A/N- Hey, sorry for the long wait guys! Here's the next chapter :D
Chapter 4
Ally
Manectric blinked darkness from her eyes and forced herself to her feet. Her body felt sore all over and caked blood covered her cheek. To her left, she made out the faint glow of the Barrier, still holding strong. But they were too close to it. It was too dangerous.
"Ellie? Star?" she called. She peered into the darkness and was relieved to make out their two forms lying on the ground. They were weak, but alive. She went over to Ellie's body and prodded her gently. The Eevee shifted uncomfortably.
"Leafeon… mother… don't leave me… not yet…" Ellie muttered. She flung out one claw suddenly, catching Manectric across her already wounded cheek, and her eyes suddenly flew open. She rolled onto her feet, tense, then blinked as she saw Manectric, wincing as she rubbed her sore cheek. "Manectric…? Oh, I'm sorry! Did I do that…?"
"It's fine. Really," Manectric said. Star groaned as he got to his feet, his flames lighting the walls of the tunnel.
"Are we dead?" he asked dizzily.
Ellie cracked a small smile. "We made it."
"So where to next?" Manectric asked, still trying to shake away the dizziness she felt in her head. "Azelf? Uxie said Azelf was near the Grass Region."
"Yes, but we don't know a way out that leads to the Grass Region…" Ellie murmured quietly, her brows furrowed in frustration. "She did say the Grass Region was near the Poison already, but…" She glanced outside the screen barrier. "I'm not sure if we should go back out…"
"We're going to have to eventually," Star pointed out.
Ellie was silent, but Manectric nudged her softly. "Is there another way out that's still near the Grass Region, except not here?"
Ellie's frown deepened. "If we tried, it would take too long."
"So Poison Region it is?" Manectric could see Ellie struggling with the decision, but she nodded.
Once again, they left the safety of the tunnels. It was day, and the sun shone brightly. But the Region remained silent.
Ellie fell behind this time, so Manectric took the lead out of the Region, tracing back their steps from yesterday. It wasn't hard. All she had to do was follow the path of destruction, where large sections of the street had been torn up and broken down to rubble, and buildings crashed down around them. Latios's body had been removed, most likely by Latias. At the edge of the Region, she finally turned to Ellie, who hadn't spoken in a while.
"Are you okay?"
"I… I just can't watch you guys risk your lives for this…" Ellie said quietly. Her eyes were full of pain. "You could die…"
Now Star walked over to her. "We chose this. We're going to see it through. Come on, let's go."
XXX
"This… it isn't exactly dust and sand like the other," Star muttered.
They were outside of the Grass Region, but it was not vast and empty like the Poison Region outskirts, but lush and filled with greenery.
"The Grass Region is one of the Power Regions. Remember that they are one of four Regions who have more faith in the Authorities than most. Even though they too are wavering, they won't let go of that faith as easily," Manectric said. She frowned, remembering the cocky and arrogant Grass types, Grovyle and Simisage. She never exactly learned who killed most of them, so she didn't know how they died.
"Right, so the springs, right?" Ellie asked. She looked around. I don't see—"
A new voice interrupted her. "Just follow that trail of Oran bushes and take a left. Not that hard to find the springs then."
They whirled around, not seeing anything. "Who's there?" Manectric demanded.
"Tsk, they're always so suspicious, even after offered help," he continued. "Look up, you idiots."
Manectric bristled, but looked up to see a light blue Pokémon with wavy purple mane extending down his back, resting on a thick branch overhead. "Who are you?"
Ellie nudged her hard. "He's Suicune."
Suicune laughed, jumping down from his branch. He walked over to them, peering closely. "Yes, I am. It does not surprise me, that you do not know. Most do not remember me."
"Suicune…" Manectric sweatdropped. "I'm sorry."
He smirked. "Just another day in a rogue's life. So, tell me, why do you seek Azelf? Are you perhaps working for the Authorities? Or perhaps you are simply blind fools?" Suicune stopped a short distance away, still keeping them locked in his piercing gaze.
A low warning growl rumbled from Star's throat, but Manectric flicked a paw at him to stay quiet. "We seek all rogues. Our world may be destroyed soon, Suicune. We, even the blind Pokémon in their safe homes now, need help. I ask you: can you aid us?"
Suicune looked bored. "No."
"What do you mean, 'no'?" Star asked.
"I am a rogue," Suicune said proudly, holding his head high in the air. "I am free."
The three of them stared at him in silence. Then Star said, "And what is that supposed to mean?"
"I am free, and therefore unbound by law or will to aid you. Besides, if you plan to attack the Center, I'm afraid that's a death mission—suicide! No, I am not going to risk that," Suicune replied easily, one of his tail ribbons flicking at them irritably as if they were some pesky children.
"Of all the incompetent and arrogant—," Ellie began, her ears low and flat to her head.
"What?" Suicune asked, eyeing her dangerously. He smirked. "Yes, true. My brothers and I are all arrogant to some extent. We get it from Ho-oh. It got annoying, having to serve a bird that only serves to make rainbows appear out of the sky, and to be honest, all he would talk about was double rainbows and happiness, and occasionally, quadruple rainbows—"
Manectric bristled. "You are a fool."
Suicune sneered at her, heavy silence weighing down over them all. "No more than you, dear."
"He won't help," Star cut in before any more insults could get thrown around. "Let's just find Azelf. We haven't got all day."
"No, you haven't," Suicune agreed. "I will admit; I'm curious as to how long you can last against the Authorities. I'll come with you."
"What? No," Manectric snapped.
"Whether you like it or not," Suicune said, smirking.
Manectric growled, mentally running through all her options in her head. One, we could stay here all day bickering. Two, agree and subject ourselves to Mr. Egotistical. Three, drop kick him the hell—
"Fine," Ellie said quickly, annoyed.
"What?" Star complained.
"Good," Suicune said victoriously, obviously pleased. "By the way, the springs were right there." He pushed aside one of the Oran bushes so they could see the crystal springs in front of them.
Star snarled in frustration. "YOU INSUFFERABLE—!"
"Let's go," Manectric interrupted, wanting to get it over with.
"No need," an annoyed voice said. Azelf was hovering in the air above them, her arms crossed. Her eyes narrowed down at them. "You lot were so noisy, I heard you all the way from down there." She motioned to the springs.
Suicune snickered. "Azelf, what a surprise."
"Shut it," Azelf snapped. "I heard you all talking about me, so what is it?"
"They want you to help them march against Leader in a possible suicide mission," Suicune said.
Manectric opened her mouth to protest, but Azelf said, "Fine, fine, call for me and I'll be there. Just don't bother me with anything else until then." Then she floated away. There was an awkward silence.
"I thought Uxie said she was more easily agreeable with than Azelf or Mesprit," Star finally said, blinking.
"She did…" Ellie said, nodding slowly.
Suicune laughed at their expressions. "Azelf's in a bad mood, but when that happens, she typically will agree to anything unknowingly. Thing is, she already said she would, so there's no backing out of it now. Legendary's word."
"We can hold her to that?" Manectric asked.
Suicune nodded. "See why I didn't agree?"
"No," Star deadpanned.
"Well no matter. You'd better get going if you want to reach Mesprit before the sun falls and Latias comes through again." Suicune began to pad off without them, and they hurried to catch up.
Manectric eyed him suspiciously. "You know where Mesprit is?"
"Somebody tipped her off to expect visitors, so she's staying in her home for now," he replied.
"Who?" Star asked.
Suicune shrugged. "Probably one of her sisters, I'd guess. Those three have a closer bond than most, and can communicate through telepathy with each other at any distance."
Ellie sighed. "Where to to get to the Ice Region?" she asked.
"Well, travelling above ground, you'll need to get through the Grass Region. It's the closest way, unless you like drowning."
"Drowning?" Star looked pale.
"You can either go through the Region, go under the Region in the flooded tunnel below that, or you can just give up now. Save me the trouble of going with you."
"You're the one who decided to come along," Manectric growled.
Suicune looked thoughtful. "That I did. But now you hold me to my word, so I can't leave you pitiful fools."
The three of them were silent. Then—
"Okay, say we didn't hold you to your word?" Ellie asked.
"Oh, I'm bound to it. Sorry." Suicune smirked, and didn't look all that sorry.
Manectric silently fumed but followed Ellie as she spun, heading towards the Grass Region. Suicune followed at the rear.
After a few minutes of walking, Star poked Ellie. "What are we going to do?" he asked.
"Disguise ourselves," she said, "Or sneak past, but I doubt the Grass Region will be easy to get through that way."
Manectric frowned. "How, exactly, will we disguise ourselves then?"
"You can leave that to me," Suicune offered. "But if you want me to disguise all of you, then you'll have to hurry. My own illusory powers are not powerful like Palkia's, Uxie's or most Psychic types and Zoroark. But I can hold it for an hour and half at most. If you think you can make it in that time, then I can use that power. It is easy for myself to pass through and I can hold my illusion for much longer than if it were for all of us, but I believe I can do this for you, if you are willing."
Manectric opened her mouth to make a protest, but didn't say anything. Grudgingly, she could make sense of what Suicune was saying. Assuming he wasn't lying about his skills, they could try, and might be able to get through the Region without conflict.
"Are you sure you can hold your illusion over us that long?" Star asked.
Suicune nodded. "But you need to hurry. You can try to travel along the edge, but that might take too long, and there are tough thorn barriers surrounding the Region, leaving only one way in and one way out, and around the Region, in the outskirts, are mazes of forests so dense that even I would not dare try to travel through. You could try to cut them down, but even you three would not have the strength to go through all the way. Some have tried, and I have never seen them come back out. You could also try running all the way around, but at the midpoint, there is a steel wall on the inner side, the edge of the Center… and the other side is only water."
"How long would this outskirt path take though?" Manectric asked hopefully.
"Too long," Suicune replied. For once, he didn't have that hint of arrogance in his voice. "It is nearly impossible."
"So we have to go through the Region?" Star asked.
Suicune nodded. "Straight through. The Grass Region is vast, so hurry."
Ellie finally nodded. "It'll work."
"How are you so sure?" Star questioned.
"There's no other way, unless you have an alternate way of travelling underwater?" Ellie directed her question to Suicune, who frowned.
"It's like a large network of crisscrossing pipes, and I will admit, while I am an expert guide under there, it's… dangerous now," he said.
Manectric gave him a look. "Dangerous, how?"
He growled, his smooth features now distorted by the snarl on his face. "I will not speak of such."
Ellie thought for a moment. "Would it be safer to travel by night, or does it not make a difference?"
Suicune's snarl disappeared. "Assuming Latias still is doing her nightly duties, it's safer now," he replied, giving them a look. He knows.
"Okay, so now then," Star said.
"Oh, yes," Suicune said, padding over to them and resting his chin on each of their foreheads. Manectric flinched away first, but he gave her a look and she complied.
A few seconds later, her stepped back and grinned. "I'm always pleased with the outcome," he said. "You, Leafeon," he nodded to Ellie, who looked speechless. "You, Bayleef," he said to Manectric. She looked down at her feet which looked bright yellow and stubby.
Finally, he turned to Star. "You—"
"WHAT THE HECK AM I?" Star growled, clearly annoyed. He looked pink, with two green weed-like things sticking out of his head. His form flickered, and Manectric was able to clearly see his original form for only a split second.
"—are a Hoppip," Suicune finished, clearly pleased. "As for me, they'll see me as nothing but thin air. I'll go ahead."
Star fumed, but it was hard to take him seriously when his mouth was permanently frozen into a blank smile, with empty eyes staring forward. Manectric and Suicune suppressed a laugh, but there was a giggle from Ellie, before she killed her smile.
"We should go now," she said awkwardly, nodding to the Grass Region, trying to avoid looking at Star. The Hoppip.
XXX
Ellie was sure how to feel about travelling while looking like… well, like her deceased sister. She didn't feel any different, but she did look like Leafeon. And because of that, it almost felt like a personal slap to the face. Really? Of all Pokémon, why a Leafeon? It just made Ellie want to scream in frustration.
She led her companions to the edge of the Region, then walked in, keeping her pace brisk. With luck, they'd be able to all make it without any contact.
"Hey, I think Suicune ditched us," Manectric's voice reached Ellie's ears and she flicked her tail irritably.
Ellie stopped and turned to face the battle-scarred Pokémon. She could only imagine what horrors Manectric truly faced in the Games. "Well, he probably just ran off ahead," Ellie assured. "It would be just like him, from what I could tell."
Star walked beside Ellie, Suicune's illusion only portraying him as a floating Hoppip.
"Do you know your way around?" he asked. She loved that voice, but didn't let anything show on her face.
She turned, meeting Star's eyes. "I've been here before, remember?" she gave a small smile.
"Ellie, Star, stop," Manectric called out warningly.
Ellie snapped her attention back to what was before her, and froze, Star copying her actions and staring in shock. Manectric walked up to them, stopping next to them.
"I thought Latias was only going to come through at night?" Manectric asked, sounding confused. Ellie cursed their bad luck. In front of them, Latias was flying around, questioning other citizens, but even further ahead was a still body, green and white, with rose petals surrounding it.
Latias noticed the three of them and floated over. Star stiffened at Ellie's side, but she shot a warning glance at him.
"You three! Have you heard of or seen three rogue Pokémon? A Manectric, a Quilava, and a silver Eevee?" she called. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her wings hung at her sides.
She doesn't know! The illusion worked. Ellie shook her head. "I'm sorry Lady," she said, forcing her voice slightly higher and mimicking the way the Nidoqueen had spoken with Latias the other day. "We have not seen or heard of them. May I ask what has happened here?" She prayed that the illusion would hold long enough that she could figure out what was going on here.
Latias's eyes hardened. "Most likely those Pokémon's doing," she growled. "They murder in cold blood. First the Poison Region, and now they have killed a family here, in the Grass Region…" Latias shifted to the side so they could see a Roserade, Roselia, and Budew lying in a crater in the ground, dead.
Manectric looked horrified, but didn't say anything, just casting a questioning glance at Ellie and Star that seemed to say, what are you doing, man? We have to go.
"My brother died because of them," Latias said sadly, her voice breaking. Ellie felt a pang of sorrow, looking at the Eon Pokémon, then shoved that feeling down. She's with my enemy.
"Well, we must be going, Lady," Manectric spoke.
"Where to?" Latias asked.
"We're visiting a friend of ours. And I'm sure they'd need to be told of this," Manectric lied.
Latias waved them off. "Of course, of course… everyone must be alerted about these murders…" she said solemnly. Saying that, she rose into the air, circled the Grass Region several times, then sped off towards the next region.
Ellie let out a breath that she didn't know she'd been holding. "That. Was close."
Manectric also let out a low breath. "So now that this path is blocked, now what?"
"I don't know," Ellie admitted, her voice coming out stronger than she felt. She was panicking. On the inside. "Based on our cameras, this is the only way through, unless we want to turn around and take a path that is too long, as Suicune had said. And only Star can… well fly, except that he really can't…" Her heart pounded as her brows furrowed in frustration. She could feel each pound that echoed in her ears, filling her head with that constant pain again.
"How long?" she'd asked.
"Three months."
She was nearing the end of her second month since she'd asked that fatal question that she'd been so afraid to before.
"Could we try climbing the sides of the buildings… then jumping roof to roof?" Manectric suggested.
Ellie eyed the sturdy walls of the buildings of the Grass Region, layered with thick flat leaves over the smooth surface of healthy green vines intertwining to create a thick wall, a barricade of sorts.
"Yes," Ellie said, relieved to feel her head clearing. "That'll work. Try to stay somewhat out of sight though."
"What about the illusions?" Star asked.
Ellie thought for a moment. "They'll probably just show us climbing. Star, you'll probably look like you're just floating up the sides." A short mental image of a smiling Hoppip slowly floating up the side of one of the buildings made Ellie smile-cough for a second.
Star glared at her mutinously, but didn't say anything. They all headed for the backside of one of the buildings, then Ellie sprang up, her claws unsheathing and hooking into the interlaced vines. With little effort, she pulled herself up and hooked her hind claws into the wall as well, then flicked her tail for Star and Manectric to follow her.
She heard shuffling as Manectric hit the wall behind her, albeit slightly more clumsily, and began to follow her. Ellie slowed her breathing, then pulled herself up further. Claw, claw, pull, she remembered, pulling herself up onto the roof. Then bitterness flowed over her. Stop thinking about him. No matter how much advice he gave to survive, how much he may have cared, that doesn't change the fact that he left. Right after announcing my death. Ha.
Ellie pulled herself onto the roof, then helped Manectric and Star up. She looked at Manectric. "Have you done something like this before?"
Manectric's gaze clouded. "It's not that different from scaling the trees in the Arena so long ago. It's hard to forget what you learn in there."
Ellie didn't question her any more, then turned to the various routes over the rooftops before her. Her mind quickly looked over all possible routes, roadblocks, and possible threats, scouting the best route for them. She then slid down the side of the roof silently, then bounded off over the heads of unsuspecting citizens, landing perfectly on the next roof overhead.
"Hey, didn't you die?"
Startled, her composure shattered, and Ellie looked around, her eyes landing on a Bulbasaur. He frowned.
"Wait, no, you're probably a different one. Sorry," he mumbled, suddenly dozing off.
Star landed next to her, his Quilava form visible for a second before reverting back to the illusion. "What's wrong?" he asked. Leafeon. He thought I was Leafeon.
Ellie shook her head just as Manectric skidded to a stop a few feet from them. "Nothing. Follow me."
They kept leaping from roof to roof in silence, until Star said, "I can see the other side now. We're almost there."
Ellie nodded, preparing to make one final jump, then to slide down and leave the Grass Region. Midleap, she suddenly felt the terrible pounding in her head again, and panicked. She hit the roof hard, her legs falling out from under her, and there was a small yelp of surprise from inside the home. Ellie swore under her breath, scrambling to her feet, yet feeling way too dizzy. Manectric was instantly there, supporting one side of her, and Star on the other.
"Ellie!" Manectric hissed. "What's wrong?"
Ellie knew what was wrong. She knew, but she didn't want to. She hated that these painful headaches were becoming all the more frequent. But still, she smiled bitterly, taking slow, deep breaths. "I'm fine."
"No, you aren't," Star growled, looking unexpectedly furious for some reason. "You need help."
Panic arose in Ellie, and she steadily got to her feet. "No, I don't."
Voices came from inside the home. "I swear! I heard something on our roof!"
"Pipe down. It was nothing."
"But—!"
Then, out of nowhere, a Flamethrower shot out, burning several rooftops, which caught fire easily, and there were screams. Manectric tensed, her body pricking at the scent of smoke.
"We need to get out. Before our illusions fade and something decides to kill us," she muttered.
"Uh… I think something's already decided to kill us," Star said.
Suddenly, a shriek was heard over the rooftops, and the three of them whirled around. A Cacnea screamed as he bounded off individual roofs, hopping from one to another in his haste to get away from the fire. He crashed into Star and they went tumbling off the roof, landing with a thud on the ground below.
"Star!" Ellie shrieked, horrified.
"Run! Run for your lives!" the Cacnea screamed, immediately popping back up and dashing off to crash into some other poor Pokémon.
Ellie pushed the pain away from her head and hopped down next to Star. He got up, groaning how him being owned by a stupid Cacnea should have been impossible.
"I'm fine," he said, nuzzling Ellie, and relief washed through her.
Manectric came down too. Her voice full of urgency, she said, "We have to go!"
"Can you still run?" Ellie asked.
"I'll have to be able to. That idiot Cacnea still could," he said, annoyed.
They began to run.
XXX
He watched them carefully. They were almost there. Good. But this fire…
Already, the Region's best fighters lay defeated on the ground, their bodies burned beyond repair and charred black.
He swore as another Flamethrower covered the Grass Region with flames, and an Oddish cried out in fear as the attacker loomed over him. Unable to take in this destruction anymore, he leapt out from where he hid, shedding his disguise, and slammed into the master of the flames.
XXX
They stumbled over the border to the Grass Region, hiding away in the dense forestry, and Manectric sighed, her body relaxing, as their illusions faded away just in time. She looked around, trying to find a familiar blue body that wasn't there. "Where's Suicune?"
Star frowned. "He was supposed to meet us here. But we can't wait for him."
"Right," Ellie nodded, her voice solemn. "We keep going. Only two more rogues."
"We're already close to the Ice Region, so that means we're close to Mesprit," Manectric put in quietly, tearing her eyes away from the flames.
Like a mantra, she repeated, "We have to keep going."
Star nodded, standing and Ellie gritted her teeth, looking away from the deadly fire that threatened them.
XXX
Suicune caught Entei by surprise, and the fire canine let out a yelp of surprise at the sudden attack. Shock lit in his eyes for a moment before he realized who was attacking him. Entei threw Suicune off and sneered, "Brother! It's been a long time!" The Oddish Entei had been terrorizing scampered off, tripping over flat surfaces repeatedly in his haste to get away, and screaming his head off… was it a head, or a body…?
Suicune watched the Oddish escape, then turned to Entei. "You and Raikou… How can you live with this? You've become a monster."
They began to circle one another, and Entei let out a bark of laughter, amusement pricking from his coat. "You and your pacifist ways! Don't you see we must rule with an iron fist?"
"Not us, brother, not us. Only Leader truly rules, and you know that."
Entei sneered again. "But you also know as well as I, that if we do not obey, then we die. Isn't it better this way?"
"Terrorizing those lesser than you? Wreaking havoc and destruction?" It was Suicune's turn to laugh. "You two always were sadistic."
Snarling, Entei lunged at Suicune, but the Water Pokémon dodged to one side, and shot a powerful jet of water at him. Caught in the momentum of the lunge, Entei was hit on the side of his body, and twisted back, out of the Hydro Pump's way. He took a few paces back. "You just had to be Water. Water. Not Ice, or Psychic, but Water," he muttered in annoyance.
Suicune smirked, but suddenly a Thunder was called down, and struck him. Shock and fury welled through him, but it was soon masked by pain as electricity jolted through his body, and he fell to the earth. Struggling to get back to his feet, his body and pride wounded, he snarled as Raikou leapt down next to Entei, and smirked.
"Brother," Raikou said, his face emotionless and his voice thick with mocking. "What a surprise." Electricity sparked from his coat.
Suicune knew he couldn't take both of them on at the same time. He glowered at Entei. "Figured you couldn't beat me, and called for backup?" Flames crackled behind him, and he was glad all of the Grass Region inhabitants had escaped.
"You know me so well," Entei said, sighing. Then he snickered. "But no. I figured us brothers could have a lovely gathering. Meet, share stories, you know."
Suicune was silent, surveying the burnt Region surrounding them. His eyes grew sad in almost disbelief at everything he took in. "No brother of mine would kill the innocent." The very claws he'd sworn to never use again slid back out, and he lunged, snarling in rage, fury, and hurt. He crashed into Entei, and both Legendaries fought angrily. Raikou simply observed with keen interest.
"Did your time down there truly change you so much?" Suicune snarled.
Entei's eyes narrowed as he clawed at Suicune's throat, barely missing. "You know those three were far more deadly than us. Violent, treacherous. But their ways were much more appealing than yours. I see how you were so in love with Virizion once. The least threatening, naturally. That bitch got exactly what was coming to her. Keldeo's gone back down, see? He's taken her place now. Much more violent now too."
Suicune's eyes flashed at a painful memory and in realization, and he snarled in fury, increasing his attacks on Entei. "Never speak of her."
Finally, he forced Entei down, slamming his head against the ground, and the Fire type's eyes widened as he looked up at his brother. He coughed blood, but grinned. Then he began to laugh, his body trembling with anger and amusement at the same time.
Entei let himself go limp, but continued to laugh deliriously. "Go on!" he sneered. "Do it! Kill me!"
Hissing, all levity completely gone, Suicune raised one claw over Entei's throat, and the Fire canine's eyes widened even further, on the brink of insanity.
"Do it!"
Suicune's claw flashed through the air, but it froze just before it could reach the fur. His paw trembled with the weight of decision.
He couldn't.
"I'm no monster," Suicune whispered. His claws slid back, and he slowly got off Entei, backing away from him, but Raikou suddenly snarled and using his speed, rushed up to him and raked his claws across Suicune's face, then clawing again. For a moment, Suicune stood there, stunned and horrified, blood forming at the edges of the three new claw marks that scarred his face.
Entei slowly got back to his paws. He laughed again. "Coward!"
No more. Please, no more.
Suicune turned, and fled.