear some of the whispers that emerged from the crowd, speaking about the rich trainer and her pokemon.
"Ah, there's nothing I like more than showing a loser who's boss!" The trainer taunted her defeated opponent in a mocking tone, furthering the girl's humiliation.
"Man, that magmortar was tough!" A teen in the crowd exclaimed.
"Of course it was," the victorious trainer said, enjoying the praise. "It was raised by some of the best breeders money could buy, and I deserve nothing less than the best."
"Geez, her family must be rich," Ryan whispered to his friends.
"Hmph, spoiled brat." Aaron scoffed at at the trainer under his breath before turning around, motioning his friends to follow. "Let's go."
The brunette and the blonde proceeded to follow Aaron when he tried to walk through the crowd. However, the trio came to an immediate stop when the rich trainer turned their way to yell at them, or more specifically, Aaron.
"Hey! What did you call me?!" The trainer demanded.
Ryan and Melissa turned around to look at the wealthy girl once more, seeing the anger that was currently present on her face. It was quite obvious that she disliked being addressed in such a way. The crowd that surrounded her also stared at the trio, going silent once they heard her yell. Even the defeated trainer, who was in the crowd herself, turned around in surprise when she heard the sudden and angered yell.
"Wow, she heard that over the crowd?" Melissa whispered. "That's some pretty good hearing she's got."
Aaron stood in place, feeling all eyes from the crowd that was around him pierce his body. However, despite the stares he received from everyone, the teen proceeded to walk again, as if nothing happened to stop him in the first place.
"Excuse me! I'm talking to you, asshole!" The rich trainer insulted in a louder voice, once again stopping Aaron in his tracks. This time however, Aaron's face clenched up in anger at the name she called him, feeling his irritation sky rocket just by thinking about. The several quiet but audible 'oooh's that came from the crowd didn't help either.
"H-hey, let's just leave guys..." Melissa said to Aaron, practically feeling the anger that the curly haired teen gave off. The brunette wanted the trio to avoid the tension that filled the air, but she was unable to truly stop Aaron from refuting the trainer.
"I said…" Aaron began in a low voice, slowly turning around to give the wealthy girl a fearsome glare. "You're a spoiled brat."
The rich trainer was visibly shocked by glare she received from the curly haired teen, along with slightly flinching when she heard the venom that covered the insult. However, she quickly recovered from this and proceeded to hold her ground, ignoring the 'oh's that came from the crowd again.
"What do you mean by that?!" The wealthy girl demanded to know, seething at the insult.
"Do I have to spell it out to you?" Aaron asked, not expecting her to answer. "You have a revolting attitude, you pay others to raise your pokemon when you should be doing it yourself, and worst of all, you wave money in your face while mocking your defeated opponents." He explained in a bitter tone. "You're calling me an asshole? Take a look in a mirror and see a real one for yourself."
Melissa took a step forward towards the curly haired teen, wanting to stop him from escalating things any further. However, she was forced to stop when Ryan put his arm in front of her, effectively ceasing her movements. The blonde shook his head at Melissa, knowing that their efforts would only be in vain. Both teens knew that when Aaron was like this, there was little either of them could do to really stop him once he went off.
The rich trainer's frown grew wider, barring her teeth as she seethed at the teen in front of her. "Hmph, I doubt a moron such as yourself would understand my methods," she said before laughing in a mocking way. "Hell, you probably know nothing about pokemon or the battles they have either!"
"Tsk, I know more about pokemon battles than you'll ever learn in your entire life." Aaron growled.
"Really? Then prove it!" The trainer exclaimed as she grabbed a poke-ball from her belt and threw it in the air. The red and white sphere quickly opened up and zapped a white energy onto the ground, which quickly began to take shape into a large four legged pokemon. Once the energy dissipated, the pokemon was shown to be a metagross, which stood in front of its master proudly, ready for battle. "Show me what you really know about pokemon battles!" The rich trainer yelled.
"Hmm… a metagross…" Ryan whispered as he thought about the pokemon deeply. "A psychic and steel type pokemon. Should be vulnerable to fire, ground, dark and ghost type attacks." He relayed the information to Aaron, which was a force of habit to the blonde throughout their journey.
Aaron, listening to his friend's information, nodded before taking a hold of one of the poke-balls that was attached to his belt. Before he threw the sphere, the teen brought it close to his mouth and whispered to it, then tossed it into the air. Once it opened up and zapped the same white energy from before, a roserade appeared on the ground, staring at its opponent eagerly.
The rich trainer was dumbstruck by Aaron's choice of pokemon, and quickly laughed at the teen, amused by such a decision. "A-are you daft?! Or do you really know nothing about pokemon battles?!" she laughed. "If you did, you'd know that a roserade doesn't stand a chance against a steel type pokemon, let alone a metagross!"
The roserade gave the rich trainer a look of disgust as she continued to laugh, apparently finding Aaron's actions hilarious. The green pokemon glanced back at its master, who gave it a small nod before going back to giving the trainer a blank stare.
"M-metagross! Take that thing out with a zen headbutt before I pass out from laughing!" The rich trainer chuckled out the command, trying to catch her breath.
Following the command issued from its master, the steel type pokemon began its charge at the roserade. The metal diagonal cross on the face of the metagross began to glow brightly in pink energy as it got closer to the green pokemon, who stood in the same place it was unleashed, undeterred from the charging pokemon. Once it got close enough, the metagross slammed the psychic attack onto the small pokemon. However, to the steel type pokemon and its trainer's confusion, the green pokemon wasn't affected by the attack. In fact, it was still standing in the same spot, unfazed by the attack that should have been devastating to it.
The rich trainer ceased her laughing, now greatly confused by the failed attack. "What the-? Come on metagross, stop joking around. Hit it harder this time!" She ordered loudly.
Taking several steps back, the metagross fused more energy into its cross again before ramming it into the roserade, this time with a lot more force. But just like the last attempt, the green pokemon didn't react to the psychic move, staring blankly at the steel pokemon in front of it.
"How-? One attack should've put that roserade out of commission…" The rich trainer muttered. "What's going-?"
"Flamethrower." Aaron ordered blankly.
The roserade smile deviously at the steel type pokemon before opening its mouth. A flicker of an ember lit within before it spewed out of the green pokemon's mouth in a great stream of fire, engulfing the metagross within it. The steel pokemon reared back in pain as the super effective attack hit it at full force, taking several steps back to avoid any further damage.
"What the-?!" The rich trainer gasped, flabbergasted by what transpired. "That's impossible! A roserade can't learn flamethrower!"
"Night slash." Aaron commanded the next attack in the same blank tone, ignoring his opponent's surprise.
The roserade kept its vicious grin as it charged at the injured metagross, making the rose on its arm glow brightly in dark energy. However, before the green pokemon could get too close to use the attack, the wealthy trainer quickly snapped out of astonishment to yell her next command.
"Iron defense!" She barked.
The metagross quickly bucked in its legs and formed a white transparent energy that covered its entire body. Once the darked rose of the attacking pokemon slammed onto the steel pokemon's body, the damage from the attack was significantly decreased, saving the metagross from a certain knockout.
During this, the rich trainer noticed that the roserade was open to an attack, to which she quickly took the opportunity. "Now metagross! Use hammer arm!" she yelled.
Dissipating the white energy away, the metal pokemon quickly raised one of its legs and made it shine brightly for the next attack, preparing to strike down the opposing pokemon. But before it could bring it down, Aaron quickly barked out his next order to the roserade.
"Get back!" he yelled.
Just as the steel leg was brought down, the roserade hopped back as quickly as it could, avoiding most of the attack. However, one of the green pokemon's legs was nicked during the dodge, which made the roserade hiss in pain before it touched the ground again. When it did, the roserade was enveloped within a black energy, covering its entire body. When it evaporated, Steven-Aaron's zoroark-appeared on the floor, glaring at the metagross. Some of the crowd watching the battle gasped out in surprise when the zoroark was revealed, astonished by the sight of a rare pokemon.
"Hmph, a zoroark huh?" The rich trainer smiled at Aaron, now understanding why her previous attacks failed. "I gotta say, I'm a little impressed by your performance, but that trick won't work anymore. Metagross! Take it down with another hammer arm!" She ordered.
The steel type pokemon charged at the zoroark once more, making the same metal leg from before glow in the same white energy. Despite the super effective move that coming its way however, Steven stood in place, waiting for Aaron's next command.
"Hold Steven," Aaron said calmly, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. "Hold…"
The metagross got closer and closer to the dark type pokemon, lifting its leg to prepare for the final blow. Once the steel type pokemon got close enough however, Aaron quickly barked out the command he was waiting for.
"Jump now!" he yelled.
Following the simple order, Steven quickly jumped into the air and right above the metagross, effectively dodging the knockout strike completely. During this, the dark type pokemon smiled devilishly, knowing what his trainer planned on doing.
"Now! Use another night slash!" Aaron commanded.
The zoroark made its already dark arm glow in more dark energy, and quickly slammed the attack onto the vulnerable metagross. The steel type pokemon groaned lowly in pain before its legs gave out, making the large pokemon slump onto floor, unconscious and defeated.
The area was quickly covered in cheers that emerged from the crowd. Cries of astonishment and joy rang out as Aaron's pokemon defeated the metagross. Melissa and Ryan shouting were among the cheers, congratulating Aaron's and Steven's small victory. Even the trainer that was beaten before cried out happily, elated that her previous opponent was equally humiliated as her.
The zoroark back flipped towards its trainer, who affectionately pat the dark type pokemon's head. Meanwhile, the unconscious metagross got zapped by red energy, quickly getting returned towards its poke-ball. The rich trainer was noticeably angry, for she was seen seething at Aaron for beating her.
"That's it," she whispered in a dark and cold voice once the audience's yells died down. "I've had it up to here with your crap! I'm going to beat you, right here, right now!"
The redhead was quick to grab the second poke-ball that was attached to her belt, preparing to toss it into the air. But before either teen could really do anything, a sharp and angered yell called out through the crowd, making both of them freeze in place.
"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!" A slightly overweight man bellowed out to the two trainers, coming through the crowd while being flanked by two security guards. "Why are you runts battling inside my mall?!" He demanded to know, fuming with rage. "Pokemon battles are completely banned indoors!"
While Aaron did freeze up during the shouting the owner barked out, he quickly regained his composure to answer the man. "I apologize sir, I wasn't aware that pokemon battles were restricted to being outside," he said calmly. "We'll finish out there, we didn't mean to cause anyone any trouble."
The owner of the mall stared at the teen for couple seconds, slowly absorbing his words. Once he did, he let out a long sigh as he calmed himself down. "Very well, take your battle outside and there won't be any consequences," he said. "But I don't want anymore battles inside my mall! This place is not exactly built for those kinds of fights."
Aaron gave the man a small nod, then motion his pokemon to follow him as he led the way towards the exit. Melissa and Ryan also followed the teen, wanting to see the end of the battle. However, the rich trainer remained in her spot, still seething in the rage she had for Aaron.
"No," she said coldly, glaring at the curly haired teen. "You're not going anywhere." She tossed the poke-ball she was holding onto in the air, which quickly released her magmortar. The fire type pokemon stood proudly once more, staring at the zoroark in front of it.
The owner of the mall went right back to glaring at the redhead, displeased with her decision. "Didn't you hear me?! I said no-!"
"SHUT UP!" The trainer exclaimed in anger, cutting the owner off. "I said I'm ending this, right here, right now! Take this pathetic whelp down with a fire blast!" she screamed out the commanded.
Following the enraged command, the magmortar aimed one of its arm cannons at the dark type pokemon, readying a large flame within the barrel of the cannon. Once it shot out, the flame transformed into a unique shape in the middle of its flight as it flew towards the zoroark.
Aaron, acting as quickly as he could, grabbed the vacant poke-ball on his belt and used it to return Steven back into safety. This did nothing to stop the attack however, as the large shape of fire stayed on its course, now coming towards Aaron. The crowd panicked and fled away from the target area as Aaron somersaulted away from the attack at the last second, narrowly dodging the flame.
The fire blast kept flying though the air until it eventually rammed itself through several large plants. The green leaves were instantly sent ablaze and began to crackle as the flames burned them. The wood of the plants cracked from the flames and launched multiple embers that hit more flammable objects. The fire blast was still moving as well, until it finally hit a banner attached to a wall. The fire consumed the banner as it ran up along it, soon reaching the top of the second floor and spreading onto more plants that were nearby.
Witnessing the fire domino effect spread fast, the owner of the mall ran towards the nearest fire alarm switch and pulled down the lever, instantly activating the alarms all over the mall. Immediately, the people within the mall panicked as they hurried towards the front entrance, exiting the now blazing mall. The rich trainer stared at the fire in horror, shocked that it spread through the mall so quickly. It wasn't until several people bumped into her accidentally did she come to her senses and returned her magmortar before running towards the entrance, following everyone else outside.
Aaron, Melissa and Ryan were some of the first to exit the burning mall. The trio watched in horror as the fire consumed more of the mall and saw hundreds of people flood out of the front doors, trying to get away from the flames. The mall was now a deadly inferno, capable of greatly harming anyone who was unfortunate to be stuck within it.
Uncounted minutes flew by as Viola sat on the deactivated water fountain, waiting for her father to arrive. The queen to be despised waiting like this, because seconds felt like minutes to her, and minutes felt like entire hours. Viola just wanted her father to show up so they could get this meeting over with.
The third floor was mostly vacant now; all of the shops were closed and the people that were there went to the lower levels to view a pokemon battle of some kind. Once more, Viola couldn't bring herself to care for such activities, and even if she did, her father wouldn't allow it, saying it would be a 'waste of time'.
After another minute passed by, the violet haired teen could smell something rather unpleasant. It didn't take her long to realize that the smell was smoke, which snapped Viola out of her bored trance instantly. Once she heard screams come from the lower floors and the alarms began to go off, she instantly knew that there was fire somewhere, and that it was spreading quickly throughout the mall.
The violet haired teen was quick to get up from her spot and dash towards the escalators, which were deactivated due to the state of emergency the mall was in. She climbed down the still stairs as fast as her legs could carry her to the second floor, which was just as empty as the level above. The queen to be could now see the large amounts of flames that consumed the mall, which moved through the complex at a rapid rate. Viola could see dozens, if not hundreds of people run towards the front entrance, which meant that was her way out as well.
Once more, Viola began her dash towards the next pair of offline escalators, running through some of the flames along the way. It was getting more difficult to breathe as she ran, for smoke began to fill the air. As she dashed through the small blazing walkway, and electrical explosion went off above her, causing several large chunks of metal to start falling over her.
To the best of her ability, Viola tried to dodge as much of the heated debris as she could, but there was too much for her to handle. So to keep herself from getting crushed to death, Viola made her violet eyes glow brightly with psychic energy, which covered some of the falling debris. While it did slow some of the falling metal down, it couldn't stop all of it, nor could it truly stop it altogether, since Viola was still learning how to control her powers.
Having no choice, the violet haired teen released the debris from her weak psychic grip and attempted to dodge the descending metal by somersaulting. While she was able to get away from getting crushed by some of the larger pieces of debris, Viola couldn't dodge it all as some of the thinner pieces managed to fall on her. The teen cried out in pain as she pinned underneath the heavy debris, struggling to break free from it. More and more metal continued to fall around her, effectively trapping the queen to be even more. Viola knew she had to break free, because if she couldn't do it in time, she would die horribly in this fire. So the violet haired teen did the one thing she never thought she would do; scream for assistance.
"H-help! S-somebody…!" Viola yelled as loud as she could. "I-I can't move! Please…! Someone…! Anyone…!"
Although the teen didn't know, a woman who was just about to escape heard her pleas of terror. However, knowing that she couldn't help the trapped teen alone, the woman continued to run outside to find someone that would be capable of saving Viola.
The trio continued to watch in terror as the last number of people raced out from the blazing inferno that was the mall. The large flames that flickered through the building lit up the night sky as endless smoke poured from the open ceiling. Roaring sirens could heard in the distance, getting closer by every second.
The three teens had no idea how long it would take for the firefighters to put out the flames when they arrived, the only thing they could do was watch flaming building continue to burn. Aaron specifically felt extreme amounts of guilt consume him as he witnessed the fire, knowing that he was partially responsible for it. While he knew that he didn't cause the fire directly, the teen did know that he provoked someone to accidentally do it, meaning that this was partially his fault as well.
"Help! Somebody help!" A woman's cries caught the group's attention as she ran out of the inferno. "Someone's trapped on the second floor! They need help!" She continued.
"W-what?!" Aaron gasped out. The thought of accidentally burning a building down was bad enough, but the thought of killing an innocent life tore the teen apart. Knowing what he had to do, Aaron prepare to dashed back into the fiery mall. Ryan however stopped him by grabbing his arm before he could run towards it.
"Wait Aaron!" The blonde exclaimed. "You could die if you run back there! The firefighters are almost here, they can save that trapped person!"
"They might not make it in time!" Aaron yelled back, breaking away from the blonde's grip. "That person will die in there if I don't help! I refuse to be responsible for the death of an innocent civilian!" With that said, the teen charged straight towards the mall, intent on saving the trapped soul from a burning fate.
"Aaron, wait! Stop!" Melissa cried out as she and Ryan ran after him, trying to keep him from danger. They couldn't stop the teen however, because once Aaron ran through the blazing front entrance, large pieces of metallic debris fell in front of the doors, keeping the two teens outside and trapping Aaron within.
"No!" Ryan cried out as he tried to remove the large pieces of metal, only to retract his hands in pain as the heated debris burned him. "G-gah! Damn it!" He gasped.
Inside of burning mall, Aaron scanned through the fires consuming the complex, trying to find the trapped soul as quickly as he could. Remembering the woman's words, the teen checked the walkways of the second floor, trying to see if the person was located there.
"Hello?! Can anyone here me?!" Aaron yelled out as loud as he could before coughing, due to the smoke filling his lungs. The teen's only been inside for a couple seconds and it was already getting harder to breathe. He had to find the trapped victim fast, or else both would die in the deadly flames.
"U-up here…!" A weak voice called out from the second floor, immediately alerting Aaron of their presence. Quickly looking towards the area the voice came from, the teen could see the figure of a person pinned underneath several pieces of debris, completely trapped.
"I'll be right there!" Aaron called out to the person as he ran towards the deactivated escalators, quickly climbing up the still stairs and dashing at the metal that surrounded the person. The teen jumped over and onto several pieces of the large debris to get to the poor soul, eventually reaching them.
Aaron couldn't make out who exactly was pinned under the metal, due to the cloak that covered their head and shoulders. The weak cry they gave out sounded feminine, so they were probably female, but the teen had to push away these thoughts and focus on getting them out of the inferno. Aaron attempted to move the pieces of metal, but quickly pulled his hands away, getting burned just like his blonde friend did. Knowing they were running out of time, Aaron quickly formulated a plan and grabbed a poke-ball from his belt, unleashing one of pokemon, a lapras.
"Megan, quickly! Hydro pump this metal off of her!" Aaron commanded quickly.
The water pokemon, while shocked by what was happening to the mall, regained focus and shot out large torrents of water from its mouth. The stream a water smashed and sizzled against the heated debris, creating steam as it was slowly pushed away. Once it was completely off of the girl, the hydro pump ceased. Aaron quickly thanked the blue pokemon before returning it back into its poke-ball, then approached the injured teen.
"Here, I gotcha," he said as he lifted her off the ground, carrying her bridal style. The female teen flinched when he touched her, making Aaron assume that she was in a great deal of pain. But now that she was free, Aaron had to find them an exit. He glanced at the front entrance he charged through, seeing the debris that blocked the path. Even the escalators he climbed up had more metal fall on top of them, blocking yet another path.
The curly haired teen growled under his breath, seeing that he had very few options left. Without thinking, Aaron ran through the small walkway as he carried the girl in his arms, trying to find or create an exit for them. The teen had to run over multiple pieces of metal along the way, and even had to dodge several pieces that fell over them.
Eventually, the duo came across a large window that had a great view of the city streets below. Knowing this was most likely their one ticket out of the mall, Aaron gently set the girl down before grabbing another poke-ball from his belt. Once he released the pokemon from within the red and white sphere, a mismagius floated in the air, shocked by the fires that were destroying the building.
"Grace, use psychic to break this window!" Aaron ordered. "Do it as fast as you can!"
The ghost pokemon nodded at the teen before it began to focus on the window in front of it. The pokemon's eyes slowly began to glow, and the glass itself was covered in transparent energy that violently shook it. It wasn't long until the window shattered into a hundred pieces, finally giving Aaron an exit. Just like before, the teen thanked the pokemon and returned it back into its poke-ball. Once he did, he took another red white sphere from his belt and released his next pokemon, a braviary.
"George, let her ride on your back while you carry me with your claws!" Aaron ordered the flying type pokemon. "Take us down towards the streets below, okay?!"
The red, white and blue pokemon cried out in acceptance before lowering its body, making it easier for the female teen to get on. Aaron lifted the injured girl once more and placed her on the back of his pokemon, letting her ride it. When she was settled, George began to flap his wings, which slowly brought him into the air. Once they were airborne, Aaron held out his arms, allowing the braviary to carefully pick him up with its large talons. With that accomplished, the flying type pokemon flew out of the window and into the flesh air outside of the mall, finally allowing Aaron and the injured girl to breathe normally again.
The braviary took the two teens down to the streets near the burning mall, bringing them to safety. Once Aaron's feet touch the ground, George released the teen's arms from his grip, allowing him to collapse and cough for air, clearing out his lungs. The teen Aaron saved also coughed when the flying type pokemon landed, finally getting the fresh air she needed. The braviary gently let the girl off before approaching his master, seeing if he was alright. After a several seconds of coughing, Aaron let out a small but audible chuckle as he slowly got back up on his feet.
"What… would I do without you guys…?" he said with a small grin, petting his pokemon affectionately. "I can't thank you enough."
The red, white and blue pokemon cried out again, this time in a happy tone. Both were relieved that they're finally out of the deadly inferno, and it wasn't long until Aaron stopped petting his pokemon to turn his attention to the person he saved.
"And are you… al… right…?" Aaron led off as he stared off in the direction that girl was standing, only to find that no one was there. The teen glanced around their surroundings, trying to find where the girl went off to. "Did you see her run off?" Aaron asked his pokemon, making him shake his head in denial. "No? Then where did she-?"
"Aaron!" Melissa called out to the teen as she and Ryan ran towards him. Aaron's thoughts on the girl were knocked out of his head when Melissa crashed into him, bringing them into a tight embrace. "I'm so glad you're safe! We thought you were a goner!" The brunette exclaimed.
"Yeah, no kidding." Ryan agreed. "You have any idea how much you scared us back there?"
"Heh heh, sorry about that." Aaron apologized, giving the blonde a small grin while returning the hug Melissa gave him. "So you guys saw George carry me out of there?" the teen asked.
"Yeah, along with who ever you saved from that mess," Melissa said. "By the way, where are they? I thought they would be here with you."
"I have no idea." Aaron answered, confused as to where the person ran off to. "She was standing right here a second ago before she just vanished."
"Oh? They left?" Ryan quipped with a small smile. "That's too bad, I really wanted to ash some questions to see if she was alright."
Aaron gave the blonde a blank stare, already knowing how this was going to turn out. Meanwhile, Melissa turned her head in Ryan's direction to give him a deadly glare, one the blonde was all too familiar with.
"Geez Melissa, why the long face?" Ryan asked, his grin getting wider. "You should really lighten up. Heh, I'm only warming up with these puns, you know."
Melissa broke away from the embrace she shared with Aaron and took a step forward, cracking her knuckles together in anger. "You have five seconds to run before I destroy you." She warned.
The smile on Ryan's face only got bigger as he stepped back, knowing the brunette intended to beat him down. "Huh, guess I'm toast." He quipped before turning around and sprinting away as fast as he could, trying to get away from the wrath of Melissa as she charged after him, screaming out a terrifying battle cry while she did.
Aaron once again shook his head at the antics of his close friends, returning George back into his poke-ball while he did. Before he followed the duo back towards the front of the mall, Aaron glanced back to see where the girl he saved went off to. His efforts were in vain however, since there wasn't a trace of her to be found. Sighing, Aaron gave up and walked to the large crowd in front of the mall, who watched as firefighters battled with the large flames that consumed the complex. The teen knew he had to admit to fire starting, and that he would have to take the consequences for this.
Viola ran as fast as her injured legs could carry her away from the trainer that saved her when his attention was elsewhere. The violet haired teen was barely able to get into a nearby alley and out of his line of sight when he turned around. The trainer looked for her of course, but was stopped when two more people-who Viola assumed were his friends-ran towards him and grabbed his attention once more. It wasn't long until the trio made their way back towards the front entrance, joining with the rest of the people located there. When they were truly away, Viola sighed in relief as she thought about the teen that saved her.
That trainer was undoubtedly brave for charging into the flames without hesitation, not to mention he was the only one to come after her when she needed to be saved. Not only that, but the trainer was also quick to think up effective plans to get them out of that inferno. In a situation like that, a lot of people would crack under that type of pressure, so the queen to be was impressed that the teen was able to keep his cool.
But the one thing that really grabbed Viola's attention was his power. The trainer had extreme amounts of untapped aura within his system, and that aura was insanely powerful, more so than her's. The queen to be could feel the teen's aura just by touching him; she knew that he could be a force to be reckoned with if he knew how to use it.
"He was also… cute…' Viola thought, blushing lightly. The violet haired teen wasn't one to really care for looks or men, since she had bigger things to worry about in her daily life. Most of the handsome men that flirted with her were all sent away, since she considered them all to be too weak for her. But the teen that saved her from certain death was not only powerful, he was also, admittedly, cute to Viola.
These thoughts were interrupted however, when the violet haired teen's xtransceiver began to go off, indicating someone was trying to contact her. Already knowing who it was, Viola was quick to answer it without bothering to read the name, making a hooded figure appear on the small screen.
"What happened?" the figure asked in a low, gruff voice.
"A fire started on the lower levels of the mall and spread quickly to the other floors." Viola answered. "I guess you can consider yourself lucky that you were late, father. Otherwise, you'd have to go through the same mess everyone else had to deal with."
"I see," her father said. "Were you hurt?"
"Well… I got trapped underneath some debris that fell on me," Viola responded. "I would've died in that fire if some guy didn't save me."
"'Some guy'?" Her father questioned, seemingly unaffected by the news of his daughter almost dying. "Who was he?"
"I… don't know…" The violet haired teen admitted. "He seems like any other pokemon trainer… except…"
"Except?" Her father said as she led off.
"Well… he has a lot of untapped aura in his system, and his aura is pretty powerful too." Viola finally answered. "I felt his power when he touched me."
"Really? Interesting…" Her father led off. "Do you have anything else on him?"
"He's the only one that bothered to come into mall to save me, so he must be pretty brave to do so," Viola said.
"Or suicidal." Her father commented, making the teen roll her eyes.
"Also, he was able to formulate quick and effective plans to get us away from the flames without cracking under the pressure, meaning he's pretty level headed as well." Viola continued.
"Hmm. Anything else?"
"No," Viola said rather quickly.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, father."
"Very well, I'm canceling our meeting today for obvious reasons. We will meet up in a couple days, I have several things to care of beforehand," her father said. "In the meantime, follow this trainer and observe him, see if he is really as powerful as you say. That type of person would be a great asset to have when you become queen of this world."
"Yes, father." Viola obeyed the command before he cut off the transmission. The violet haired teen peered around the corner of the alley, getting a glance of the back of the trainer that saved her. Seeing that she had a good distance between them, Viola followed after him, making sure to keep as quiet as possible.
The teen would learn more about this trainer.
Present
"That fire could've killed me if you didn't save me in time," Viola said. "Ever since that day, I've learned more and more about you, Aaron. I've learned how brave, loyal, smart and… cute you are~." The Bellator queen inched herself closer to the bound commander. "It didn't take long for me to fall for you, my love."
The memories of the blazing mall rushed through Aaron's head, making him remember how difficult it was to breathe, along with how scared he was. Not for himself, but for the person (who apparently was Viola) whose life was in danger because him. Such thoughts saddened the teen as he put his head down in shame.
"It was my fault…" he whispered softly.
"Hmm?" Viola hummed, not hearing his words clearly.
"The fire, it started because of me…" Aaron admitted.
"What do you mean?" the queen asked, cocking her head in confusion.
Aaron kept his head down as he explained what truly transpired. "That night, I was very… tired. And when I'm tired, I tend to have a very bitter attitude. While I was in the mall, a trainer who was acting incredibly snotty towards other people annoyed me, and I insulted her for it. That of course angered her, and we had a pokemon battle soon afterward. I beat her, and the trainer's anger skyrocketed from this. She tried to take down my pokemon, and probably to an extent, me, with a large fire blast. But the attacked missed and hit a couple flammable objects. The fire then spread throughout the mall, which is why the building went aflame."
"So that's how it started?" Viola whispered, listening to the teen's words.
Aaron gave the queen a small nod before continuing. "Although I wasn't one who truly caused the fire, I still provoked someone to accidentally cause it," he said in a sad tone. "Maybe if I just kept my mouth shut…"
"Hey now, there's no need to act like that." Viola reassured the commander, giving him a loving smile. "Nobody died in the fire, and you saved my life because of it, which in turn cause me to meet and fall in love with you~. Everything worked out in the end darling, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself."
Aaron remained silent as he absorbed the queen's caring words. It was incredibly odd to him, the person who captured him, brought terrible pain onto his friends and did… things… to him was trying to comfort him. Although he wouldn't vocally admit it, he liked the words Viola said to him, especially in the tone she said them in. Her voice felt so soothing to the commander's ears, along with her facial features being heaven to his eyes. He couldn't help but stare into her beautiful violet orbs.
"N-no… no no no.' Aaron growled in his mind as he closed his eyes, angered with himself. "You shouldn't look at her like that, you shouldn't think of her like that. She's putting false feelings in your mind while trying to wash away the true feelings you already have! Viola's not the one I truly love, definitely not.'
"Ah… all this talk about falling in love with you is making me impatient," Viola said to the bound teen. "I just want our wedding day to arrive so we can finally get married."
Aaron opened his eyes, wanting to ask the queen one more question he had on his mind. "You… keep talking about a wedding," he said. "And it's suppose to be on a certain day… What day is it? And why wait to marry me until then?"
"Aw~, you're getting impatient too~?" Viola cooed, making Aaron frown a little. "Well, if you must know why we're waiting, I'll tell you. Our wedding is this Friday, and it'll take some time to get all the preparations ready, along with purifying you."
"Friday…?" Aaron whispered to himself. "Today's…"
"Tuesday, sweetheart." The queen answered for him, making him blink in surprise.
"So… that means…?" Aaron whispered in fear.
"Yep." Viola confirmed. "Just three more days until we're happily married!"