Chapter Six

Betrayal!



Phoebe awoke slowly. The light seemed incredibly bright, but then it faded, becoming normal. She was fresh physically, but mentally, emotionally, and elementally she was drained.

She got up, and looked around. They were in a little forest glen. Obviously, they had relocated after the battle.

Celebi floated over to her. Are you okay?

"Yes, just a little tired."

If you would like, there is a stream nearby. You could wash up.

"I'm Fire elemental, now. That would be a bad thing, no?"

You aren't like a Fire Pokémon. You can still use water...at least for now.

"Okay...I won't question that ominously sinister statement." She bade Celebi goodbye, and walked to the stream.

Kendra was already there, singing softly. Phoebe was used to walking quietly, so Kendra didn't notice. Phoebe didn't recognize what she was singing, probably because it wasn't in English. She had absorbed a small amount of Japanese over the years, and could recognize the song as Japanese.

She stayed silent, listening to the melody. It was a liquid sounding song, matching with the singer. She only understood one word in the whole song. "Furikiru", or "free".

After a moment, Kendra stopped singing. "What do you want, Phoebe?" she asked.

"I...was just gonna wash up," Phoebe said, blushing. She stepped out of the brush. "Did you hear me?"

"No, I didn't. I could sense you."

"Huh?"

Kendra sighed, and stood, throwing her blue hair over her shoulder. "When I'm close to water, my sense are enhanced, and I gain a kind of...psychic sense. I don't know why; I just do."

"Okay, um, right," Phoebe said, smiling uncertainly. She changed the subject. "What were you singing?"

Kendra frowned. "I don't know what it's called, or what the English words are," she said, cheeks growing red. "But when I was little, I remember my mom singing that to me..."

"I understood a word in it. Furikiru, or free." Phoebe said.

"Uh huh. I think it's about losing your restraints and just being yourself...or something. It sounds really corny out loud, doesn't it?"

"Yeah..." Kendra shook her head. Phoebe knelt by the stream, and began rinsing her face. Kendra spoke again. "Thanks for bringing me here and all, but I've gotta go."

Phoebe jerked up. "What?" she spluttered. "You-you can't leave!"

"And just why not?" Kendra asked, arching an eyebrow. "I have a life, you know. Why are you here?"

"Because...because..." Now that she thought about it, she couldn't see any reason to be here, other than the fact that a crazed lunatic was trying to...to do what?

"I think we need to talk to Celebi, Ho-oh, and Lugia." she snapped, turning on her heel. She marched through the woods. "Celebi!" she called. "I need to talk to you!"

Celebi looked up. -What?- she asked.

"Why are we here? What exactly is Hijou trying to do?" she demanded.

-Well, what do you think?- Celebi snorted. -He's trying to destroy the world!-

"Why!?" Kendra asked, coming up behind Phoebe. "Why would he want to destroy the world?"

"Destroy the world?" a pleasant voice asked. "Why would the Master want to do such a stupid thing?"

Kendra and Phoebe whirled to face a man with a yellow robe. Kendra's mouth dried. Yellow. Yellow was sure to mean Lightning. And Lightning was bad.

"The Master only wants to remove these meddling pests." he said, turning his gaze on Celebi. It changed from a pleasant, warm, smiling look to a poison-dripping glare. Then, when he looked at Kendra and Phoebe, it reverted back. "You do know that they aren't benign...don't you?"

"What?" Phoebe said. "What do you mean?"

"They're using you." he continued.

Don't listen to him! Celebi cried. He's lying!

"Oh, am I? Who was it that caused the Master's gift to awaken, triggering our powers, hm? Who was it that wanted to use us to destroy the human race? Who was it that wants to wipe humans from the face of the earth!?!" He finished in a hoarse yell.

Celebi looked shocked. Why would I want to do that? she said, indignant.

"You know you are only using us!" he snarled. "The Master was immune to your psychic control, so you let him find out about the so called prophecy of the Dark Guardians!" Spittle was flying from his lips, now, and a snapping yellow aura had burst around him. His cloak vanished with a thunderclap, and a Raichu jumped out of nowhere to stand by his side. With the absence of the cloak, they could see that he was Kendra's height, and had a mane of scarlet hair. His eyes were a vivid blue, and his arms rippled with muscles.

He made a gesture with his hands, and a long sword that appeared to be made of lightning appeared in his hands.

"You...will...DIE!" he roared, swinging the sword at Celebi. Kendra dove out of the way, but Phoebe sent a cloud of fire into his face. "ARGH!" he cried, stumbling. The sword sliced the earth, and Kendra hurriedly backed up. Where the blade had hit, smoke rose, and a three inch gouge opened.

"Hold on!" Phoebe said, grabbing the man's arms. Lightning surged through her, but a roiling, dark red light encased her arms, cutting off the electricity. "Why do you believe that Celebi wants to destroy the human race?"

"Because it tried to control the Master, and make him summon the Dark Powers at Scorpio Point!" he snarled. "And they tried to get me!!"

"Scorpio Point?" Kendra asked, confused. "What is that?"

"Rakurai!" someone shouted. "What are you doing?"

A man in poisonous green robes dropped from the trees. He had a short cropped head of green hair, and purple-black eyes. "You cannot reveal that!"

"Who are you to order me, Gekidoku!?" Rakurai snarled. "I can do whatever I please!" Rage filled his eyes, and lightning surrounded him. The aura protecting Phoebe began to falter, and the lightning found its mark once, twice, then more and more.

"Aaaah....aaah! ARGH!" Phoebe screamed.

"No!" Even though Kendra had no reason to help Phoebe, and was at a supreme disadvantage anyway, she slammed her hands together and did the first thing that popped into her head-Ice.

A white beam of chilly power burst from her hands, and sliced through the cage of electricity. Rakurai yelled, and dropped his arms, the lightning losing power, then vanishing. Phoebe backed away, smoking. Celebi glowed, and began to heal her.

Rakurai stood straight, glaring at Kendra. He raised a hand, and a bolt of electrical power flickered through the air.

Not quite knowing what she was doing, Kendra...focused. Her concentration shifted from her survival to the air on both sides of her. She blurred, and the lightning...bent around her, missing completely.

"What?!" Rakurai said, utterly shocked. "How...that's not possible!"

"Oh, it's possible all right," Gekidoku hissed. "She can bend the moisture around her body and deflect any elemental attack."

Kendra gaped, all focus gone. "How...how do you know that?" she stuttered.

He grinned nastily. "The Master knows many things you don't. He knows things about you that you don't know. Isn't that a pleasant surprise?"

Kendra's mouth worked as her fury grew. She began to glow an ominous blue. "Is that so?" she asked icily. "Well, then...does he know this!?"

She threw her hands up, and a ring of frigid blue light shot out around her. Phoebe was shoved along, not actually touching the light, but being propelled ahead of it.

But that didn't happen to Gekidoku and Rakurai. They were trapped inside the ring. Slowly, the light changed from normal to a chilly blue, and the temperature dropped at least twenty degrees. Their clothing began to frost, then freeze. A polar wind blew, but it wasn't actually noticeable on the two victims, because their hair and clothes were frozen nearly solid.

"Glacialus!" Kendra cried. The wind abruptly turned to a blue white tornado that engulfed the two attacked ones, turning them into instant popsicles.

The blue light faded, and everything returned to normal save the two frozen villains. Lightning played over Rakurai's prison, and threads of purple liquid were veining Gekidoku's.

"They're gonna break free soon," Phoebe said. "We have to get out of here."

You can't leave! Celebi exclaimed. This is Aquarius Point!

"Aquarius Point?" Phoebe said, puzzled. Will and Haru came out of the trees at that point. "What's that?"

It's the place where the most Water Energy is concentrated. Celebi told her. Kendra has to activate it, and summon the Titan of Water.

"Wait! Didn't Rakurai say something about Scorpio Point? And you forcing him to summon something?" Kendra accused. "I think they're right! You are using us!"

Her eyes flashed a bright blue, and her voice took on a new quality. "The Three Guardians of Land, Sea, and Air will call upon the seventeen of Power. They will use them to destroy the ones who overrun the land. But the Sixteenth One will overpower their hypnosis, and free all but the First, Second, Sixth, Eighth, and Ninth. They will fight back, but will be subdued. The Ones who are Many will be destroyed by the Ones who are Few, and the Guardians will triumph."

Haru and Will stared as the light in Kendra's eyes faded. "Did I say something?" she said, confused.

"Yeah...you said that Celebi, Lugia, and Ho-oh will hypnotize us and Hijou's crew, and Hijou will break free and free everyone except us. And the humans, I think, will be destroyed by us, or something...that's essentially it." Will said, still a bit stunned.

Kendra raised an eyebrow. "Uh...huh." Blue light gathered around her. "Huh? What's...going...on....!"

"Luu!"

"Ho!"

The two Legendary Birds swooped in, and triangulated with Celebi. Ho-oh glowed bright red, while green light emanated from Celebi. Lugia radiated an intense white.

The wind picked up again, and the glow around Kendra increased in strength. Phoebe, now used to being connected to the Fire energy of the earth, partially lost consciousness, because the Water energies cut her off from the power.

Will's strength faded, but he wasn't completely cut off. Haru wasn't affected negatively, because of her resistance to Water. But the overwhelming energies still prevented her from channeling any power. The lightning playing across Rakurai's prison of ice faded, and the purple liquid veining Gekidoku's drained back into his body.

The blue light, now swirling around Kendra with frightening strength, shot into the air, making a giant pillar. Water shot from the ground, rushing over Kendra. It slowly became the same gel-like water that Kendra had used against Chikaku in Jensi, and changed shape. It went from a pillar to a behemoth.

The Titan of Water, Celebi, Ho-oh, and Lugia 'said' in unison. Come to us, Titan! The Sixth Titan, obey our will! Go to your appointed place, and fulfill your destiny!

The large, barely humanoid, watery creature groaned, and stepped to the east. It picked up its giant foot, and slowly stepped forward again. But it was about to step on Phoebe!

Will ran forward, picked up the semiconscious girl, and dashed out from under the Titan's foot.

Then, he realized that the huge thing was talking. "Gggggoo...eeeeeeaassssssttt....ttttoooooo.....ttthhheeeeee....paaaallllaaacssseeee...." Will registered this after he dropped Phoebe next to Haru.

"Palace?" he asked her. "What palace?" Then, a wave of blackness overwhelmed his vision for a moment. When it cleared, Haru was shaking him, and the giant was gone. But a trail of broken trees and crushed boulders clearly marked its path, and Will thought he could see a small, blue figure was

"Will! Wake...oh, you are awake," she said sheepishly, releasing his shoulders. "But you...well, the best way to put it is you...how do you say it? Spaced in?"

"Spaced out," Will corrected her, smiling. Then, the smile vanished. He whirled to face the Legendaries. "Rakurai was right! You are using us!" he growled. Since the giant thing was gone, he could use his abilities. A light wind ruffled his hair, and a brown tinged aura of white surrounded him. "I can't believe you lied to us! You...will...PAY!"

The aura surrounding him blazed out brightly, making Haru wince with pain, even though she was at least a yard from him. A tornado leapt into being around Celebi. Being part Grass type, it was, to say the least, painful.

AARGH!! she screamed. Will's eyes were blazing white light, and he showed no signs of backing down.

Haru leapt forward, and called upon her own power. Her hands glowed lightly green, and she waved one hand in the air. Blue powder floated over Lugia and Ho-oh, rendering them helpless.

Then, she began to glow with golden light. The sun overhead blazed as she took its power and made it her own.

The tornado around Celebi faded, but Will wasn't finished. The light around him changed from a form fitting glow to a pair of ethereal wings attached to his arms, and another pair on his back.

He shot into the air, and dove downward. He blazed with energy as he grew nearer to Celebi, and seconds before impact, he shouted, "Sky Attack!"

It was as if the sun had come to earth, small enough to be a person, but still very, very bright. Haru's Solar Beam technique quickly rose to full power, but she held it in.

But the Sky Attack lasted just a moment too long. The extra light energy filled Haru, and she began to strain to contain the energy. Her form began to lose definition as the energy passed her limit.

She dissolved into white light.

The Sky Attack blazed through Celebi, knocking her out. The energy blazing around Will vanished, and he returned to normal. Then he saw Haru.

Or rather, he didn't. There was a faint white blur where she had been, but nothing else. Dread filled him. "HARU!"

The white blur blazed into dazzling light, and when it faded, Haru was standing there. But she was different. She had an emerald cloak on, and her eyes were also green. Her hair was dark as night, and her green nails sparkled in the sun. Her face, once cheerful and open, was now cold and angry.

"...Haru?" Will said tentatively. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." she snapped, flashing her eyes at him. "The question is, where is Kendra?"

Will realized that Kendra had vanished with the large, water thing. "Where is she?" Phoebe was still collapsed, unconscious. "And what about Phoebe?"

Haru snorted, then walked over to the woman. Raising her arms, she intoned, "Life's refreshing breeze, blow in energy!"

Blue sparkles spiraled around Phoebe, bringing color to her face and movement to her eyelids. She sat up, a tad woozy, and said, "What happened?"

Will sighed, relieved. Then, he whirled to face Ho-oh and Lugia. "They'll wake up any moment. We have to get out of here!"

"And how are we going to do that?" Haru said icily. Phoebe looked at her oddly.

"Well...I have a Starmie I could ride," she pointed out. "And don't you have a Doduo, Haru...um, Haru-chan?"

"Yes, I do," Haru reluctantly offered. "But what about you, Will-kun?"

"I have a Fearow, but I think I have a better idea," he answered her, grinning evilly. He raised his arms, and his whitish aura gathered around them, shaping wings of energy.

Phoebe snapped her fingers. "I can do that too!" Dark flame burst onto her back, and Haru moved back reflexively. The fires molded into wings of flame.

"Well, I can't do that," Haru sneered. "What am I going to do?"

"Ride Fearow," Will smiled, tossing a Pokéball onto the ground. A large, magnificent golden brown bird popped out, and crowed at Haru. She backed up reflexively.

"A...a Flying type?" she asked, sounding nervous for the first time. "I...don't like Flying types."

"Oh, that's right, you're Grass...sorry, I forgot," Will grinned, blushing. "Fearow, come back."

"Feear!" it cawed irritably, angry at being called out for no reason. It went back to its Pokéball, though.

"No one said you had to fly," Phoebe told Haru. "You can ride your Doduo away."

"Doduo is a Flyer, too," Haru said peevishly.

"Just ride him! He's your Pokémon, he's not about to hurt you!" Will yelled. "Hurry!"

Rumble....

"Uh oh. Lugia's waking up!" Phoebe exclaimed. She rose into the air. "C'mon, Will. Haru, just get out of here. If you want to survive. Lugia and Ho-oh are both Flyers." She flew away, picking up speed as time passed.

Will glanced furtively at Haru, then pulled away.

She frowned, then glanced at Lugia. His eyes were open.

"Doduo, out!" she screamed, calling a cloud of Sleep Powder. Her bird Pokémon materialized quickly, and she leaped on it. "RUN!"

"Doooo!" one head shouted.

"Duuuu!" the other replied. They began to fight.

"No, you stupid Doduo! Ruuuuun!" Haru shrieked, kicking its side. It squawked, and zoomed forward.

Haru risked a look back. Lugia had blown away the Sleep Powder with a Gust, and was pumping his wings, rising into the air. Fortunately, the Powder had settled onto Ho-oh, knocking her even further asleep.

Haru gathered her energy, and breathed a brief prayer. She then raised her hands. "Mindless, spiritless, hear the immutable beat..."

A ghost plummeted out of the sky, and exploded over Lugia, showering him with spirals of pink sparks. His wings stiffened, and he slammed into the ground, paralyzed.

"Yes!" Haru said, clenching a fist. She hoped the effect would last long enough to escape.

She was drained by using that technique, however; she wasn't supposed to be able to use it in the first place. Something about that Solar Beam had changed her...but she couldn't remember what had happened after she realized she couldn't hold the energy. It was a blur.

She saw a flash of brown, and before she knew it, she was flying through the air. She looked up, startled.

Will had somehow given her Doduo the gift of flight, and it was rocketing ahead, still running full speed. "We have to get to that cliff!" Will shouted, pointing at a large cliff with a hole in it. Haru could barely hear him over the wind from Doduo's speed. "We can fight off Lugia there!"

"Lugia is incapacitated, at least for now!" Haru shouted back. "I Paralyzed him!"

"Right! But we still need to get to the cliff!" Will broke away from Haru, and summoned a large gust of wind that shot him into the hole.

Haru yelled at her Doduo until it ran into the cave, and fainted on the spot. She recalled it, and turned to face the sky. Something wet landed on her head.

"Argh!" she yelped. A rush of green sparkles washed over her, erasing any damage done from her trip or the cave.

"Wow," Will said, staring. "How did you do that?"

"I don't know," Haru snapped, glaring at him. "I just can. So be quiet and WATCH OUT!"

Will spun, but the Golbat behind him slapped him to the ground with a well placed Wing Attack. Haru's eyes flashed, and she raised a hand. Without really knowing what she was doing, she summoned up her energy and shouted, "Earth's anger running through my fists...strike!"

She pulled her arm back, then thrust it forward. A column of rock exploded from the ground below the Golbat, and pinned it to the ceiling.

"Kamaitachi!" Will cried. Blue light flickered around the Golbat, and transparent blades of air cut at its wings.

Haru followed with a burst of Sleep Powder that Will trapped in a tornado, and then released around the Pokémon. It fell asleep rather quickly after that.

"So. You're pretty good," a voice said, coming from the shadowy back of the cave, where they couldn't see the owner. "I need to speak with you."

Will was instantly wrapped in his brownish white aura, and Haru was not far behind. Where is Phoebe? she wondered.

"I have your friend here," the voice continued. "Phoebe, make a light."

A feeble, flickering flame popped into existence, showing Phoebe in the grasp of a hard-looking man who shimmered with an ugly brown light. "Now, I have nothing against you two. I was sent with a message. But I was not required to leave this girl unharmed, and I will not."

"What is your message?" Will asked harshly. Haru could see that he was preparing a Gust attack.

"Nothing important enough for a fight," the man said, staring at Will. "You might as well power down. I couldn't touch you in the first place."

He turned his gaze onto Haru. "And you could have me unconscious and wrapped up in a blink. I'm at an utter disadvantage against you two, and I don't plan on attacking. I enjoy my skin."

"What's the message?!" Will growled, his aura becoming even brighter.

"It's a message from Hijou, the Dark Knight," the man told them. Haru stifled a titter. He shot a glare at her, and then spoke again. "He wants to tell you that you are welcome to come and fight against the birds with him, and that he will give you further instructions on how to use your gifts."

"And what about Phoebe?" Haru asked.

"She'll survive. I just want to give her what she gave me." His face twisted into a scowl, and his muscular arms clamped around the girl even tighter. She whimpered.

"Let her go." Will snarled, raising his arms.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," the man said politely. "You can get to the Master-"

"Let her go!" Will cried. "Now!" Before an answer was given, he acted. "Wind, come from the clouds and slice!" A sudden gale knocked Haru to the floor, but it didn't hurt her. But the person holding Phoebe wasn't so lucky.

His aura vanished, and Phoebe broke away, gaining strength quickly. She whirled, and called a jet of fire and brought it to bear on her prisoner.

He blew on it, and it turned to harmless smoke. Still smarting, he turned on Phoebe, and leapt.

Haru moved quickly. She summoned a puff of Sleep Powder, and then fashioned a Vine Whip. She lashed forward with it, catching the man on his shoulder. He fell to the ground, writhing in pain. She ran forward, and let the Powder settle on his face, knocking him out rather quickly.

"Thank you," Phoebe gasped. "I flew in here, and I was about to make a light, and he tackled me! He's Ground type, so I couldn't fight him."

"What's his name?" Haru asked as she tied him up with vines.

"Chikaku, I think." she replied. "Last time we met, Kendra and I beat him rather badly. He was supposed to be arrested, but he probably broke out easily. Growlithe are Fire type.

"But Kendra got caught by one of his friends...a Ghost type, I believe."

"Speaking of that particular devil..." another sinister voice hissed. "Here I am!"

The girl that walked from the back of the cave had shoulder length, bone white hair, and ebony black eyes. Her robes of shimmery gray seemed to be made of mist, although opaque, and covered nearly every square inch of her. What skin showed was white as paper, as if light had never touched it.

"Why, hello, Phoebe! And you two must be Haru and Will. Pleasure to meet you." the girl said genially. "The Master thought you would react like that, so he sent me, too. Chikaku never could handle women," she said, staring disdainfully at the unconscious man. "Anyway, if you would like to come, just keep walking into this cave. And that bird that was chasing you has been taken care of." With that, she walked to the side of the cave, which was not easily seen because of the shadows that Phoebe's small torch didn't drive away. With a small wave, the girl walked into them, and vanished.

"Wow," Will stated, impressed. "I can't do that."

Chikaku began to vibrate, and the vines wrapped around him vanished. He sank into the ground, as if he were water.

"Or that."

"Do you think we should go to Hijou's...whatever?" Haru wondered.

"If we don't, we might never learn to use our powers." Will pointed out.

"Why do we need to?" Phoebe asked. "We've been doing quite well."

"Uhm...you don't know the whole story." Haru said, blushing. "While you were unconscious, Will and I fought off Lugia. I started a Solar Beam, and Will used Sky Attack. I absorbed the light into my Solar Beam...and..." She broke off.

"I think she evolved," Will finished.

"Evolved?" Phoebe asked skeptically.

"Anyway, I've been using moves that no Pokémon has learned...almost like spells." Haru continued. "They involve a chant, and they're draining. And Will did something like it when we fought the Golbat." She pointed at the unfortunate cave dweller that was still pinned to the ceiling.

"I would love to discuss this," Phoebe yawned. "But I need to sleep..." She keeled over, unconscious.

Haru smiled, and made her cloak into a kind of pad, and slept on it. Will called a puff of air to him, and trapped it in a bubble, and used it as a pillow. He made another for Phoebe, then went to sleep.