Chapter 20: Born to be Free
"Do you really think Qualter was telling the truth when he said we could escape from Unova? He gave us a location and everything, but do you believe we can trust him Arkianna?" Luca asked, both fear and uncertainty plaguing his mind as the sun rose with them. If it wasn't for their recent rest they would've been found and taken into custody, so with that in mind he felt that their options all led to that possibility. Arkianna remained quiet, her eyes scanning the area meticulously for any signs of the authorities. Even just sneaking around the back of the building, she could already see officers on nearly every single street corner, all of them at the ready. She sighed heavily, moving back into the safety of the PPC's building's rear. Luca brought his communicator, which was now updating the map in real time.
"I...think we can trust...them...but...we need too move quickly which...will be difficult…they are everywhere Luca…every corner there is…an officer…" Arkianna growled, her heart beginning to race in her chest. It was slowly becoming a game of Life or Death, which was intensive yet exciting at the same time. Luca groaned as the map updated, now revealing all authorities in the area.
"The map is all red now…that means its going to be next to impossible to not be noticed the whole way…" Luca sighed, slowly shifting his eyes to Arkianna's, which were staring still staring out into the town as she peeked around the corner once more.
"We must move now…we have a small opening…" Arkianna growled coherently, immediately latching her claw around Luca's wrist to drag him across the street. Both of them tread lightly, their eyes like a hawk's as the surveyed and moved. Somehow they managed to make it across the street without any notice, which was going to help tremendously since they were so used to quietly lurking in alleyways, planning and plotting moves like true strategists of war. As they slowly weaved through the alleyways, Arkianna's heart continued to flutter, her feelings clashing with her instincts in a confusing whirlpool of emotion. She was ready to die for Luca, and she knew he was ready to do the same. The stopped at one of the alley exits that led to the main road, the clacking of shoes beginning to trounce up and down the streets.
"Luca…where do...the directions say for…us to go to…arrive at the escape route...?" Arkianna replied, immediately on high alert as she caught sight of an approaching officer. Luca and Arkianna immediately slithered back into the alley and around a corner just to be safe. Although they found themselves in a somewhat safe territory, they could never relax until the land of Unova was officially behind them. Luca began thinking about all of his family and friends and how he had abandoned them all for the psychotic lover known as Arkianna.
"You know Arkianna…I really miss my family and my friends that I once had. The simple life that I could've had has haunted my dreams for the past month…but…I want you to know that I'm going to stay at your side, for as long as I live. I've come to terms that my life as it was is now impossible to return to…so we have to make it Arkianna, there is no choice," Luca's eyes began to drown in tears, his arm constantly swiping them from his face so he could remain vigilant. Arkianna, for the first time in her life, felt her heart ache over something she had caused. Seeing Luca try to smile with tears rolling down his shimmering cheeks made her realize the severity of what she had actually done. Arkianna shook of her uncertainty, immediately pulling Luca into a tight embrace. Luca blushed as he looked into Arkianna's eyes, which were now shimmering as well.
"I'm…sorry…that I took…your life from you…" Arkianna said, a few tears trickling through her fur. Luca immediately leaned forward, tilting his head to kiss her upon her mouth. The moment was frozen in time for as long as their lips were locked, only coming back to life as they parted.
"You went through a lot Arkianna…so many people hurt you, scar'd you, destroyed your heart and ripped any hope you had at such a life away from you. I understand why you did it to me Arkianna…and I have no regrets being at your side. Now tighten up your emotions, I'm going to need you at full attention if we're going to make it through this alive. You have to be the wild, passionate beast that would fight through hell for me, can you do that?" Luca grinned, scrubbing his eyes clean with her fur with his eyes as warm as the sun. Arkianna took a hefty breath, her gaze immediately growing fierce with a row of her teeth being shined to the world.
"There's no turning back now...we must make it!" Arkianna growled confidently, Luca planting a final kiss on her cheek before petting her head.
"Good girl. Now, let's check the communicator," Luca said as he pulled up the map that Qualter had yet again updated. The officers on each corner slowly turned into two on the map as it updated. Arkianna's sharp eyes took a gander down the alley, coordinating their path across the street that matched up with the map.
"Alright…now's our chance…" Arkianna said, signaling for Luca to follow her. Carefully, Arkianna and Luca snuck by the two officers that criss-crossed past the exit, treading on their feet as lightly as they could. Picking up the pace, they moved across, immediately making it to the small cavity of open land that led to the way they arrived in the town originally. As they made it to the other side, unbeknownst to them, Luca's foot stomped into a puddle by mistake, causing him to stagger from its depth. Several officers flinched at the sound, immediately turning towards the source to find the puddle rippling as Luca hopped onward. The clomping sound of boots were like a parade, charging across the street as Luca and Arkianna made it to the wall. As Luca began to scale it, the train of boot stomps stopped, all of their eyes now staring down Luca and Arkianna.
"THERE THEY ARE!" the officer shouted, quickly blowing his whistle as hard as he possibly could. Both Arkianna and Luca flinched from the loud trill of the whistle, both of their hearts now thrashing within their chests. Arkianna clenched her teeth together tightly as she helped shove Luca on top of the wall, leaving Arkianna to stare them down. In the past, the officers would tell them to surrender, but this time around, without warning, they unlatched what appeared to be pistols from their belts. Arkianna's eyes widened as one of the guns fired off, its loud roar tearing through the skies as it planted into the wall at Arkianna's back.
"What was that?!" Arkianna roared, immediately performing her amazing acrobatics to get to the top of the wall. Hopping down, she met up with Luca before both of them taking off at max speed into the woods that lined the edge of the road.
"What the hell was that Arkianna?! It was really loud!" Luca cried out, Arkianna now completely focused on the terrain in front of them.
"They shot…something at me….that put a hole in the wall…" Arkianna barked, Luca now realizing how dire the circumstances had become. He knew well that they wouldn't use firearms on him, but now knowing that they won't hesitate to shoot Arkianna dead caused every inch of his heart to scream.
"They're out to kill you now Arkianna…" Luca said to himself, his heart racing along with his feet. While Arkianna was miraculous at weaving through terrain, Luca couldn't react nearly as quick, causing him to get stuck on things like brush and bushes. Lagging behind, Luca tredged on, the barking sounds of stoutlands now biting at his heels. He picked up his pace to match Arkianna's, but it backfired, causing Luca to hit the dirt. Arkianna turned to see one of them catch a hold of Luca's pant leg, keeping him from crawling off the ground.
"No!" Arkianna yelped as her eyes widened, now glaring murderously at the stoutland. They were now glowing menacingly as she stared, Stoutland began howling in anguish which allowed Luca to break free.
"Let's go!" Luca shouted as he tried to run, only to find that his ankle had been torn into. It all happened so quick that he didn't even feel the pain, not until he took his first heavy step forward. Luca growled out in pain, latched his arms around Arkianna's neck, giving her the go ahead to scale the wall. Growling loudly, Luca fought through shooting pain, his face wincing painfully with every step as he caught up to Arkianna.
"I won't slow you down!" Luca cried out, causing Arkianna to panic. Arkianna then moved onto all fours, arching her back up towards Luca.
"Get on…it will be…quicker this way!" Arkianna barked. Luca yelled out in pain as he tripped, falling onto Arkianna. He quickly wrapped his arms around her, locking himself in so that she could take off. The thrill of being with the one she loved, running for their lives, and hunting all those who stood in their way, all of this made Arkianna believe she was in heaven, everything perfect to the last detail.
"I feel so alive!" Arkianna howled, her claws and legs tearing through the ground. They caught sight of officers running down the route, immediately causing them to veer deeper into the woods. Somehow they were able to stay on course.
"Isn't this exciting Arkianna?! I can't tell if I'm scared as hell or joyful beyond words!" Luca laughed, Arkianna grinning back at him. The rapid fire sounds of feet crunching leaves began to chase them, both of them still smiling and laughing as Arkianna ran with all of their heart and soul. An officer managed to get in front of them, half expecting them to stop, but made a fatal mistake. Arkianna growled and laughed menacingly as she reared up slashing through the officers chest with her claws before continuing on all fours.
"Nothing will stop us! I will do anything to be with Luca!" Arkianna laughed maniacally, the adrenaline of the encounter helping her move quicker along their path. Luca pulled up his communicator map just to the right of Arkianna's vision to help navigate her.
"Alright we need to make a hard left! Then we make a right again and that should lead us to the next wall that leads to the city!" Luca called out, Arkianna nodding vigorously as she picked up her pace. As they ran, Arkianna began to feel something strange in her heart; the returning thoughts of guilt suddenly hit her once more; causing her to growl loudly and shake her head.
"What's done...is done...Luca is mine now! Luca hang on tightly!" Arkianna cried, quickly cutting right as Luca directed. It wasn't long before they had finally hit the wall, Arkianna scaling the wall with ease. Landing, however, placed them in front of a crowd of officers, all of them waiting for them in a spectacular ambush.
"Let me off, I think I can run now!" Luca said, hopping off of her before taking to his feet. He winced in pain with each step on his right leg, but was steadily able to endure it as the pain grew numb. An officer chased after him, immediately catching Arkianna's attention.
"Luca! Keep running!" Arkianna yelled, her eyes lit up like a full moon in a night sky, a wicked smile forming on her face as she slowly began to be shrouded in a dark mist.
"DAZE!" Arkianna barked, dispersing the move. The officers all began to groan and cough, making them easy targets for Arkianna to tear down with her wicked claws. Slash after slash tore through the eight officers, their stomachs, chests, sides and backs now bleeding heavily within a matter of minutes. After disabling them, Arkianna jumped to all fours, trying to catch up to Luca as quickly as possible.
"ARKIANNA! HELP!" Luca's voice shrieked, the crying sounds of pain trailing after it. Arkianna's began to roar angrily, her wild, murderous eyes quickly catching sight of Luca being taken down by stun batton from another set of officers that had cut him off.
"LUCA!" Arkianna shrieked, viciously snapping her jaw onto one of the officer's wrists. The officer yelled in pain, Arkianna tearing the officer to the ground before impaling her claws into his neck. Arkianna immediately stood her ground, her beloved Luca now behind her as they became surrounded. Luca watched in awe as Arkianna began to tear them all down, her fierce determination and the undying flame of her love for him steaming through the air. Luca quickly looked around, finding one of the battons on ground. Arkianna yelped in pain as two of the officers quick smashed their battons into her stomach and upper back, effectively dropping her onto all fours. Arkianna felt her strength finally begin to waver, her tenacity burning like the sun as she assaulted one of the two officers.
"Leave her alone!" Luca shouted, nailing the other officer behind his knees with the stun batton he removed from the ground. Luca's eyes filled with tears and destruction as he tore he tore his morals to shreds in the brilliant heat of the moment. Swing after swing from the electrified rod make quick work of the officers' stabilities. Finally finishing the last officer off, Luca helped Arkianna up, the both of them with a minor limp as they continued on. They wanted to rest, they wanted to take a brake, but every time they slowed down, stomping feet began to grow closer and closer. They quickly dashed into an alleyway, where they hugged the walls to catch their breath.
"This is insane! Alright, according to the map, we just need to make it to the port and there will be someone waiting for us...we're so close! We have to make it now!" Luca's heart thrashed in his chest, adrenaline and panic overtaking him as stomping boots and light tapping of Stoutland paws all quaked the streets. Luca went to move quickly down the ally, but he let out a sudden grunt of pain, falling to his knees. Arkianna quickly scanned him from top to bottom, quickly finding the tear in his ankle from earlier. It was now bleeding heavily, practically painting his shoes red. The adrenaline must've kept the pain numbed up to this point.
"We can't stop! Get on...my back!" Arkianna barked, Luca slowly crawling onto her. Arkianna's legs began to shake and her light wounds began to sting as she forced herself back down
"I have to...I have to fight through this...for Luca!" Arkianna continually psyched herself up, finally taking off down the alley way. Every step for Arkianna felt as if her knee joints were busted out, every painful shift of them being like spiked anklets stabbing into her. She continued to growl loudly, desperately continuing on as they were forced out into the main street. Arkianna clenched her teeth angrily when she saw a blockade at the end of the street, the port now in view. Arkianna quickly moved onward, cutting into another alleyway with all of her might.
"You can't escape now!" officers shouted, both ends of the alley way now filling with them. Arkianna's heavy breaths grew worse and worse as she thought, immediately hopping onto a closed garbage bin.
"Hang...on!" Arkianna croaked in pain, immediately leaping to crash through a window. Shards of glass tore though Arkianna's body, shifting her body so that Luca would only be in minimal danger. Still on all fours, she stopped, her breath growing whispy and full of absoulte pain. Luca noticed multiple cuts opening up in her fur, light trails of blood beginning to make their way out of the abrasions.
"Arkianna we can't keep going like this, you'll die..." Luca began sobbing, clasping tightly around her. Arkianna's vision began to grow blurry as she found her exit point. She immediately charged another window, smashing through it as Luca held on for dear life.
"I won't let them have you!" Arkianna screamed in pain as she landed out in the open. Blood began to trail from her as she continued to move, yelps of pain ringing with heavy breath.
"Stop Arkianna! You can't take anymore of this! Please stop!" Luca cried, her body now trembling as her runs turned into awkward skips. It was if Arkianna had gone def, her instincts were all she could act on now. The smell of the port filled their nostrils as Arkianna was forced to stop in front of a large barricade, blocking their final point of escape.
"N-No! W-We're too c-close!" Arkianna screamed, Luca finally letting go of her.
"It's over Arkianna...there's...there's nothing we can do now..." Luca cried, hugging her tightly. Arkianna's eyes flooded with tears holding his head to her chest. She knew that there were very few options, and they were all bad for one or the other. She stroked his hair softly, planting a small kiss on the top of his head before jerking him away. She turned to face the barricade, blood now trickling down from her mouth and wounds. Her vision was at a complete loss as she motioned for Luca to get on her back one more time. She stooped to all fours, their ride out of the city slowly beginning to leave the port. Arkianna carefully followed its path before letting out a wild howl.
"JUST A LITTLE FURTHER!" Akianna screamed, using every inch of her strength to start moving once more.
"THERE THEY ARE!" an officer shouted, letting loose a pack of Stoutland. Arkianna immediately turned to dash down an alley way, her every stepping breaking her over and over again. Her determination for Luca was all she had left, and she would rather die than abandon it. Arkianna slid along the ground, charging down the street with their ride out of here slowly pulling away.
"So close! I...can't...give up...for Luca...I will...do ANYTHING!" Arkianna cried, Luca clenching around her tightly, his tears now soaking her fur. Putting every inch of energy she had last, she charged down the street at max speed, shrieking every few steps as they grew closer and closer. The pack of Stoutland cut them off, barking as they tackled into Arkianna. She screamed loudly in pain, using the energy of the tackle to completely change her trajectory towards the boat.
"I l-love you...LUCA!" Arkianna cried, tears destroying her vision. As she hit the end of the pier, with all of the stoutland still on them, the boat steered up to them with great resistance from the current. Arkianna lurched onto her hind legs, forcing Luca's hands from her. She grasped onto Luca's wrists tightly, slinging Luca into the air towards the boat. Luca's eyes widened as he felt himself flying, the sight of Arkianna being pinned and tore at by the pack of stoutland. It was like he was trapped in a nightmare; none of it felt real in the moments that he was in the air. Arkianna continued to thrash, showing no mercy to the stoutland as she became overwhelmed.
"No! ARKIANNA! You can't do this to me! ARKIANNA!" Luca screamed as a set of arms caught Luca. Luca immediately began thrashing with what strength he had, biting onto the man's arm to let him go. Breaking free, Luca tried to jump ship, only to be tackled down by another member of the crew. Luca watched as Arkianna screamed out for him, ripping all of the stoutland apart.
"I...CAN'T...DIE...HERE!" Arkianna roared, finally shoving off from the pack of Stoutland. Arkianna limped all along the brim of the port, using everything she had to tear through everything in her path. A pile of bodies lined the port as Arkianna limped with all her might.
"Turn around! We can still save her!" Luca screamed, still rustling beneath the boatmen holding him down. Tears mixed with the drenched deck, his eyes beginning to sting from the salty deck as he watched his love fight for her life. The captain turned the boat to port, now lining it to create the best possible jump point. Nearing the end of the port, Luca finally broke free of the man pinning him, he quickly ran to the end of the ship, holding his arms out and shrieking for her to jump. As Luca stood upright, he noticed several rifleman perched on the barricade, taking aim at him.
"He's still just a boy! We shouldn't fire!" one of the rifleman protested, the others paying no heed to his grief. Arkianna's heart froze as she heard what their target was. Luca stood at the very edge of the boat, holding his arms out and crying out for her to jump.
"LUCA!" Arkianna shrieked at the top of her lungs, shredding her vocal chords to hell as the piercing sounds of ammunition violently stung the air. Luca stared wide eyed as the sparks and shrieks came from the firearms, Arkianna now lunging in front of him to shield him from the death that sped towards him at the speed of light.
Tears flew through the air from Arkianna's eyes as she felt each and every shell pierce her thin frame; each in and out burned like a cigarette being put out on her, her wild breathing came to a screeching halt with her strength leaving her soon after. Knowing that she had protected her beloved Luca filled her with joy, but her desperate grasp onto life was now slipping away. Arkianna hit the deck with a loud thud, the boat immediately turning tail and hauling away from the port like a bat out of hell. Luca began to shake as he fell to his knees, blood now draining out onto the floor from beneath Arkianna as she constantly twitched in pain. Her eyes finally met with Luca's, a sad smile on her face her beautiful blue eyes began to grow dim.
"W-W-We...made...it...my love..." Arkianna growled gruffly, her claw reaching out for Luca. Luca immediately grasped onto it, tears now trickling onto Arkianna like a light rain.
"No, no, no, no you can't leave me now Arkianna! We've almost made it! Please don't go!" Luca began crying loudly. Arkianna simply smiled, her fading eyes looking up into his eyes.
"It wasn't almost...we did make it...together" Arkianna grunted, still smiling in Luca's eyes as she felt her life escaping her clutches.
"We did...We did make it...all that matters to me...is that you're here...right beside me..." Luca sobbed, a few crew members coming out with med packs in hand. Arkianna closed her eyes, shifting into the form of Arianna. Luca crawled forward, both of them smiling, closing his eyes before pressing his lips to Arkianna's one last time. He felt one final breath from Arkianna before she shifted back to her normal form, now growing as limp as the dead.
All the madness, all the terror, all the love, Arkianna had finally had all she could have ever wanted and more. With her last thoughts, she knew that she had done the right thing. All she ever wanted was to be loved until her last breath. As sad as she felt for losing herself to the darkness before finally reaching the light, she felt she could rest without any regrets.
It all happened so fast that Luca's mind couldn't process it all; meeting her, going through all of the unspeakable horrors, and now here he was, mourning the loss of the one that both stole his life from him and made it worth living. All Luca could do was stare at the horizon, gently stroking Arkianna's fur as he pulled her into his lap.
They had finally escaped the nightmare that they themselves started and were now free, just as they promised they would to one another. Thus comes the end for our tragic heroine, desperate for love and clenching onto it til the bitter end, Arkianna passed away with no regrets. For now and forever Luca would always stay faithful to the one who sacrificed her life for all of it, and most of all himself, his beloved Arkianna. He returned Arkianna to her Pokeball, kissing it with tears in his eyes before clipping it onto his be It.
Days later...
"We're headed straight for Vermillion City in the Kanto region, they have a lovely port. The Kanto region is our most distant branch away from Unova so I doubt anyone will know who you are. We will provide shelter for you until you are ready to travel on your own again," The skipper said, returning to the captain's side. It wasn't a very big boat, but that was for the best as to not be conspicuous. Luca gave them a nod, slumping against the locked door that led down further in. He slid down the door slowly before finally landing butt first, his eyes already filling with tears again.
"What am I supposed to do now...? I know I'm free now...but it seems so pointless without you," Luca sobbed, holding his beloved Arkianna's poke ball to his forehead. Suddenly, his communicator start to ring, helping to snap him from his sorry sad fit. He wiped his tear filled eyes enough to see before moving it closer to his face.
"Ah! I see that you both made it safely aboard, kudos! Sorry I didn't contact you sooner, we had to deal with the authorities surrounding the area. Huh...I don't see Arkianna around you, is she alright?" Qualter's voice rang. Tears began to trail down his cheeks again, clenching his eyes shut with frustration as he shook his head.
"She...she's dead...she died to save me..." Luca managed to force up his throat and out his mouth. Dead silence filled the other end of the line for a solid few minutes while Luca pulled himself together.
"That is...truly tragic...I'm terribly sorry to hear that Luca. I'm sure she's happy your alive now that she's with Arceus. Anyway, I'm calling for another reason as well. It seems that the two of you left something...interesting behind," Qualter said, immediately causing Luca's face to brighten up slightly.
"What is it?" Luca asked. A short, quiet conversation between Qualter and someone else on the line could vaguely be heard, nearly impossible to make up. With a clearing of his throat, Qualter then laughed softly.
"Sorry about that. Luca, I have no idea how this managed to happen...but...we..." The signal on the communicator suddenly frizzed up, making loud static from the other side. Luca immediately shut it off, now curious beyond belief.
"I probably should've told you this, but now that we've passed a certain point, communications to Unova will now be impossible through your C-Gear. We're preparing one for you now that will function better to the location for when we arrive. This isn't the first time he's been cut off mid sentence due to the certain point, but he'll find a way to get the message to you," The skipper spoke up, giving Luca a smidgen of hope. The trip to Kanto via the small boat took nearly a week. They were forced to make port several times for resupplying and fueling, but overall the trip wasn't too terrible. Days and night began to blend together into a single entity of nature with fun stories from the captain and skipper were told to try and cheer him up, which was surprisingly effective.
Halfway through the trip he brought out Snivy and Zebstrika, consoling them with apologies and tears for the horrible things that happened. With too much love and respect for their dear trainer, the three of them came together in harmony; after all, they were all Luca had left. Snivy decided to stay out of its poke the majority of trip, getting some much needed catching up with Luca without the monstrous Arkianna glaring him down. Before he knew it, the week had passed, the sight of Vermillion city coming into view.
"Land Ho!" the skipper said, digging the bell that was connected to the small cabin housing the wheel and controls. A ring back from Vermillion port could be heard. Pulling in was quite the sight; the boardwalk was crowded with people who were also traveling. Pokemon and their trainers in all shapes and sizes were there as well as several worker Machoke handling the port work. Slowly, the captain pulled the ship to port, the skipper immediately hopping off to tie it to the deck. Luca was the first to hop off, his Snivy perched upon his shoulder like a parrot.
"Looks like we finally made it Snivy. That was one heck of a trip wasn't it?" Luca laughed, patting Snivy on it's head. Walking around, he quickly found himself in the sea of people. He retreated back to his original spot he came up, afraid that he would quickly become lost. He took a deep breath, releasing a heavy sigh before a smile formed upon his lips.
"Wow! This place looks amazing!" Luca said, his eyes brightening up with wonder. It would take quite awhile for Arkianna's death to come to pass, but he had to try and enjoy the new life he was graciously given by her in the end. He went ahead of the crew, going ahead and getting acquainted with his new life. It had been some time since he had seen so many people looking so cheerful and joyous; quite the change from officers of the law and grieving trainers. The crew finally caught up with him, both them hanging at his sides.
"Alright, follow us from here. We have a secret PPC set up here in Vermillion but it's in a secret location. Just act natural alright?" The captain ordered, Luca nodding nervously. It seemed like the PPC was becoming more and more like a secret society instead of just a classy club.
"So much for my smiles," Luca said with a heavy sigh. It seemed like hours that they walked around Vermillion City, as if neither of the two crew mates had any clue as to where it was. They then circled around a trail, the sight of a cave now before them. Snivy crawled down Luca and tapped its poke ball, returning itself to it.
"This is Digglet Cave. Don't worry, the travel through here will be easy, my mate here brought numerous Max Repels," The captain said, the skipper already spritzing them down from head to toe. Snivy and Luca coughed at the noxious adore upon contact, which soon dispersed within minutes. The stroll through Digglet Cave was indeed easy; he never realized the potency of Max Repels. Not a single Pokemon showed themselves before them as they toured on through. Fortunately it was only about 20 minutes before they reached the end. Climbing up a ladder that led to the surface, Luca saw a PPC building dead ahead of them with nothing but brush and forested area's blocking its presence.
"If you can't tell, we don't use this branch as a front for Pokemon rehabilitation. This is just an outpost for casual discussion and of course Pokemon human relations. Well look who it is.." The skipper's speaking topic tripped into silence as an Alakazam suddenly appeared before them. It was wearing similar attire to a Froslass that was tending to various people and leading people in through a back entrance. The Alakazam smiled and bowed its head, a strange looking box now floating at its side.
"Qualter sent me because the transmission between him and the trainer, Luca was lost," Alakazam said through telepathy to all three of them. Freaked out by it at first, Luca quickly settled down, remembering that psychic Pokemon could speak to others telepathically. Slowly, the box floated over to Luca, allowing him to gently take it from the air. With another polite bow, Alakazam vanished into thin air, leaving the three of them to themselves.
"We'll head in first and remind them about the arrangement, wait out here until we open the door for you," the captain said, Luca immediately responding with an "ok". After the two of them vanished, Luca plopped on the ground, taking a gander at the note that was taped onto the top of the strange, red velvet box.
"Luca, as crazy and impossible as your relationship with Arkianna was, the true bond of love both of you shared for one another was nothing short of perfect and beautiful. In the box is something that is probably going to shock you, but it belongs with you, especially considering the loss of your lover. I took the liberty of helping it along so it can be just like your love. Handle it with care and keep in touch. -Qualter" the note read.
"Help it along...so it can be just like Arkianna...?" Luca couldn't help but to wonder what the hell it could possibly be at this point. He thought through it over and over again, trying to figure out if they actually did leave something. He remember several trinkets that he did purchase for Arkianna while she appeared human over the course of their journey, so he immediately checked his bag. All of the trinkets were intact and neatly tucked away for safety. Suddenly, the box began to move, shifting from side to side as if trying to escape it. Luca grew a cold sweat as he pulled it over to him, gulping nervously as he unlatched the top of the box to open it. He paused one more time, taking a deep breath before popping it open. He looked inside of the box, his cold sweat turning into a cold shower as its contents yapped at him.
"A-A Z-Zorua?!" Luca stared at it in horror. Unlike a normal Zorua whose sheening coat with jet black fur, this little one had brown tinted fur, the same color as his hair. And its normally beautiful blue eyes were now a bright olive green, again, just like his own. His heart stopped in his chest as he continued to stare in disbelief.
"N-No way...i-i-it can't be..." Luca began to mumble, his catatonic stare refusing to break sight with a adorable little Zorua. It propped its front paws on the edge of the box smiling affectionately up at him. Time stood still in that moment; all the things he had read in books about Pokemon and shows about Pokemon breeding made this scenario impossible. Luca raised up his forearm, sinking his teeth into it. It was a thing he would do within a nightmare to awaken himself from it, but instead of fresh sunlight burning his eyes, pain coursed through arm, causing him to yelp in pain, signaling to him that his attempt at proving his theory was a nightmare was a failure. The Zorua began yapping, its strange barks nearly becoming a legible language. Thinking about it, it was a week before he arrived in Vermillion City and the PPC was capable of making Pokemon more human. After it yapped a few more times, something legible finally came out.
"Pa...Pa...Pa..." the Zorua yapped gruffly. Luca's eyes fluttered open and closed as 1+1 finally equaled 2. His eyes began to fill with tears as he reached into the box. Zorua yapped happily some more, its tail shifting from side to side as it eyed Luca intently. Luca could no longer fight back his tears as images of Arkianna smiling filled his mind. Pulling Zorua to his chest and hugging it tightly, Luca began to cry uncontrollably, his hand gently stroking its fur on its little head as he tried to speak, only to fail miserably. All that came from his mouth were uncontrollable gasps, Zorua now nuzzling against his chest contently as tears began to drip onto its head like rain. A sudden cold chill sudden ran down Luca's spine as an eerie voice circled.
"Our child is beautiful..." The voice said, Luca looking around wildly to try and find its source. Soft laughter graced his ear, it's source circling around to his front. There, floating before him, was a ghastly, smiling back at him. It suddenly changed shape into Arkianna, her body hollow and translucent. Luca's tears became uncontrollable, sobbing and crying loudly as he kept a firm grasp on the Zorua. Arkianna slowly approached them, her claws gently resting on each of their heads.
"Nothing can ever tear me away from you...not even death..." Arkianna whispered. Luca smiling and nodding as the family they didn't expect became whole. Nothing was set in stone for their future, but one thing was for certain, their love would never fade away, not until the end of their days.
The End