w00t w00t! Sorry, I'm kinda hyper about finally finishing this chapter. The beginning may be normal and kinda boring, but I assure you that it won'tstay that way... ((demon grin))
Warnings for this chapter: Violence, about three uses of bad language, arrogance condensed in draconic form and the hell pit that is the shopping centre. Be afraid... XD
Raven: Emerald Fist
Mechyena Saga
by Obsidian Blade
Chapter XIII: Aluminium
A shape slunk through the shadows, sliding from alley to alley. Despite its hatred of creeping, the creature was undeniably good at it despite its hulking size. Keeping out of the sunlight and plain view it kept its scarred hide masked by the darkness as it pressed on. This time it would ignore the bloodlust. This time it would succeed.
ooo
By the time I arrived back at our room Jay had already left on his own excursions. My brain was still hissing and spitting furiously as I collapsed onto my bed but I did my best to block it out for the moment. There were, in my opinion, more important things to tend to.
Reaching for the bedside table I dropped Arina's Pokéball into the top drawer with the others and lifted my Pokédex out from beneath them. The sleek silver machine contained a few things worth knowing, including information on being a trainer. I needed to know if there was a way I could resist my father's search.
For the next hour I peered at the small screen, pent up frustration ebbing and flowing like the tide as I snatched at solutions, only to find that they wouldn't work for my situation. I wasn't too good at this intellectual stuff, I realised as I reread a line of text four times over. My schooling wasn't first class to start with and, admittedly, my lack of enthusiasm in all classes but the three sciences and games had not helped in the least. My undisciplined eye had so far uncovered only one thing relating to the peculiar circumstances I was in… and that was the simple fact that all aspiring trainers under the age of eighteen require their parent's permission to start their journey. Ouch.
It was an off putting fact and I soon found myself skipping whole paragraphs in my need for some sort of rule that would redeem my case as legitimate. My eyes skipped across the text as I scrolled further and further down, searching doggedly until my gaze halted at the words "Trainer Confidentiality" in bold print.
I don't know why that particular phrase caught my attention, as I definitely did not know what it meant, but for some reason it did and I read on. The more I read, the more my mood lightened. I was no academic but I did know someone who was…
An hour and a half later I hit the streets once again as a particularly long e-mail travelled through cyber-space towards the professor who had granted me trainership. It would be my first time communicating with Professor Darkwood - he had left Olivine before I recovered from my first brush with Mechyena so I had failed to get to know him - and he had an awful lot of reading on his hands as a result. At least I felt better, anyway.
Studying the faces of the people I passed as I walked along, I nodded at what I assumed were the correct places as Polienix, perched in her usual place on my shoulder, babbled incessantly into my ear. Her wounds from the battle with Omela healed by a Chansey's expert ministrations, Pol was stuck in full cheery bird mode and my eardrums were feeling the repercussions.
"So, where're we going, anyway?" she asked suddenly, catching me momentarily unawares with a question that needed more than a yes or no answer.
"I figured we could check out the gym," I responded, thankful for my quick recovery time, "And then go back to the Pokémon centre to check if Darkwood's gotten back to me. After that we can go get some lunch, 'kay?"
Food seemed to be quite a good distraction at the time, but Polienix's brow furrowed nonetheless.
"What d'you wanna talk to him about, again?" she inquired, head cocked to one side.
"Um," I hesitated for a second, on the verge of simply telling her outright, before finishing lamely, "Stuff."
"Oh."
She went silent for a few minutes after that, something I disliked even more than her banter as it suggested she was doing some serious thinking, but was back to her old chattering self by the time we reached the shiny glass doors of the Goldenrod gym. Framed by twin fluted columns of pale stone, the building was extremely plain in design. In fact, it was little more than a squat cream coloured box with sliding doors stuck awkwardly into the front. A basket of pale pink flowers sat in the middle of the entrance: a tentative attempt at colour.
Stepping further inside, I found myself in a sort of waiting area. Falkner apparently hadn't thought one necessary, but this place was full of trainers and their Pokémon. Some sat on the white sofas that lined the walls and sliced the space into isles while still more leant against walls or stood in groups. Quite a few of them seemed perfectly used to this sort of crowded chaos, although some others, like me, were looking around in disbelief. With such a large city, I suppose I should have expected so many people to be here.
Apparently unfazed by the clamour of voices, Polienix peered around with the curiosity characteristic of a child.
"There're a lot of fighting types," she said finally, "Maybe the gym leader has Pokémon weak to them?"
she said finally,My head snapped around so fast that my annoyingly long ponytail snapped across my face. Ignoring it, I gaped at Pol.
"…Okay," I forced out, "I wasn't expecting that."
Her expression was full of modesty as she responded, "But I don't know what's weak to fighting type."
"Normal type."
With so many faces in the crowd, it took me a second to locate the speaker. The fact that he stuck out like a sore thumb helped the search somewhat: his straight silver hair, pulled back tightly into a short ponytail at the nape of his neck, framed a pale, angular face and his eyes, narrow and oriental in shape, stared out at me with a look of icy indifference.
"The whole gym is full of them; plain, boring normal types that no one else would give a second glance," he gave a resentful snort, "I certainly wouldn't, anyway."
"Why?" inquired the bird on my shoulder, "Aren't they Pokémon like the rest of us?"
inquired the bird on my shoulder,He flared his nostrils, the action causing the light to shine through the skin and light up his face into what was almost beauty for a second, before leaning back in his seat and pointedly in the opposite direction. Conversation over.
Raising one eyebrow, I gave him one last glance before heading over to a plaque set into the wall. It took some forceful shoving to get to it, but once there I found myself looking at a predictably simple slab of pale rock. Engraved with the words "Goldenrod Gym, Plain Badge" at the top with a picture of a diamond beneath the title, it went on to list the names of leaders up until the present one.
"Whitney," I snorted, "A plain name for a plain trainer."
Unfortunately there wasn't a list of victors present so I couldn't judge her battling skills just yet. That could wait until tomorrow - I had already experienced my fair share of action for one day.
I left the gym with my nose buried in my Pokédex as I looked up the weaknesses and strengths of the normal type, Polienix back to her happy jabbering once again.
'Good against rock and steel, useless against ghost… Weak against fighting but ghost can't hurt 'em…' I mused as I walked, 'That guy was right; a Pokémon type that's only good against two other types isn't going to much good in battle.'
I mused as I walked,I glanced at Polienix, who was currently blathering away about her great aunt fighting a Salamance.
'But don't let her know you think that.'
ooo
So close, so close…
In the shadows of an alleyway, the shape withdrew until its terrifying bulk was hidden almost entirely by the thick metal of an abandoned skip. It had been empty, once upon a time, but had since found itself the victim of the Goldenrod nightlife. Now it reeked of urine, vomit and several other things the beast hadn't encountered before, and the powerful scents were making it difficult to continue to track its quarry.
But for now, that was a good thing. It needed a while to calm down, to gain its senses. The blood thirst implanted into its mind could be useful at times, but now it was interfering with its duty. The Master had told it to scout… to scout. It had to constantly remind itself of the fact as it practically brushed shoulders with the vulnerable humans that populated this city.
Peering out from behind the skip, Mechyena's scarlet eyes blinked, once, as a familiar shape walked right past the entrance to his alley. The scent was clear, even with the interference of all the other smells, and it slowly dawned on him that perhaps he had simply overshot rather than fallen behind. And that scent…
He dug his massive silver claws into the pavement. To scout.
ooo
Although I received a vaguely annoyed look from the maid as I skirted around her and nipped into the room, none of authorities in the Pokémon centre challenged the fact that I still hadn't left after noon. I was glad, Jay was still gone and I had no desire to be forced to cart all of our combined belongings outside on my own.
Polienix glided from my shoulder to the windowsill the instant the door was shut behind us, turning her head nearly one hundred and eighty degrees to dig her sharp yellow beck into her soft, downy feathers. I flinched as she started to violently yank the thin shafts from her own back and wings, but Pol apparently felt no pain. Trying not to think about the feathers that quickly littered the floor; I left her to her preening. Perhaps she was shedding, or whatever young birds did. Either way, it kept her quiet.
Pulling my revered 'Dex out of my pocket once again, I connected it to e-mail. It was a good thing that the process could be explained as "bunging the phone-connecting-thingy into the slot-thingy at the back" as I was hardly a pro at technology. To my surprise, after finally managing to navigate a maze of screens I found that I already had a reply to my previous message. Darkwood was good… either that or just short of a social life.
"Probably the latter," I muttered gloomily as I realised his reply contained words with more syllables than I had fingers on one hand.
It took half an hour of deciphering and guesswork before I had pieced together a basic understanding of what the professor was trying to say, a time in which Polienix had rid herself of more feathers than I thought she had on her body. She was now staring out of the window glumly, inquiring every thirty seconds or though as to my progress so far. Finally I could give her the reply she wanted.
"Let's go."
Pol gave a peep of joy, "Finally!" she chirped, "I was getting so bored…"
Feeling in much better spirits, I actually smirked at her complaints. What Darkwood had suggested was simple: lie low. His other comment was that I might just want to look a little different, cut my hair, change my clothes, perhaps even use a different last name… He hadn't said that I should do so, of course, but a harmless little comment could lead to bigger things sometimes. It was just one of those things that… happened. One of those things that happened even easier when a small amount of money changed hands.
Yes, only I could land myself with the dodgy professor. Call it a talent.
I hit the streets once again before Nurse Joy or one of her assistants could raise the issue of getting me out of the room. Doing something that wasn't exactly within the limits of the law had suffused me with an air of arrogance; something that I soon realised was actually making me swagger as I pushed past the people on the streets. I did not stop myself. In fact, I felt like screaming "I have contacts and you don't!" at the top of my lungs. That urge I managed to dampen, but an ugly smirk had glued itself to my face at the knowledge. Exhilarated at breaking the law. Interesting.
"Oi, Ray, what's up with you?" a familiar voice enquired loudly.
I stopped and glanced to my left, where, over the roof of a parked car, I made out the wild blond hair of Jay and fiery orange plumage of Magenix as the two made their way across the road towards us. Stepping onto the pavement, my travelling partner looked me up and down with a sceptical expression on his face.
"It's hard to tell," he concluded, "If you look like someone who has just won the lottery or someone who's stolen the winnings. Care to enlighten me?"
I rolled my eyes, "What do you think? I am a trainer, after all."
Internally I glowed with praise for my ingeniousness. He would just think I'd won a few battles, unaware that, in fact, I'd just received enough cash from my sponsor to get myself a brand new outfit and a much-needed haircut. I didn't even have to lie.
But Jay let out a sigh, "Raven, the lottery is for charity. Have a little respect."
For a split second I thought he was being as serious as always, but one look at the smile on his face said otherwise.
"So, how much?" he asked, unaware of the source of confusion on Polienix's face.
She was, of course, perfectly aware that I hadn't done a bit of battling today. Well, excluding the interlude with Karen's monstrosities, something I wasn't willing to share with anyone. Ignoring the way her talons tightened around my shoulder, I danced around Jay's question once again as I realised that I wasn't sure of the exact amount.
"Enough."
The reply was vague and arrogantly uncaring; probably a decent mimic of myself after a few wins. Jay bought it, anyway, even if an odd niggle at the corner of my mind alerted me to Polienix's psychic presence. Hoping against all hopes that she wouldn't uncover the source of my odd behaviour, I felt my arrogance slip away as we continued along into the pedestrianised area of town. Even though I would still be riding the perverse joy of rebelliousness if I were back home at Malmarsh, something about keeping things from my starting Pokémon was making me feel awful.
Trying to keep these thoughts buried as deep into my consciousness as possible while still maintaining the illusion of pleased pride, I led the way up to the famous Goldenrod department store and, hoping that some aggravating shopping would divert my attention from more important matters, strolled inside.
The shop was some sort of controlled pandemonium, and it only earned the controlled part because of the general lack of spilt blood. The ceiling, quite low already, sported colourful sign after colourful sign directing shoppers to "trainer's market", "menswear", "drugstore" and other such places. Those people that didn't flock in the direction of the arrows crowded around racks of various different items, almost all of which sported red tags exclaiming for all the world to see that this was all on sale. There actually appeared to be some heated debate going on between shoppers as to who had seen which object first. And this was only a Thursday afternoon…
"Lead on, oh great one," Jay offered, seeming quite pleased to be able to slot in behind me and leave the navigation to someone else.
Both as horrified as each other at the general chaos that reigned supreme in this uncharted territory, we kept to the centre of the isle as we made our way towards the escalators. Buffeted by the flow of people, I just managed to catch the location of the female clothes section before we were swept by. No wonder my parents had always kept to the smaller shops back home.
After what felt like a lifetime of pushing, shoving and scrabbling at price tags I found myself standing in a communal changing room staring at my reflection. In fact, I was too scared to look anywhere else least I catch an unwanted glimpse of bared flesh. Aside from a gaggle of skiving schoolgirls who sneered out from one corner, quite unembarrassed when I caught them staring disgustedly at my muscle-bound form, the changing room was full of women taking advantage of their lunch break and I had somehow ended up stuck between two somewhat overweight women who jiggled in all the wrong places when they laughed at the comments they were passing between one another over my head. Blinking in confusion at what I thought was a remark about some sort of vegetable; I made the mistake of glancing to my left and was momentarily blinded.
My reflection. Right.
Aside from a beet-red face and straggly hair that now reached mid-back, I supposed I didn't look too bad. In a rush to cover myself up I'd accidentally put on two shirts - one of which I didn't even remember picking up. It was silver, with a scoop neckline that had a triangle of cloth removed from the front, and had sleeves that flared out at the ends and stopped just beyond my elbows. Nothing I would even consider wearing normally, but over the skin-tight, high-necked black shirt I had on underneath I liked it.
Trousers were more difficult - I would have stuck with the baggy blue jean shorts I had been through so much with but it was nearly winter and dropping temperatures made that impossible. Blue knees, as far as I knew, were not in fashion, so I eventually settled on a pair of loose blue jeans and a brown belt for my Pokéballs. Only one outfit wasn't exactly the most hygienic choice, but a check via my Pokédex had revealed that the Professor had not given me quite as much money as I had expected. I was not too keen on staying in that changing room for much longer, anyway, so I quickly changed back into my older clothes and set off determinedly in the direction of the counter. Shopping, I had realised, was all to do with forcefulness.
ooo
Mechyena was beyond peeved. Even when crouched in the darkest section of ally he could find near the department store, there were no conveniently placed skips around here. And the scent had been lost the minute his quarry had stepped through those sliding doors: so many humans made it impossible to track even such a well-known smell.
Even though he wasn't the brightest of creatures, Mech could see that it would be a while before he could resume his chase and lay down on his belly like any normal dog, heavy head rested on massive paws. Giving a dejected sigh, he waited.
ooo
"It doesn't suit you," I said firmly, my head held perfectly still as a brunette with a personality that was the absolute duplicate of Polienix's attacked my long locks with a pair of scissors.
"Really?" Jay responded, removing the brown cowboy hat from his head and giving it a long hard glare.
If it weren't for the fact that we were going to have to come face to face with Joy sometime soon I would have wondered why he was still sticking around. As it was, I would bet money that he just didn't want to be thrown out of the Pokémon centre on his own.
"Shame, I thought I'd really hit gold that ti- Raven, what the hell have you done!" he spluttered, finally looking at me long enough to see what was happening to my hair.
"Had my hair cut, perhaps?" I replied dryly, rolling my shoulders as the hairdresser finally released me from the chair.
"So short?"
"Your point?"
It was short, but not nearly as clipped as Jay's reaction would have made anybody believe. Rather than hanging from my head like a dead muskrat it was now shoulder length and doing its best to recover. To me it was a joy: heinously long ponytails were not particularly suitable for a Pokémon journey through the wilderness.
Paying the hairdresser with some of the last of my ill-earned cash, Jay and I climbed the dimly lit steps of the underground and up into Goldenrod. My stomach was grumbling hungrily so I scanned the row of buildings across the road, looking for a restaurant, just as a flash of charcoal fur thundered across my vision, tearing through the crowd as they stumbled out of the way.
"What the hell?" Jay exclaimed over the sounds of chaos as people sped away from what I assumed was some sort of animal.
There was a particularly loud scream as a girl coming out of the department store was hit head on by the stampeding beast, the impact throwing her off her feet and into the wall beside the glass sliding doors. Winded, she slid to the ground as the shaggy creature came to a stop right by her feet, its silver claws digging into the concrete steps as it bared sharp white teeth.
For a second my mind stayed numb, uncomprehending, as my amber eyes roved from the long black tail of the doglike beast to the metal cables, bars and other protrusions that glinted through its long, coarse coat. I swear my heart had stopped beating in my chest as I stared at the familiar crimson eyes, narrowed and bloodthirsty, that were thankfully aimed at some other unfortunate rather than me. But I couldn't stay in denial for long: the dark bubble of fear spread throughout my gut as a name surfaced in my mind.
Mechyena.
"What the hell is that thing doing!" Jay continued, his eyes stormy as he stared incredulously at the mechanised Pokémon past the few remaining people who, like me, had found their bodies unresponsive in face of their terror.
Mechyena was advancing, its nose wrinkled up in an awesome snarl as a dangerous growl emanated from its throat. It had risen out of its threatening crouch to tower over the winded girl, who looked up at it with horrified brown eyes as she gasped helplessly for breath.
'Karen,' I suddenly realised, 'Without her holographic slaves.'
I suddenly realised,From the black streak through her long blonde hair to the sky blue shirt and khaki trousers she still wore I could tell it was true. But what could Mechyena possibly want from her? I had Polienix but…
Jay brought me out of the whirl of thoughts that caught me, hurling two red and white spheres in Mechyena's general direction. The street was now almost empty aside from a few faces peering out from the relative safety of doorsteps so there was no one to get in the way as the streamlined orange body of Magenix and holly leaf ears and lime green form of Fidranger materialized on the pale bricks of the road.
"What're you doing?" I choked out, looking over at my tawny haired companion in amazement.
His eyebrows drawn together in a frown of concentration, Jay responded tautly, "Saving her, of course. Magenix!" he continued, voice increasing in volume as he commanded his Pokémon, "Ember Mechyena! Fidranger, use your leech seed on it!"
Fidranger gave him a quizzical look over her shoulder before putting back her head and releasing a long, wailing howl. Beside the grass hound Magenix quickly formed a mouthful of flames, taking to the air to get closer to Mechyena before releasing the ball of fire directly into the creature's face. With a roar Mechyena spun around, powerful jaws just missing Magenix as he swooped overhead, only to be hit by a barrage of seeds that sank tiny roots deep into its coat.
"Well, help me out!" Jay snapped in my direction between orders for a vine whip and gust.
As the wind speed increased and the sound of a fleshy creeper snapping through the air assaulted my senses I finally nodded, realising that Mechyena definitely knew I was here now that it had turned around and also easily assuming that it could catch me if it so desired. Wincing with empathy as Fidranger let out a yelp while being propelled through the air via Mechyena's broad snout, my hand brushed over Polienix, Arina and Raijin's Pokéballs to latch onto that of Hades. As much as I would have liked to have Pol help out too, the circumstances of Articairion's death forced me to leave her where she was.
Instead the ever-loyal Houndour found himself facing the same creature that had beaten him near-senseless only weeks before. For a second I hesitated, wondering if perhaps I should have attempted to reason with Raijin, but Hades simply raised his ink-black hackles and prepared for battle.
Smiling at my Pokémon's tenacity despite the threat, I cried out, "Inferno crunch!"
Hades was only happy to leap into action, bounding past Fidranger as the Janeran Pokémon struggled to her feet and charging straight at Mechyena's furious face. Tongues of fire drizzling from his jaws, he launched himself at the larger dog, his stomach colliding with Mech's nose as flaming teeth bit down onto one organic ear. Emerald's abomination bellowed, shaking its head wildly as Hades raked at its blood-chilling eyes with short but tough silvery claws. Fearing a repetition of last time I ran to the right, yelling at Hades to let go before Mechyena forced him to. With one last burst of flame right against his enemy's head, Houndour released his grip and was sent flying into the air. His sturdy frame slammed into my chest, my arms instantly wrapping around his orange and black body, and for a second I found myself staring straight into the murderous eyes of Mechyena.
The staring contest was broken before it even started, however, as Magenix dived between us, halting himself with heavy flaps of his billowing wings and sending a mini twister whirling into the dog's head. The boisterous fire bird was about to give a whoop of battle-induced ecstasy when he suddenly found himself surrounded by a cloud of dark purple energy. Although it was difficult to see through the shroud of darkness, I could just make out Magenix's beak opening in a silent scream of pain as his pupils shrunk down to mere pinpoints. Beyond him Mechyena growled, that same crackling darkness pulsating around it as Polienix's brother convulsed in agony.
"Shadow Ball," a Pokédex's voice chimed and, to my amazement, I found that Karen had regained her feet and was aiming a basic-looking machine at the fighters, "Ghost type move. Power rating of 80. Technical Machine 30."
I turned my attention away from the determined looking girl just as Magenix slumped to the floor, released from the ghost move but clearly fainted. Jay instantly sprang to his aid, glaring at Mechyena as he scooped his knocked out bird into his arms and held him securely to his chest. Mechyena hesitated and in the second it wasted a crack filled the air: Fidranger's supple vines flailing over its hindquarters as she gave a yap at the small victory. Gritting his teeth, Jay took his chance and ran, just as Mechyena spun around and knocked Fidranger flying once again. As I hauled myself up to my feet beside Jay, lowering Hades to the ground, his grass Pokémon slammed into the ground and laid still, her eyelids fluttering once before she went completely limp.
As two flashes of crimson light signified that both Magenix and Fidranger had been withdrawn, the powerful steel and dark type dog turned to face us, looking thoroughly pleased with itself even as Hades went into a crouch between us. I hesitated, sweat dribbling down my back as my hand hovered indecisively over the three remaining balls on my belt. I could see that Jay was now considering the same course of action as I was: we weren't that far from the steps to the department store… maybe we would be able to find safety somewhere in there, in a lift, perhaps.
As if it had read our thoughts, Mechyena suddenly shifted its muscular bulk so that it blocked the way between us and the sliding doors where Karen stood uncertainly. Suddenly I noticed that a familiar violet darkness was building up across the Pokémon's shoulders and, memories of Magenix's silent cry of pain resurfacing in my mind, I wasted no time in whipping out Houndour's Pokéball and returning him in a flash of light. My hands were actually shaking now: I had just removed our one barrier of defence, neither Jay nor myself wanting to force our other Pokémon to fight this beast, and now I wanted nothing more than to run, even though I knew full well that Mechyena could run me down in three bounds.
Suddenly I became aware of the fact that the ghostly energy coursing around Mechyena had changed - now it was light consuming black. I felt Jay's hand grab my forearm, probably to pull me away if I froze again, as Emerald's creation went down into a crouch for the third time.
"Faint attack," the boy croaked as muscles rippled beneath Mech's coat, "Never misses."
A wave of cold dread washed over me, drowning what I had previously thought counted as gut wrenching fear and leaving my whole body feeling icy cold. As my amber eyes widened, Mechyena seemed to loose consistency as it sprang.
"Go, Sevielle! Poison tail attack!"
The cry ripped through the air, followed by a blur of lithe, shiny black that whipped around its angular tail so that the scarlet blade that armed one side ripped into Mechyena's flank before the dog could fade out completely. It gave a yelp of surprise, thrown out of its attack as thick purple liquid dripped from the area in which it had been hit, and collided shoulder first with the brickwork of a building opposite.
Mechyena's assailant landed right in front of us, its obsidian black scales interrupted occasionally by circular golden protrusions that came at intervals along its long, serpentine body. Its crested head shifted from side to side warily, long red fangs already dripping some sort of foul poison, as its opponent rose to its paws. My fingers oddly numb, I groped for my Pokédex.
"Seviper, the fang snake Pokémon. Seviper's sword like tail serves two purposes - it slashes foes and douses them with secreted poison. This Pokémon will not give up its long running blood feud with Zangoose," the mechanical voice droned as Karen, Karen of all people, jabbed a finger in Mechyena's direction.
His hand still wrapped around my arm, Jay pulled me out of harm's reach as Sevielle the Seviper performed what Karen had called a "Poison Fang" attack, fangs as long as my forearm digging deep into an organic part of Mechyena. Snarling with pain it lashed out with one massive paw, smacking the giant snake across the head and detaching her from its side. She gave a warning hiss before lashing out with her tail, the flat of the blade catching the side of her our enemy's muzzle and sending it flinching back in pain.
"Crunch!" Karen ordered from the sidelines.
Sevielle opened her mouth wide, displaying her fangs to the full, before biting down into Mechyena's leg with a dark attack. Even though her attack drew blood, however, Mechyena didn't seem to be as badly affected as I had expected it to be. The claws on one paw toughened and glinted metallically before it ridded itself of the Seviper pest for the second time. Metal claws opening deep slashes in the snake's scaly hide, Mechyena grabbed its advantage as she fell back in pain and latched its jaws around her vulnerable body.
I felt the chill that had started to subside when Sevielle first appeared returning as she writhed in helpless pain, blood splattering the road from deep wounds as she caused Mechyena's teeth to dig deeper by striking repeatedly with tail and fangs.
"Oh gawd," Karen wailed, her waist noticeably free of any other Pokéballs, "If only I had the RealSpec…"
My mind instantly clicked: I didn't like this girl but Seviper had done nothing to me and Mechyena most certainly would if the snake was defeated. I didn't know exactly what she would do with the RealSpec but…
"You mean this?" I questioned, producing the small red and white object from my pocket where it had resided for most of the day.
Karen's eyes bugged at the sight, "Where did you…" but she cut herself off, "It doesn't matter! Throw it here!"
I did and, to my amazement, the blond girl pulled from her dark brown suede purse one of the purple handsets from the Holodrome, its glossy screen lighting up the minute she pressed the tiny RealSpec to the back, where it was held with a clink.
"Thyat, come on out," Karen commanded quietly, her previous look of dismay replaced by one of determination as her slender thumbs tapped commands into the machine.
As the familiar teal armoured creature was projected into the street, her holographic bulk catching Mechyena's attention long enough for it to stop shaking Sevielle like an abused stuffed toy, I stared at Karen incredulously.
"She's a hologram!" I exclaimed, "What on earth do you expect something that's not even real to do?"
Karen glanced down at me from her position on the steps just as the ovular contraption on the back of her handset lit up like a lantern. Jay and I released a collective gasp as pale lines of light sped across the Nidoqueen's hide, broadening to cover her in a web of light before retracting again to reveal the same Pokémon… only different. Her rock-hard plating now really did look rock-hard and her emotionless eyes now held a liquid gleam.
"She's real enough," came the answer to my question as Mechyena dropped Sevielle to the ground to face this new threat.
As the bloodied and battered snake slunk out of the way, my heart going out to her as she grimaced at the dirt and dust getting into her wounds, Thyat gave a bellowing roar that sent the window panes shaking in their frames.
"She's not alive…" I muttered desperately, "That's not possible…"
"Perhaps not alive, but definitely substantial enough to do damage," Jay responded, adopting the look of absolute focus that always took control of his face when something really interested him.
Even as we spoke Karen was typing in commands furiously, something I supposed she had to do without the main computer of the 'Dome to recognise her voice. Just as Mechyena broke into a reckless charge, Thyat took one step forwards and wrapped her powerful arms around its neck and torso. Her claws dug in deep enough to draw blood as she used the mechanical creature's own momentum to send it crashing into the ground. The bricks shattering under the force of the blow, Mechyena found itself lying, bleeding, in the middle of a good sized dent in the road. For a second it remained still, dazed, before attempting to gain its feet before Nidoqueen could press the attack.
Too late: Karen's fingers were but a blur on her handset as Thyat stabbed out with her claws like daggers, no hesitation or guilt showing in her eyes as she drove the sharp talons into the vulnerable flesh that lay beneath shaggy black fur. Mechyena bellowed, red eyes wide in surprised agony, before lashing out blindly once again, its crushing jaws latching on around Nidoqueen's reinforced forearm and biting down hard. As I watched in disbelief Mech's canines sunk into its enemy to no avail; the Nidoqueen didn't even flinch. Like the robots I had compared her kind to earlier that very day, Thyat simply grasped the real Pokémon's skull in her free hand and yanked it away viciously, ripping away her own plating to reveal plain, bloodless darkness underneath.
Karen cheered, cawed from the sidelines, one hand continuing to input commands as the other punched the air in sadistic joy. As Nidoqueen intensified her grip behind the ears of a creature that gave me regular nightmares I felt indecision grasp hold of my mind like a vice. I hated Mechyena passionately - the damn thing scared me half to death and had dealt some nasty damage to my collarbone in the first few hours of my journey - but it was still a living being. Thyat… Thyat was just proving that she was nothing more than a soulless computer as she repeatedly slammed the hound's head into the ground with a brutality that sent shivers up my spine. But if Thyat were a computer, then what did that make Karen?
I don't know exactly what it was that made me act so stupidly, but I think most of it was just the fact that I was witnessing one of the most horrific open acts of cruelty I had ever seen in my life. Mechyena was out of it, that much was obvious from the way all tension in its legs had disappeared as it whimpered weakly whenever its head contacted the unforgiving ground, and yet Karen still spurred on her "real" hologram, so used to having another machine as her enemy that she seemed incapable of realising that this opponent felt pain.
I grabbed Raijin's Pokéball, aware that he was the one Pokémon I owned that would have no qualms with attacking an "ally", just as Jay opened his mouth to suggest that we stop this madness. Like we really could: Mechyena was considerably more powerful than any of our Pokémon and yet Thyat was making it look like the weakest thing alive. We still had to try.
Jay's Mightyena and my Mydral appeared in the space between us and the violence, Cerberus instantly stepping back and whining at his trainer at the sight that greeted him.
"Stop her," Jay ordered, his words fierce, "But be careful."
Even as he spoke Raijin sent me one of his scathing glares, apparently impervious to the scene as he sat back on his violet, scaly haunches.
"Raijin, work with me here," I called in entreaty, "I'll let you out more often, give you a better choice in food…"
"Don't mahke ah fool of yourself, humahn," he spat, "When I wahnt ahll of thaht I will simply commahnd it."
I blinked, amazed by his monstrous ego and stunned by his audacity, before a particularly loud howl from Mechyena and a jab in the side courtesy of Jay's elbow brought me back to reality. My eyes narrowed at the arrogant little dragon, trying to figure out what tactic might work on him and fast.
"Fine," I finally muttered, "If you're so terrified of that Nidoqueen I understand totally. I mean really, such a small-"
The murderous look I received in response to my remark would normally have made my blood run cold, but these were extreme circumstances. Spinning around with an angry huff Raijin launched himself at Thyat in a move that astonished me.
"No no NO!" I cried after him as his golden claws made contact with the Nidoqueen's plated back, "Not physical attacks, you suicidal weirdo!"
My yell was drowned out by Karen demanding to know what the hell we were doing, Jay informing me loudly that the ground type was immune to electricity and Cerberus's battle roar as he joined Raijin in the attack. Karen was furious, pressing a button angrily that sent Thyat spinning around, dropping Mechyena into a crumpled heap on the shattered flagstones as she caught both Raijin and Cerberus on the back of one rock-like arm. Both Jay and I cried out as our most powerful Pokémon were thrown back like they were nothing, Raijin suffering the worst as the backhand caught him across the face and sent him spinning headfirst into the cement of the curb. He staggered back up straight away, leathery wings spread unevenly as he swayed like a drunkard with blood seeping from the base of his skull where ground had first met dragon, just as Cerberus rebounded from the wall he had collided with like some sort of bouncy ball.
Neither of them was quite quick enough, however. Thyat was fast advancing; her computer generated self not suffering from pangs of conscience as she grabbed Raijin by the throat and hefted him from the ground as though he weighed nothing.
"Raijin!" I yelled uselessly as his golden eyes actually went so far as to widen in fear.
Suddenly appearing as weak and fragile as a child, he failed to even strike the Nidoqueen across the face with his long, whip like tail as she flung him unceremoniously over her shoulder while continuing her charge.
She was not like the Rhydon I had controlled earlier, I realised. Whether it was the effect of the RealSpec or some other powerful technology I did not know, but Thyat was quite capable of acting outside of the designated moves I had found so constricting.
"Karen!" I yelled as her hologram snatched up Cerberus and crushed him like a Dixie cup, several crunches signifying broken ribs as the Mightyena let out a deafening scream, "Stop that crazy thing! Stop it!"
"And let that demon dog thing get away to terrorise more people?" Karen's voice dripped with incredulous amazement, "Just return your Pokémon and let me get on with it, I'm only doing this to make you guys get out of my way, y'know!"
"Mechyena is out, you heartless bitch!" Jay hollered, surprising me with the fury in his voice, "He can barely move, so lay off it!"
Jay hollered, surprising me with the fury in his voice,His whole body vibrated with unbridled fury as he returned his first Pokémon to the safety of his Pokéball. He had no more Pokémon to help him fight, but there was a glint in his eyes that said quite clearly that this was no obstacle…
"Stop!" I cried out in vain as my normally reserved companion ran at Nidoqueen.
She had returned her attention to Mechyena and Raijin, who was slumped against the big wolf's bloodied side, moving at a speed that a real Nidoqueen never could have managed but this didn't seem to faze Jay. As he leapt at her, obviously not sure how he was going to hurt the beast but damn well ready to give it a try, I threw myself at him just as Seville, who had been watching attentively from the sidelines, decided to strike.
The three of us converged in the air right beside Thyat, missing the Nidoqueen by less than half a metre, as my considerably heavier bulk knocked Jay off course with ease. My brain had only a second to rejoice, however, as red hot agony lanced through my lower forearm. Feeling something trickling over my skin as we fell, barely missing Thyat's thick tail, I looked down to see Sevielle's crimson fangs thrust deep into my flesh. And then we struck the ground, and I hadn't the strength to care that the liquid coursing over my arm was purple rather than red.
A/N: Cliffy-ish end:o This means I need to update a little faster, eh? ((sweatdrops)) Well, I've just started my half-term week off so who knows... I'm not suggesting anything, mind, because that always lures in the Legendary Writer's Block of Doom. As always, thanks to all reviewers... You peeps rawk. :)
The Mad Tortoise- Hmm, if I were in Raven's place I definitely would have taken the money but somehow, when I was writing it, I couldn't see her doing the same. Dunno why, maybe this is some part of her personality randomly shining through... either that or just me being unrealisitic. As for Arina, she's really been growing on me as late, so expect some more of her in the future. I just have to figure out a way of stopping her from running away... Oh, and my track record with mini-series has been rather scarey - I almost always get carried away and start writing that more than the main fic. Considering my updating time, 'tis a risk I'm probably not going to take. Probably.
WildTotodile- Y'know, I totally forgot that I wrote that whole tree-apologising scene. Now it strikes me as rather odd... Heh, created Pokemon rawk. I'm all with you on that one. ((grins))
Firebird Flight- ((winces)) Sorry, not only am I slow but also forgetful. Although the reasons behind Hurricane's powers of speechwon't be explained through the story for some time, it's nothing plot-revealing so I may as well say it right now: he has a translator. In his throat (ew). It's an expensive thing to have done, so only the richest/most successful of trainers can afford it. Which might say something about Hurricane's past. ;) Glad you liked the chapter, BTW!
Finally: bring back asterixes! And those little arrowy-things that I can't remember the name of but are good for smily faces! Grah!