School started once again. It's my senior year! YAY! That being said I don't know how often I'll be able to post new chapters, but I shall try my best! But enough of that. Without further ado I give you the next chapter!
Chapter 8: Seeking Help
"Hey. Lune. Lune? Having you been paying attention? Are you even listening to me?" questioned Riley. Lune shook his head a bit and blinked his tired eyes a couple of times. He looked ahead to face Riley who was walking ahead of him with his head turned around. The Lucario had a small frown on his face and Lune knew he had troubled his knew found friend. "Yeah. I'm sorry I'm just a little tired." answered the Umbreon.
"Should we take a break?" suggested Bolt who was walking beside Lune. Riley turned to face towards the dirt trail they were now traversing. They had made it down the mountain some time ago and had been walking through the forest for quite some time. He said without looking back, "That's out of the question. We can't rest. As I was trying to say before I pulled Lune out of his daydream, we have to leave this place. That Aerodactyl could be up and hunting us again anytime now. I want to put some distance between us before he can catch up. The farther away we get the more our scent blends in with the land, and that will make us more difficult to track since he is a hunter based on scent. That's why we have to keep moving."
The electric mouse cocked his head a bit. "You sure do know a lot about that sort of thing. Where ever did you learn all of that?" Riley stayed silent for a moment, and the air felt a bit thicker. The moment passed and Riley responded, "Someone I know taught it to me once. Let's leave it at that."
Bolt frowned and then turned to face his friend. "You sure we can trust this guy? I mean, I want to save Jade and Alex, but I have no idea where we are and where we're going. This could be a trap." Lune sighed and continued to face forward. "I don't know if I can trust him. But he's our only lead to finding the girls, and that's better than nothing. Even if it's a small chance towards saving those two, I'll take it."
The Pikachu knew his friend meant well and decided to drop the subject for now. Riley turned his jackal head so that he was facing behind him again. He saws in Lune's eyes that he was tired and he knew he shouldn't push the just recovered Pokemon into walking for so long. "Alright we've been walking for a good ten miles. We can take a break, but lets go over there."
The group made there way to a decently big hill that had an indent in it. Grass grew over the small roof that had overgrown on the indent so it made a nice shaded area underneath.
It was deep inside the earth that all three of them could fit and they were shielded from view fairly well. Bolt flopped on the soft exposed soil with a heavy and grateful sigh as Lune lowered himself to the floor with more care. Riley sat with his back against the wall and looked at where they had just walked from.
"It doesn't look like anyone is following us, and I can't sense any other person's aura so we should be safe for now." said Riley. He then tilted his head towards Lune. "I can sense something is troubling you my friend. What's on your mind? Do you want to talk about it?"
The Umbreon sighed a bit and gazed toward the ground. Bolt lifted his face from the earth and it was covered in dirt. "If he doesn't want to talk don't force him. I'm sure he's just worried about Jade and Alex is all. Isn't that right Lune?" said Bolt. Lune closed his eyes and said, "No. That's not the case this time. Of course I'm worried about the girls as much as you are, but that's not what's been on my mind. It's something difficult to explain, but I can try my best."
"For as long as I can remember, I've been seeing this shape in my dreams. It looks kind of like a shadow. It stands on four legs and it has a horn on its head. It usually stands there staring at me. But sometimes it would show me pictures of faraway places and unknown lands. It often gave me courage and hope whenever I needed it most. After I met Alex though, the dreams never came back and I thought nothing of it. When I was unconscious just awhile ago however, I saw that same shadow in a dream once more. And unlike before, It spoke to me."
Bolt pricked his ears up and said, "Wait, what does that mean then?"
"The shadow spoke to me, and it sounded like water flowing in a river. It told me if I wish to save the ones I love and to defeat the ones who cause me grief, I have to seek someone who knows where the land touches the sky, and become the legend I was born to be."
Riley tightened his paw into a small knuckle and pressed his lips firmly together.
Lune then looked specifically at Bolt and said,
"Bolt you probably don't know this, but Jade and I come from a research laboratory from someplace faraway. We had lived there most of our lives, and Jade was even born there. I don't remember when I got there. I was too small to remember. One day I escaped with Jade into the sea, and for that we almost died. Alex found me soon after and took me in. That's where we first met."
The Pikachu had a bit of a shocked expression on his face and then looked into his friends somber eyes with compassion. "Wait, wait. So that's who took them, isn't it? The same people from that research lab or whatever. Are they the one's responsible for all that's been happening to us?"
Lune nodded his head and said, "I'm sorry to say so but yes. I don't know why they want Jade and I back all of a sudden, but clearly there is something bigger at work here and I need to find out what. I think that's what the shadow in my dream was trying to tell me."
Riley closed his eyes in thought and Bolt suddenly stood up. With a cocky smirk on his face the Pikachu exclaimed, "Well then, whatever it is we have to do Lune, I'm with you all the way. I'll be with ya until we have both girls back home safe."
The Umbreon smiled a bit and said, "Thank you Bolt. I do mean it."
The electric Pokemon sighed and then said, "So now we have to find someone who knows where the land touches the sky, or whatever you said. Who on earth could possibly know that?" Riley opened his eyes and slowly said, "I think...I might be able to help with this one. I know someone who is special at interpreting dreams, fortune telling and all matter like that. She is also a personal friend and very wise. I think we need to pay her a visit as soon as possible."
"Do you know where she lives then Riley?" questioned Lune. The Lucario nodded his head and said, "She lives in a small village composed of Pokemon deep in the nearby forest. The village is located along a hidden waterfall, but I've been there before so we should have no trouble finding it. It will take about a half a day to get there from here, so we should leave now. I'm going to scope the area outside once more before we get moving."
He stood up and left the small crevice and walked a good distance away from the hiding spot. Bolt walked over to to his friend and whispered, "Isn't this a bit too convenient? I mean, we just met this guy and he knows everything that we need to. I don't trust him too much, and neither should you."
Lune sighed and said, "I know, I know Bolt. I don't trust him one hundred percent either, so lets just be on our toes for now. Although he isn't the most well known person in my book, he's done a lot by helping us this far. I have to trust Riley if we're going to save them."
The Pikachu looked angry for a moment and then whispered, "Don't come crying to me if he betrays us in our sleep." At that moment Riley had wandered back to the hiding spot and said, "The coast is clear, so it's time to head on out."
Lune stood up slowly and stretched his legs and arched his back. Bolt silently stood up and walked out of the crevice without saying a word to Riley. Lune walked towards the Lucario and said, "Don't mind him. He just needs time to get used to you. Once he does he can be a really good Pokemon." Lune smirked a bit and followed after his friend. Riley felt his lip twitch but decided to hold his tongue. He knew he had to keep his composure. As he walked out of the crevice to follow his new companions, the Lucario thought,
I wonder...how much longer am going to be able to stay with them as a comrade?
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"Ugh. I'm so sick of walking though this dull forest! When the hell are we supposed to get there anyways? I've had it!" whined Bolt. "Oh be quiet you big baby. We have some daylight left, and besides Riley said that the place we are headed to would only take half a day to get to. We left when the sun was high in the sky and it's almost twilight so we should be there soon. Quit you complaining and tough it out." said Lune in an irritated voice. He then chuckled and thought of a way to work up the Pikachu even more. "Or are you the wimpy Pokemon like I always thought you were? I was injured and I've been walking without complaint. I guess you aren't such a tough guy after all." Lune snickered under his breath. He loved teasing his friend and enjoyed seeing him get riled up.
"I'm no wimp! I'll show you, Lune! I'll beat you guys to the waterfall before the sun goes down!" exclaimed Bolt. "See you losers later!" With a maniacal laugh the electric mouse Pokemon dropped to all fours and quickly sped into the underbrush of the forest without any hesitation.
Lune snickered again and he caught up with Riley who had been walking ahead again. The Dark Pokemon could hear him say "Must you pull childish tricks on him like that?"
"I can't help it. He is so easy to pick on and I usually never miss a chance to get at him like that."
"You're in a cheerful mood despite the circumstances, aren't you?"
Guilt and anger flashed in Lune's eyes and he gazed at the ground, his mouth pulling back into a slight growl. Riley notices this and is quick to regret what he said. "I..I didn't mean that. I was out of place. I offer my apologizes to you. I know you are worried about them just as much as Bolt is, but you don't have to push yourself so hard. Your in a delicate state now, and making your body stressed could be hurtful towards you."
Lune noted that Riley seemed to be a bit informative of his condition, but shrugged the feeling away. The Umbreon closed his eyes as he continued to walk after his crazy friend and could feel the pool of anger that had flooded his eyes not moments ago soon drain away. After calming down Lune turned to his right to face Riley who was walking beside him and said, "I'm not mad with what you said, and I'm not delicate. I've been through my share of hardships before, and I don't want my sister to experience horrors like that ever again. That's why I'll do anything to get her away from that place."
"Even if you've been through hardships before, you'll go through it all again to get your sister and trainer home safely?"
"I would rather be put through hell than witness the people and Pokemon I care about suffer."
"That's a little bit brash if you ask me." Lune tilted his head up so that one eye glinted in the dying sunlight. "Well what do you mean by that?" he questioned. "I just think that saying things like that will get you nowhere. If saying stuff like that made you a hero then everyone would do it. Look I don't mean to impose on your beliefs or anything, but try not to put yourself in danger too much. It's honorable to do something sacrificial, but not if your the one that ends up dead. Then there is no point." stated Riley.
Lune felt something in his paws, like maybe Riley knew more than he did on everything that was going on. He shook his head and the feeling went away with it.
"Something wrong?" asked Riley.
"No. I'm just fine. I wonder how far ahead Bolt is though." As Lune said this Riley's extensions on his head began to vibrate slightly and the Lucario closed his eyes for a moment. When they opened again he said, "Your friend has been running ahead recklessly and is about to fall into the river near the village. Don't worry though. The river is wide but quite shallow. I'm more worried about the guy smacking his head on the low bottom. You up for a bit of a run?"
Lune nodded his head without hesitation and Riley proceeded to break into a slow run which turned into a sprint. The Umbreon followed behind his traveling companion on swift paws.
Why does Riley act like he cares so much. I mean, sure we are companions for now, and I know that I'm a target to others, but the guy treats me like I'm a glass ball that will shatter if even slightly touched. And I can't help but shake this feeling I keep getting whenever Riley starts to talk. I feel like maybe he knows more than he's letting on. I'm gonna have to keep a close eye on this...
A sudden splash caused Lune to be snapped out of his daze and Riley held out his paw in front of his chest as they continued to run through the tall grass and bushes.
"I think your friend has reached his destination a bit early and has fallen in as predicted. We should catch up to him soon enough. If we follow this river to the north, we should reach the waterfall village in a short amount of time.
Lune acknowledged the fighting Pokemon with a nod and after about four minutes of hard running the pair reduced their speed to a steady trot. Running water was soon filling the air and the duo reached a small length of grass that extended a bit before dropping off into the river Riley had mentioned earlier.
The river was wide but had a gentle flow of cool clear water. Lune inhaled deeply and welcomed the refreshing scent and let it fill his entire body with a state of temporary peace. A wet moan reached the dark Pokemon's ears and he peered over the edge to see Bolt laying flat on his back with water gushing over his face every now and again. There was a large red spot on his stomach and with another moan he sat up. The Pikachu's eyes were darting all over the place in a confused frenzy and the tuft of hair on his head was sticking out all over the place.
Lune gazed at his friend with a bored expression on his face, "Oh no. We'd better run. It's attack of the river zombies."
Bolt was snapped out of his trance and screamed, "Oh thanks Lune! And Riley! Way to warn me that the river was so close by! I was so focused on getting here I ran straight into the river and fell on a big rock!" Bolt pointed to the red mark on his chest. "That really hurt like hell!" Riley sighed and said, "Well it's your own fault for taking off with no warning and running around the woods like a moron." "You askin' for a fight buddy?" said Bolt through gritted teeth.
"If we were to fight my friend you would surely lose" said Riley with no hesitation.
"First off I ain't your friend! Second, I could take you on and zap you to a crisp in less than five seconds!" declared Bolt. "I highly doubt you'd want to do that" said Riley as he turned away and began walking north of the river.
"Hey! Don't turn your back on me you coward!" shouted Bolt.
"First off, I am no coward. I'm doing you a favor by sparing you of pointless pain and humiliation. You've had enough of that today. Second, would you stop shouting your mouth off like an Exploud? We're going to be caught because of you."
Bolt gritted his teeth in anger as Lune began to follow Riley. The Umbreon turned his head as he continued to walk and said, "Come on Bolt! If you don't get out of the river the Carvanha will bite you."
With a high squeal Bolt sprang out of the river and began to run after his companions.
Lune snickered again as the frenzied Pikachu sprinted past him and thought,
Well that never gets old. I sure do love teasing him.
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A boy not a day older than 18 stood before a pitiful sight. He had a dark brown coat on with many pockets in the front that fit to his figure after years of usage. He had near black jeans on with boots strapped onto his feet. The hood on his coat was pulled up and he had a protective mask just in case anyone was around. He didn't want to risk being seen. With brilliant red eyes he gazed at what lay before him.
So...This is all that's left I suppose...
A large smouldering pile of ashes, grime and broken hope. This was the house of a family that had burned down not two days ago, for smoke still lingered on some charred wooden beams that were reduced to piles of dying embers. He felt that as the glowing coals died the essence this place had was dying as well. It was a pitiful thing to see, and he couldn't help but feel a bit depressed at the sight of it. But the young man knew he had a mission to do and he knew it needed to be done quickly. He dug into his dark brown coat pocket and with a casual flick of the wrist a Pokeball was thrown into the air. In a bright beam of white a slender form took shape on the dead brown grass in front of the ruined house.
Her body curved to her young figure that was supported on four thin legs was covered in velvet pink fur. She had thick whiskers on her cheeks near her knowledgeable purple eyes and a long forked tail waving in the air. She cried out at the sight of her trainer and he commanded, "Okay Jewel. You know what to do. Find the item with the scent I showed you, but be careful. It might be buried somewhere in the rubble or maybe underground, so be thorough in your search."
The Espeon nodded her slender head and proceeded to enter the remains of the cottage. She closed her eyes, and the dull red orb resting on her forehead began to glow a vivid red. When she opened her eyes, they glowed of a psychic hue and she continued to look around the destroyed house. After about a minute or so she felt a strong vibrant energy pulse from beneath a pile of blacked support beams. She blinked and her eyes returned to their normal purple color. She called out for her trainer and the young man came running towards her in response.
He reached a with a fingerless gloved hand and stroked his Pokemon once behind her ears and he whispered, "Great job Jewel. Use your Psychic attack to lift the beams up." She complied and her eyes began to glow a soft blue as the beams began to slowly rise. Dust was unsettled and the boy coughed a bit as Jewel lowered the beams to rest in another place.
A patch of blackened grass was exposed and the boy looked at his Pokemon in confusion. Jewel responded by pawing at the surface in a digging motion and he nodded as he understood what she wanted him to do. With another flick of his wrist a second Pokeball spat out a beam of white light and a larger figure soon stood a few feet before him.
A light green draconian creature that stood on its two hind legs with toes tipped dark green. It's thigh was the same color as were the rings on its tail and it had two small arms with three claws on each hand. The three diamonds outlined in red rested at the end of the tail, and large rhombus wings also outlined in red adorned the dragons back near the shoulder blade. Two thick antennae stuck out of his head in the same shade of green as the rings and toes and bulbous red orbs covered its small eyes.
The boy commanded, "Mimzy I need you to dig in that small spot right there." He pointed to the bunt bunch of grass and added, "Go slowly since what is down there might be fragile."
With a small nod the Flygon began to paw and at the ground and was soon scooping up dirt by the handful at a nice and safe pace. Two minutes passed and a good sized hole had been formed. Mimzy purred when a small black box was exposed in the damp earth, and the boy tenderly picked it up. Using his sleeve he wiped away a bit of mud left on the sleek surface of the box, and could soon see an emblem engraved on the lid. The boy was reassured that this was the item he had been looking for and gave a small smile towards the accomplishment. The young man patted his Pokemon a few times and said, "Very nice work you two. We're done here, so let's get moving back to the hideout. I'm sure they'll be happy to see what we have for them."
After returning Jewel to her Pokeball the boy climbed onto his Flygon's back while carrying the small box in the crook of his elbow and arm. With a few flaps of his powerful wings Mimzy took off into the night sky and proceeded to fly back over the mountains and towards the southwest.
Keeping hold on Mimzy's neck with his right hand, the boy carefully unhooked the latch on the box and opened its lid slowly. A small tune began to play as a glimmering item was revealed to be laying upon a bed of soft red velvet.
Wh...what on earth...what is something like this doing inside a music box?
The boy was about to touch it with his index finger when an earsplitting roar was heard from behind him and with a cringe he immediately shut the box and latched the hook back on in a snap. Mimzy cried out in confusion and the boy said, "Keep moving Mimzy! We have some company and it looks like they're itching for a fight!"
With a glaring eye the young man saw that he was being followed by a large winged creature flanked by two smaller creatures on its side. Riding on top of the largest winged Pokemon was a man with a dark trench coat and big black boots. His chestnut hair blew around in the wind and he extended one arm with two fingers pointed at the boy.
With a screech the two other creatures began to advance upon him, and the young man knew it was time to flee. "Mimzy! Dive towards the forest and keep moving!"
With a small cry the dragon spun upward for a moment then dove towards the dark treetops of the forest below. "GO! After him you little twerps!" shouted the pursuer.
The two small Pokemon screeched harshly once more as Damon laughed in a bit of a cruel manner. He said out loud to himself as he pulled his mouth into a small smirk, "Oh how I love a good hunt in the moonlight."
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I think this was my longest chapter, but I feel like since I haven't updated in some time I owed it to you guys :) In the next chapter expect some fighting, some explainations and some other fun stuff :) Please let me know of your thoughts on this story, cuz I honestly love to hear it. As always I will try and update with a new chapter whenever I can. Until later, I shall see you all next time :)