36
We emerge from the Pokémon Center, Tempest walking beside me, wounded but able to walk. Alexis walking along as well, looking very concerned after I told her what happened. Joy, Helen, and Erak decide to stay at the center, since it still has food and Jolteon gave a slight power supply that should keep the electricity going.
"Dark, where are we planning on going?" I ask.
"Into the caves, there's no where else she could really be…" He answers.
"Fine." I frown. "Why would she be hear?" I wonder out loud.
"Touring or something probably, maybe catching pokémon."
Wraith flinched when catching pokémon was mentioned. Please don't say that around me…
"Hmmmm?" Dark looks at him. "Why not?"
We reach the stairs that lead to the cave entrance, and start our climb up. Catching… a trainer almost took Helen from me. I do not have a favorable view of trainers. Explains Wraith.
"Oh, I see…" Says Raizu.
Have you… caught… any pokémon…?
"Uh, no. I actually haven't. Most of mine were given or I rescued."
Rescued?
"Allow me to explain…"
--
We walk for a long time, having started my story with the curse, and ending at how we arrived at the center. He's amazed at what I've done, and when I mentioned Markus, he cringed. Another Lucario, huh?… He had interrupted.
"Well, I have an egg which is going to be his reincarnation, but I'll get to that eventually." Was my response as I continued the story.
When I finish, he looks at me with a small smile. That is truly amazing.
I just look at him and feel a ping of grief. I can't even respond. All the shit that's happened and he says that my journey, and life, are amazing. I think. Right, lets just find Serena.
As we get farther down, taking caves, dug out stair wells, and going past all the equipment, it starts getting very dark. Nearby lights are almost out, with little power. The ground is sturdy, and walls are not loose. Rocks are everywhere, and Iron seems at a loss. For some reason, no pokémon approach us, at all. When we see the occasional one, it backs off into the shadows.
I start to tire of the darkness after 15 minutes. "Lets go find what powers these lights, I can barely see."
"Well, sir and master, where do you think we should look?" Asks Jolteon, with some lip.
"I've been following these cords that connect all the lights." I say, pointing up. "They 'ended' where we came in, and started overlapping in the opposite direction we're going, where we came down on this floor. The other direction of this hall way will eventually lead to the generator."
"Oh, you're so clever." He starts walking in that direction and so do Alexis and I. She's completely silent and just following us with no real expression, except concern. Probably for Veera. We'll find you soon Veera… We'll get you and find out why Serena took you and Abby and Shimmer away from me…
We eventually reach the machine, some horrid old machine that hardly looks like it's working. It's only as big as me, since all it did was run light bulbs, but we're cautious anyway in getting Jolteon to restore it to full power. As soon as he does, the lights all flash, and reach their optimal brightness. As the lights blind us for a split second, I notice something. A small passage way to the left of the generator, which I didn't see earlier. A silhouette of some person slipping away. It was of a woman, and she retreated very quickly.
Something makes me dart of running down the side path. Disregarding the calls of my friends, I head off by myself, thinking I can catch up with this person. The path is rough, and I almost trip a few times, but I regain my balance by using the rock walls on either side of me. In minutes, I come out of the path into a little chamber. At the other side of the chamber… is Serena.
Her hair is a very light blonde, on the borderline of a shimmering white. Her hair is let down as well, reaching down her back. She also is wearing her white trench coat, a white shirt, and some kind of white pants. It is a material I've never seen before. What's weird though, is that she's staring right at me blankly, and there isn't a single dot of dirt on her clothes. She just ran down a narrow, rock passageway, with loose dirt and rocks everywhere, and she's totally white.
"Serena?…" I ask, hesitant for some reason.
"'Ello Raizu. What's up?" She says, nonchalantly.
"Oh, phew. I thought something was wrong-" I'm interrupted as a man comes up from behind me and grabs me. I can't see him, but he has me in a figure-four lock, his arms intertwined in the shape of a 4 around my neck and arm, ready to break my arm at any time, should I resist.
"Oops, I see you can't talk right now. Let me introduce you to my friend here, even if you can't see him." A smile creeps onto her face. "This is Cyrus. Say hi Raizu."