A/N Wow, it's been awhile, hasn't it? Many months since I've uploaded last, and for that, I must apologize to my readers. I have more inspiration now to continue this fic, and hope that updates will come sooner in the future. crosses fingers So, without further procrastination, here's the newest installment of Wings of Flame.
The sweet scent of freshly baked pancakes drenched in maple syrup filled the air. A cool breeze blew the trees lining the sidewalk and bent them on their fragile limbs. Those trees appeared as if they soon planned to disconnect themselves from their roots and run off. The songs of the widely found pidgey and swellow, as well as the less than friendly spearow littered the air.
Erin awoke in a lighthearted mood…until she realized the pancakes were next door at the hotel she was unable to afford to sleep in. She groaned and rose from the bed stiff and sore, only to see Chasm in the same spot she was sitting in when Erin went to sleep.
"Have you been there all night?" she asked the umbreon.
Chasm glanced at Erin drolly. "I require very little sleep, that I do."
Since she offered no more in reply, Erin shrugged and stood up, stretching to relieve herself of the aches. On her way to the bathroom she nudged Abadon rather roughly with her foot and told him to get up. Their time to clock out was soon, and if they didn't make it, more money would have to be paid: money that they did not have. Abadon sat up grumpily. It seems he is not friendly to be around early in the morning. By the time Erin was out of the bathroom, he was slightly more amiable, if not fully awake.
Erin made sure what meager possessions she owned was safe in her pack, mainly the pokedex, and shouldered it, ready to head out. One thing was certain, however: she would not call Chronal until she was having better luck. For that to happen, Erin had to find work. She grudgingly paid the hotel owner and left, thankful to be out of the stink hole and looking forward to being in a better part of town. Despite being a port town, and therefore not as advanced and influenced by the changing of the times as other cities, Erin didn't want to run into a gang like the one when she had first met Abadon. Although her mood and the seemingly visible tension eradiating from her eyes might tip off any group looking for trouble that Erin was not the kind of trouble they wanted at the moment. She didn't want to talk to anyone just then, and the pokemon seemed to sense this, for neither said a word, but a few looks passed between them knowingly.
In their search across town for a few odd jobs to gain money, they passed by the Pokecenter again. Erin made sure to cross on the other side of the street. One could never be too sure about things that include one's safety. A bakery the three traveled by was giving away free samples of a few of their items, in attempt to gain costumers. Erin happily took a few, perhaps more than her allotted share should have been, but then, she had had nothing to eat since lunch the previous day. Abadon swiped one clawed hand across the platter as the remaining pastries fell into his other hand. The lady holding the tray started to make a comment, that is, until she looked up at the massive creature and decided it was not in her best interest to argue. Chasm caught one as it missed Abadon's arm before it could fall to the ground.
Just when she thought all hope was lost, and that she would have to find another, hopefully friendlier town that needed quick work, she spotted a poster stapled to a wooden steak hammered in the ground. The sign read simply, in large bold lettering, HELP WANTED – ONE DAY'S HARD WORK, then it gave the address below. Erin's face brightened as she turned to the others and pointed to the sign. "Look! This is our chance!" Then she took off at a jog down the sidewalk to the building indicated. "If no one else has taken it, then we can get money, and that means we can get food!" she said between breaths as she ran. This caused Abadon to speed up.
The address was near the docks, and appeared to be a fishing supply store. When Erin and the two pokemon reached their destination, they first paused outside to catch their breath before going in to talk with the manager. "You two should stay out here for now, in case pokemon aren't allowed inside, like at the hotel," said Erin. She turned and walked inside the shop. Sitting behind the counter was an old man with gentle eyes and a cheerful smile. On the walls of the store were fishing rods and nets of all varieties and sizes. The more expensive and high-tech rods were contained in glass cases near the register, where the old man could easily keep an eye on them. Despite the range to choose from, this store did not sell supplies that were made to catch anything larger than a seaking, and saying that was a stretch.
"Welcome; how may I help you?" he asked.
"Actually," replied Erin, "I came in reference to a sign I saw about a job. See, I'm just passing through this city, but I need some quick cash and no one else needs my help."
At this, the man frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry. The work I need done requires heavy lifting. I'm not strong enough to do it myself, but no one in this town seems to want to help an old man. I'm afraid that you wouldn't be able help me." He appeared genuinely disappointed, but Erin didn't think that this would be a problem.
"Actually, I might have a solution," she said. She turned toward the door. "Abadon!" she called, "come here!" The head of a large reptilian creature could now be seen peeking in through the doorway. "Would he be able to help?" she asked the man.
The man was startled at first, but then, this is understandable, for any Char is rare, and since pokemon are not often seen evolved to their third level anymore, Charizard are scarce. "Uh, um," he stuttered. "Yes, uh, he'll do fine," the man managed to say after giving his head a shake. "Follow me." He opened a door in the wall to Erin's right and walked through, motioning for Erin to do the same. Erin waved for Abadon to follow, who in turn told Chasm, who didn't look too thrilled, but then again, she didn't get excited at the drop of a hat.
Through the door was a surprisingly large storeroom, filled with half-opened boxes that were in great disarray. The room was filled with dust and appeared that no one had stepped foot beyond the door's opening in many months. "My name is Mr. Kline, and what I need you to do for me is to clean this room, which requires moving those large boxes. So now you see why not just anyone could assist me."
Erin did understand, for some of the boxes were too large for her to even reach around, let alone lift up off the ground. "Thank you Mr. Kline. My name is Erin, and this is Abadon and Chasm."
"Pokemon with names? Interesting," he said, shrugging off the notion. "Well, I'm sure that you and your pokemon will do a wonderful job. Your pay," the man remarked on his way out the door, "will be decided on how good a job you do, however, so keep that in mind."
With this said, Erin was determined to do the task well. That is, make sure Abadon does the task well. She would assist in the cleaning and dusting, but Abadon would be the only one able to lift the heavy boxes. They soon got to work, and fell into the task easily. Chasm, of course, sat nearby and watched the spectacle. "Ya know," Erin said in Chasm's direction, "this job is to make money to pay for your food as well."
"This is not necessary," replied the umbreon. "I have already eaten today. Many people leave perfectly good fish simply lying around, and I didn't see the need for it to go to waste, that I didn't." Erin had the sinking feeling that stealing was included in there somewhere between the lines, but she didn't feel like explaining that concept to Chasm at that moment. She simply continued to scrub.
A few hours later, with plenty of resting now and again, the group was near finishing. The myriads of boxes were placed neatly in rows, the floors were scrubbed, and not a cobweb was in sight. All in all, Erin and Abadon felt fairly good about themselves and what they had accomplished. Chasm had not moved. One thing was left, and that was to dispose of one last small pile of trash, but at the moment, Erin did not feel like moving, so she simply sat down to rest. She took a deep breath and was about to close her eyes for a bit when Chasm stood to her feet. The umbreon crouched down with one leg forward and both eyes focused on the trash pile. Her eyes began to glow yellow as the umbreon hissed. The human and the Char, confused, looked first at each other and then to the pile of trash that had acquired all of Chasm's attention.
"What the…" Erin decided to leave that sentence hang unfinished, for right before her eyes, the garbage on the floor turned black and began to sink into the floor. No more than five seconds later, the Chasm's eyes were back to normal and she was once more sitting in the exact spot in which she had resided for the majority of that day. Erin now finished her sentence. "What the crap was that!?!"
"-That-, was how I dispose of unwanted trash," Chasm replied calmly. "All dark type pokemon are connected in some way to the Void. I sent the waste there. But do not worry, orange one," she said to Abadon, sensing his next question. "I am not able to use it against an opponent in battle, for the Void only accepts that which has no life." Erin then remembered the night of their meeting, and the battle between Abadon and Chasm and shivered. She was not the first human that the umbreon had attacked, and Chasm had made it clear that she did not leave survivors. The bodies had to have been put somewhere, for Chasm would not have allowed a human, even a dead one, to reside in the forest, and now she knew what had become of them. She shivered again.
Violently breaking the mood, Mr. Kline entered the room swiftly. "Wow!" he exclaimed, looking around at the work the three had accomplished. "This looks better than expected! Are you done? Great, then come out here and we'll get things settled." He exited the storeroom and reentered the main lobby of the shop, and the others followed, grateful for a change in scenery.
"It's already this late?" said Erin, glancing at the clock. It was already after noon. "We were in there for longer than I thought."
Mr. Kline was in the process of opening up the cash register. "Yes, you and your friends worked long and hard, so here is your reward." He handed Erin her payment. It was more than she had expected, and would last her for quite some time.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Kline!" Erin said in return, truly grateful. She jabbed Abadon in the ribs with her elbow.
"Yes, thank you," the Char said as a result. "We are glad that we could be of assistance. Chasm scoffed in reply.
Mr. Kline looked extremely thoughtful for a moment, and then walked pass them out the front door. "Please come with me. I have something else to give to you." Glancing momentarily at each other in question, Erin, Abadon, and Chasm followed him out the door an around the store to the back. He brought the three up to a pond, which, unlike the storeroom inside, was extremely well kept. In the water swam about twenty feebas. Erin had never seen a feebas before, let alone so many in one place at the same time. "Wow!" she remarked. "There are so many!"
Mr. Kline didn't reply. Instead, he studied the pond for a moment and then took out a light blue pokeball. Erin recognized as a lure ball from one of her classes. "Return!" he called, and one of the feebas was taken into the ball in the form of red light. Chasm and Abadon both lowered their brow in displeasure at this action, but before anything could be said, Mr. Kline turned toward Erin. "This feebas has been in my possession longer than any other. I have trained her and practiced with her for many, many years, and thus she is very dear to me, but I feel that if she stays here, she will not grow any stronger. I watched you with your pokemon today, and saw the bond that you share with them. I ask you to do me a favor and take her with you. She is strong, and I believe she will evolve soon, but not if she remains here."
Erin stood dumbfounded. Good lord, it was happening again. She had to be the youngest trainer in decades, not counting those that inherited pokemon from rich parents or family members. She truly did not know what to say. This morning she had felt hopeless and slightly alone, despite the company of the two pokemon. Now she had money to spare and in front of her was a man she barely knew who was offering her another pokemon. Things never ceased to amaze her. "Uh, sure, I'd be honored," was all that she finally managed to say. Erin lifted her arm to grasp the blue sphere in Mr. Kline's outstretched hand. "Thank you very much."
Erin thought she saw the traces of a tear in the eye of her one-day-employer, but he quickly turned away and walked briskly back to his store. "Yes, well, I'm sure you can find your way back to the street. It was nice meeting you." And then he was gone.
"Just like that?" Erin said, referring to the man's departure.
"Well, let's go," said Abadon in reply, walking past his human friend with Chasm following, leaving Erin standing where she was.
She finally snapped out of it and ran after the other two, pokeball in hand. "But everything happened so fast! We didn't even get to say goodbye!" There was no reply, so Erin simply sighed and continued her chase, attempting to fit the ball containing the unnamed feebas in her bag in the process. "Wait! You two don't even know where we're going!"
Chasm stopped and turned around. "If I am not mistaken, which I rarely am, you had no plan as to our destination either."
Erin realized that she was right. "Well then, let's go to the wharf. That way we'll be able to see the ocean, or at least a bay."
Abadon nodded and set off again. "To the ocean."
Erin fell into step beside him. "To the ocean."