Wardens Eternal

Chapter Seventeen: By the Fire

Scarlett didn't have much in terms of options on what to do. Martian was hurt badly, struggling to stand and breathe at the same time while his side began to swell again. There was no way Scarlett would be able to carry her much larger partner all the way back down the mountain. Worse, the sun had started to set and the temperature was beginning to decrease.

So, the Vixen did the best thing she could do: Gather some dry wood and prepare a campfire to help deter the worst of the cold and wild pokemon for the night. After lighting the makeshift firepit with an Ember attack, the fox devoted herself to trying to treat the luxio's injuries however she could and ease his pain. The most she could do was help him remove his uniform and relieve some of the pressure on the bruise. Other then that, the best she could do to help was retrieve an Oran berry every once in a while for the pain.

It had to be at least two hours after sundown when she finally laid down and curled up next to the fire to try to sleep. Little Azurill, banged up a little but not seriously harmed, climbed up onto the vixen and tried to burrow his way down into her fur. That hurt, but Scarlett understood completely. The little water type was freezing trying to sleep in the open and her fur was, well, the closest thing they had to his normal bed.

"Martian, aren't you cold?"

"No." The luxio lied, somehow mixing a low growl and a painful groan into a single sound. He was hurting a lot, but trying his best not to show it, or how much he was shivering. The campfire would only deter wild pokemon to a point. If they could see his weakness, his vulnerability, it might just give them enough confidence to attack under the cover of night.

Scarlett wasn't going to have any more of that. A small voice in the back of her head screamed at her, demanding what in the void was she doing, that it was inappropriate. The vixen ignored it, that was Flaris talking. She slowly got up as to not dump Azurill onto the ground suddenly as she moved over and laid down again, nuzzling herself up against the lion's body.

"Just because I'm a fire-type doesn't mean I don't get cold too." She defended herself when the former human started to give her a certain look.

With a painful sigh, Martian nodded and ceased to glare at his partner. There was no use in putting up a fight, not that he was in any real condition to protest or resist. True, it was a tactical error, if they were to get jumped by wild pokemon they'd be a much easier target when packed closely together. Being spread out and having someone keep watch was the best way to prevent that. . .

He just didn't care anymore.

Both Wardens and little Azurill were asleep within minutes.

Wardens Eternal

Martian was the first to wake up in time to witness the sunrise at the day's beginning. There was definitely some sort of awe present as the great golden orb unveiled itself, the clash of colors, the sudden rush of warmth, the promise of a new day.

The promise of new life itself.

The thought stung in the back of the luxio's mind painfully, there was something important to his memory in that chain of thought. Sunrises were important to him in his past life somehow, but why? and how could he learn more?

The sounds of distant voices were enough to retire that line of thinking for another time. Looked like the posse had almost found them, it was about time to get off this mountain.

A Swellow was the first to actually reach the Warden's camp thanks to her ability to fly. Corphish, Bidoof, and Sunflora, the three guild members Martian tasked with rushing Marill to the healers back at the crossroads led the rest of the party, Ursaring, the Poochyena brothers, and a few other residents from Treasure Town.

They were all (gratefully) surprised to find the Wardens alive, let alone victorious against Drowzee. The tapir had been on the Sheriff's Department most wanted list for years, always finding a way to kill anyone who attempted to capture him or escape. While pokemon who watched the Wardens train and spar in town were impressed by their talent, no one truly thought that the two inexperienced rookies would have survived their encounter.

Speaking of the outlaw. . .

Sunflora and some of the others couldn't stomach the sight of what was left of him. His fur was stained with blood and various fluids as cuts and wounds dotted across his body. There were some spots where his fur had been lost, the skin underneath contorted into hideous burns that still smelled of seared flesh. Worse was his face, or rather whatever was supposed to be his face.

The right side was at least recognizable, dotted with injuries and another one of those nasty electrical burns. The rest of his head was a hideously deformed abomination. Four giant, deep gashes had completely destroyed his face, leaving a mess of missing and contorted skin, dried blood, and bodily fluids, not to mention the aftermath of Martian's claw gouging deeply into his left eye, almost ripping the eyeball in half.

Martian didn't care what the others thought of him, as long as the victim Azurill, and his teammate Scarlett were alive and well, nothing else mattered. . .

Wardens Eternal

Two weeks, two damn weeks. Martian was quickly growing more restless ever since Ursaring had carried the wounded lion on his shoulder, Drowzee slung over the other. When they got back to Treasure Town, the healer began the task of overseeing both Martian and the boys recovery.

Azurill was released from the infirmary after two days of observation to make sure he was fine. All of the bruises and scrapes the little lad had endured were gone within a week, and the little fairy type was back to his innocent, bouncy, joyful self again. His constant visits to check on his brother and hero always brought smiles to everyone's face.

Unfortunately, his elder brother was not recovering nearly as fast. Marill was rarely awake, and even when he was he seldom had the strength to do much of anything for any long length of time. While the horn that had impaled him somehow missed his lungs and heart, it did remove a third of the boy's total body weight. The Healers and anyone in Treasure Town who were able had been sustaining him via Heal Pulse or similar moves.

Martian's own injury was taking too long to heal in his opinion. When he checked in, he expected to get his side bandaged, maybe get hit with a Heal Pulse or two and maybe have to drink some Miltank milk or some other medical drink. After that it was back to work, at least that's what he hoped for.

Nope, he got stuck with having to do nothing but rest for a couple of weeks, and to make sure that he wasn't trying to sneak off and worsen his injuries the healer made him stay in her clinic. Much to the luxio's frustration. At least the visitors who wanted to see him were tolerable.

The Sheriff himself came and visited Martian to thank the Wardens for taking down one of their most wanted and pay out the reward in person. An honor the former human accepted. There was just one small problem, two actually:

First, some pokemon had seen the luxio's handiwork on the outlaw and had gone into a frenzy about arresting the Warden himself for "Needlessly torturing and killing a kind, gentle, innocent soul." No one really believed them, but they would continue to be an annoyance from now on. Apparently, some pokemon didn't have anything better to do with their lives. Thank Arceus they were the minority.

And second, the slimeball was somehow still alive, barely. But considering how he was already sentenced to life in prison before he escaped four years prior, no one was in any rush to save his life. Drowzee was going to die in prison, how long he'd live before that happened was of no concern.

After the sheriff were people who wanted to hear about the latest story from the source, messengers, bards and the like. Pokemon tasked with spreading the news to various settlements around the world. Martian humored them for a while, telling them how the Wardens found Marill bleeding to death and how they went after Drowzee. Where he did not humor them was how exactly the fight went down.

"My partner and I split up to divide his attention and defense." Martian explained, "She distracted the hostile long enough for me to engage close quarters and vice versa. The details are unimportant."

Needless to say, the various Kricketune and Linoone were disappointed by his account of the latest news story, without details pokemon would quickly begin to lose interest.

Thankfully the luxio wasn't the only one who knew what happened up on that mountain, there was still his partner.

"The Dangerous Dame" they called her, the Burning Beauty, Graceful Guardian, and all manners of nicknames to reflect her newly famous skills, not to mention her elegant appearance. They managed to glean the dramatic details from her.

Then the former human got one visitor he wished never set foot in the clinic, or rather never set wing in.

"Ah, Martian, I'm surprised to see you survived your encounter with that outlaw."

"I'd be lying if I said it was thanks to the training we got back at the guild Chatot. Mainly because we didn't get any training from you at all." Martian growled, putting extra emphasis on the con bird's name.

"No, but your mission to capture him would not have been possible without the guild either." The parrot shrugged off the hostile tone, "Truth of the matter is that without Apprentices Corphish, Bidoof and Sunflora, you would have failed to complete your mission to Mount Bristle. They had to rescue you."

Martian almost snorted, the mission was a success. Get Azurill away from Drowzee and keep him safe. Taking down the outlaw was a secondary goal at best. All the apprentices did was get Marill to the healer and rally a large posse. Something Martian was thankful for, but it wouldn't have been impossible without them. If this leach of a bird tries to get one more coin out of them. . .

"I think it's only fair then that you pay the guild's fees for rescuing you, and a modest share of the bounty. I've taken the liberty of running the numbers for you, meaning your debt to the guil-"

The Warden had enough, and sized the bird in the blink of an eye, gripping the buzzard around the throat with one paw. The sudden action had knocked over a small wooden table and drew the attention of everyone in the building. Most pokemon looked on in utter shock as the lion strangled Chatot.

"Approach myself, Scarlett, or any other Exploration team with the intention of exploiting us for your own profits and I will personally demonstrate blow by blow how Drowzee went from notorious outlaw to pitiful lunatic," Martian growled, letting arcs of electricity run up and down the limb that kept the bird in its grip.

"Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?"

The strangling parrot couldn't nod yes any faster.

Martian released him, letting him drop to the ground as he grasped for sweet sweet air. However, the incoming Iron Tail made sure that Chatot's relief was short lived. The parasitic bird flew into the canvas wall, and the six behind that one, leaving a trail of rainbow feathers in his wake.

Most of the witnesses remained as statues once it was all over, though a few slowly began to clap at the fact that someone had finally given what the community as a whole wanted to give Chatot. That was until the lion collapsed in pain again, earning a response from the staff.

Guess who just earned himself another week and a half in recovery?