The night was quiet asides from the reliable sound of Nincada humming under the stars. Outside of Saffron City, the four teens had made camp along Route 7 with the last minute supplies Yellow had on hand from the villa.
Green sat next to Red on the grass, wrapping bandages around the boy's arm and bare torso. Sitting across on a log with Jigglypuff between her knees, Blue poked at the roaring fire between them with a stick. Away from the group, Yellow spoke in a low voice into her hacked Pokégear to Blaine, getting as much information as possible on the status of the Underground.
Green tightened the wrapping around Red's arm, earning himself a low hiss from his best friend.
"That was so nice of you to get yourself nearly killed a few days before the syzygy," Green smiled venomously as he tightened the bandage again a little too securely. "You're no good to the human race if you're dead, Red."
Red frowned, turning back to the crackling fire. On his shoulder, Pichu snored lightly. The electric-type was still exhausted from Red's battle with N, having used up nearly all its stamina. Not even the loud cracking of the fire or Jigglypuff's constantly squeaking to cheer up its trainer would awaken the sleeping Pokémon. From the corner of his eye, he saw Yellow return to the camp fire, Pokégear snapped close.
"Well?" Green asked as he tied the last of Red's bandages and turned to the blonde. "What's the situation?"
"There were a lot of injuries, but luckily no casualties on our side," Yellow explained, taking a seat next to Blue on the log before turning to Red. "Your mother has Vileplume. She's sent it to stay with Leader Erika for the time being."
"Thank god," he said under his breath, earning himself a soft shoulder squeeze from Green. "So she's okay? My aunts, too?"
"Yes, they're all fine," she continued. "Leader Blaine said they've scattered from the island, most heading back to their own towns, but Leader Blaine, Janine, Daisy and Misty are in Johto."
"And they didn't specify where?" Green asked earning himself a headshake.
"Probably because they want us to focus on getting to Ecruteak City in time for the syzygy," Red said, cracking his neck before leaning back on his hands. "What about Plasma?"
Yellow's eyes fell to the fire, swallowing hard.
"After we left, Ghetsis took N and ordered the rest of the grunts to retreat. Leader Blaine said that Ghetsis didn't want to waste anymore men on fruitless battles," she said, voice even. "However...Ghetsis executed the Sages that were captured by the Underground in front of everyone before they left. He said it was to make an example of them to the grunts as they followed us."
"Holy shit," Green exclaimed, running his hands through his hair. "This guy is not screwing around."
"No he's not," Red said, turning to Blue for the first time the entire conversation. "Do you see what I mean now, huh? These guys are fucking monsters."
Blue remained quiet, her hair covering her eyes as the light from the fire pit flashed across her cheeks. Jigglypuff squirmed into her lap from the grass, instantly frowning at Red for being so rude to its trainer, though the teen couldn't care less.
"Ketchum…" Yellow warned, turning to the boy but was ignored.
"N is just like them too, Blue," Red fought, ignoring the way the girl flinched at the name. "Do you still think we can magically work together? That we'll all just hold hands on top of the Bell Tower and bring peace to the world?"
When she continued to ignore him, Red lost it. Placing Pichu in Green's lap, the teen rushed to the girl's side, pulling her up by the arm so forcefully that Jigglypuff fell into Yellow's hold with a squeak. Shocked, she turned her him, her blue eyes glistening with unshed tears.
"What do you want me to do?!" she shouted back, tears threatening to cascade down her face. "You want me to apologize, Red? You want me to pretend I feel bad for reaching out to the only other person who understands what we're going through?!"
"He doesn't understand!" Red hissed, his grip tightening on Blue's arm. "He wants power and we want peace!"
"Blue," Green broke in, his calming voice grounding both teens in their fight. "Even if it is mostly Ghetsis, N is still their King. His hands aren't as clean as you may want to believe."
A heavy silence fell between them all, the crackling of the fire seeming louder than usual.
"You can't understand what it's like to have so much blood on your hands…" Blue said softly, looking up to hold Red's stare as the tears finally fell.
"What are you talking about?"
"Think of all the people who had to die over the Conduits - over us - Max and May Maple, Green's Mother...my parents…" she swallowed hard, holding back the sob that threatened to escape. "I can't keep fighting for peace with so many lives already lost and more on the line. I can't kill anyone else, no matter what side they're on. I don't want anyone else to die because of me and N understood that."
"Yeah, so much that his father killed his own followers and N nearly threw me off a cliff," Red scoffed, releasing his hold of Blue and shaking his head.
"That's his father! How many times do I have to tell you that's not him?!"
"Death is part of war, Blue, and this is war." Red said, his eyes intense as he stuck his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "So why don't you up and say what this is all really about?"
Blue paused for a beat, "What are you saying?"
"It's N," he said bluntly, the light from the campfire flickering on his face and shoulders gravely. "You feel bad for him, especially since he's obviously in love with yo-"
Red's words were ripped from his mouth as Blue's slap broke against the skin of his face, echoing loudly against the darkness. Turning back slowly, his eyes met her to see the tears now streaming down her face at full-force, though her expression was fierce.
"How dare you discard life like we're all just pawns on a chessboard," she hissed, turning scarlet and for a moment Red thought she was going to slap him again. Instead, she turned on her heel marching towards her tent. "And how dare you question how I feel about you after all this time."
"I didn't say that, I said-"
"DAMN IT, RED! WHAT ELSE DO I HAVE TO DO FOR YOU TO GET THAT I LOVE YOU?!" Blue screamed, angry tears running down her face as she bolted to her tent at a full-sprint.
Red stood, dumbstruck as Jigglypuff jumped from Yellow's lap. Hurrying to follow its trainer, the Pokémon turned to Red, kicking the teen in the shin before running into Blue's tent.
Gary and Ash climbed the seemingly unsteady rock formation behind the Blackthorn City Gym. After nearly rolling his ankle three times, Gary concluded that he was getting too old for this line of work.
"Next time you want to invite me on one of your adventures, Ashy-boy," Gary said after nearly slipping over another loose rock and falling into the water below. "Don't."
Ash ignored him, jumping from the edge of the cliff to what appeared to be another rocky wall. Following behind, Gary looked at the wall incredulously.
"So what's this now?"
"The Dragon's Den," Ash said, pulling Charizard's ball from his belt. "Blackthorn has been the home for clan masters of Dragon-type Pokémon for generations. The masters built the den in a cavern with an underground lake that contains a shrine to Dragon Pokémon."
"And Lance is part of this clan?"
"He's the master," Ash said with a knowing smile. "If you were worried about the world ending, wouldn't you rather be home?"
Both men stood back as Charizard began powering up before hitting the wall with a Dragon Pulse attack. Instantly, the wall lowered to the ground with a crash, revealing the cave inside. Walking in behind Ash, Gary watched as Pikachu's cheeks sparkled and created a light in the darkness. Looking around on the walls, he noted the scrawling cave art of Dragon Pokémon and their trainers.
"Any chance we'll find Clair in here, too?" Gary asked as they headed down a long stone stairway. "Since she wasn't at the Gym, she could be hanging with Lan-OMPH!"
The chestnut-haired man groaned after walking into his friend's back. Rubbing his chest with a frown, he turned to Ash annoyed.
"Hey! What's the big idea just stopping like that?" he demanded before looking over Ash's shoulder at the scene before him. "Aw, shit!"
At the bottom of the steps was a large platform where Lance was standing, his cape discarded and his eyes crazed. In front of him stood his Gyarados, wrapped around Clair who was seemingly struggling for air. Aside, laying motionless were her fallen Dragonair and Kingdra.
Both men pressed themselves flat against the cavern walls, with Charizard hunching low in the darkness behind and Pikachu climbing inside Ash's jacket as they watched the scene before them.
"Did you think you were clever, cousin?" Lance grinned as the woman struggled against Gyarados' grip. "Attempting to overrule me as Clan Master by telling the elders that I was...hmm...what was it?"
Clair didn't respond, her blue hair flailing in front of her eyes as she fought against the hold. A squeeze by Gyarados let out an anguished cry that sent Gary's running blood cold.
"You're...you're insane!" she coughed, looking at Lance through her hair as she gasped between the words. "You've been tainted by Ghetsis' madness and have turned into a monster!"
"Monster?" Lance echoed, as the sound of Clair's ribs crushing against Gyarados' scales rang through the den. "You've always been foolish, Clair, but I never thought you'd be so disrespectful. I am the Champion of the Indigo League, the head of the Blackthorn Dragon Clan and the rightful leader of both the Kanto and Johto regions!"
Lance made eye contact with his Gyarados, and with a thump it dropped Clair to the ground. Jumping into the water around the platform, Gyarados long tail splashed loudly. Gasping between coughs, the woman tried to sit up, hissing against her injuries. With heavy footsteps, Lance made his way in front of her, grabbing her by the jacket so she was facing him.
"Ghetsis didn't taint me, cousin," he grinned. "Who do you think told him about the Conduits in the first place?"
Shocked, Gary and Ash exchanged looks of horror before turning back to the dragon-trainers.
"No….why…" Clair shook her head. "You've unleashed hell on both our regions!"
"Not hell," he tapped her nose before throwing her on the ground. "Control. Imagine a world where every region is connected? Where mankind controls the power of Pokémon!"
Across from him on the wall, Gary watched as Ash gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning white as he clenched his fist tightly.
"Ash, calm down!" Gary whispered harshly. "Don't do anything stupid!"
Ash's eyes remained on the scene, intensity brewing within its dark depths
"Ghetsis will kill you," Clair gasped, eyeing as Gyarados reared its head from beneath the water, its eyes glowing red. "There's no way he vacant power so easily."
"I don't care about Ghetsis, public opinion will take him out themselves," Lance explained as Gyarados slithered onto to the platform, making its way back to Clair. "Those children are all in over their heads, and once the syzygy goes awry and Ghetsis falls, who else will the nation turn to for stability by their beloved Champion?"
Clair fell forward, coughing bloodily as Gyarados slowly re-captured its prey. Lance sighed loudly, walking towards his cloak to toss it over his shoulder.
In the corner of his eye, Gary saw Ash reach behind his back, making a hand motion towards Charizard.
"Damn it, Ash!" he hissed, grabbing the man's arm in his own. "You'll destroy any chance we have on sleath if you just run and gun in there!"
"I thought you'd known by now," Ash said as he turned to Gary, their eyes meeting in the darkness. "That was my plan all along."
"It's a shame you went behind my back, cousin. Now I have to go explain how it was you who had fallen into madness, wretched with so much anguish of never being the leader that you drowned yourself in the Dragon's Den." Lance said with a sinister smile. "Luckily, you were never known for your patience."
"NOW CHARIZARD!" Ash shouted, and the fire-typed roared through the entrance, breaking through the rocks and towards the platform. With a mega punch, Charizard knocked Lance's Gyarados back into the water with a large splash. Calling his Dragonite, Lance lifted himself up and away from the water.
Running out to the platform, Gary pulled Aerodactyl's ball from his waist and flew up to chase the Champion. On the ground, Ash's shoes skidded along the water as he made his way to Clair's side, gathering her up in his arms.
"As I live and breathe," Clair gasped, blood still dripping from her lips. "If it isn't the long lost Ash Ketchum who's come to save the day again."
"Don't talk, you gotta save your strength," Ash ordered, whistling as Charizard flew to his side and he lifted the blue-haired woman to its back. "Charizard, take Clair to the Blackthorn City hospital!"
"Hospital?" she questioned, turning to the dark-haired man with unfocused eyes. "What about you?"
"I gotta go play hero," he smiled, patting Charizard's back as the fire-type lifted Clair up and out of the den with a roar.
"Pika pi!" squeaked Pikachu from his jacket and Ash looked up to see Lance's Gyarados rising up from the water.
"Damn it," Ash groaned, pulling Snorlax's ball from his belt as he ran backwards. The large normal-type emerged from its ball with a yawn, instantly blocking Gyarados bite attack with a mega punch. Looking up, Ash saw Gary's Aerodactyl and Lance's Dragonite brawl it out in the air, causing large clumps of rocks and boulders to fall into the water below.
"You insistent fool!" Lance called as Gary avoided another hyper beam attack, knocking over what appeared to be a serious sculpture of a Dragonair into the water below. "You're destroying this sacred cavern!"
"Says that guy who just blasted off half the shrine!" Gary scoffed quickly, before gasping when Lance's Dragonite dodged Aerodactyl's charge, punching it in the face and sending him back reeling. "AUGH!"
"You know, Oak," Lance said as Aerodactyl regained its bearings. "I never liked you."
"Yeah?" Gary laughed humorlessly as he charged again. "Well take a number!"
Aerodactyl screeched as it nailed Dragonite with a headbutt, sending it hurling towards the wall. However, it was a strong flier and able to regain its composure in time to charge up a Dragon Pulse attack. Stuck within such a small space, Gary felt panic rise up his chest as he attempted to avoid the Dragonite.
"I've notice you're still wearing your wedding ring, Oak," Lance grinned as Gary turned to him, eyes wide. "Say hello to Jasmine for me, she was always such a delight."
"TELL HER YOURSELF, ASSHOLE!" Gary screamed, turning Aerodactyl in his rage as they flew towards Dragonite's radiating form. Lance shook his head as he chuckled.
"Still such a hot-headed fool," he sighed, patting Dragonite's back as a sign to release its attack.
The dragon cried loudly as something from below them hit it from behind, and it took Lance a moment to realize it was an ice beam attack. Falling backwards into the rocky wall, Lance grunted loudly as his shoulder hit the rocky blounders. Groaning, Lanced looked down to see where the attack came from, knowing that it couldn't have been from Gary's Aerodactyl. His eyes narrowed when he saw the familiar figure of Ash Ketchum in the water on the back of a Starmie.
"How careless of me to forget about you, Ketchum," he groaned as he peeled himself from the rock. "After all these years, I was getting used to not thinking about you."
Ash didn't respond, not one to be baited by banter like Gary. Quickly, Starmie was back on the offense, sending a series of ice beams up at Lance's Dragonite that he was forced to dodge while avoiding swipes from Gary's Aerodactyl.
When one of Aerodactyl's hyper beams hit too close for comfort, Lance knew it was time to end this. Eyes narrowed, he pulled out the whistle around his neck. He blew it once and two Gyarados rose from the water.
"Gyarados, take them down," Lance boomed before charging towards Gary's Aerodactyl, pinning the Pokémon to the wall.
Ash cursed under his breath, ordering Misty's Starmie to hurry along the water, shooting beams of ice at the two water dragons. On the podium, Snorlax was a sitting duck given he was useless in the water. Thinking quickly, Ash had Starmie reverse, swimming backwards as it motioned as if to shoot another beam at the dragons. However, they were instead met with a water gun attack. Taken aback, the Gyarados paused, giving Ash enough time to unzip his bomber jacket.
"You're up, Pikachu," he said as the tiny electric mouse popped its head up with newfound determination. "Show 'em what you got!"
Pikachu's thunderbolt ripped through the water's current, instantly shocking the pair of Gyarados into submission. While dazed, Starmie sent the finishing blow in its ice beam attack, sending them falling backwards into the water with a huge wave that sent both Ash and Starmie back to the platform.
"Nice job, pal," Ash smiled, returning Snorlax to its ball and scratching Pikachu behind the ears. He heard Aerodactyl's screech rip through the air painfully. Before Ash could look up, he felt the large dragon crash onto the platform, it's trainer trapped beneath it.
"Gary!" the dark-haired man shouted, instantly running to pull his friend from beneath Aerodactyl's wing. With a groan, Gary swung his arm over Ash's shoulder, using his other hand to return his Pokémon to its ball.
Lance laughed from above them and with another shrill blow, three new Gyarados arose from the water. Frowning, Ash knew a losing battle when he saw one. Adjusting Gary on his shoulder, he hurried on the back of Starmie, surfing around the Gyarados skillfully before finding a hole within the rocky wall of the cavern. Squeezing inside, he jumped off the water-type's back to lean Gary against the inner wall.
"My arm's wrecked," the chestnut-haired man groaned, leaning his head back. "I also probably broke a few ribs when that asshole threw me into the wall."
Ash remained quiet, his eyes on the tiny entrance of their hole as water sloshed in and out with the Gyarados swimming. Outside, he heard Lance calling for them.
"He told us too much," Ash said, his voice even. "If we keep battling him, he's going to kill us."
"So what are we supposed to do?" Gary asked, wincing as he sat up. "We can't escape like this."
There was a heavy silence, instantly striking a cord of nostalgia in Gary's mind. It was the quiet of when Ash had an answer, but couldn't say it out loud. The silence that since they were kids, Gary was able to fill with whatever crazy plan was churning in Ash Ketchum's mind. It was the same silence that told Gary that he was going to go after the Conduits himself.
Looking over his shoulder, Gary met the look of his best friend. On his face was the simple, goofy smile that couldn't mask the pain that swirled beneath the depth in his eyes. Instantly, Gary understood what their only next steps were and he pulled himself up to his feet slowly.
Unzipping his jacket, Pikachu jumped from Ash's chest with practiced skill. Confused, Pikachu squeaked as Gary directed Ash to pull a handkerchief from his jacket as well as a pen and paper. With widening eyes, the electric mouse watched as his trainer scribbled a note on the paper and gathered their Poké Balls inside, the napkin tying it as a makeshift knapsack before turning to Pikachu. As Ash kneeled to be at his eye-level, the tiny Pokémon's eyes welled with tears.
"Pi...pika pi?"
"I need you to ride on the back of Starmie and get out of here, okay Pikachu?" Ash ordered as he tied the handkerchief around its tiny shoulders securely. "Charizard should be at the Blackthorn City hospital with Clair. Meet up with him, ok?"
Shaking its head, Pikachu's tears fell as he nuzzled into Ash's chest. Its squeaks were drowned out by the clashing of waves outside the hole as the Gyarados grew impatient.
"I know...but you're my Pokémon and you still gotta do what I say," Ash smiled kindly, pulling Pikachu away and poking its nose affectionately. "There's a note in the bag that will tell someone to bring you guys to the Cerulean Gym. It may be in shambles now, but Misty can take good care of you guys and she'd kill me if I didn't return Starmie."
"Pika pi!" the mouse cried and Ash swallowed hard, hugging the electric-type before forcing it on Starmie's back. "PIKA PI!"
"Go through the back," Ash ordered and Starmie nodded, zipping around and taking Pikachu out of the cavern, its heart shattering squeaks echoing against the rocks. With a heavy sigh, Ash adjusted his hat and turned to see Gary pushed himself off the wall.
"God this sucks," Gary groaned as he looped his good arm over Ash's shoulder. "Y'know, this is my first time without a Pokémon since we were kids. I feel naked."
"It's safer this way," Ash said, walking slowly to the hole towards the Gyarados. "Who knows what Plasma will do to them."
"Considering they want a future that's free of humans and idyllic for Pokémon, probably something better than what they're about to do to us."
"In all fairness, you were a total asshole to them this entire time," Ash quipped and Gary couldn't help but laugh. "And we did blow up Rocket Enterprise."
"Ah, we most certainly did," Gary grinned, turning to his friend as they exited the cave, water sloshing at their ankles. "Ain't nobody else I rather have done it all than with you, Ashy-boy."
"Ditto," Ash smiled, before both men separated and surrendered to Lance.
"MOVE! MOVE! MOVE, PEOPLE!" Yellow barked as the four teens sprinted through the Saffron City Station.
"We're moving!" Red fought, jumping over a mother and child's suitcases as they raced to reach their track on time. "Stop yelling at us and maybe take it out on the guy who's responsible!"
"I said sorry!" Green whined, frowning at his friend. "I forgot Yellow hacked our PokéDex to change our names and I'm a terrible liar!"
"Yeah, no kidding!" the dark-haired teen grumbled as they slowed down near their gate, waiting for the door to open so they could descend onto the platform. Turning over his shoulder, he made eye-contact with Blue. "Hey, you okay back there?"
Blue blinked, nodding frantically with a breathy, "Yeah!" before Red turned back to Yellow to argue about something. From the corner of her eye, she saw Green smiling her way and was instantly reminded of their exchange that morning.
She had just finished tossing dirt on the fire-pit when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Spinning around quickly, Blue was surprised to see that it was Green.
"What was that for?" she had asked, incredulously. "Were you trying to make me think there was a bug on my shoulder or something?"
"Ah, no no no!" Green had stammered before rubbing the back of his neck. "I actually...wanted to talk to you about something...um...in private?"
"Oh...yeah, sure," Blue nodded and followed Green to a where a small collection of trees blocked them from the other two. "So...um...what's up?"
"Listen...I know that everything about being a Conduit has been overwhelming for you and I just wanted to say that I don't blame you for what happened to my mom, Blue," Green had said, his emerald eyes filled with sincerity. "I never have."
"Oh Green…" Blue had felt her throat tighten and she had to swallow hard to keep from crying. Sensing this, Green had pulled her into a tight hug.
"You're one of my best friends, okay?" he said and felt Blue nod into his chest. "I'll do whatever it takes to make sure you and Red are safe out there. I don't know what's going to happen, but I just wanted you to know that even though you're a Conduit, you're not the reason for all this violence."
Blue had clenched her teeth, pulling away from Green with a nod. She was nervous that if she opened her mouth a floodgate of tears would follow. He smiled, punching her playfully on the cheek with a smile.
"So you better make sure the syzygy goes off without a hitch, alright?" he had joked, thumbing behind him. "Because you know that hothead is probably going to sabotage this whole thing with his temper."
Blue smiled to herself at the memory, before hearing her name called. Ripped back to the present, she turned to see that the train had already been called and the other three were running ahead to the platform. Rushing to keep up, Blue sprinted after them, jumping between the doors last.
"Woo," she exhaled, turning to Yellow with a smile. "That was close."
"Something's wrong," Yellow said and instantly Blue felt her blood run cold. Turning around, she saw Green and Red's eyes narrow as they looked around the train car.
"Yeah," Green said, looking around. "Isn't it a bit weird that we're the only ones on this train?"
Suddenly, a loud buzzing rang through the train and Red turned around, "HEAD FOR THE DOORS!"
Sprinting, the four teens made a beeline for the exit, only to watch as every door in the train instantly shut. Red swore loudly as he punched the door with a loud ding. No more than a second later, the train chugged out of the station, sending them all flying backwards.
"This is a magnet train," Yellow groaned as she tried to fight against the inertia of the train. "It moves at over 550 kilometers per hour."
"Thank you for reading the pamphlet, Yellow," Red groaned as he fought to stand up. "But where is it going if we're the only passengers?"
"This train only goes between Kanto and Johto, so it's a straight line," Green frowned as he looked out the window. "Whoever is behind this wants us in Johto and wants us alone."
There was a sudden jerk, sending the four of them hurling forward as they landed against the car's seats with a thud as the train began to slow down.
"Um...is it normal for the Magnet Train to slow down?" Blue asked, already knowing the answer.
"Pi!" Pichu squeaked, poking its head from beneath Red's hat to point at the end of the train car.
There was a loud crack and the four teens turned their heads to see three masked men enter the car. Instantly, they recognized them as Team Plasma's Shadow Triad.
"Give us the girl."
"You know, I'm starting to get a bit hurt that you never ask for me," Red quipped as he sent a thunderbolt zipping towards the men. They dodged it easily, though it gave Green and Yellow enough time to pull Golbat and Golem from their balls. Running to Red's side, Blue pulled Jigglypuff from its ball, having the fairy-type sit on her shoulder happily as she pushed a protective barrier before them.
"Golem, roll out!" Yellow ordered as the rock-type rolled towards the men, who quickly summoned three Muk from their own Poké Balls. The three men jumped above their poison-types elegantly, avoiding both Golem and Golbat's attacks as they reached for Blue, hitting the barrier with a sizzle.
"Cool thing about Protect is that it keeps enemies from landing attacks," Red smirked as he pulled back his electrified fists. "But can allow critical hits for the user's team!"
The attack was enough to send three men flying backwards, landing into the disgusting mess of the three Muks. After a few moments of struggling, one of the ninja took a glove-full of Muk's poison, tossing it to the ceiling to quickly create a hole. As wind blew in from the train's motion, the three men used kunais with ropes to quickly escape out through the ceiling.
"Quick!" Green said as he turned around motioned everyone to follow. "We gotta get to the next car before Muk's poison seeps through the train ca-"
Green was cut off by a long blue vine shattering through the window and wrapping itself around his torso and mouth, yanking him backwards to the car behind him.
"GREEN!" Yellow called, turning to grab the boy only to have another vine crash through the window and grab her too. Setting her feet against the ground, she fought against its hold long enough to bark behind her. "GET OUT OF HERE!"
"BUT-"
"NO! GO!"
Blue opened her mouth to continue her protest, but was cut off by Yellow being hauled forward to where Green had been taken. Behind her, Golem and Golbat rushed after their trainers. Red turned to Blue, grabbing her by the hand to run, but quickly realized their feet were stuck. Looking down, he saw that Muk's goop had spread across the car.
"Shit!" Red swore turning to see Blue had taken the initiative and was currently climbing over the car's chairs in an effort to escape the ninja-less train car.
"C'mon!" she said over her shoulder as Jigglypuff made the universal sign for hurry up. "Think of it like when we used to play hot lava in your living room as kids but in real life!"
"Not helping!"
Climbing over the chairs, they had just made it to the door, when they jumped at the small area of the floor that wasn't covered with poison. Noticing that the three Muks were all rapidly sinking into the floor, Blue could tell that they only had a few more seconds before they seeped completely through.
"Use Blastoise's hydro pump power to wash away some of this poison while I open this!" Blue ordered and Red nodded, tapping his starter's ball before clapping his hands together as he powered up the water attack. Quickly, he was bursting water from his fists, spraying away what little poison he could as Blue pulled against the latch with all her might.
"Hurry up!" Red barked as he pushed back what he could of the position to keep it from burning their sneakers. "They're about to cut through the entire-"
The shrill cry of metal screeched through the car as the poison wore down the last bit of the train, causing it to tear along the middle like a burn. The walls, already thinned by the Shadow Triad's escape, split like paper and was holding together by its last strand of iron. The train was about to split into two and if they didn't jump into the next car, they'd be left dangling along the tracks.
There was another screech and Blue was sure it was the car finally giving way until a long iron-clad tail bursted between the cars, breaking through the door entirely and creating a bridge between the broken cars. Shocked, Red and Blue turned to see Green and Yellow quickly running along the mysterious steel bridge. Below them, the Muks fell into the tracks at the car split into two.
"It's Rusty," Green explained, thumbing behind them to reveal the face of the stretched steel-type Pokémon. "I figured a Steelix would be the best way to keep together the decaying car until we can hop over."
"Nice," Red said, fist pumping his friend before turning to Yellow. "Were you guys able to take out whatever those vines were?"
"Yes, we were able to defeat their Tangela," she explained as they made their way towards the newly opened door to the next car on Rusty's back. "Right now, Golem and Golbat are creating a barricade so we can reach the head of the car,"
There was another crash from above as the three masked ninja jumped from the ceiling, landing in the middle of the steel-type's back.
"So much for that barricade," Red groaned as he charged forward, fist glowing with electricity.
"Red! Watch your step!" Blue called as the teen dodged two kicks and punch, barely maintaining balance on the Pokémon he stood upon. "Once misstep and you'll fall into the tracks!"
"Don't worry about me, keep moving!"
Blue watched as Green's Golbat and Yellow's Golem hurried from the car, assisting Red in fighting the mask men. On her shoulder, she felt Jigglypuff nudge her to move as Yellow and Green yelled at her to jump into the next car. Looking down at the floor from beneath the Steelix, she saw that even with the car split down the middle, the Shadow Triad would follow them to any other part of the train. Another yell of her name went ignored as Blue felt the tickle of the passing wind blow through her hair as ran towards the middle of Rusty's ironclad bridge, pushing herself between Red and the Triad.
Instantly, the fighting stopped.
"Blue?" Red gasped. "What are you doing?!"
"I'm not going to allow anyone else to get hurt because of me," she called, standing in front of the Shadow Triad fiercely, "War or no war!"
She grabbed onto Red's still sparkling wrist and he watched the energy get sucked from him like a battery. He felt his muscles fatigue as he instantly felt weaker. Falling back, he stumbled onto the wall of the car, his body pressed up against the broken window of the car. Under his hat, he felt Pichu faint into his hair from exhaustion
"Blue...no..." he groaned, as even opening his mouth to speak was too much. "You'll be...taken."
"I don't care! I'm sick of letting other people die!" she shouted. "Not when it should be my job to protect them!"
Red watched paralyzed as the Shadow Triad sprung forward and Blue's Protect barrier went flying. It was the most powerful one he had seen in all their training, and with a graceful leap backwards from Rusty, she was standing in front of him again. She turned away from her work to look down at him with a smile, her hand resting on his cheek.
"I forget sometimes that I have to be blunt with you."
"S-shut up!" Red blushed, struggling to lift himself up to his feet. Between them, the sound of bending metal was creaking around them as Rusty began to lose its hold. "C'mon, we gotta get rid of these guys to get to Green and Yellow's side and-"
Red's rant was interrupted by Blue pulling him into a kiss, the softness now familiar. Though this time her lips were salty with the taste of tears he didn't realize she was shedding.
"I love you, Red," she whispered against his mouth as the deafening noise of metal breaking tore behind them as Rusty finally lost its hold and the Pokémon retracted like a tape measure, knocking Green and Yellow inside the moving cars. The car tore into two as Blue's shield shattered and the darkness of the Shadow Triad descended upon the Conduits like darkness, their freed train car squeaking to a halt as its other half chugged on to Goldenrod City with their unconscious friends onboard.