Chapter Ninety Six: No Thought Control
The doors leading into the school lay on the floor. The mortar that normally held them in place had cracked as the explosions reverberated across the island. There was no sign of fire in the reception but smoke filled the room regardless, a dull brown shroud that hung over everything.
Alaska glanced at the grand staircase leading to the upper floors, a sweeping feature more fitting of a stately home than a school. The sounds of explosions and roaring robots had dulled, but now there was the crackle of fire, soft and distant but a worrying sign nonetheless.
Yet she had no choice but to venture onwards. Emily's someone in here. Find her, get out, and get off the island. "Let's get a move on." Alaska kicked Bluebell's side softly, ignoring the dissatisfied grunt that followed and waited to be carried onwards.
And then the world vanished. Alaska shut her eyes as her head swayed anew, and when she opened them all she could see was ocean. Her hands tightened on Bluebell's mane, but even though she could feel the fire burning through her fingers, Alaska saw nothing of her Pokémon or the reception, only the world however many miles away.
This wasn't new. Her head had not stopped spinning since the robots landed. Alaska had tried her best to fight, but as the Magmortar and Mamoswine and Ursaring and Salamence fell from the sky, she only had to blink to find herself however many miles away, soaring over the ocean, feeling the cold rush of wind pushing against her.
She wanted the pain to stop, for her vision to stop flickering between images like an out of tune television. Yet Alaska knew her suffering would last as long as it took Latios to arrive. Instead, she clung to the pain and used it as a shield; even as the explosions tore through her world and the robots tried to bring her down, Alaska knew that her saviour was coming, and she simply had to hold out until he did.
It would be nice if you hurried the fuck up, you. You're well overdue for saving my ass.
"Nyyyyyt."
Alaska blinked. She was back in the school and atop Bluebell again. Her head continued to sway, but her vision was hers again. Alaska looked down and realised she was tugging hard on Bluebell's mane. "Sorry," she said, aware how insincere it sounded.
Bluebell whinnied irritably. Alaska thought her sudden obedience may vanish, but mercifully the Ponyta charged towards the stairs, her hooves echoing eerily through the room. A naïve trainer may have taken this as a sign of a growing connection, but Alaska could tell Bluebell was just as afraid as she was. The building looked intact from here, but the smoke had to be coming from somewhere, and as the Ponyta took to the stairs, Alaska could see a red glow shining from the upper floors.
If it was any other situation, Alaska knew she'd be caught up in the irony of returning to the Arcethian after so many years only to destroy it within minutes of arriving, but she had bigger concerns today. Emily was somewhere within these walls; Alaska could live with a decimated building on her conscience, but she couldn't leave her sister to burn as well.
You'd better bloody be here, I'm not risking my life for nothing. Alaska knew the dorm rooms were on the top floors, but she had no idea if Emily and Chester were still there or they were somewhere else within the carnage.
The dorms were her one lead, and as Bluebell reached the first landing, Alaska steered her towards the next set of stairs. She let the classrooms pass by in a blur, ignoring all the sights that had captured the attention of her younger self so many years ago. There was decades of history in these halls, and by the end of the day it would all be up in smoke. Alaska may have taken pleasure in that once, but for the sake of her inner child, she couldn't help but mourn the loss.
Alaska heard it before she saw it. A low hum, quiet enough to be missed under the crackling fire, pulled her out of her thoughts. It could have belonged to any computer or piece of office equipment abandoned by the fleeing staff and students, but the sound stirred up something in the back of Alaska's mind.
She shut her eyes, trying to think. Instead of seeing blue, Alaska found herself surrounded by dirt, with something far too large towering over her. She looked up in her memory, and two giant pink eyes stared back at her, two glass pearls incapable of emotion but somehow making their threat clear.
"DUCK!"
Bluebell whinnied angrily as Alaska yanked hard on her mane, pulling her towards the left towards the bannister. The Ponyta reared, trying to throw Alaska off; at the same moment, the wall next to them exploded, and a flash of silver and yellow soared towards them.
Alaska winced as she was showered by wooden splinters, but she was grateful it wasn't a robotic Beedrill drawing her blood. "Flamethrower!" she screamed, pointing at the Beedrill as it came to a stop near the opposite wall, searching for the prey it had completely flown past.
Bluebell didn't need telling. She dropped back to all fours and nickered fiercely, a powerful jet soaring from her mouth. The Beedrill turned in time to receive a Flamethrower to the face, and the angry hum of its wings picked up as it tried to wave the flames away.
"Up the stairs, come on." Alaska had no idea if the Beedrill had followed them here or if it had already finished with Emily, but she wasn't going to wait around to interrogate it.
Thankfully, Bluebell's sense of danger dwarfed her distaste for Alaska, and the Ponyta pushed past the Beedrill and cantered towards the next landing, forcing Alaska to tighten her grip.
The hum started again when Bluebell reached the top of the stairs, and Alaska looked back to find the Beedrill was hot on their tail; its wings were still burning, but nothing seemed to be slowing it down. "Pick up the pace!"
Bluebell turned and galloped towards the next set of stairs, but before they could get there, Alaska saw something move in the smoke around them. It was moving too fast for Alaska to say anything; thinking fast, she grabbed her weapon from her lap and raised it. Yet her hands were sweaty from the heat, and in her one-handed haste, it flew out of her grip.
A second Beedrill, diving stinger-first, flew straight into the weapon without care. The weaponised needle penetrated the weapon but failed to make it all the way through; sensing a moment, Bluebell whinnied with contempt and surged forwards, head butting the gun and pushing the Beedrill back.
Alaska tensed as the enraged Ponyta charged past the landing for the next set of stairs, instead pushing the Beedrill all the way back towards the wall of a classroom. Too late Alaska realised what was coming, and with great regret she leapt off Bluebell's back, hitting the ground at the same moment her Ponyta ploughed through the wall.
"Fuck!" She had landed painfully on her injured leg, and now her knee was screaming out in protest. Alaska tried to stand but instantly collapsed under her own weight. She could hear Bluebell's neighs as she fought against their metallic foe, but Alaska was alone and unarmed in the middle of a smoke-filled corridor; orange light burnt at both ends, and Alaska figured it was only dust and age that had stopped the wood-panelled rooms from going up like a tinderbox.
In her pain, Alaska forgot about the original Beedrill. It was only when the hum seemed right atop her that she remembered, throwing herself to the ground with barely enough time; something sharp hit the top of her head, and Alaska screamed into the carpet as she felt her skin split open. There was a warm rush of blood to the wound, and Alaska felt it drip down her neck as she sat back up.
Her vision was now more blurred than ever, but Alaska could see the Beedrill turning around ready for a third attempt. Of course he sends Beedrill after me, Alaska thought. You think this is full circle, do you, Buzz? She reached towards the bannister so she could pull herself back up, but the Beedrill was already charging for her again. Alaska swung her bag off her shoulder and reached in, feeling blindly around for anything that she could use to defend herself, all the while watching the pointed stingers aimed right for her face. Hurry up, Latios. Hurry the fuck up…
The stairs beside her creaked suddenly. Alaska took her eyes off the Beedrill in time to see a blurred figure leap over her. It hit the Beedrill mid-air, and the two crashed into the far wall. The wood buckled, caving in completely and exposing a classroom engulfed in smoke.
Alaska's heart was racing out of shock and relief. She watched her saviour emerge from the classroom, the cracked stingers clutched in its paws, and she nearly did a double-take. "Chester?"
The Chesnaught turned triumphantly at his name; his white fur looked singed but he was otherwise unharmed. Yet his beam faded when he caught sight of Alaska, and his armoured paws gestured wildly at the stairs.
"Is it safe, did you get it?"
"Emily." Alaska grappled again at the bannister, but Chester was already running towards her. She sank into his grip without complaint and let him haul her up, bringing her to her feet as Emily appeared around the stairs.
"Fuck, Alaska, what the hell happened to you?"
"Nice to see you're alive too."
"No thanks to you," Emily snapped back without thought, though her face softened as she stepped cautiously closer. "Your head's bleeding… like, a lot."
"I know." Alaska felt at the new wound, wincing as her fingers brushed against it. She wanted to tell herself it looked worse than it did, but she had no idea how much blood she had lost already today. Her vision showed blue for barely a second, but she hoped it was a sign Latios was closer.
"Don't worry about me, if you're safe, let's get out of here. Bluebell!"
Everyone looked towards the broken wall; the Ponyta was already walking towards them, limping slightly but otherwise unharmed. Alaska smiled and tried to reach her, but her leg buckled and Chester had to catch her.
"Nyyy." Bluebell lowered herself uneasily and nodded at Chester. Alaska wanted to protest, but the Chesnaught placed her atop the Fire type in one easy movement.
"Thanks," she said and stroked her Pokémon's neck. Bluebell merely nodded stoically and made towards the stairs. She only made it a few steps before stopping, and Alaska could immediately work out why; the hum had started up again, but this time it was twice as loud and just as angry.
"Up, go up," Alaska yelled. "Scorch the stairs, set it all on fire."
"The stairs? How is that going to help us? This is our only way out!" Emily yelled incredulously.
"And there's a horde of angry Beedrill coming for us," Alaska fired back. "Head to the roof, we'll get Paige to rescue us."
Emily's face was like thunder, and she stubbornly stayed where she was even as Bluebell sprayed her Flamethrower across the carpet. Chester had to push her before Emily started running, and Alaska and Bluebell followed in their wake.
She's going to be the one to get us killed if she doesn't hurry up, Alaska thought bitterly. She held her tongue as Emily led the way up the final two floors. The smoke got thicker the higher they went, though Alaska could not see any signs of fire. She had no idea if there was even a way to the roof, but Emily and Chester started running purposefully down the right-hand corridor.
"Wait," Alaska shouted before Bluebell could follow them. "Stomp."
Bluebell turned back towards the stairs and reared onto her hind legs. She buckled, nearly collapsing before she could attack, but she stayed up long enough to power up her hooves. "NNYYYY!" she cried, her whinny echoing like a bomb through the empty hallway, and she brought her feet down against the stairs. The burning set of stairs collapsed under her power, and Alaska watched gleefully as the last stairwell collapsed, hopefully landing atop their enemies.
Emily and Chester were waiting by a door when Alaska and Bluebell finally caught up. "Why Beedrill?" Emily asked; despite running through a smoke-ridden building, she looked completely unfazed as though she did all her training in these circumstances.
"It was the first robot I encountered months ago."
"Robot?" Emily shrieked. "You're telling me these things are robots? What the hell have you got involved with?" she sighed dramatically.
"None of this was by choice, you know," Alaska snapped.
"If you say so," Emily muttered darkly. She signalled at Chester, who punched the space around the doorknob, breaking it loose and allowing the door to swing open. "Seniors are allowed to use the upper courtyard but the teachers keep it locked pretty much all day," Emily explained as she stepped through the shattered wood.
Alaska rolled her eyes. How lovely for you. She gazed back to make sure the Beedrill weren't behind them before signalling for Bluebell to follow.
The staircase was a tight spiral of wrought iron, and Alaska could see it was bent near the top a metre above her head, smoke seeping through the closed door. Emily and Chester were already near the exit, and Bluebell galloped awkwardly around the bends, making no effort to keep Alaska comfortable.
"Watch it," she snapped as her leg banged into the metal railing. Bluebell said nothing, but Alaska was certain she saw a smirk cross her face.
As they neared the top, Alaska heard a wooden crack, and Bluebell reached the landing just as Chester managed to kick the door down. Seeming proud of his achievements, he grinned back to them before leading the way to the roof.
"Flamethrower, melt the bottom of the stairs," Alaska said. The Beedrill's wings were flammable, it seemed, and if they could slow down their path, she hoped they would have enough time to get to safety.
Emily froze in the doorway and watched in horror as Bluebell fired her latest attack "Are you trying to burn down the school?"
"It's already on fire," Alaska said through clenched teeth. "One more blaze isn't going to do any more damage than the robots down in the courtyard who are actually purposefully trying to destroy it."
"My god, Alaska, have you always been this twisted, or is this all a new thing?" Emily tutted. "There are people's lives down there, did you stop and think of that?"
"No, I fucking didn't. Did you stop and think that maybe people might be more grateful that they weren't murdered by robots than how many of their clothes survived the assault?"
Emily shook her head and stepped through the broken door. "Like you've ever cared about other people's stuff."
Is she really going to bring up all the clothes I used to steal from her now? Alaska wanted to scream, but there was no point. Even with monsters falling from the sky and her whole world ablaze, Emily was sticking the same narrative she had held for thirteen years, and there was little Alaska could do to change her mind now. You try seeing all that I've seen the last few months, she thought as Bluebell followed Emily into the courtyard. Try holding onto all your grudges then.
For a second, Alaska thought her mind was playing tricks. She seemed to be seeing a different world in each eye; one was a cloud of smoke as black as night that covered every part of the island, while the other was a vista of pure blue stretching out as far as the eye could see.
She realised this was her new reality. Alaska looked to the right, away from the smoke rising up from the building, and saw that perfect Sevii ocean sparkling away below them. Here she was fighting for her life, but the world was carrying on regardless. And somewhere out there is Latios, she thought, staring at the endless sea as if Latios was right there waiting for them.
"How do you expect Paige to see us through all of this?" Emily bellowed, pulling Alaska out of her thoughts.
"She'll see us, don't worry." Alaska said it to be reassuring, but she had to admit that their view was fairly smoggy. While the stone-slab courtyard, which seemed to just be a number of wooden tables and chairs scattered amongst low lying flowerbeds and aged statues of young women, seemed unscathed outside of the odd crack here and there, Alaska couldn't even see the far end through all the smoke to tell for certain. She stared into the smoke, looking for any signs of life, but only a distant roar or a faint flicker of fire suggested there was anything out there.
"Head to the far end, we'll see if we can see her up there. Does that seem fair with you?"
Emily said nothing; she simply screamed, a primordial sound that shattered their surroundings. Alaska reached instinctively for her gun, forgetting too late that it had been destroyed. "Run!" she offered helplessly.
Alaska kicked Bluebell's sides, urging her on, but the Ponyta was already rising onto her hind legs, yelling with fear and lashing out. Alaska tried to see what had everyone so frightened, but only got a brief glimpse of a massive fist as it slammed into Bluebell's exposed stomach.
"Shit!" Alaska pulled her busted leg out of the way and threw herself to the ground as Bluebell curled backwards. The thud of her body hitting the stone floor was triumphed only by the Ponyta's pained screams, a soul-wrenching cry that reached into the marrow of Alaska's bones.
"I was wondering when I would see you again." The voice was low, rough, punctuated by hate. That alone was not distinguishable, but as Alaska looked up, fresh blood pouring over her brow, she saw the face she had only seen once before but would never leave her nightmares.
Scar stepped towards her, grinning as much as his burnt, wounded face would allow. His one working eye stared at Alaska with indescribable loathing, though as his eye took in all of Alaska's injuries, the happier he seemed to be. "Boss sent me here to kill you, but he wants me to leave you until last. I don't see your little friend anywhere, is she around?"
Alaska remained silent, trying her best to look fierce even as her organs and muscles quivered in fright. Scar stared at her for a moment still before shrugging his impossibly thick shoulders. "Never mind, we'll get her eventually. This one will have to do for now."
"No!" Alaska had barely any strength left; her head throbbed, not only from her visions but from the blood pouring from at least three different places, while her leg was a numb, dead weight dragging behind her. Yet as Scar rose a foot, staring squarely down at Bluebell, Alaska knew she couldn't let him hurt her Pokémon.
She flung herself forwards; Bluebell's flailing hooves threatened to take her out first, but Alaska avoided them to land uneasily on the Ponyta's stomach, a second before the boot made contact.
Involuntarily, she yelled. The kick was strong enough to roll Alaska over until she was smothering Bluebell's face. The Ponyta stopped flailing then, but Alaska was too pained to notice. She clutched at her stomach to check it had not ruptured; externally, it hadn't, but internally felt like a different story.
Scar scoffed somewhere nearby, though Alaska lacked the strength to face him. "This little girl is what boss is so afraid of?" he smirked. "He told me to wait on roof, to shoot you if you tried to fly away. But look at you, you're already dead. Might as well kill them first."
His boots sounded heavy on the stone. Alaska could see the thick-soled leather shoes moving slowly away. Emily started screaming again, though Alaska could not see where she was. She tried to look up, but all she saw was blue. You're too fucking late.
"Ta Nyt Ponyt." Bluebell nudged Alaska with her head, roughly pushing her away. Alaska grunted as she slid back to the stone, her face resting against the slab, and she watched out of one eye as the Ponyta wriggled awkwardly to her feet. The leg she'd been limping on – the back right, Alaska could tell from here – buckled, but Bluebell maintained her stance.
She bent down as far as she could and nudged Alaska again. Her tongue, rough and hot against Alaska's skin, licked at the wounds, and watery blood dripped down her cheek. Bluebell carried this on for a moment before pushing Alaska again, gently at first but then roughly, as if the action would force her back to her feet.
"I can't stand," Alaska groaned, trying to push Bluebell away but failing. "Just go, get out of here before he comes for you."
Bluebell reared back and stomped. "Nyt!" she shouted as her hoof cracked the stone into four pieces. She tossed her head angrily towards the far end of the roof and stomped again.
Alaska knew what she was trying to say, and weakly she looked up, even though she dreaded what she'd see. Sure enough, Scar was sparring against Chester, who was trying mightily to fend him off. Yet he was a house pet, the servant of a schoolgirl, and Scar's thick pink scars were visible even through the smoke. The Chesnaught would fall, and Emily would follow after.
The scene vanished and the ocean returned. Alaska cursed her throbbing brain and tried to blink it away, but Latios' mind held firm. He said nothing, but as the waves passed by in a blur below, Alaska knew what he meant; he was still coming, there was still time for her.
"Damn you immortal asshole." She reached out, her arm straining under the effort, and Bluebell lowered her head. Her mane was hot but Alaska grabbed it anyway, and Bluebell effortlessly hauled her up. She lowered her back legs at the same time, but Alaska shook her head and launched herself forward. It's my sister he's trying to kill.
Every bone and muscle down her right leg screamed as she put her weight on it. Her head was still bleeding in at least one spot, and every time she thought of that, Alaska felt woozy again. Yet the courtyard was smaller than she had thought, and she pushed herself towards Scar's busted head.
As she got closer, close enough to hear Chester's grunts and Emily's whimpers, Alaska reached down and grabbed a loose pot plant from the nearest flower bed. It weighed a ton in her battered state, but Alaska gritted her teeth and let the clay pot tear at her left arm while she reached into her bag with her right. She could see fur flying from Chester's face as Scar ruthlessly tore into him, an image briefly replaced by the ocean, but Alaska had no time to wait.
"This is for now," she snapped, swinging the pot and cracking it against Scar's skull. He stumbled, his arms falling limp by his side at the same time Chester collapsed to the ground. Scar turned, nostrils flaring, and that's what Alaska focused on as she punched her right hand forwards. "And this is for Saffron."
Freddie's knife slashed against Scar's nose, cutting into the mutilated stump he had left. Scar's one eye widened in a silent scream, but the man himself said nothing as he lunged towards her. Alaska tried to bring the knife back around but Scar grabbed her by the wrist, snapping it back so her weapon fell uselessly to the floor.
"You'll pay for that." He let go of her arm and raised both hands to her throat. Alaska pulled away as the thick fingers grappled for her neck, her hands busy burrowing away into her bag.
"AAAAAAAAH!" Emily's scream made everyone pause. Curiosity got the better of Scar, and he turned just as Emily swung around one of the thin wooden chairs. It collapsed against Scar's head, but he wrestled the one piece Emily was still holding away and raised it above her screaming head.
"Flamethrower!"
"PONYTTTT!"
Scar screamed this time, a guttural roar as he tried to punch away the flames that had instantly engulfed his shirt. Alaska grabbed Emily and pulled her out of the line of attack, watching in perverse delight as Bluebell edged closer all while maintaining a steady stream of fire.
"We have to run," Emily whispered into her ear.
"Not yet. Not until he's dead." Alaska had found what she was looking for, and she stepped forward with the brownie tin clasped in her heads. She smacked it against Scar's face in rapid succession, taking great pleasure as, by the third blow, two jets of blood were pouring from his nose, joining that from his cut.
Alaska went for a fourth time, but Scar roared and pushed her aside. "ENOUGH!" He leant to the side and grabbed the first thing he could. Alaska tensed as he threw an entire flower bed through the air as though it was a cushion, the terracotta shattering against Bluebell and sending her crashing to the ground again.
Scar paused where he was, breathing heavily. After a moment, he pulled at his still burning shirt and ripped it in two. Emily whimpered as his thick chest knotted with scars was exposed; he looked like a bodybuilder, except his skin was pale and covered in an excess of half-healed wounds. There was no definition, no visible markings, just old burns and raised scars.
Alaska clutched onto Emily with her free hand. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," she whispered. She didn't want to give up, but the universe had given her little choice. Two Pokémon down, and no weapons but a burnt tin of brownies.
"How do you normally get out of these things?" Emily mumbled weakly into her ear.
"Cunning and convenience."
"Any chance of that now?"
"Not a whole lot I can do alone." Alaska looked back, meeting her sister's eye over her shoulder. "I do love you, I hope you know that."
Emily nodded, tears streaming down her cheek. "Same," she choked. Her hand felt for Alaska's and gripped on tightly, and together the two looked back at Scar.
The henchman stood still contemplating the pair, one hand dabbing at the blood that had poured down his chin and stained his chest. His eye gazed over the courtyard as if checking for any other allies; satisfied, Scar's lips flickered into a grimace, and he lumbered forwards.
Alaska tried to stare him down, refusing to be intimidated, refusing to cower in death. Yet the universe gave her no option; she blinked involuntarily and opened her eyes to the ocean. You're too late, she thought, shaking her head. You're too fucking late.
For a moment, the world seemed to go silent. Alaska couldn't hear anything – not the fire, not the battle below, not Emily cowering behind her. Nothing but her own heartbeat echoing inside her head. And then, she heard the sound of someone breathing, a simple exhale that didn't belong to her. And in that moment, Alaska knew all her fears were about to come true.
The sound rushed back to her, all the explosions and crying and Scar's rampaging stomp. The intensity made Alaska gasp, and then she started to choke. The feeling came over her without warning. The brownies fell from her hand, and she pulled away from Emily as her hands reached for her neck. She gasped for air, gagging against the force she could feel rising up her throat. It was not bile or blood, but something hot and powerful, an energy she had never felt before.
She shut her eyes and stumbled to the ground, yet Alaska could still see smoke. A thick black mass like a thundercloud that had sunk to the earth. Alaska reached towards it, so close she could almost touch it, even though she knew that wasn't her hand, that this wasn't her body, that the feeling in her throat had nothing to do with her.
Alaska's eyes burst open; Scar was right above her, his hands clutching at her head and threatening to crush it. Yet her brain was about to explode anyway, and despite everything, despite all the pain, despite the blood and the torment, despite what the next few seconds meant for the rest of her cursed existence, Alaska couldn't help but smile.
She used the last of her energy to push backwards, throwing herself into Emily and away from Scar's grip. The henchmen watched them fall, his mutilated face slack with confusion, and then he looked up towards his maker. Alaska could see his frightened eye from two angles, but her phantom body had no time for sentimentality; he simply focused on his target and opened his mouth wide.
The air was illuminated with purple energy. The draconic heat was a force unlike anything Alaska had seen before; power reverberated from it, pushing her and Emily further into the ground while it tore into Scar. The strongman screamed, the sound weak and pained like a child's, until he fell silent without any warning. Alaska could see his shadow somewhere within the beam, but the longer the attack tore through him, the smaller the figure became until it was merely a stick figure slowly fading away.
The attack lasted over a minute; the second it faded, Alaska gasped, sucking in as much air as she could. Her hands slackened by her side, though her fingers tingled with phantom movement. She looked at the smoke, aware that's what he was focused on, and watched as the entire cloud was pushed away, a giant gust of wind forcing the entire smog aside.
The sky was visible again, and from the clouds, their saviours arrived. A frozen blue creature like ice come to life dived towards the courtyard, the flowing sapphire tail sparkling in the sun. Yet it was a cold air that drifted up in lieu of the fire, a chill that Alaska felt through her whole body.
Though maybe that was simply the darkness returning for her. Alaska had no idea what was real anymore; a Pidgeot flew overhead, a girl riding on its back, and for a moment she was convinced it was her. She reached towards her ghost self but the cold was spreading and her body refused to move.
"Alaska, what's going on. What's Articuno doing here?" Emily shook Alaska in her urgency for answers, unaware her sister was slipping away from her. "And… who the fuck is that?"
Alaska's head slumped back into her sister's chest, and she realised Emily was still wearing her uniform. The thought made her smile, and she began to laugh as she looked up at the figure from her dreams as he drifted down towards them. Alaska could feel his fear, her own nightmares reflected back, and she laughed even harder.
"Oh, him, he's an old friend. About time you showed up." She looked up at Latios but instead saw herself, sprawled across her sister, her blood coating the two of them as they lay motionless in the courtyard, surrounded by their fallen Pokémon and brownies from their brother. The image made her smile, and Alaska shut her eyes, grateful as all her pain seemed to slip away in an instant.
