PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Six
"Dodrio, Drill Peck!"
"Scizor, Metal Claw!"
Temperance's and Lillette's Pokemon applied the finishing touches to the rest of the Dead, and soon the Crobat and the Golem were the only ones left, still struggling to fight off the mass of Zubats bothering them. Suddenly, Golem used Rollout, throwing the bats aside, while Crobat let loose with a piercing scream, causing splitting headaches in most of the defenders. Confused, Lillette barely noticed as Golem threw a rock at her, hitting a leg and trapping it underneath.
Beating off the Zubats for the last time, Crobat swooped down for the kill, sharp fangs the only thing that was still intact from its former self. Lillette, trapped and defenceless, could only watch on as the Crobat approached, her Pokemon all afflicted too badly by the Supersonic to help her. The Golem finally succumbed to the Zubats, and crumbled to dust, but the Zubats were too far away from Crobat to stop it.
And then came Temperance on Flygon, the only one of his Pokemon to have remained clear-minded from the Supersonic. Flygon shot fire at the Crobat, but the Crobat dodged the attack and continued going towards Lillette. It was now barely five metres away, and Flygon probably could not get to her in time.
The Crobat was next to Lillette now, mouth open, exposing horribly deformed gums and tongue. Only its two canine teeth were untouched, still white and sharp. The teeth now approached Lillette's open neck, her still trying desperately to lift her leg from the rock she was trapped under.
And then Temperance jumped from his Flygon, dagger out and ready for action. Going between Crobat and Lillette, Temperance's dagger struck Crobat's teeth in a clash of blades. While the Crobat reeled from the shock and the pain, Temperance's elegant riposte cut the Crobat into two. There was to be no vampire bat feasting on flesh today.
As both trainer and Pokemon recovered, Flygon lifted the rock, freeing Lillette from her prison that would have claimed her life if not for the timely intervention. Shaken but unhurt, she got up, legs wobbly from the near-death experience. Once she had confirmed that there was to be no lasting damage, she faced Temperance, and there was none of the conviction and impatience that had been part of her personality. Instead, there was an unsure and afraid girl standing there, looking for all the world like a girl on her first day of school, not a hard and trained soldier.
"Temperance… you saved me?" Lillette ventured, as if her brain had not totally absorbed all that had happened. Without waiting for a reply, she continued, "I'm sorry. You were right, this way was a bad choice… and I wouldn't have survived if not for you. You're no longer the person who I saw frozen at the edge of the Vermillion City hole, or the person eager for blind revenge at Lavender. You've changed a lot for the better."
Temperance took Lillette's hand, her fingers still cold from the close proximity to the hole. "I'm sorry for asking you about your parents at Saffron. I knew it upset you, and you haven't really been the same analytical girl that I saw at Vermillion and Lavender."
Lillette smiled, shaking her head. "That question was for my good. It allowed me to see what sort of person you are, and whether my trust in you then was misplaced. It certainly was not, and you've surprised me by being so sensitive again. As for my parents… It's nothing really. My mother died soon after I was born, and my father turned to drink and became abusive… the same things you see in every television serial. I never really knew love… except perhaps now."
Staring at the dumbfounded expression on Temperance's face, Lillette let her hand drop. "I'll leave you to ponder what that meant. In the meantime, I perceive that the exit to Pewter is clear, and we have an Elite Four to beat."
And she just walked off, her emotional self replaced again by the hard demeanour. Temperance, still frozen, recalled his Pokemon, and walked after her, still processing her statement. As the two saw the light of the sun, and saw Pewter City in the distance, he wondered how much longer this would last.
Temperance and Lillette passed through Pewter City quickly, after Brock sweared on his life that none of his Pokemon had been taken. This confirmed made the path through Viridian Forest safe – the two had no desire to be ambushed once more. The two discussed the subject of resting at Pewter after the horror at Mt. Moon, but they eventually decided to continue to Viridian, where there was actually a good hotel. Whereas, accommodation in Pewter was sadly lacking, unless you counted the Museum.
After leaving Pewter, Temperance and Lillette shortly passed through Viridian Forest. Really, the only reason why it was called a forest was because it was the largest forested area in Kanto. It really wasn't that big – just a couple of hour's walk through the tall grass and bushes. Originally, those travelling through would have to be alert for being attacked by Pokemon such as Beedrill and Spearow. Now, the forest was deadly quiet. Even the cries of wild Pokemon and the rustling of the branches in the wind were absent. It seemed like everyone was hiding.
The walk passed by mostly in silence. Both were thinking of the road ahead. The operation against the Dead at Victory Road was by no means a slam-dunk. Even if the Elite Four took the chance to sandwich the Dead, they could always break out via the route to Viridian. With only Temperance and Lillette guarding that way, it was far from a road block. At the very least, some would escape and report to their master, if he didn't know about the situation already. Too much was counting on Moltres appearing. In fact, all they had was a theory that Moltres would appear. Lillette was starting to doubt herself after the total failure at Mt. Moon.
Viridian was now visible in the distance. Brock had previously told them of a famous hotel in Viridian that was very comfortable. Temperance had withdrawn some money at Pewter and was looking forward to the stay. The sun was setting over their heads. Temperance knew that they were behind schedule. The original plan was to collect reinforcements from Viridian before they set off the next morning. But the ambush at Mt. Moon had wasted valuable time, and there would be no chance to speak with Giovanni before nightfall.
By the time they reached Viridian at night, both were completely exhausted. Dragging their limbs, all crying for rest, to the hotel, they asked for two rooms. Temperance, instead of washing up and having a free buffet dinner at the restaurant downstairs, simply collapsed on his bed and slept soundly the entire night, not noticing any of the facilities provided by the hotel.
Temperance was to regret this decision when he woke up. He was unbelievably filthy, as well as very hungry. The hotel did not provide a free breakfast, so he was forced to cough up more of his dwindling supply of money on it. Filling his plate in record time with the food, he finished it in seven minutes, and then went for seconds… and thirds… and fourths. By the time he was finished, people were staring at him and holding their noses. Getting himself to the lobby, he saw Lillette about to leave, refreshed. She had obviously had breakfast before she went up to pack and go.
"There you are! It's already 10 in the morning, let's go look for Giovanni! We're already behind schedule, you know."
"Um… can you wait for me? I have to go take a shower. I forgot to take one last night."
Lillette looked about to shout at him, then took a whiff of the odour coming from Temperance, and said, "You smell as bad as the Dead. Ok, I'll wait for you. Make it quick, I've already checked out. I'll be in the lobby."
"You can wait in my room…"
Lillette turned and shot an icy stare at him. The words froze in Temperance's mouth and he hurried upstairs to get himself cleaned up.
Temperance took a long time scrubbing away the dirt and grime on his clothes and skin, before finally descending with his pack to a very frustrated Lillette, who stood up the moment she saw Temperance and walked out of the hotel without saying a word. Chasing after her, Temperance saw that she had something gleaming green in her hand, but knew better than to press her on what it was.
"OK, Mr. Slowcoach, I've taken the time you took to… wash… to make an appointment with Giovanni, so we don't have to wait in line or take a number. Many of the residents are worried and hence are approaching him for help and advice. Oh yeah, and I was able to procure a Leaf Stone from the Mart. You really owe me big."
Handing over the Leaf Stone, Lillette then turned her back to Temperance, and would not say another word until the two reached the Gym. Temperance fell behind, confused.
What is up with this girl? First she as good as tells me she likes me, then blows me off, then gets a Leaf Stone for me, then blows me off again… it's like living in a tornado. Sigh.
As the two reached the gym, they saw Giovanni waiting just inside the door, hands open in a gesture of welcome. Temperance and Lillette smiled and went in, where they immediately asked for reinforcements.
"Well, I have some extra Pokemon here, but I can't leave my post, can I? The city is in a status of chaos. Even the good news at Lavender did nothing to lighten their hearts. People are turning to me for help every hour. If I left now everyone would probably go mad. However, for the good news, I can spare each of you one Pokemon to call your own. Heard you're going against the Elite Four. While tournament rules are 3v3, you two will still need the variety of choice. The Elite Four are ridiculously strong!"
Lillette spoke. "We understand, Mr. Giovanni. If you could spare us each one of your fine Pokemon, it would be good enough for us."
Giovanni led them deeper into his gym, talking all the time. "Yes, I used to be… still am… the head of Team Rocket. I do apologise for that short period of chaos when I was not in charge, and they decided to take matters into my own hands. Then I found out that they would not go away, and would wreak less havoc with me in charge than not. Actually, even if they did try to steal things and take over companies, I don't think many would be surprised or too bothered. This Dead thing trumps anything Team Rocket could do."
They had arrived at the battling arena, where Giovanni typically took on those who decided to challenge him. "This place hasn't been used for battle in a year. People are less powerful and motivated now as before. You two are an exception. I doubt you'll want to take me on?"
Lillette politely declined, explaining that they had to make for Indigo with all haste possible. Giovanni nodded, and then gave them one Poke Ball each. "I know what Pokemon you guys have already… the radio has been singing your praises since the Lavender battle. I think you'll find them useful."
Temperance released his, and a Houndoom came out, the Dark and Fire dog growling, but not at anyone in particular. Temperance knew from experience that Houndooms were reasonably fast, and both their Dark and Fire attacks packed a big punch. Lillette, looking at her Rhydon, seemed very satisfied with the gift.
"By the way, what you are fighting for is not the Gym Leaders. Due to the way the system works, having a majority is equivalent to being able to pass all laws without any regard for the people. I've been against the other Gym Leaders taxing the people heavily so they can't even save a morsel from their meagre salary. The country is prospering, yes, but I can't say the same for the people. I, Misty, and Erika have been fighting for a fair chance, but 3 out of 8 will not cut it… and because the laws have been passed, we are forced to apply them for our own cities as well. It really pains me to tax my own people. Go and win – but for the people of Kanto, not the authorities. And maybe, with the fall of so many Gym Leaders, a new system can be set up."
"All right, best of luck to you at Victory Road and beyond. I see you have a Leaf Stone there, young man. You might want to use it now before things get messy at Victory Road."
Then two figures were seen through the glass ceiling of the battling arena – Moltres, and someone riding a Dragonite. Temperance dropped the Leaf Stone into the waiting Weepinbell, who immediately glowed with a white light. Before the minute was up, it had grown bigger – a Victreebel. Temperance hardly noticed, his eyes still focused on the legendary bird spewing flames, and the mighty dragon using all sorts of elemental attacks.
Guess we're not needed after all…
The man leaned back in his chair, where the picture of Moltres emerging was added behind the one of Zapdos.
"One more to go…"