Part 3 – The Clefairy Colony
"Land right down there, Scyther. I see a cave." I said, patting Scyther on the back. After winning my Boulder Badge and saying goodbye to Gary, I had flown along Route 3 on Scyther's back. Now we were over the Moon Mountain Range. It was getting dark and cold, and dark clouds were moving in. There was no time to reach Cerulean City; we needed shelter now. Secretly, I was also hoping to catch myself a Clefairy. I knew that Clefairy were very rare, and the chances of mine catching one were pretty slim, but I still had my hopes high.
Scyther landed smoothly on the rock face of the mountain. The cave I had spotted was fairly large and it was easy for me to enter it. I walked inside quickly. The sky had grown very dark and I could smell the moisture in the air. It looked like we were in for a pretty bad storm.
"Well, Scyther I think we should find a dry place and build a fire and make camp for the night." Scyther nodded. I picked out my other six Pokeballs and opened them all. I hated keeping my Pokémon in Pokéballs. I always kept all of them out, whenever it was possible. Onix barely fit in the cave, so I called him back. I linked into his mind telepathically.
--Don't worry Onix, I'll let you back out when we reach a cavern big enough for you.—
"Well, guys, we better get as deep inside as we can," I said, walking into the blackness of the cave. "Ponyta, you lead the way. Your fiery mane will give us some light." Ponyta nodded, and came up beside me. I waved for everyone to follow us.
We walked for several minutes, listening to the sound of thunder outside. The cave floor took a slight upward curve, which was good, because any rainwater wouldn't be able to flow right to us. But the tunnel was getting narrower and narrower. At this rate, we wouldn't be able to continue much farther. It was getting cramped. "Ok, I'm going to have to call everyone back to their Pokéballs," I said. Dismayed cries came from all of my Pokémon. They didn't want to go back into their Pokéballs. Scyther's voice filtered into my mind.
--It might not be safe. None of us want you to be in here all alone.—
--I won't be alone. I'll keep Ponyta out for light and protection. I'll call you guys right back out at the slightest sign of danger. I promise.—
Scyther seemed skeptical, but allowed himself to be put back into his Pokéball. "Well, Ponyta," I said, patting Ponyta on the back, "It's just you and me now. Let's be careful." Ponyta nodded.
We kept walking. The cave was very narrow now. Then, I spotted something up ahead. It seemed that the tunnel widened out. As we reached the area, I saw that the tunnel didn't widen out, it ended. It ended in the center of a wall in a huge cavern. Ponyta and I stared in wonderment. The cavern was beautiful. It was full of glistening stalagmites and stalactites, all dripping clear cold water into colored pools on the floor. There were crystal formations in all shades of red, purple, white, and blue. Glowworms dotted the walls, shining pale green.
"Oh, Ponyta. Isn't it beautiful?" I asked, whispering very quietly. It seemed a crime to break the silence. The only sound was that of the dripping water, and a kind of whooshing sound, as of moving air. That seemed odd. There shouldn't be any moving air in here.
We needed to get down to the cavern floor. I called back Ponyta, and silently called out Scyther. "Scyther," I whispered, "Fly us down to the cavern floor." Scyther nodded as I climbed onto his back. He lifted off the ground gently, and glided down the 30 feet or so to the ground. He got into position to make his usual smooth landing, but when his feet hit the ground, they flew out from under him, and I went flying off his back. I hit the rock floor hard, and let out a shrill yip of pain. I tried to sit up on my hands, but they flew out from under me on the slick surface, as Scyther's legs had done.
"Scyther!" I cried weakly, pain shooting up my leg from my ankle. "Scyther! Where are you?" I couldn't see him anywhere. "Scyther! Scytheeeer!"
A shadow fell over me. I gasped and looked up. It was Scyther. "Scyther!" I exclaimed, "Are you alright?"
--I'm fine. You don't look so good. You're injured. I will carry you.--
I smiled weakly. "What would I do without you, Scyther?"
Scyther grinned, as much as a bug could, at least. –You probably wouldn't last five minutes. Now, where should we go?—
I looked around. The most reasonable way to go was deeper into the cavern. "Let's go see what's in this cavern," I said. Scyther bowed down, carefully sheathing his razorblades, and then using his arms to pick me up and help me onto his back. My ankle throbbed with pain. I wrapped my arms around Scyther's narrow waist, holding tight and gritting my teeth against the pain in my ankle. Scyther hovered just above the ground, flying slowly, casting concerned expressions over his shoulder at me. I smiled reassurance at him.
The cavern was cool, and moist. The sound of dripping water filled the air. It was soothing. But there was also that whooshing sound, which seemed to be getting louder. I raised my head, hearing it much louder than usual. What could it be?
--That sound makes me nervous. Do you know what it is?—Scyther's voice drifted through my mind.
--I have no idea.—
Scyther rounded a boulder and – came to a dead halt. There, not ten feet away from us, was a sleeping Onix. Its snores were the whooshing sound that we had been hearing. I stared. It was the largest Onix I had ever seen, easily 10 or maybe even 15 feet longer than mine. Scyther didn't move, and my breath was caught in my throat. The Onix growled, and its sleepy eyes blinked open.
Scyther panicked and took to the air. The Onix let out a horrible roar and lunged at us. I let out a scream, both in fear that the Onix was attacking us, and in pain as my ankle hit Scyther's back leg. The cavern was not high enough for us to escape the Onix. It made another lunge, the end of its nose hitting Scyther squarely. And then we were plummeting toward the ground. It wasn't a very long fall, but with my already injured ankle, it was extremely painful. I lay on the ground, trying to get up, staring in terror at the Onix bearing down on me. It was coming closer and closer. Fear bubbled in my stomach and ran cold in my veins.
"Clefairy…Clefairfairy. Clefairy."
I turned my head toward the high-pitched, but charmingly sweet voice. It was a Clefairy. It was standing in the entrance to a tunnel that was about 3 feet wide and 4 feet high, and it seemed to be beckoning for me to come to it. It waved me towards it, and then disappeared in the tunnel's blackness. I tried to stand, pain shooting up my ankle. I grabbed the ground, pulled myself towards the tunnel. The Onix roared, staring down at me. It raised its head, and then it was lunging right at me. I let out a scream, frantically trying to drag myself into the tunnel, only a few more feet to go…
Scyther's arms wrapped around my waist from above, and he scooped me right up. His body was totally horizontal, and he was flying with all his speed. We disappeared into the mouth of the tunnel just as the Onix's head smacked into the rock wall.
Scyther was flying down the narrow tunnel with alarming speed. It was pitch black; who knew what we would run into? Suddenly, it seemed as though it was too much to think about. My mind was slipping, I could feel it. The pain throbbing in my ankle was intensifying, and making me feel lightheaded. My eyelids drooped, fell shut, my mind went blank and I lost consciousness.
* * *
"I love you Aurora. I love you more than I thought I'd ever love anybody or anything. I want to spend my life with you," Gary said, speaking right into my ear. I just sighed happily, burying my fingers in his thick brown hair. He stared into my eyes, his deep brown eyes seeming to penetrate my soul. He lowered his head, slowly, slowly. Agonizingly slow. Our lips met gently, so gently it was hardly a kiss, but it sent shivers down my spine. Shivers weren't the only thing going down my spine. Gary's hand was trailing down my back, as well. "I love you, Aurora…Aurora…Aurora…"
"Aurora? Aurora?! Wake up, Aurora!"
My eyes fluttered open. I was lying on my back on a hard surface and someone was above me, holding my head. I stared for a few seconds before my eyes focused and my mind registered the face above mine – the short, spiky blue hair, the brown eyes.
"Rainne?" I said softly, happy to see her familiar face. "Rainne? I can't believe it's you."
Rainne smiled down at me. "It's good to see you Aurora. I've been so worried about you. What's happened to you in these past three days?"
"Too much," I said, sitting up slowly. There was a bandage around my ankle, and the pain had all but totally faded away. I was still in a cave and—my breath caught. I was surrounded by Clefairy. There were Clefairy everywhere, doing all sorts of things. It was a colony. A working system, a city of Clefairy deep under the ground. Rainne noticed my amazement.
"It's crazy, isn't it?" She said, looking around. "There are hundreds, maybe even thousands of Clefairy down here, living together in this Clefairy Colony. All the experts say "There's only 1 maybe 2 hundred Clefairy in the world." But look at all these. It's crazed."
I nodded absently, staring at all the Clefairy. "How did you get here Rainne? And, how did I get here?" I asked, suddenly remembering that I had lost consciousness in a tunnel on Scyther's back. Scyther. That reminded me. "And where's Scyther?"
"Let me answer those questions in the order they were asked." Rainne said, holding up her hands. "First off, I followed these little Clefairy down here, wanting to capture one of them." She motioned to two Clefairy standing by her side. One of the Clefairy wore a necklace, Rainne's necklace, which set it apart from the others. "You were saved by these same Clefairy. What I've gathered using my telepathy is that these little guys found you and Scyther passed out in a tunnel, and used their Metronome to float you guys here. Then, they healed you and patched up your ankle. I haven't been able to figure out how yet. When I found you, you were lying here, unconscious, surrounded by concerned Clefairy."
I stared. "I was saved by…by these Clefairy?"
Rainne nodded, patting one of the Clefairy on the back. "Oh yeah. These guys are friendly as hell. They save people all the time. I guess the people are so touched by the Clefairy's kindness, that they feel the same way I do about this place."
"And how do you feel about this place?"
"I feel that it would be a crime to tell anyone about it. The Clefairy live here in peace, secretly doing good things for the world. If everyone knew about this place, scientists would always be down here studying, trainers would come here and catch Clefairy, the whole system would be ruined. I think its just better for the Clefairy to remain unknown down here."
I nodded, looking around. "Yeah, I've only been here a few minutes, but I can already agree with that."
"Yeah…by the way, what were you dreaming?" Rainne asked abruptly. I started. "Dreaming?" I asked, pretending to not know what she was talking about, "When was I dreaming?"
Rainne glared at me. She always knew when I was telling a lie. "When I woke you up just a few minutes ago. You were dreaming, I could see your eyes moving and you were making little sounds. Do you think you might have been dreaming the future? You used to do that all the time remember? Were you dreaming the future?" Rainne was excited now, wanting to know what I had dreamed and if it would really happen.
I shook my head. "No, no, I couldn't have been dreaming the future. What was happening was too crazy."
Rainne deflated. "Oh…oh well. You do see the future in your dreams sometimes, at least. It must be great to be psychic. I wish I had the gift like you do."
"Rainne," I said, "You might have the gift. Sometimes I sense it in you. You need to get a psychic Pokemon. You know, I didn't realize my powers until I got Kadabra and he was able to focus my energy and show me my abilities. Get a psychic Pokemon."
Rainne grinned. "Your too nice to me Aurora. I'll just have to try that, I guess."
I smiled and patted one of the Clefairy next to me on the head. It smiled back at me. A small piece of rock fell off the ceiling and hit the ground next to it. "Clefairy?" The Clefairy said, staring at the rock, looking scared and confused.
"Gggrrrrrroooooonnnnnniiiiiixxxxxxxx." A roar echoed down from the tunnel. All the Clefairy froze, staring at the small tunnel entrance. Rocks and dust were spewing out the mouth of the tunnel. I gasped, realization dawning on me. That roar. It was –
"It's that Onix I ran into earlier! It must be trying to dig its way after me, and right to the Clefairy!"
I tapped into the mind of one of the Clefairy that had saved me.
--Do you know what's happening?—
--You said it's an Onix. We have to hurry and leave this cavern before it caves in.—
One of the Clefairy that had saved me, the one wearing Rainne's necklace, jumped onto a rock. "Clefairy," It said firmly. "Clefairy, Clefairfairy Clefairy." It was issuing orders. It was calming the panicked Clefairy and directing everyone to leave in an orderly fashion. The other Clefairy formed themselves into a line, and began to file out of a tunnel entrance on the opposite side of the cavern from the one the Onix was coming through. Several Clefairy grabbed me, helping me to my feet. I gritted my teeth, prepared for the pain in my ankle to surge. It didn't. The small amount of pain there was did not intensify even when I put all my weight on the ankle. "Clefairy! Clefairy!" The Clefairy cried, urging me to hurry and follow them.
Rainne and I brought up the end of the line of Clefairy, hurrying to get the last of them out of the cavern. I was just about to leave when a small cry reached my ears. I turned around. It was a juvenile Clefairy, stranded on a high ledge. The makeshift elevator the young Clefairy used had been taken out by a rock, and this young Clefairy hadn't yet learned to fly. Clefairy did not learn to fly until they were nearly full-grown adults. The Clefairy leader, the one wearing Rainne's necklace, noticed the juvenile at the same time that I did. It bravely took to the air, dodging falling boulders. It flew up to the young Clefairy, grabbed it, and ferried it down to the ground. But there wasn't time. The entire roof of the cavern began to give way. The Clefairy leader made eye contact with me, and tossed the juvenile in my direction. I was startled, but grabbed the young Clefairy, and jumped into the tunnel, just as the cavern collapsed.
I turned, facing the cavern. All I saw was a mass of rocks. "No!" I cried.
Rainne ran up to me. "What is it? What's wrong?"
I began to dig away the rocks with my bare hands, tears streaming down my face. "The Clefairy leader," I panted, "The one wearing your necklace. It's still in there."
Rainne's eyes widened, her mouth fell open. She dropped to the ground beside me, and we began to dig with our bare hands. We dug frantically, both in tears. Rainne was the first one to become rational. "We should use our Pokémon." She said. "It'll go a lot faster with their help."
I nodded, and reached for my belt with my Pokéballs. "Onix can do it quickly by himself," I said. Rainne nodded. I called out Onix. "Onix!" I said, "Dig away these rocks until you find a Clefairy!" Onix began to dig. The other Clefairy panicked at the site of my Onix, running around and crying out. Rainne ran to them, trying to calm them. "Guys!" She said, holding up her arms, "Guys, calm down! That's Aurora's Onix! It's here to help find your leader!" The Clefairy stared, calming down, but then hyping back up at the news that their leader was missing. They became frantic again. Rainne put her head in her hands.
Then, the other Clefairy who had saved me jumped up. "Clefairy! Clefairy!" It said sternly. It was taking on the roll of leader, calming the other Clefairy and directing them. The Clefairy began to assemble themselves into lines. A voice drifted into my mind.
--Call back your Onix. We can locate our leader more quickly on our own.—
I stared quizzically into the eyes of the new Clefairy leader, the one who had spoken to me. Intelligence sparkled in its eyes. I called back Onix and stepped back to watch the Clefairy work. All the Clefairy began to wave their arms in unison. "What are they doing?" I whispered to Rainne.
"Metronome," She whispered back. "Metronome is a confusing thing. I don't fully understand it myself, but I know that it has many uses to Clefairy."
The rocks in the entrance to the cavern began to glow blue, and then they began to clear away. Rainne and I stared, amazed. It was as if a bulldozer were clearing a path; the rocks moved out of the way, forming a clear way that led right to – my breath caught in my throat, and Rainne gasped. It was the leader Clefairy. Rainne and I ran up to it. I kneeled down, put my hand on the lifeless, bloodied form. The Clefairy was very cold and very dead. I took my hand off the body, looked up at Rainne and shook my head slowly, tears stinging my eyes. Rainne eyes glimmered, tears falling from them.
"Clefairy, Clefairy!" The other Clefairy ran to their fallen leader. They stared at her body, and then at the juvenile she had saved, still in my arms. The Clefairy began to murmur amongst themselves, and then one of them stepped forward. It's head bowed in respect, it slowly took Rainne's necklace from the neck of the leader, and gently placed it around the neck of the other Clefairy who had saved me, the one who had given orders when the leader was trapped in the cavern. Rainne and I looked on, amazed at what we were seeing. All the Clefairy bowed in respect to their new leader. The new leader's voice trickled into my mind.
--Our leader risked her life to save the young one. She will have an honorable burial, and I will be the new leader.—
--Good choice.--
I responded. The Clefairy slowly surrounded the leader's body. They gently lifted her, and carried her out of the cavern. I watched with tears in my eyes. Rainne took my hand, and we stood together, crying for the death of the Clefairy's leader.
* * *
"I wish we could stay for the funeral," Rainne said, as we were walking away from the cave. All the Clefairy were standing in the cave's mouth, bidding us farewell.
"Yeah, me too," I said slowly, "But, I guess its something the Clefairy want to do themselves, without any humans present."
Rainne nodded, and then we both fell silent. We walked slowly, both wanting to look back, but neither doing it.
"Clefairy."
I started, and turned around. The juvenile Clefairy that the leader had saved, that I had caught and pulled into the tunnel just in time, was standing behind us. Rainne and I knelt down. "What is it, little Clefairy? Shouldn't you be in the cave, at the funeral?" I asked. The Clefairy lowered its eyes. "Clefairy." It said softly.
"I think it feels bad because it thinks the leader's death is its fault." Rainne whispered. The Clefairy nodded.
"Oh, little Clefairy, it wasn't your fault," I said, "You were trapped. Don't feel bad. Your leader didn't sacrifice herself so you could be sad. You're destined to do something great, I see it. I feel it. I'm psychic you know, so I know what's going to happen. And you are going to save people, and Pokémon's lives one day."
The Clefairy stared at me, considering my words. It's eyes brightened, and it smiled. I smiled back. "Now go back home, and don't be sad anymore."
Rainne and I rose, and began to walk away. "Clefairy." We turned around. The Clefairy was still following us. I knelt down again. "What is it Clefairy?" The Clefairy walked up to me, reached for my belt and picked off an empty Pokéball. It set it on the ground at its feet, and tapped it with its hand. "Clefairy," It said.
Rainne came up behind me. "Don't you get it Aurora? It wants to be your Pokémon." She said, grinning at me. The Clefairy smiled, nodding.
I stared at it. "Really? You want me to be your trainer?" It nodded. Tears stung my eyes. "I would be honored to be your trainer." "Clefairy!" The Clefairy exclaimed, smiling. I picked up the Pokéball and opened it. "Get inside Clefairy." Clefairy happily did as I said.
"Well, you captured your Clefairy." Rainne said as we continued on our way. I smiled, "Yeah, so I did."
I put my hand around my newly filled Pokéball. I had gotten a Clefairy, just as I had wanted. The circumstances had been less than ideal, though. I thought about the Clefairy and their new leader. Had it been my fault that their old leader was dead? I angered the Onix, was it my fault? I kept walking, head down, thinking about the Clefairy, my Clefairy, and also Cerulean City, and how I would win the Cascade Badge.