The next morning, we got up early so that we could start for Mistralton. We enjoyed a small breakfast and tried to find any excuse possible to stay in our cozy home away from home, which I had dubbed a Hidden Hollow. Failing to find any excuse to speak of, I recalled everyone except Lola and left the safety of my Hidden Hollow.
Lola and I trekked through the wet grass, enjoying the smell of the forest and the sounds of the bubbling creek, perfectly at ease. I don't know why, but I always liked places like this. There was something romantic about the forest.
'I like it here. Most of my old pack would hate it because of how bright it is, but aside from not knowing where the creek is, this is just my style.' Lola said as we crossed a bridge.
"Oh really? That reminds me, Lola, what were you guys doing on Route 19? If you guys like caves so much, what brought you all the way out there?" I asked. Lola made a small sound that I could not identify as she butted her head against my leg.
'Something happened to our old home. We used to live in a big mountain on what you refer to as Victory Road, but one day it started shaking. It was horrible, awful shaking, and we were very confused. Terrakion, who lived in the mountain with us, helped us get out safely, but our home was destroyed.' She told me. I frowned and reached down to pet Lola, scratching her fuzz.
"What happened? Do you know?" I asked. She shook her head and kept walking.
'All Terrakion said was that it was the humans fault. He said their machines destroyed the mountain on the Route 10 side. We started looking for a new home after that.' She said, sighing softly. I frowned and stopped walking, bending down to hug her.
"Well, at least you made it to a place where I could find you. I know I'm not a dark, damp cave, but I'm just as good right?" I asked, tightening my grip. Lola laughed and craned her neck, nuzzling my back.
'No, I think you're better. I'll take you over a smelly cave any day.' She said with a grin. I grinned back at her and stood up, starting forward when I heard the grass rustle. I looked around, but couldn't find anything, but from the way Lola growled I knew there was danger.
"What should we do Lola?" I asked. She continued growling and backed up close to me.
'I have never smelled this before, I do not recognize it. We should hide.' She replied. I nodded and bent down to pick her up, cautiously making my way through the trees with as little noise as possible so she could hear. We made it to a small clearing, with the creek on one side and a tall mountain on the other with a cave inside. I set Lola down and turned to the forest I just came out of, which continued to rustle, and I braced myself for whatever came out.
"Lola, Dragon Pulse!"
"Thorn, use Venoshock!" We cried out at once. The two attacks collided in midair, and when the smoke disappeared, I saw Cory sitting on his Scolipede, both glaring at me and Lola intensely. I let out a sigh of relief and returned the glare as Lola returned to my side.
"What's wrong with you? you scared the crap out of me!" I yelled. Cory snorted as he dismounted Thorn, the two of them walking over to me.
"What's wrong with ME? What's wrong with YOU? You attacked me!" He yelled back.
"Only because you were stalking me! Listen buddy, I've been through a LOT the last few days! I've had my pokemon stolen from me, I've nearly drowned, I've been kidnapped on three different occasions, one of which almost got me raped, and people have been trying to kill me ever since I left Virbank City. So forgive me if I'm a little on edge. What's YOUR excuse?" I snapped, marching towards him without fear. I stood as tall as I could, standing on my tip toes, and got in his face, glaring. Cory glared back and we stayed in uneasy silence after awhile. Finally, Cory sighed and raised his hand, poking my forehead with his index finger and pushing until I was standing on my feet.
"Sorry. Geez, you've had it rough. And you thought I gave you hell in school." He said. I snickered as I walked back to Lola, picking her up and cuddling her.
"Yeah, compared to this I'd prefer your schoolyard smackdowns." I quipped. Cory snorted and turned away, looking at his Scolipede who stared intently at the forest. Thorn did not move as he concentrated on something in the trees, and soon Lola was joining him. She growled low in her throat and curled around my arms while Thorn moved closer to Cory.
'We should get into the cave. I smell something that is a LOT like Team Plasma, but strangely something else too.' Lola said. I nodded and stood up, slowly creeping towards the cave.
"Cory, Thorn, Lola wants us to go in the cave, she smells Team Plasma and some other creature out there." I whispered. Cory nodded as he leapt back onto Thorn's back, and the massive bug pokemon walked in reverse, never taking his eyes off the forest. Without warning, Thorn roared and launched a Venoshock in the trees, turning around and running for the cave. Cory leaned towards me and held his hand out, and I grabbed it and let him throw me onto his pokemon while I held onto Lola tightly with one arm.
As we made it into the cave, I heard voices shout at us to stop. There were other voices that barked commands to capture us, and I wasn't keen on letting that happen. I adjusted myself on Thorn so that I was mounted backwards, my back against Cory's and held Lola tightly while she fired her Dragon Pulse balls at Team Plasma. I had to hand it to Cory, he knew how to train a fast pokemon. No matter what they threw at us Thorn was able to dodge skillfully, or flat outrun it. But our luck wasn't going to last forever. Since they couldn't hit us, the grunts did the next best thing. They fired their attacks at the ceiling, and rocks and stalactites came crashing down.
"Oh my god, they ARE trying to kill you!" Cory said in a panicked voice. Thinking quickly, I recalled Lola and landed roughly while Cory recalled Thorn, and we both took out another pokeball.
"Sarah, Protect!"
"Crasher, Iron Defense!" Cory and I yelled. Our pokemon appeared in a flash of light, and they quickly ran over to us while Cory and I dove underneath them. I curled up under Sarah as tightly as I could as her shell bounced on me over and over, withstanding the onslaught of rocks. I closed my eyes tightly and prayed to whoever could hear me to let Sarah be strong enough to protect us both, and it was all I could do to not cry as the world crashed around me.
When everything quieted down, I tried to uncurl, but everywhere I moved I felt rocks. I shook for a minute, scared about being buried alive, but Sarah started to glow softly, and her shell scraped against me as she pounded the wall of rocks in front of us. Little by little, the stones gave way, and soon I was able to crawl out from under Sarah, standing up in a pitch black room. I turned around and felt for my pokemon until my hand rested on her shell, and I collapsed on top of her, kissing and nuzzling Sarah's shell while I drowned her in gratitude for saving my life. Sarah made strange, gargling sounds that I could only guess were her attempts to comfort me, and in a few minutes I managed to compose myself.
"Cory?" I yelled, trying to find my rival. Even the soft glow of Sarah's Zen Headbutt wasn't enough to give me the light I needed, and it was too risky to try a Dragonbreath when I didn't know where Cory was. I was tempted to call out Sorrel, but I didn't know how big the space was and decided not to risk potentially crushing him, and me, in a small room. Suddenly, I heard a rumbling, and made to hide under Sarah again in case more rocks started to fall, but my fears were unfounded as a small explosion sounded. Some of the rocks banged against me, but I didn't care once I heard the sound of stone scraping stone and someone dusting themselves off.
"Vixy? You okay?" I heard Cory's voice ring out. I heaved a huge sigh of relief as I stood up, reaching out a hand and groping blindly in the dark.
"Yeah I'm fine. I'm trying to find you, grab my hand if you can." I said. We heard the soft popping sounds of our hands "clapping" while we tried to find each other, and after awhile, we managed to get ahold of each other. I clung to Cory's hand for dear life as I tried to make out anything in the darkness of the cave, and I flew into him when I felt something strange brush against me.
"ACK!" I yelped.
"Easy, it's just Crasher, my Boldore." Cory said gruffly, pushing me off him but still keeping our hands locked. We stood in awkward silence for a moment until I remembered something, shifting my bag.
"Crasher, can you come here?" I asked. Cory made a confused noise as the Boldore wedged itself between us, and I let go of Cory's hand to rest it on him.
"What are you doing?" Cory asked.
"Our Lanterns! Get yours out Cory. We'll use your Boldore as a guide to turn them on." I said. Cory made a shocked noise as a soft padding sound came from in front of me, and I assumed he had sat down to look through his own bag. After a bit of digging, I pulled out my Shinx figure and turned it so that I could feel its tail was facing away from me, and I scooted it along my arm. I felt something bump it, and after a minute of trying to position them correctly, we lined up the tails, and the cave was filled with light.
I was right not to call out Sorrel. Team Plasma had attacked the ceiling enough that rubble lined the entire cave, leaving only a narrow walkway that was barely big enough for us and our pokemon. The entrance to the cave was blocked, and the only way to go was further down. With very little choice, I grabbed Sarah's pokeball from my belt, holding up my end of the lantern with my other arm, and recalled her, putting her pokeball back and grabbing Zorua's. The Sorrel appeared in front of us, bewildered of his surroundings, and he glared at me while Cory recalled his Boldore, calling out Wotter in its place.
"Zorua, don't give me that look. We really need your help now, so will you please just come over here and keep an eye out?" I asked, a hint of pleading leaking into my voice. Zorua snorted for a moment before he leapt up, turning back to normal and climbing up my body until he sat on top of my head. Cory gave me a wicked grin, as though he wanted to make fun of me, but one nasty look was all it took to keep his mouth closed, and we started walking.
I don't know how long we were in there, wandering in the dark except for our Shinx figures, but it felt like forever and I was getting more and more uneasy with every step. I could tell Cory was too, because he didn't complain when I started to slow down from nervousness. Even Zorua didn't try anything and was almost seeking comfort from me.
"Am I the only one feeling like we shouldn't be here?" Cory asked. I gulped and clutched my Shinx figure tightly in my hand, reaching up to pet Zorua with my other.
"Nope. I don't like this, we need to get out." I said. Cory nodded silently as we continued to wander the cave, which started to open up now and would allow us to call on our bigger pokemon if we needed. As we stepped farther, I suddenly stopped and held Cory back while Zorua whined. Wotter grabbed his Scalchops and stood in front of us protectively, and I got closer to Cory.
"What is it?" Cory asked. I pointed forward with a shaky hand.
"L-look." I said. He looked in the direction I pointed and paled when we saw a pair of eyes. They were neither human, nor friendly, and I shook in fear as they assessed me, as if considering how to go about killing me. Cory was just as scared, I could tell, and he gritted his teeth as I walked forward, bowing to the eyes but still keeping my arm elevated to keep the lantern lit.
"H-hello there. My name is Vi-"
"ONNNNNNNN!" It roared, and I squeaked, retreating back and allowing my arm to slip, plunging us into darkness. Cory and I didn't have time to try to find each other again as the pokemon loudly stomped towards us, but my neck flashed as Lola appeared. The flash was only brief, giving me a small glance of the blue pokemon charging towards us, but it all Lola needed to snarl. I heard something thud and skid, followed by Lola roaring and snarling while Zorua tumbled off my head, retreating into my arms instead as a strange voice entered my mind with a boom.
'WHY DID YOU DESTROY MY HOME!?' The voice said as I fell to my knees, crying out in pain. Lola growled again, joined by Wotter while a hand found its way to my back, and I assumed it was Cory.
"We didn't mean any harm! Please, let us explain ourselves!" I begged. The three pokemon continued to growl while Zorua quaked in my arms, sobbing silently. I did my best to comfort him as the growling quieted down, and something brushed against my legs. I reached out and felt scaly hide, and it started to warble, and I recognized Lola's voice. I stretched my arm further up her body until I felt her down, and I curled my fingers in it, drawing comfort while the voice from before returned, albeit softer.
'I suppose I cannot say I stand for justice when I am not willing to hear both sides of the story. Very well human, explain yourself, but choose your words carefully or you will be destroyed.' It said while Lola snorted in amusement.
'Over my dead body, you overgrown Stantler.' Lola said in an annoyed tone. The pokemon growled in response, and I whimpered, but I felt Cory's hand bunch up my jacket in his fist.
"Get ahold of yourself. If you're gonna talk to it then talk to it, just don't say anything to get us killed, you idiot." He growled. I wanted to punch him, but I had something more important to do, and in a way he was encouraging me so I could forgive him.
"We were just trying to get to Chargestone cave so we could get to Mistralton City and earn our next badge, but Team Plasma-" I started when the pokemon roared again.
'Do not lie to me! Team Plasma is gone! Reshiram obliterated them some time ago!' It yelled in my head, and I gritted my teeth against the pain.
"I'm NOT lying! And Reshiram didn't destroy Team Plasma, it and Carina defeated Zekrom and N and N DISBANDED Team Plasma, but they've regrouped and are at it again! And for some reason they are trying to kill me and anyone associated with me! We ran in here to try and escape them and they decided to blow up the cave to try and kill us! I don't know who you are and why you hate me so much, but please, I just want to get out of here and go to Mistralton City!" I said, screaming the last part as I tried to keep ahold of my sanity. Why was EVERYTHING trying to kill me? What did I do that pissed off so many people and pokemon? I was losing it, and Lola warbled and butted my hand with her head, trying her best to fill my mind with comforting thoughts and affection. I heard something stomp towards us, but it was not an aggressive stomp this time. A blue pillar of light emerged in front of us, and Cory and I gasped at the pokemon that stood before us. It looked down at us with stern eyes and tight lips, and I gulped as I bowed to it, smacking Cory until he followed my lead.
'I am Cobalion, leader of the Swords of Justice and protector of pokemon.' It said with a mixture of pride and warning. I gulped and held Zorua out to Cory, who took the little fox while I petted Lola.
"I-I am Vixen, a trainer from Aspertia City and an Apprentice of the Elite 4." I replied, hoping to please it with the same amount of formality. Cobalion said nothing as it craned its neck until it was inches away from my face. Lola growled and leaned closer to me, and though Cobalion growled at her she did not move away. It ignored her and turned back to me. Angry, judgmental eyes met frightened, submissive ones, and after what seemed like forever, Cobalion snorted at me, raising his head.
'Very well. Dry your tears and swallow your fear. If what you say is true, then you have nothing to fear from me. I will believe your story for now and as a show of faith, I will personally guide you to the place you call Mistralton City. Follow me.' It said, walking past us and waiting for us to stand up and follow. I gulped and tried to stand up, though my legs refused to cooperate while Cory uneasily got up, and I whimpered while I hugged Lola, who cooed at me to try and make me feel better.
'Just relax Vixen, it's going to be alright.' Lola said softly, trying to reassure me.
'Easy for you to say. Lola, that is the LEADER of the Swords of Justice! The incarnate of hatred against humans! It's just dying to skewer me with that horn, I just know it!'' I said, gulping. Cobalion snorted and stomped its foot impatiently while Cory tried to grab my arm.
"Come on Vixen, get up!" He pleaded. Lola snapped at Cory to make him let go as she returned to comforting me.
'It will have to get through me, Sorrel, Sarah, Zachary and Zorua first. It's especially screwed if Sorrel comes out here, Cobalion is weak to fire.' Lola said, grinning mischievously as she started for my belt. I pushed her head away when I realized what she was about to do, and I looked at Cobalion nervously.
"S-sorry, my legs are still recovering from my last near-death experience, may I ask one of my pokemon to help me?" I asked. Cobalion looked at me sternly before it nodded.
'Fine, but it will carry you out of its own free will, you will not demand it.' It replied. I nodded and fumbled with the pokeballs only belt until I grabbed Zachary's, and I threw the ball. Unfortunately, he also turned into Sorrel and I gasped, fearing this would anger Cobalion, who indeed began to growl. Luckily, Zachary caught on quickly and flipped, returning to Zoroark form and growling at Cobalion while he stood in front of my protectively. Without taking his eyes off his enemy, Zachary backed up until he was next to me and picked me up gently, holding me against his chest while I hugged him tightly, burying my face in his fur. He started to purr, more to comfort me than anything, as he started forward.
I couldn't see anything because Zachary held my face against his chest, but I knew what was going on thanks to Lola. Cobalion was leading us back to the entrance of Mistralton Cave. Lola, Wotter and Zachary had taken up guard positions, standing between us and Cobalion. Lola was directly behind Cobalion, with Wotter behind her, and Zachary brought up the rear, holding me in his arms while Cory and Zorua clung to his back. Lola said Cobalion seemed confused, but when I managed to peel my face off Zachary's fur, I couldn't see any sort of distress in Cobalion's stoic expression. Even when it swung its sword to clear away rubble, it remained impassive. I gulped audibly as I looked up at Cory, who seemed just as freaked out as I was.
"Vixen…what's it going to do to us?" He whispered.
"I don't know. Lola says that she and the rest of the pokemon won't allow it to hurt us…" I said uneasily.
"But Vixen, that's COBALION, the top dog of the Musketeers! It eats people like us for breakfast!" He continued, becoming more and more frantic.
'Actually, I prefer Pecha berries. Though I don't mind the occasional carrion.' Cobalion said, making me shudder. Cory looked confused and he gave me a funny look.
"Huh?" He asked.
"Basically it said it eats dead things." I translated.
"Ew." He said quietly. Cobalion made a strange sound that resembled a chuckle an awful lot, but it made no other interactions with us as it continued to clear away rubble, and Zachary tightened his grip on me, murmuring in my ear.
'Don't worry Vixen, we'll protect you, and Zachary won't let you go until he's sure you're out of harms way.' Lola translated. I looked up at Zachary and gave him a warm smile, leaning against him again and letting out a shuddery breath. I was finally able to relax knowing that Cobalion really meant it when it said it would not hurt us, and I felt my legs coming back, though I had no intention of leaving Zachary's arms even as we came out of the cave. Cobalion continued to stomp proudly through Route 6, coming to a stop when we heard something behind us. Looking back, I saw Rood slowly trudge up to meet us, and he bowed low to Cobalion as Zachary put me and Cory down.
"Cobalion, what a pleasant, yet upsetting surprise." He said, sighing sadly. Cobalion tilted its head ever so slightly at Rood's choice of words, narrowing its eyes.
'Why does my presence upset you?' It asked. Rood looked up suddenly and shook his head at the pokemon.
"You are a noble creature Cobalion, your presence in the open can only mean that there is trouble. I am saddened to realize that Ghetsis's ambition and malice has spread so much to affect you." He replied.
'Who is Ghetsis?' Cobalion asked.
"He is the leader of Team Plasma, the one who seeks to control pokemon and use them to rule the world." He answered. Cobalion growled and started to glare at me, but this time I swallowed my fear and returned the gaze with a hardened one of my own.
"I don't know him anymore than you do, but I know enough to know he needs to be stopped, and I am going to goddamn do just that. If you want to kill me, fine, but wait until I'm done with him FIRST. It's in your best interest to let me go, since apparently my living is the only thing stopping him from going through with his plans. Seeing as how Team Plasma follows me everywhere I go and is constantly threatening my life." I said, staring at Cobalion defiantly. We stared at each other firmly, neither side backing down, while Rood and Cory looked on in astonishment. Finally, Cobalion broke first, grinning at me.
'Very well, then I will entrust you with the task of stopping this, Ghetsis. I can see you are different from humans I am used to seeing, so I will allow you my assistance. I will still guide you through Chargestone Cave, but after that, I will take my leave. I will inform my companions of you and your quest, and instruct them to seek you out and help you when you need it.' It told me, holding its head high. I grinned at Cobalion and bowed while Cory and Rood followed suit. With my confidence back and my resolve hardened, I leapt onto Zachary's back, recalling Lola while Cory called out Thorn, still holding Zorua. Rood bid us goodbye as we followed Cobalion through Route 6. As we made our way into Chargestone cave, I gripped Zachary's mane tightly as I tried to quell my excitement about earning not only the trust of one of THE most dangerous pokemon in the region, but it's support as well. So now I have the Gym Leaders, the Elite 4, BOTH Champions, The Hero of Truth, Reshiram, and the Musketeers on my side. This only meant one thing.
Team Plasma just got screwed.
TBC
TWO near-death experiences in one chapter? What blasphemy is this? And geez, Vixen's got herself a little army here XD It makes the army you get in Black and White look like a little girl's tea party. And I'm not exaggerating at all here. You really DO get all that support in Black/White 2, though you get it indirectly from the pokemon league. You can encounter Marshal at Twist Mountain and Alder in Floccesy, and Iris in Castelia, but the rest of the league is like "Meh, you got this". Lazy bastards.
So if you hadn't noticed, there was a poll on my profile. After doing a LOT of thinking, I've decided that I am going to bite the bullet and I am bumping up Vixen's age. She is now 15 instead of 10. The poll was asking if she should get bumped up and by how much, and people voted for her going up 5 years. There are many reasons why I am doing this:
1. She is acting a LOT like a clever teen, she's wise beyond her years even at 15, at 10 she's a genius. I will not have a 10-year-old genius in my underdog story. She's matured even more than I thought she would when I first stated I WASN'T going to change her age.
2. Her attitude is more like a hormonal mid-teen girl than a prepubescent. You could fit this with 1 if you wanted.
3. I intend on pairing her up, even though I promised myself I wouldn't. It won't turn into a romance story, but there will be some lovin.