Chapter Thirty-one: Traitor

Fighting For Everything

I was speechless, to say the least. My mind went numb. Why…What…What?! I was astonished. I didn't even think about the dynamite about to blow behind me. I just looked at his brown, almost black, eyes. I saw humor, confusion and something else in his face.

He opened his mouth to say something, then his eyes quickly cut behind me. He saw the dynamite. He reached over and grabbed my hand. He yanked me back down the hallway. When we got halfway down, I heard voices. He stopped. He swore silently. We took a few steps forward. It was completely dark, and I knew the stick was about to blow, I began to panic. Silently, of course.

I was pushed sideways. I felt around. I must have been pushed into a small crevice. I felt someone squish in next me, I assumed it was him. Well, half-assumed half-hoped. Our bodies were pushed together. He pulled me closer and held me. The ground shook and I could see fire trail down the hallway. The dynamite went off.

I heard yells and screams. I could hear people calling off commands to their Pokémon. I need to be there. I thought. Everyone counted on me and my Pokémon to help, too. Then another thought hit: Bibarel. What happened to Bibarel?! I couldn't remember where I last had him. I wasn't paying enough attention, most likely he died somewhere in some explosion…Probably mine. I held back tears.

"I need to be out there." I said, but I was muffled by his chest.

"No, you don't." He must have heard me.

I leaned back against the wall. It didn't make much difference, however, I was still pressed against him. It was pitch black. I was scared. I felt him touch my face. "Ember." I murmured.

I crouched down behind a large rock with Professor Rowan. Guards were running out of the volcano. We heard a few explosions. My heart raced. "I should have gone in there!" I whispered.

"No, you shouldn't have." Professor said. I respectively disagreed. Well…Maybe not respectively, I shot him an angry look. I peeked out from the rock. The guards poured into their ship. I looked towards the S.S. Steel, a guards threw a bomb at it. Once it hit the boat, it blew up.

"Holy crap!"

"That's not good." Professor Rowan remarked.

"You think?!" I looked back towards the entrance, waiting for her to run out…If she ever would.

"I think the coast is clear. We need to get out of here." Ember said. I felt him try to get out.

I reached for him and found his collar. I pulled him back. "No, we need to get to my group, they need me."

"Your group walked right into a trap, Cynthia! The place is covered in guards! Three other guards were sent for your two little friends, and more are fighting the others! We need to get out! This place is going to be nothing but rubble soon." He grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the hiding spot. He had gotten stronger since the last time I saw him.

"Ember, listen to me—" Another bomb or something went off and shook the area around us. A few pieces of the ceiling fell to the ground. "…Let's go."

We rushed back down the tunnel, hallway thing. We had to maneuver around some debris as we went. Ember seemed to know where he was going…That or he was just really confident in himself. Knowing him, it could be the latter.

We came to a large area, I'd never been there before. "Ember this isn't the right way!"

"Yes it is, trust me." I looked around. There were all sorts of digging tools lying around and lots of torches on the walls, I could finally see decently. Ember looked around, there were two hallways.

I rolled my eyes. "You don't know which one, do you?"

"Maybe." He muttered. I looked at him. His face was covered in dirt and dust, mine probably looked the same, his red hair was flattened and dirty, and his clothes were just as bad. He wore a white and gold button-down and gold-colored pants…He never wore button-downs…Ever. I stepped in front of him to look at his shirt. I had a hunch, and I didn't want it to be true.

Sure enough, on the shirt was the Golden City logo. I gasped and covered my mouth. "No…"

Ember frowned and looked at his feet. "C'mon, we have to get out of here. Guards could be here any minute." He grabbed my hand and squeezed it tight. He picked a tunnel and grabbed a torch. We started down. I fixed my hood on my head, not wanting to be seen again, and grabbed Gabite's Pokéball. I was ready to fight if the time came.

The tunnel twisted and turned. "I don't think this is the right way…" Ember mumbled. Sinnoh! Fantastic! He stopped abruptly. He swore in a whisper. I heard voices. He let go of my hand. "Stay right here." He told me. Before I could protest, he took down the hallway, leaving me in the dark. Literally. I released Gabite. The Pokéball lit up and she materialized from the light.

"Gabite," I whispered, "could you shed some light on this?" She growled and used Dragon Claw. Her claw lit up. It wasn't a lot of light, but enough. "Good job. Now follow me." I walked passed her and down the hallway. I don't care if he told me to stay, I'm going after him.

I got to the end of the tunnel. A group of guards stood there. I jumped out. "Gabite, Dragon Rage!" My Pokémon obeyed without question and used Dragon Rage on them. They fell to the ground. Only one of them stayed down, the other three jumped back up.

"Dragon Claw." Gabite jabbed her claws into one of the guards' chest. He winced and slumped to the ground, death slowly coming. "Dragon Rage." Gabite made the other two fall to the ground as well. I looked around for Ember, he was nowhere.

I heard something and turned around, facing the tunnel I had come out of. Then I fell to the ground. I quickly rolled on my back. A guard had gotten back up. Gabite roared and tackled the man, he flew across the room and smashed into the wall. I looked at Gabite. She looked at me. "You saved my life…Thank you."

Ember ran into the room. He gaped at the sight. "What the?! Cynthia!"

"I panicked! You left me!"

"I—Never mind, we have to go!" He quickly yanked me back up and into the tunnel. He was running, I had a hard time keeping up. Gabite was behind me, not having any trouble keeping up. "This place is about to—" He got cut off when a huge explosion was heard. The tunnel shook. "Run!" We ran faster and harder. I saw light up ahead.

The light came closer and closer. Then, we were out.

I collapsed to the ground. Wanting to cry, but couldn't. A heard another explosion…But this time, it wasn't from a bomb or explosive. I looked up towards the mouth of the volcano. It was erupting. I scrambled to my feet and took a few steps back. The lava streamed down the sides, but not near us. That was the first, and last, time that erupted.

I met Ember's eyes. We took a step closer to each other and embraced. Gabite growled and pushed Ember away. I laughed. "He's alright, Gabite." We hugged again. He held me close and tight.

"We're safe now." He said in my ear.

Are we? I quickly stepped back. "How can I trust you?!"

"What?" He seemed genuinely hurt.

"You're a guard!" I pointed to his uniform. "You work for Lea! You're the bad guy!"

His gaze went to the ground. "Yeah I know."

"Yeah! What are you going to do now?! Sell me out to Lea! I'm a rebel! The enemy!"

"I'm not going to sell you out." He yelled. "I'm better then that!"

"Are you?!" I snapped.

"Yes! You know that!"

"I obviously don't! You're the one who got involved with this!"

"So did you!"

"…What?"

"You're involved too, Cynthia Marie. You're just playing for the other team."

I pursed my lips. That was true. "But…I had other reasons to. I wasn't just…Stupid!"

He frowned. "Stupid?! You don't know my reasons!"

"Then tell me." I had calmed down. "Just tell me."

He sighed; he began to calm down as well. "When I watched one of your gym battles…It dawned on me that I wasn't doing anything with my life except sitting around, and you're out there…Being somebody. I got really mad and stormed off. I don't know what my intentions were…But before I got to Solaceon, I met someone. Jeck was his name. He talked to me, told me that he knew of a way to solve my problems, he told me to join The Callousen."

"The Callousen?"

"Lea's guards. It seemed like a good idea…Anything seemed like a good idea. So I joined."

"Ember, you shouldn't have joined."

He frowned, his eyebrows met in the middle. "You just don't understand."

"That's true, but still, how could you take his side?"

"I regret it now, okay? It was a mistake."

We were silent for a minute. "So what are you doing to do?"

"I'm not going to rat you out, if that's what you mean." He sighed. "I…Don't know. I'll lay low for a while, until Lea has been overthrown. Maybe he'll think I've died in the explosions and not go out looking for me. Maybe my commander has died. It doesn't even matter, no one will notice that I'm not there."

I thought of an idea. "Or, you could go back to the post and pretend to be on their side, when in reality you're on our side."

"Cynthia, look." He pointed to the volcano. It was done erupting. "Your side lost."

"…What?" My mind went back on track. "We need to find Rowan."

I watched the guards take some of those rebels that hung around Cynthia. I didn't know their names. One was a girl with dark skin and big, brown hair, Captain Steel, and the other two were some guys. Not Cynthia.

"I will not have this, fiend!" Captain yelled. The guards slapped his hand over his mouth.

"Where is she?!" I whispered.

"Volkner, you know Miss Cynthia, she's safe."

"You don't know that!" I snapped. The guards dragged the handful of rebels on the ship. It started to sail back to Canalave. I looked up at the volcano, it was done erupting.

"All that lava will turn the minerals I found into a substance…Most likely iron."

"This isn't the time for a science lesson, Professor." Me and Professor stood up and came out of our hiding spots. "I should try to find her." I started for the entrance.

Professor grabbed me. "No, look." He pointed to the side of the volcano. Cynthia, her Gabite and a guard were coming our way.

"Miss Cynthia! Look out! Guard!" I started sprinting towards them. I grabbed a Pokéball. "Raichu, go!" I released my trusty Electric Type. "Use—"

"No!" Cynthia yelled. I stopped. They approached me. "No! It's not what you think." Her Ponyta-tail was loose and her blonde hair was covered in dirt, along with her face and clothes.

"What in Sinnoh happened to you?! And why did you bring back a guard?!"

Cynthia looked up at the guard. "He saved me. He's an old friend from Celestic. Besides, he's a guard turned good. But never mind that, we have to get back in there and save them!" She turned towards the volcano. I leaned in to grab her, but the guard did it for me. Yeah…That wasn't cool.

"Miss Cynthia," Rowan started, "they're gone. It's done."

"What?! That's not right!" She slumped to her knees. Grief, pain and anger was easily seen on her face. "Gone?"

Rowan nodded. "The guards took Ellena, Tag, Carrick and Captain Steel on their ship. Everyone else, I presume, is left in the debris." He placed a hand on Cynthia's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"No!" She yelled. Tears started to stream down her face. She collapsed on the ground, sobbing. I wanted to do something, but I wasn't the best at consoling. I wish I was…

Rowan crouched down. "Miss Cynthia, please get up. We should leave. Who knows if more guards are coming back." She sat up.

"We…Lost?" She said. You could hardly hear her.

"I'm sorry to say it but…Yes."

I fell back to the ground in tears. I knew I was making myself look bad, but I didn't care. A group of people I had come to love was dead or taken captive. And I didn't run to their rescue, instead I hid in a hole while they were blown to bits. We lost.

"Well then I have to go save them." I said in-between sobs.

"They're going to be killed, Cyn." Ember said. "They're going to be imprisoned at the league, and then they're going to be interrogated until they die or until Lea gets the information he wants…And then they die."

"Then—Then you can go get them…You're a guard."

"It doesn't work that way. Besides, I'm done working for him. As of right now, I'm done." He reached up and tore his shirt off. He wore an undershirt…That really revealed his new arm muscles.

"Miss Cynthia, you need to get up. We need to get out of here." Rowan reminded. I nodded and he helped me up. I returned Gabite and let out Togekiss. Then I remembered Bibarel. More tears overflowed from my eyes.

"What?" Volkner asked. He came to my side.

"My—My Pokémon! He died in there!" I turned towards the dreaded volcano. I saw a brown thing slumping towards us. I gasped. "Bibarel?" I ran closer. It was really him. I wrapped my arms around him. He groaned. He was very wounded. That made me feel horrible. I returned him. "I am so sorry." I said to the ball. Volkner came over.

"Is he okay?"

"No…No he's not. I need to get him to the Center. Let's go." We walked back over. Ember had released a Staraptor and Rowan was already on Champ. Volkner hopped on Thumper with me, then we were off.

An hour later we were in the forest outside of Canalave. It was very dark by then. We sat on the ground in silence. I was done crying over the rebels…I still felt awful, but my sorrow was now anger. More anger at Lea.

"We should get to the Center. Let's have dinner and get a good night's sleep." Rowan suggested.

"I can't go into town." Ember said. "If I'm seen by a guard…I don't know what'll happen. I guess I'll campout tonight."

"Miss Cynthia, Volkner, we should get dinner at least. I'll buy. Ember, I'll bring you dinner as well." In the darkness I could see Rowan and Volkner stand up. I did the same. I took off my cloak and threw it on the ground. We went back into town and to the Center. I healed Bibarel then headed to the Mart with Rowan. We got a loaf of Pokébread and ate it quickly. I went back up to my room and took a nice, long shower. Washing all the dust and dirt off of me.

A while later, I laid in bed with Roserade. Bibarel laid on the floor. He was healed, but he had injuries that would never go away. A shed a few more tears…I knew what I had to do.

The next morning I stood in the forest with Bibarel. Tears were streaming down my face. He stood there, confused. He cocked his head at me. I squatted down and scratched his head. "Bibarel…You've been such a great addition to my team. Without you I never would have made it this far. You completed my team." More tears came. "You were my first ever caught Pokémon, and my second Pokémon. I always felt bonded with you…" I stopped. It was getting hard. Bibarel hung his head. There was so much sadness in his expression.

I hugged him. He groaned. "I don't want to make you fight anymore. I want you to have the easy life. There aren't any Pokémon hunters out here. And here you have a great ocean to go swim in." I stood up.

Bibarel inched closer. "No." I muttered. "No…Go away." He cocked his head. "Go away!" I yelled, sobbing hysterically. Bibarel laid his ears down and hung his head. He whined then walked away. I fell to my knees. That was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

Ember came to my side. I had come out to his little camp. He wrapped his arms around me. I cried in his chest. "It's okay." He murmured. "It's been a long two days. You should rest." He grabbed my hand and led me to the katta tree he had called home. He climbed up on one of the branches. He reached his hand down. I grabbed it, he pulled me up next to him. I leaned my head on his shoulder and tried to calm down.

So many things had happened in the last twenty-four hours…For one, the rebels lost our war and I was the only one who came back. Another, I found Ember. And lastly…I released Bibarel into the wild. So many emotional things. I just wanted to crawl into a hole…But I wouldn't. I couldn't. I shouldn't.

That's exactly what he wants me to do. He wants me to give up. But now I have a reason to keep fighting, and I'm not going to stop.

Authors Note: What a sad chapter! The Bibarel goodbye really got me, I don't know about you. Hey! Did anyone see the Iron Island reference up there?! Ever wonder how it got its name? There you go!

So, this is the last time things will be in Volkner's POV. I wanted to get a glimpse at him because...There is a prequel! I have it on my profile, and I've had it up there for a while now, so that's why I have only hinted at his back story...Because there is one! Static! So Random-K, I hope that makes you happy!

Speaking of Random-K, I'll reply to your review now: ...There was a Hunger Games reference? Man, I apparently put so much Hunger Games things in my story that I don't even know about! Anywho, I hope that little thing up there (...Talking about Static) eased you a bit. That's why I didn't want to reveal anything. I have sat down and thought over Volk's personality! Alright...Let's try to explain this: Well, his past has left him scarred mentally, so there's a very angry and stern side of him. And there's also a sarcastic and 'snarky' side that pops out. The thing is, right now, everyone is a bit OOC because a lot of emotions are being thrown around. For some they're emotions they've never felt/don't know they're feeling...Does that make sense? Well, Cynthia wasn't unconscious, but I hope I didn't disappoint with how I did that!

Espeon: Hello! Well thank you for reviewing...I just wanted to clarify that I did not mean to 'steal' from you by adding a POV change, so keep that in mind! And yes...With wings!

Flubby48: Shucks! Thank you, I loved that chapter too. I think I nailed the emotions around also. And I got pumped, too! I wrote four chapters this weekend because I was so pumped. Hope I didn't disappoint. Thanks again!

DeathGoblin: I'm starting to beat you, you need to catch up! Anyway, let's just say there's a reason why romance isn't one of the genres. And I hope everything else was clarified in these two chapters. Thanks for the feedback!

Alright, thank you awesome people for tagging along this triple-update weekend. I'm not sure when the next update will be, so stay tuned.