As you could probably expect, teaching Nikki's new Magby to use Ember on command was problematic to say the least. We had to time the training sessions exactly so that none of the faceless men caught us in the act and even then, progress was slow. Magby wasn't an attentive pupil and even I, with all my experience with Aurora, found it difficult to get the new baby Pokemon to listen to me. Sometimes he would go off on a tantrum, blowing fire like there was no tomorrow, other times he would stubbornly close his mouth and refuse to listen. Nikki was quickly at her wits' end. I had of course told both her and Jasmine about my plan to escape, and Nikki in particular was taking it hard, considering it was pretty much she and Magby who held the responsibility of escaping. Eventually Jasmine snapped, telling me my whole idea was stupid and too over-complicated and attempted to get Magby to simply burn down the metal bars that kept us trapped.
In Magby's fright at being grabbed so roughly by Jasmine, he did spit out a few flames in the direction of the metal bars in his panic, but it was pretty much useless. The flames licked at the metal, not even blackening it, let alone burn it right through.
"Urgh!" Jasmine screamed in frustration, practically throwing Magby back to Nikki. "This is impossible! I thought Magby's were supposed to be able to have flames hotter than over a thousand degrees Fahrenheit! He should be able to melt a stupid lump of metal!"
"But Jasmine…" Nikki sounded terrified at Jasmines outburst. "Magby's still only a baby…he's not gonna be that strong yet…"
"Well, how on earth are we supposed to get out of here?"
"Jasmine, calm down!" I stepped across to stand in front of her. "Stop yelling at Nikki and Magby! It's not their fault! Besides you were the one who said we'd get out of here eventually!"
"I can't stand another minute in this hellhole!" Jasmine was screaming now and she turned viciously on her heel and started rattling the barred door. "Oi! Let me out of here you bunch of idiots! You've held us down here long enough! You've got no right to keep us here!"
"Jasmine!" I gasped, trying to wrench her away from the bars. "Stop that! You're gonna ruin the whole plan!"
"I don't care!" she bellowed, fiercely attacking the bars of the door. "I've had enough of being locked in this cage! LET ME OUT!"
"Oh my God…" Nikki whispered as Jasmine's voice raised higher and higher and louder and louder until eventually two of the faceless men came running down the corridor, yelling loudly.
"Nikki! Come here!" I grabbed Nikki and Magby and dragged them closer towards the door and where Jasmine was rattling the bars loudly. "My plan could still work!" I thought desperately, still hoping.
"Shut up in there!" one of the men yelled at Nikki.
"No!" Nikki yelled back, just as loudly.
"Shut up kid or I'll come in there and give you a severe doing!"
I didn't know what a "severe doing" was exactly but I definitely didn't want to find out. Jasmine on the other hand held no fear.
"Bring it on!" Jasmine stuck her face, already a testament to the men's severe beating, right up against one of the faceless men. She didn't even care that now only a few metal bars were separating her and one of the huge, hulking powerful looking men.
"Ugh!" The man said in frustration, beating his massive fists against the metal bars. He turned to his partner. "Get in there and shut that kid up before Cal hears about this! He'll kill us if the prisoners get too rowdy!"
I stopped in my tracks. "Did…did he just say…?"
"Shut that kid up before Cal hears about this!"
A violent cold shudder reverberated through me. That one word chimed through my head over and over again. That one name that verified every suspicion, every thought, every reason I ever came on this stupid journey in the first place…
"Cal…" I whispered to myself.
Anger took hold of me then and the next few moments seemed to take an eternity to pass. Then again, when I look back on it now, I run through it in an intense blur.
The two faceless men banged open the door, the second one grabbing a struggling Jasmine, and the first one following him in, his keys loosely hanging from his hand. I saw those keys and knew exactly what I had to do. I knew from intently watching the men go about their business that those keys opened every cell on this corridor. I needed to get to those keys!
I lunged for them, but the man carrying the keys noticed me and grabbed my wrist and held me so hard I thought my wrist bones would shatter. I screamed in my outrage at being so stupid to get caught and tried to wrench myself away, but the man would not let go. At this point Jasmine had been pinned up against a wall and she couldn't get away either! I had no other choice now!
"Nikki!" I screamed. "Make Magby use Ember!"
"What?" She gasped.
"Make him use Ember!" I shouted, lunging for the set of keys in the man's hand. "Come on! Do it now while we've got these guys kept busy!"
"Urgh!" the other man shouted. "Yell for backup!"
The man holding me started yelling down the corridor. Panic gripped me and in desperation I started screaming again.
"Nikki! Either make Magby use Ember on these guys or get out of here yourself! But whatever it is, do it quick! Come on!"
A look of sheer terror passed across Nikki's face before a look of renewed determination appeared there. She grabbed Magby and came rushing up to us. The men who had come running in to apprehend us stopped dead as Nikki and the Magby appeared by our sides. You could practically see the wheels and cogs of their brains turning as they considered what would happen if they let either one of us go and lunge for Nikki instead.
Nikki let Magby drop to the ground. "N…now Magby! Use Ember!"
At that point, I prayed. I'm pretty sure Nikki prayed too. Prayed to some unseen God or force or heavenly entity that Magby would understand what Nikki wanted him to do and somehow pull it off…
"Mag?" I heard Magby say in confusion.
I almost cried at that point. Those keys were inches away from my reach, but I still couldn't grab them! What's worse, I could hear people far off in the distance thundering down the corridor, probably hearing the commotion!
"Magby, come on!" I screamed, still trying to wrench my arm away from the man and his vice like grip. "Use Em—"
"Shut up, kid!"
What happened next was totally unexpected for me. A huge fist slammed into my lower stomach, winding me, sending horrible flashes of pain through me, paralysing me. My whole body crumpled and I fell limply to the floor. Another cry of pain coming from my right told me that the same thing had happened to Jasmine. A moment later, I saw her crash to the ground, leaving the other man free to capture Nikki.
I heard Nikki scream as the other man closed in on her. I squeezed my eyes shut. I couldn't watch this happen right in front of me…
Then suddenly, I heard Magby's voice. He sounded angry!
"Mag! Magby!"
The next thing I knew, the room was suddenly ablaze with bright light and intense heat as Magby expelled a powerful blast of fire. I heard a rough, masculine scream as the fire licked at the man's body, sending him crashing to the ground, his clothes burned and singed, his skin rapidly blistering.
"You little bitch!" the other man yelled, lunging for Nikki but he met the same fate with another violent burst of fire from Magby. He too hit the ground hard, groaning and writhing in the earthy soil.
For a moment, the three of us girls stayed where we were, struck dumb with what had just happened. Then we snapped into action. I scrambled to my feet, niftily grabbed the keys that had fallen with the first man, whilst Nikki hauled Jasmine to her feet. Then we took Magby and made a break for it before the guys on the ground even knew what happened.
We made a quick detour across the corridor to the cells that contained the missing fourteen year old boy and the research scientists. We thundered down the darkened corridors, almost blinded with panic and adrenaline. We didn't stop to explain to the confused and somewhat frightened fourteen year old boy as I struggled with the lock of his cell. We got him out and then we started on the two bumbling researchers.
"There they are! Stop them!"
I cursed as I eventually got the two researchers loose. Three more huge masked men were running down towards us. No! This was not happening! We couldn't get caught now!
"MAGBY!"
We didn't have to worry. An impressive fire attack from Magby that was more of a light show than an actual attack meant that the seven of us could push through their bulk easily. It occurred to me as we ran down the corridor that we didn't have a clue where we were going and we still needed to find our Pokeballs!
We ran down the corridor until we eventually reached its end. There was a thin wooden door at the end of the corridor, but it was locked. Even Jasmine with all her strength couldn't push it open.
"Out of the way," the fourteen year old said and expertly kicked it open.
I think we all looked at him in surprise before we came to our senses and tore through the doorway.
We ended up in what looked like a makeshift meeting room. The room was quite large with an old wooden table in the centre, strewn with papers and writing supplies and there was a line of huge lockers in the right hand side of the room. The place was mercifully empty and as soon as we got in, the fourteen year old boy and one of the researchers got to work on barring the door with one of the steel chairs.
I stood there, my chest heaving with the effort. "Okay…we got out of there in one piece. Now what?"
"We need to get our Pokemon back." Jasmine said at once. "We'll never get out here alive unless we get them back!"
"Yeah, but where would they keep them?" the fourteen year old boy inquired.
"They could be anywhere." One of the researchers commented, pushing his smeared glasses further up his nose.
My eyes rested on the lockers that were pushed up against one of the walls. "What about those lockers there?" I asked.
Before the words even left my mouth totally, Jasmine had flown across the room and was now attempting to forcibly wrench open one of the metal locker doors. I didn't know if she simply hadn't noticed the combination lock on it or she just didn't care.
"Jasmine! That won't work!" I insisted, coming over to her. "We don't even know if the Pokemon are even in there!"
"Well it wouldn't hurt to look!" Jasmine said, compensating with another fierce tug to the locker door, somehow managing to yank the thing open. Damn that girl was strong!
We all crowded excitedly around the open locker. It was mostly empty apart from a tiny bag that I knew didn't belong to either myself, Jasmine or Nikki and a strange white and gold patterned Pokeball that wasn't one of ours either. However the fourteen year old boy let out a cry of delight and grabbed the Pokeball and the small backpack. He released whatever was in the Pokeball and out came a red slug like Pokemon. He yelled out "Slugma" happily and then reached down to embrace the motlten, slug like Pokemon but thought better of it when the hot lava on its body burned his hands.
"That proves it!" Jasmine cried, totally oblivious to the boy and his Slugma. "Our Pokeballs must be in there too!"
With that, all of us, the researchers included, started either pulling on the doors in desperation or trying to crack the codes on the combination locks. Nikki and the fourteen year old even resorted to using Magby and Slugma to burn through the locker material.
"Yes!" I grinned as I successfully cracked one of the locker combinations and managed to pull open the door, revealing a blue backpack and three Pokeballs. "Nikki!" I called. "I think these are yours!"
Nikki put down Magby for a moment and took what was rightfully hers. She released what was in each Pokeball and we sound found ourselves staring into the familiar faces of Blaze, Dixie and Etna. She almost cried with relief as she looked at her Pokemon, but quickly got herself back into the action. She got her Pokemon to work against the hard metal of the lockers. Within a few minutes, she had another couple open, either burned or scratched open. However, she had no luck finding anyone's Pokeballs.
Suddenly we heard banging on the door and it began to rattle and shake, loud angry yells coming from behind it. We all looked at each other in panic and then quickly threw ourselves back into trying to get the lockers open. With the help from the Pokemon we quickly found Jasmine's missing Pokeballs in another locker, but mine were still nowhere to be found with at least five more lockers to open.
And that door wasn't going to hold much longer.
"Just get out!" I yelled, gesturing towards the other door as the wood door began warping and cracking under the force the men were beating into it. I mean, come on, a fourteen year old boy managed to bust it open, it wasn't going to hold against three or four burly men beating it to death.
"Sienna, don't be stupid! We're not leaving without you!" Jasmine said, tearing into another locker and then yelled in delight as she came across my purple backpack and three Pokeballs.
She tossed them to me and without even a word all released Pokemon were recalled and we all tore off down the corridor again. Just in the nick of time too as no sooner than we got out of the room, we heard the door leading into the makeshift meeting room break and splinter, the men's yells and curses sounding suddenly closer and even more scary.
We pushed ourselves on until we finally reached the end of the corridor. Clamouring and shouting as we suddenly found ourselves at a door it took a great deal of fumbling before we eventually got it open. We all burst out the door, revealing what looked like another set of long winding corridors, but there was something different about them. There was a hot earthy smell hanging low in the air and these corridors looked like they had been dug into long tunnels right into the belly of the volcano. We didn't get enough of a chance to think about it. The people behind us were gaining on us and we could hear their loud yells as they got closer and closer.
So we ran. It was all we could do now. However, the constant running was now beginning to take its toll. The researchers were barely keeping up and my body was soaked right through with sweat as we tried to navigate our way through the twisting, turning caves. As we ran, we noticed an array of strange machines left out in the corridors beeping and showing all kinds of various data. We couldn't stop to look, even though it was something the researchers were probably very interested in.
Dark dank corridors gave way to staircases that led down into more corridors and they led into yet more corridors. We hoped that the endless twisting and winding of the route we had haphazardly taken had thrown off the people following us but when we stopped to rest momentarily, we heard them again just as loud as ever.
"Oh my God, do these people EVER give up!" Jasmine wheezed.
We broke into a run again. Blinded with fear and panic, I don't think any of us really knew where we were going. We pushed our way through corridor after corridor and then suddenly we found ourselves at a set of giant doors. We pulled the doors to open them, but they were heavy and difficult to move more than a couple of inches at a time. Our hopes were renewed however when we saw faint glimmers of light through the cracks and got our first breath of fresh air in what felt like years.
Eventually we managed to tug it open far enough to squeeze our bodies out and we found ourselves standing on Jagged Path. I let out a scream of relief, but we weren't out of the woods yet. Blinking in the harshness of the sun, we started to run down the rocky face, trying hard not to fall. However, we only managed a few metres down the perilous ascent before we heard the yells of the men who had been following us.
"Get them!" we heard them scream.
For a moment I was confused. What was going on? Who were they screaming at to "get" us? We ignored them and kept running until suddenly we caught sight of people battling further down the path. I couldn't make out their features but it looked like a group of about five or six of the masked men against a teenaged girl with bright flame red hair.
"That's the Gym Leader, Flannery!" the fourteen year old gasped.
"What? The one that was supposed to be captured with us?" I demanded.
The boy couldn't answer my question as one of the faceless men turned to us. I tensed as he motioned to some of his cronies and then they were running towards us, their Pokemon at their heels, looking almost intent on murder.
I calculated what the best course of action was almost immediately. Three big rough masked men were coming at us, but I had a feeling that Jasmine, Nikki and I were going to be enough to take them on. We couldn't risk the safety of that boy and the researchers. Flannery would just have to handle however many were challenging her. I reasoned that she should be perfectly capable; she was a Gym Leader after all.
"Listen to me," I turned to the fourteen year old boy and the two researchers. "You three, get out of here! Get down to the town and get help! Quickly!"
They looked at me, stunned before they eventually took off, dodging around the three faceless men effortlessly. They roared in outrage and sent out their Pokemon after them, three vicious looking Mightyenas, but I was quicker.
"Meloi! Use Cotton Spore!"
I threw my Pokeball, releasing Meloi. Quicker than a flash she sent out those puffy cotton balls that clung on to the Mightyenas' fur, slowing them down and almost stopping their movement altogether.
"Come on, you two!" I shouted at Jasmine and Nikki, startling them as the Mightyenas shook their bodies trying to shake loose the cotton spores. "Don't just stand there! We need to battle our way out!"
"Right!" They cried, their own hands flying for their own Pokeballs.
A few seconds later Heather and Blaze were released into the area alongside Meloi. The three faceless men laughed in glee at their admittedly puny looking foes, but I knew they shouldn't write them off so easily. Appearances are always deceiving.
However, just as I made to give my first orders to Meloi, a vicious shaking began rumbling under my feet, terrifying the Pokemon, making them whine and murmur in fear. Not just our Pokemon either. The Mightyenas' ears were flat against their heads and their tails were fiercely tucked between their legs as the whole place shook. It felt like the whole of the earth was being shaken by some unseen menace. I could barely even stand securely. It was insane. If I hadn't been so confused as to why suddenly it felt like we were in an earthquake zone I probably would have been terrified.
"Stop that whining!" One of the faceless men yelled at his terrified Pokemon, bringing me back into the present. "Now, use Bite!"
The Mightyena turned, intent on Meloi, but I wasn't backing down so easily.
"Counter it with Thundershock!" I ordered.
Meloi expertly dodged the attack and countered easily with a vicious bolt of electricity. The Mightyena took the attack dead on in the face and retracted sharply, whimpering loudly. The faceless man let out a yell of annoyance and the other two beside him called their Pokemon into battle.
Before anyone could do anything, there was a massive explosion that sounded from right inside the volcano. The whole place shook with the impact. Barrages of tiny rocks were suddenly raining down on us and I backed off, worriedly. I felt disorientated as my vision, shaken by the rumbling, phased in and out, everything a blur of colour. As it calmed, I looked down at my feet but I could see the earth shifting and cracking underneath me.
"What the hell is going on?"
"Look!" I heard Nikki scream from beside me.
I looked in the direction she was pointing in and my mouth dropped and my heart sunk in fear. Another explosion, this one even louder and closer than before saw the volcano begin to belch out thick plumes of ash. For a moment, nothing else happened. Then I saw a thin stream of molten lava slowly begin to dribble down from the mouth of the volcano.
I was so preoccupied with the sudden shaking of the terrain and the appearance of that lava that I didn't even notice one of the Mightyenas nail Meloi right across the stomach with a powerful Headbutt. Forcibly snapped back into my senses, I realised with a crushing sense of fear that we would now have to pretty much battle for our lives on a battlefield that was set against a rumbling volcano that looked set to blow any moment.
I looked from Nikki to Jasmine, recognising that same look of fear on their faces, and then back up to the volcano that was now dripping with molten magma. We had no choice! The only things standing in our way, preventing our only chances of escape were those trainers and their Pokemon. We had to beat them! We just had to!
The faceless man's words from earlier in the day sounded in my head again, refilling my tired body with a sudden jolt of energy and a fierce determination. "Shut that kid up before Cal hears about this!"
"Yeah," I thought to myself resolutely "We've gotta beat them! Otherwise how am I supposed to give him a piece of my mind?"
"Let's go for it, Meloi! Use Thundershock now!"
Jasmine quickly got in on the act. "Come on, Heather! Use Razor Leaf!"
"Blaze! Use Fire Spin!" Nikki ordered.
Forgive this cliché, overused saying but I have to say it. This was only the beginning. The battle may have just started, but the war…well… the war had only just begun.
Author's Note
I know, a really quick update. I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing! Haha!
I'm having fun writing this Showdown Arc, that's probably why it's written so quickly!
Now to thank my lovely readers and reviewers! I was so happy to find that some readers who had never reviewed before took the courage to review! You have no idea how happy that makes me!
Anonymous: Issue with the Luxray is now fixed! I'm afraid though that Sienna doesn't catch a Torkoal, even though I considered it for a long time. And I'm afraid you didn't guess right about Elliot's Pokemon either. Elliot catches Pokemon of either solely Grass types or solely Dark types or dual Grass/Dark Pokemon. The only exception to this is his newly captured Tropius he got to stop relying on his brother's Dragonite. I was going to give him a Honchkrow but I didn't want to annoy Syzdoth by using all the same Pokemon she does...using the Tropius was probably bad enough, I didn't want to go stealing Murkrow/Honchkrow too!
WinterDahlia: *tear filled anime eyes* Thank you so much for your lovely review! I'm glad I surprised you with Magby. I actually thought it was obvious! Yeah, Sienna's father is very highly involved with a criminal organization, very similar to the likes of Team Rocket and Galactic. Keep reading for the twist in the tale though.
AmpharosLover666: Aww, your review made me laugh! :) Thank you so much, as always. Sienna will catch a new Pokemon in about 2-4 chapters from now. Don't worry, I don't really like Magmortars though... so Nikki's Magby won't evolve.
Tricytal: Awesome to get your very first review! And your review made me laugh too! That would have saved me so much trouble if it HAD been a Moltres egg, wouldn't it? Haha! :) Thank you, I love Magbys too!
Kai-chan94: Thank you for your first review too! I hope I was able to answer your questions sufficiently!
Shree: Another first time reviewer! Eeek, I feel spoiled! I'm so glad you like the story and don't worry, the suspense won't last for too long.
Gold forever: Yeah, Sienna sure is taking her time to capture a new Pokemon...Don't worry, within the next 2-4 chapters depending how long this arc takes, she will capture a new one. :)
Wow. Almost sixty reviews! I'm so happy! :)
Please read and review if you can! Reviews really do make this all worthwhile!