The trip started smooth.
The weather, while cold, was clear. No snow was in the forecast and the sky was almost devoid of clouds.
Sitting in the passenger's seat of the copter, Breccia hugged her coat tighter. It was Sunday, her only day off. Riker was willing to let her visit her father's grave any other day, but she didn't want to inconvenience the lab. She only had Neil and Maddie and, as of late, they weren't getting along.
Maddie thought Neil was an ass and Neil thought Maddie was spineless.
Breccia did good about keeping things calm but the tension bubbled over the Thursday prior. She and Riker came into the lab to find the two at each other's throats. Neither knew what the conflict was about but Riker put a stop to it quickly. (Breccia took note of how he seemed far more angry at Neil than Maddie).
"They're keeping tabs on us." Breccia said into her Transceiver. "...Morice I'll be fine... I know I always say that, and I am ALWAYS fine. I told Riker to let you know if anything happened...because I don't want you to have a heart attack." She looked to the pilot seat and noticed when Arlia rolled her eyes. "...I have to go. I'll call you when I'm on my way back." She slipped the device into one of her pockets, adjusting her seat belt. "Sorry, he gets worried sometimes."
The island they were heading to was a ways off. By ferry it'd take, roughly, a couple hours to reach. Lucky for both of them, Riker was willing to let the copter go. This made the round trip half of what it would've been.
"So..." Fiddling with her thumbs, Breccia cleared her throat. She was hoping for someone she could chat with. "D'you fly often?..." She joked: "I mean, you are a bird so..." Arlia, once again, rolled her eyes. "Sorry Riker roped you into babysitting me." She tried to pick up the Pokemon's spirits with her next sentence. "You're one of the strongest on the Island, sending a grunt along wouldn't have been much help."
No answer.
Breccia sighed. "Alright. Look, I know you hate me. I know you hate a lot of people. I'm not trying to get in the middle of whatever friendship you and Riker have. My life fell apart in this direction, I didn't plan on coming here."
Arlia tugged on the wheel when the copter sputtered. After everything evened out, she glanced to her passenger and shook her head.
"You don't hate me?" Breccia said, trying to translate. "Like on a scale of one to ten?"
The Blaziken thought for a moment before holding up two fingers.
"Okay...that's good I guess." She tugged on the strap across her chest. "Though you do only have six fingers..." She turned to stare out the window, trying to see the island in the distance. They'd been riding for ten minutes at this point, the occasional chatter from the radio was all that ensued between them.
To keep herself occupied, Breccia's mind wondered to the Lab. They were making the last finishing touches to their new invention for the gala. The gala itself was only a week away, and she had nothing to wear for the occasion. She figured, maybe, Maddie or Tess could help her. Though, Tess was still on indefinite leave and she worried about stressing her.
After all this business is done, then what?
Breccia scraped her fingertips through her hair, trying to put her thoughts at ease. It was hard to believe it'd only been a few months since she arrived. Everything went to shit so quickly, she never once stopped to think of how long it had been. She arrived, Caleb died, Lars went AWOL, next thing she knows she's heading the lab.
Of course there were some good things. She and Morice were getting along. And, of course, there was Nibs. (Who was currently in his Pokeball).
There was a small snap of static from the radio, a response to Arlia messing with the buttons.
"We lose signal?"
Arlia nodded to the question.
Breccia frowned. "Here's to hoping Riker doesn't think we're in trouble."
Arlia was a masterful flier, something Breccia was impressed with.
When they landed and got out, Breccia took in the surroundings with a feeling to both hope and anger. The island seemed almost dead. The trees stood bare, their limbs flapping uselessly in the breeze. The ground was frozen, the foliage and grass either brown or covered in a small peppering of snow.
For miles it was nothing but trees, save for an abandoned lighthouse she saw as they descended.
Shortly before his death, her father had bought a plot of land close to Mt. Moon. In his youth he often helped the miners there and that's where he wanted to rest. While it didn't surprise Breccia that Shale went against their father's wishes, to see the drab, cold place he was buried filled her with rage.
It was never a question WHY Shale was so bitter, or why he hated Breccia so much. He never forgave their dad for the affair that broke up his family. (He also didn't like the sister that came of it.)
"The Boabab should be at the center of the island." Breccia said, pulling out the crude map Riker gave her. "I wish we could've parked closer, but there's too many trees." She pulled her coat closed when a sharp wind ripped through, tossing her hair from her sloppy ponytail.
It was mild, not as bitter as it usually was. Despite this, it was overcast and Breccia could smell the coming of rain. "Come on." She said to Arlia. "I want to see dad before the weather gets worse."
Luckily for both of them, finding the tree where her father lay was easy. It was a massive, thick specimen with dark bark. It stood against the wind like the others around it. At it's base stood a crude, wooden stick smashed into the dirt.
On said stick, a small chain was wrapped with a silver, rusted pendant. Breccia hadn't ever seen it before and figured it was something her brother put there.
As she and Arlia approached, her anger towards Shale began to fade.
With her lips pursed, she stopped at the base of the tree..
"I guess..." She started, speaking more to herself than to Arlia. "...This was his way of mourning..." Shale must've known he was coming to Birtan before their father passed. Perhaps, he still wanted to mourn. Having their dad buried here made for convenience.
(It didn't make it right, going against his wishes, but Breccia was starting to understand).
Getting down on her knees, she glanced at the makeshift grave.
Here that amazing man was, in the cold wet ground. Away from his friends and family.
No one could find him. All of those kids he took in when the Gym was open; they couldn't pay their respects.
Pulling a crumpled envelope from her pants pocket, Breccia was gentle when taking a small bit of dirt from the grave.
She expected to cry, like she had when Riker gave her the news. Instead, all she felt was joy that she could finally close this chapter of her life.
"I might not be able to move him." She folded the envelope and placed it into her jeans. "But maybe I can take this there...give him some closure."
She put her hand on the grave, ignoring when a spiderweb of lightening crawled across the sky. "I'm sorry daddy...I never had the chance to apologize..." Her voice shook. "I'm not in the best spot right now but...you did everything you could." She felt a tap on her shoulder. When she turned, Arlia was standing over her, a small bunch of dandelions in hand. "Where did you find those?" The Blaziken pointed to a patch near by. The small flowers managed, somehow, to sprout out of the frigid, dead earth. Breccia took them, a faint smile bowing her lips before placing them on the grave. "Thank you..."
They stood there for a half an hour more before the weather turned further. Breccia realized rain wasn't the best for Arlia and finally stood. "Come on." She said. She checked her transceiver, ready to call Riker and let him know they were heading back. "Damn thing's dead...The battery must be going out." As they turned to leave, she spoke: "I'll see if Riker will let me come back every once and a while."
A few steps back, another gust of wind whipped up. It was straight line, as if it could rend the flesh off their bones. Breccia was just about to comment it when a loud crack and radiating boom shook the area in waves.
The two of them, startled, rushed back, finding a rotted tree sitting on top of the copter. It fell over the cockpit, crushing and destroying their only way home.
"Son of a bi-" Breccia tried, in vain, to lift it. "Are you kidding me?!" Arlia followed in suit, but realized there was no use. "Now what?" Her exasperation must've jinxed them because as soon as the words flew from her lips, a cloud burst began to pour down over their heads.
Breccia popped her collar and pulled it over her head.
Arlia wasn't as lucky and had no where to go as the water drenched her.
"Here." Breccia offered her coat, realizing her getting wet wasn't as bad as her friend. "I saw a light house when we were touching down, lets try and find it." This didn't answer HOW they were supposed to contact the Organization building. Her transceiver was dead and the radio in the copter was down. (Obviously).
Whatever the case was, she needed to get Arlia inside and dry before it was too late.