Jolt: So what is the square root of 101?

Eclipse: Grrrrr…! How the hell should I know?!

Epsie: Wait, why are you guys studying math?

Eclipse: Stupid standardized testing… I freakin suck at it, too!

Epsie: Why do you need to study if you don't go to school? You're a Pokémon now, remember?

Eclipse: … Oh.

(Note: Unfortunately, the human version of Eclipse isn't as lucky, has a crazy life, and apologizes for the lack of updates. Shame too, this story is heating up. You guys won't ever guess how it ends)

Jolt: Wait, its ending?

(Yes, this is the third to last chapter)

Jolt: My story… ;-;

(You'll like the ending, I promise)

Jolt: No, it's not that… I'm just overcome with happiness… I thought you'd never leave me alone…

(._.)

Chapter 25- Fatal Encounter

Jolt awoke to the feeling of a soft tongue licking his cheek. He slowly opened his eyes, at first greeted by the blinding daylight, then Flames' relived face. "Oh thank Arceus… I was so scared…" she sobbed, her relief manifesting into tears. Jolt looked down at the gruesome wounds on his body, then sat up, wincing a little. Flames put her paw on his chest to stop him, but he lightly brushed it off. "I'm… fine. They look worse than they are," Jolt said, lightly rubbing a burn on his shoulder. Flames didn't seem very convinced, but she reluctantly helped him to his feet. Jolt rolled his head in a circle and shook his limbs, moving everything back into working order before finally starting to scan the surrounding landscape. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Wait… Jolt thought to himself. That was just it: nothing was amiss. Where were his friends? That's when Jolt regained full audio functionality in his ears, and began to hear quiet sobs behind him. He glanced at Flames, who gave him a mournful look, and nodded her head over behind him. Slowly, Jolt turned to face an old tree, under which Snow and Sparky were locked in each other's arms, sobbing into each other's shoulders. At their feet were the battered, lifeless bodies of Flame and Sky.

Jolts eyes widened, and he stumbled to the side as if he'd been struck with a lead pipe. Though his blurry vision, he saw himself wobbling over to the scene of his lifeless friends. Sparky was the first to notice him. She nudged Snow, who turned as well, and they separated just as Jolt arrived. For a moment, all three just sat, looking down with hopeless expressions at the bodies. Jolt felt warm drops collide with his paws, and realized it was tears that were blurring his vision. It was a solid minute before Jolt broke the silence, his voice shaky but powerful. "Ill… I'll kill t-that bastard… I swear it… Ill k-kill him for this…" Everyone understood the gravity of his words, and Jolt meant every single one of them. He looked down and reexamined the bodies. It seemed that they had died in each other's arms from how Flame's body was curled around Sky's. Even the digits on their paws were intermingled. Death hadn't even managed to separate them. The sight of that alone sparked a fury inside the Jolteon, and without a word he took off toward the city below. There was no way he would let the Hydregon and the Mightyena get away with what they had done. "Jolt! Wait up!" Flames shouted as she started after him, obvious concern in her voice. Snow glanced at Sparky, then at the two emerald Jolteons running down the mountain. "What should we do?" she asked as Sparky stood up. "Get the others. Tell them what happened, and make sure these two receive a proper burial. Then, form up and head down to the city. We're going to find Marlin, and through him, Angel." With that, the third Jolteon sprang forward and took off after the others, while the devastated Glaceon glanced back at her fallen friends, then took off in the other direction after Breeze, who had already started off to do the same thing.

It wasn't long before Sparky caught up with the other two. "What's the plan?" She shouted as they ran, still not completely used to seeing Jolt as the shiny Pokémon he was. She thought for a moment about her astonishment when Flames had revealed to her that the unconscious Jolteon in the clearing was actually her mate, but then tried to suppress those thoughts. Now was not the time. Jolt didn't exactly have a plan, but he didn't need one either; he was going to accomplish his objectives or die trying, and there was no way he was going to die without seeing them through. "You and Flames save Angel. I'm gonna kill Marlon and the Hydregon," he said between pants, his voice full of more deadly fury than anything. Just hearing him say that was enough to make Sparky believe that he was, and without hesitation, she agreed. He's screwed. But not as bad as anyone who gets in his way… Sparky thought with a shudder as Flames split off from Jolt to join her.

Lucky for them, Flames had seen almost everything from where she had hidden in a bush next to the clearing, and was able to lead Sparky almost exactly to where the Hydregon had deposited the party of Mightyena. The prospect of having to fight strange Pokémon was terrifying to her, but it was for Jolt, so she would do it. After all, she was his friend, and maybe if she got Angel back, more than that. Thanks to the shortcut Sparky knew from her years of living on the mountain, they were to the area in only 10 minutes.

Sparky saw it first; she grabbed Flames, threw her paw over her muzzle, and dove behind a rock. Flames struggled in confusion until Sparky pointed furiously behind the rock. Flames stuck her head out, and was grateful for Sparky's paw being where it was; she would have given their position away with a scream otherwise. Directly in front of them and blessedly oblivious to them were no less than 10 Mightyena, surrounding a group of terrified Pokémon in the center. "Oh man, fresh meat!" One of them called, and the others laughed menacingly. "Shut up Gash, you know we're not supposed to scare the recruits… much," came another voice, confident, but not Mightyena. "Oh c'mon Shade, we were just messin' around, no need to get your rings in a knot…" Gash replied, sounding tough, even though he was bowing down to Shade's authority. Neither of the Jolteons dared peek out again yet, and Sparky was furiously coming up with an attack plan.

"Now, let's see… yes, yes. Good. You all look to be a fine bunch of recruits, and we'll have great use for you." Shade said, trying his best to sound calming. "We'll never work for you!" a female voice shouted, and Sparky wanted to spring up and scream at that moment; the voice belonged to Angel. Shade's caring tone shifted pretty quickly at the first sign that they might resist. "Listen here you insolent brat! You don't have a choice anymore!" he shouted, trying to scare her into submission. Shut up Angel… Please! Sparky silently begged her daughter. "Over my dead body!" Angel fired back, causing Sparky to scream internally with fear for her daughter. What the hell was she doing?! "That can be arranged…" Shade said coolly, looking down at the Vaporeon that was starting to remind him of that other Vaporeon in the recent past. That irked him, and he didn't like things that irked him. Without warning, Angel stepped forward and spit right in his face.

For a moment, it was dead silent. The only sound to be heard was Shade wiping the bold Vaporeon's saliva out of his eyes. When he finished, he gave her a look so filled with rage that it made even her shrink back. "You bitch!" he screamed, and a loud smack was heard by the two hiding Jolteons, followed by the sound of Angel hitting the ground and quiet crying. "I'll show you who's in charge!" he shouted, still in his venomous rage, and gave her a solid kick to the side while she was down. Hearing that, Sparky snapped.

"Not my daughter, you sorry piece of shit!" She bellowed, then sprang from her hiding spot and charged at the stunned Umbreon. Flames steeled her nerves and gave a savage war cry, then sprang from behind the rock as well, springing toward the Umbreon directly behind Sparky. Without thinking, Angel swiped her tail forward, knocking the Umbreon's feet out from under him. Before he even collapsed Sparky was upon him, and his rage had been nothing compared to the fury of the mother Jolteon. She tackled him to the ground just as Flames arrived, and quickly slapped her paws on his head and let the voltage of a Thunder Wave flow into him, paralyzing him instantly. Shade looked up final time at Sparky, his eyes wide, before she plunged her claws into his neck. Shade's mouth opened and blood quickly began to flow out, staining the snow crimson. She held him there until his eyes rolled back and his body fell, freed from the paralysis, and he was dead.

Sparky retracted her claws to see that all of the Mightyenas and the recruits, save Angel, had ran away in fear of their lives. Angel was trying not to look, and Flames couldn't take her eyes off Sparky. She hadn't been expecting to see someone die, and almost wanted to run away too, but remembered her mission for Jolt, and held her ground. Sparky got up off the corpse and cleaned her paws and claws of blood in the snow, then knelt down and embraced Angel. "M-Mommy!" Angel wailed, letting her tears flow unchecked. "I was so scared!" Sparky began to run her paw over the bawling Vaporeon's head fins, attempting to soothe her. "It's alright honey, I know you are. You acted so bravely against him, and I'm proud of you…" she whispered, holding her daughter close until she began to calm down. "You're safe now, mommy's here…" she whispered in Angel's ear, and at last she stopped crying. Flames' heart sank as she realized that Jolt was Angel's father, and Sparky was her mother. However, as the two stood, she pushed those feelings down and put on a happy face. "Let's go kick Marlin's ass," Sparky said, and Flames nodded in agreement.

Jolt peeked out from behind the tree he was using as a hiding spot. Nearby, he heard the sounds of intense fighting, and could guess that both sides were in a desperate struggle for victory with their dwindling remaining forces. Directly in front of him was Marlin, the one responsible for ordering his little girl to be kidnapped. Marlin nodded to those around him, and the Pokémon all took many steps away from him. It was relatively crowded were they were, but Jolt was still able to hear the Mightyena when he spoke. "So, I guess you've come to finish what was started all those months ago?" he asked, causing several confused glances from those around him. Jolt only chuckled, and stepped out from his hiding spot. "I've come to end you, yes." Marlin smirked, and bade those nearest him to give them more room. "A Pokémon of your ability could have been so useful. It's truly a shame. Now, without further adieu, shall we begin?"