Chapter 28: Silence the Spirits
Roku's P.O.V.
Ecruteak City
"So, where are we going?" Reia asked after we had left the HQ.
"We're gonna check out some of the sights around the city before we take on the Gym Leader," I explained. "That cool with you?"
"Yeah, sure!" Reia said with a smile. "It'd be great to relax for a bit!"
I nodded, and we set off into the city. Our first stop was the Burned Tower, which I heard was once an extremely tall tower that served as a perch for a legendary Pokémon of Johto.
As we walked in, I saw a head of red hair that I did not want to see.
"Darius," I said. The redhead turned around and scowled once he saw me.
"So you're here for the Legendary Pokémon, too, huh?" he said. "That's great. You decided to become less weak."
"Yeah, says the guy who's lost to me twice," I shot back. "You know, your definition of weak must be very different from mine."
"Yeah, well, you wouldn't be able to handle a Pokémon like that anyway," Darius said. "A Legendary Pokémon suits someone like me who's sworn to become the strongest! A battle with those weak-ass punks in grey jumpsuits fits you just fine!"
"Then how about I battle you, since you're just as pitiful!" I shouted, pulling out my Poke Ball.
"I'm gonna enjoy making you eat those words!" Darius said, doing the same. "Go, Gastly!"
"Go, Braixen!"
We threw our Poke Balls and released our Pokémon onto the charred floor. I could already tell that we were both worried about the fragile floor, and we were both hoping it would hold up.
"OK, Braixen! Use Psybeam!" I shouted.
Braixen pulled his twig from his tail and fired off a purple beam from the twig, hitting Gastly with deadly accuracy and knocking him out with one shot. Darius scowled again, sending out his partner Riolu.
"OK, Braixen! Use Psybeam again!"
Braixen fired off another beam attack, but Riolu was ordered to use Foresight and he dodged the attack. Riolu then ran in with a Force Palm, but Braixen countered with Flame Charge, causing damage to both Pokémon.
"Riolu, use Quick Attack!" Darius barked.
"Braixen, wait for my order!" I shouted.
Riolu blasted off with great speed, but Braixen was ready, standing on his toes. Right when Riolu was about to collide with him, I gave the order to use the attack, and Braixen pointed his twig at Riolu, firing off a Psybeam. Riolu flew back and skid across the ground, fainted.
"Dammit…" Darius growled, returning his fallen partner and sending out his Magnemite. I laughed again, knowing I could destroy him easily. I ordered Braixen to finish him with Flame Charge, and he did just that. Darius returned his last Pokémon, giving me the evil eye.
"Why?! Why do you keep WINNING?!" he shouted, earning some looks from the people who were watching.
"We're both good at battling," I said, smirking and returning my Braixen. "I'm just way better at it."
Darius was steaming, stomping towards me with his fists balled. I was about to get into a fighting stance when I heard cracking.
Then I was standing on nothing.
I fell through a hole that had opened up when Darius was about to start a fight, and fell into nothingness.
Reia's P.O.V.
Burned Tower
"Roku!" Reia shouted as she saw her friend fall through the floor. She ran up to the hole and looked in, not seeing anything. Then she looked at Darius, who was also looking at the hole with a scared look on his face. He looked back at Reia, then turned tail and ran out of the tower.
Reia got close to the hole and shouted, "Roku! Roku, are you OK?!"
All Reia could do was pray to Arceus that he was OK.
Roku's P.O.V.
Burned Tower
"Uggh…"
I sat up slowly after landing hard on the ground beneath the tower. And apparently, Luna had fallen with me, for I saw her blue rings glowing softly, giving some light to the nearly pitch-black space.
"Roku! Roku, are you OK?!" shouted a voice from up above. It was Reia's voice.
"Yeah, I'm OK!" I shouted, rubbing my sore back. "Although I can't say the same thing for my back…"
"Hold on! I'll go get help!" Reia shouted. I heard feet pounding on the floor above, which suggested that she had run out of the tower.
I looked over at my partner and said, "You OK? Nothing broken?"
Luna shifted slightly, then stood up, shaking the dust off of her body.
"A little shaken, but I'm OK," Luna said.
"OK, that's good," I said with relief.
I stood up and got a look at my surroundings. Because of Luna's luminescent properties, I was able to see most of the basement floor. It definitely looked like a burnt building, with charred walls and floors that showed some of the earth below the tower. While looking around, I saw many figures shifting around the room, some with blood red eyes.
"Uh…" Luna said, a scared tone evident in her voice. "Those aren't ghosts, are they?"
"Whatever they are, it's best to just stay calm," I said reassuringly. "Reia will be back with help soon."
Suddenly, it seemed like an immense pressure was being applied to my body. I struggled to keep myself on my feet. I then started to see many gaseous bodies make their way out of the walls.
"Uh oh," I said.
"Please don't tell me…" Luna said, eyes wide with fear.
"It's a horde of Gastly and Haunter!" I shouted. I knew what the pressure was about; it was either the immense spiritual energy or it was the effects of the gas emitting from their bodies.
And speaking of, that was the gas that was pouring into the room now. It was coming in as a thick cloud, and Luna and I wouldn't have been able to hold our breath long enough for the ghosts to give up.
"Luna…" I said, coughing and hacking. "I'm sorry…"
"No, don't say that!" Luna said, coughing roughly. "We can make it out!"
"I'm proud…to have a partner…like you…" I managed to say.
My vision was getting blurry, and the world was beginning to spin. Just then, I saw two flashes of red and blue.
A few minutes earlier…
A lone figure sat up on top of a hill, looking down upon Ecruteak City. Another figure, a red one, joined the other, a blue figure, on the hill.
"It's been a while since we've returned, isn't it, Suicune?" the red figure said.
"Yes, Entei, it has been a while," the blue figure named Suicune said, closing her crimson red eyes.
"Do you think it's a good idea? To return so soon?" Entei inquired. "Team Prime could still be after us. It was bad enough that Raikou had to sacrifice himself to protect that human."
"Yes, but he is being treated well," Suicune said, turning to Entei. "The Legend Keepers are keeping him safe from Team Prime's grasp.
Just then, Entei flinched, looking off into the distance. Suicune sensed that something was wrong, and looked back to the city to see a purple cloud of smoke emanating from the tower they called home.
"Something's got the Gastly on the offensive," Suicune said. "Come, Entei! We have to help the humans!"
"Something tells me that this isn't about the humans," Entei said roughly. "I can only sense one human in the tower. Which is odd, because I can't sense those who aren't Legend Keepers."
"Then one of our allies is in danger!" Suicune shouted. "We don't have time to waste! We have to go!"
"Hmph…very well," Entei said, bounding down the hill. Suicune soon followed afterwards, and the two entered the tower, smashing their way through the wall.
The two Pokémon landed and began their rescue. Entei picked up the boy and his Umbreon, who were trapped in the tower and had fainted, while Suicune used her Tailwind to blow away the poisonous gas and drive the Gastly and Haunter back into the walls.
"C'mon! Let's move before the humans show up!" Entei barked, leaping up and out of the tower and being tailed by Suicune.
Roku's P.O.V.
Location Unknown
I woke up, coughing up a fit. The gas from the Pokémon in the Burned Tower had done a real number on my lungs, and I was feeling I had just been pulled from a burning building.
"Huff…Luna?" I said, looking around. "Luna?!"
I kept looking around vigorously for any sign of my partner, but I couldn't see her. I immediately began to panic, thinking she was dead. Soon, I saw her run from the other side of the hill and straight into me, wrapping her front legs around me in a hug.
"Roku! Thank Arceus you're OK!" she said happily.
I hugged her back, saying, "I'm glad you're OK too. I didn't think we were going to make it out of there."
Then I realized something.
"How DID we get out of the tower?" I said aloud.
"Yeah, you've got me," Luna said, scratching her head.
Just then, I saw two massive figures appear before me at lightning speed, ones with a very celestial appearance. One was very muscular, with brown fur and dark gray rings on all four of his ankles. He had two spiked appendages protruding from his back, and in the middle was a gray mane that billowed like a cloud of smoke. On his face resided a red and yellow crest, like a mask, with silver spikes drooping down his face like a mustache.
The other was an ice-blue color and looked very feminine, with a very slender body. Two diamond-shaped markings covered her side while two more ran down each leg, and she had a crystal-shaped crest protruding from her head. A purple mane billowed out from the crest, and her nearly transparent tails split out and waved beside her on each side.
I already knew who they were.
"You…you're Entei and Suicune, aren't you?" I asked.
"Yes," Suicune said. "And who might you be?"
I stood up slowly and said, "My name is Roku Kimura. I'm a Legend Keeper."
"So that explains it," Entei said. "I could sense your aura in the tower. Suicune suggested that we rescue you."
"We swore that we'd protect the humans from harm," Suicune said. "And even more for the Legend Keepers."
"Wait, so you saved me from the Gastly and Haunter?" I said.
"That is correct, Roku," Suicune said.
"Well, thank you," I said sincerely. "Without you guys, I'd be finished. And just after my induction, too."
"You're new, aren't you?" Entei asked.
"Well, yeah, but I'm skilled," I said, trying to save myself. "I can hold my own in a battle."
"Really?" Entei said, a wolfish grin spreading across his face.
"Entei, don't," Suicune warned.
"No, I want to see how skilled he is," Entei said. "What do you say, human? Think you can take on a legend?"
"Are you challenging me?" I said, smirking. "Alright. Let's battle!"
Suicune shook her head. "You never change, Entei."
Reia's P.O.V.
Burned Tower
Reia and Cedric ran back into the tower, Cedric sending out his Pidgeot to fly into the hole and check around the basement floor.
"Roku, are you in there?!" Cedric shouted. "Speak!"
This time, they heard no answer. Reia was already beginning to fear for the worst. What if something had happened to him? She didn't want to think about it.
By this time, Pidgeot had flown back up and said, "I can't find him. There's nothing down there except for a bunch of Ghost Pokémon."
Cedric cocked an eyebrow. Had Roku managed to find a way out?
"Do you think maybe the ghosts ate him?" Reia said, shuddering.
Cedric nearly facepalmed. "I don't think so. I think he just managed to find a way out of the hole. He might be back at the HQ."
"But…if that's the case, shouldn't we have seen him on our way back?" Reia asked.
"I'm not sure…" Cedric replied. "It is curious indeed, but he's not here. Let's just assume that he's safe for the time being."
Reia looked back at the hole, scared for her partner.
I desperately hope so…she thought.
Author's Note: OK, first of all, can a Gastly or Haunter actually eat a human? Kinda curious…
Anyway, thanks for reading, and please review! I haven't gotten anything yet, and it's really depressing…
Strato Abyss signing out.
