Chapter 15

It couldn't be. Entei, one of the legendary dog pokemon, had turned to the dark side. These pokemon were supposed to be pure. Nothing but pure. They had worked miracles in the past to help those in need. How could Team Cipher do such a thing? Even worse, now that they had tainted Entei they were only a few steps behind tainting Ho-oh.

If they hadn't already.

"Skrub's hitmontop is nothing compared this beauty," Dakim bragged. "Fresh out of the factory. It even has that new Shadow smell." He inhaled through his bulbous nose as if he wasn't even joking. He sighed blissfully. "The smell of success is just as sweet as ever."

"Entei," I tried. The Shadow pokemon slowly turned to face me. His eyes were so bright that they nearly glowed in the broad daylight. His fur was mangy and one of his magnificent horns had been snapped off and left in disrepair. The once white parts of his paws were covered in dirt and grime. Even the mane that ran from the back of his neck to his tail was deflated and broken like a beaten up beanbag. "You don't have to stay here. Let's get you all fixed up."

His cold glare was unavoidable. I slowly started towards him, holding out my hands. The closer I got, the narrower his eyes became. It was like he was deciding whether or not to attack me, to rip me open and toss me over the edge. If only I could read his thoughts. Maybe then the Light could help free him from his misery. He was in pain, I could see it behind his eyes.

I could almost see it in the limb he raised in ready to slice me in half.

My golden blade was in my hands the instant he attacked. The point of the feather barely grazed the pad on his massive hand when he shrieked and jumped away. He was so startled that he was briefly a whimpering puppy, backed against the edge of the platform. Then sense took in and he bared his pink fangs before jumping in front of Dakim once more, prepared for battle.

Dakim clenched his fists so tightly in front of his face they nearly bust. "You're the Light!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the sides of the hollow volcano. Rocks started crumbling down the wall to our right, churning up dust in the soft breeze. I squeezed the hilt of my blade tightly as Dakim stomped his bare feet against the floor, shaking the platform. "In that case, I'm going to need you gone. Metang, Golem!"

Metang's metal arm hit me in the ribs, knocking me sideways. The sickening feeling of my stomach lurching and nausea hit me so hard I thought I was going to puke as I fell off the side of the platform. Game over, I thought. But I found myself stopped, suspended in midair. I checked to make sure my grip around the sword was still there. Yep, I was alive. Espeon's eyes shone bright purple in my direction. Thank god. As long as she was conscious, I wouldn't need to be worried about falling off the edge.

She dropped me onto the platform and jumped up to my side, wiggling her hunches like she was ready to pounce. Dakim rubbed his stubbly chin in thought. Without a word and just with a flick of his wrist, he commanded his metang after her. A heavy fist cratered the steel floor where she once stood. Espeon sliced the culprit right in the eye with both paws as she jumped to avoid his first attempt of a hit.

"Go." The determination on Wes' face masked a sliver of fear. "Free him." I knew what he meant. The skarmory feather in my hands warmed at the thought of ending Entei's misery. I brought it up to my face and spun on my heels to face him. The wind whipped at his tangled fur, giving him the appearance of a slightly bigger pokemon. Had he grown in size? How would I know? I'd only seen this beast in majestic paintings and detailed books. He could be smaller for all I know.

A sharp spike in the temperature caught my attention. He was fast; I was almost too absorbed with my thoughts to catch as he dove toward me, lava dripping from his mouth. So Entei's didn't usually do that, or at least I was pretty sure. As I rolled backwards and out of the way, the platform shuddered. The air was still hot, and I wasn't near the pokemon anymore. That's weird. Why'd the volcano get so hot all of a sudden?

Wait.

Entei.

Volcano.

Oh my sweet baby Arceus, if this pokemon roars, this entire volcano will erupt.

"I see you've come to an understanding." Dakin's loincloth flapped in the wind. I'm not sure if I was supposed to find that majestic or just plain gross. "You either hand over the sword or we all go up in flames. I wouldn't mind dying for the glory of Team Cipher." Well aren't you special. Handing over the sword wasn't an option. I made a move to try and slice at the Entei but his black, scaley tongue licked his teeth in mockery. All that I needed to do was stab him with this sword, but how? Wes and his pokemon were at a tantalizing standstill at well. They needed to move to attack.

Or only Umbreon did.

That's it.

I slowly, so slow I hoped that Dakim couldn't catch it, met Espeon out of the corner of my eye. Her legs were trembling in fear. She was just as afraid of heights as I was. I had to tell her my plan. But how? I couldn't say it to her now, not with Dakim and his stupid pokemon there to watch. C'mon Espeon, look at me.

Her ears pricked. She met my eyes with confused blinks. Oh my Arceus. She's a psychic type. Of course she can read my mind. Being as discreet as possible, I relayed my plan onto her. There was no emotion spread across her face as the explanation went on. Could she really read my mind? I was so panicked the thought of just standing there talking to myself was frightening. The pokemon heard me, though. Every time my mind shifted to panic she would blink. At least I hope that's why she blinked.

When the message had been sent. I squeezed the sword tightly in my hands. There was a chance this wasn't going to work. A chance that we, plus a hundred others, would end up swimming in lava. There's also a chance of getting out free. That was the chance I was looking for. So as soon as Entei closed his mouth to moisten his mouth, Espeon attacked. She froze him in place like a popsicle so well that his face couldn't change expressions.

"What?!" Dakim hollered. "Metang, what are you doing?! Do something! Go! Go! GO!" His clumsy pokemon had been worn out so much from battling that he hung in the air, half asleep. The silence before seemed to be the perfect time to nap, apparently. Even as his trainer called him, the psychic pokemon took his sweet time stretching and waking up. By then, it was all over.

My blade had sliced Entei from his cheek all the way down his left side, leaving a trail of golden glimmer behind. The platform shifted as Dakim jumped forward and knocked the blade from my hands. The silver feather clattered to a stop at Wes' feet. Dakim's hands were now around my throat, crushing my windpipe like a plastic straw. Behind him, Entei was shining brilliant light.

"What do you think you're doing, little lady?" he whispered menacingly. His hands pressed me harder into the cold steel flooring. The way his hair was positioned made me think that the shock I had given him had made it stand even taller on his tiny head. His meaty fists worked to choke me tighter. "Do you think this is a little game you get to play? Swing that sword round and round and then go home? Is that what you think this is?" I'm not sure how I was supposed to answer. The force on my throat was bringing tears to my eyes.

Dakim shifted forward slightly. The giants shoulders rippled as he hefted me into the air and nearly smacked me head-on into Wes, who had the sword in his own hands, dripping in blood. The back of Dakim's leg was split open painfully. He lowered himself to his other leg, eyes nearly about to pop right out of his head from the rage. My dry lips worked to tell Wes to run, but the look of murderous intent told me he wasn't going to try to listen.

How long had I been without air? It seemed like years. The wind was even colder on my skin like it was seeping into my body and coursing through my blood. My toes didn't repsond and my teeth ached from being pushed up forcefully against each other. Wes was saying something, shouting, actually. But the words went into my ears and were lost behind the thunderous pounding of fear stealing my consciousness. Don't faint, don't faint, I told myself, but the urge to fall asleep was overpowering me.

This was how I was going to die.

I was almost sure it was game over right then until my body hit something warm and furry. The warmth was back in my limbs and finally, finally I could breathe. It was like drowning in an icy pool only to wake up in your bed safe and sound. Like it hadn't even happened. But it had happened.

Entei had snatched me from Dakim and thrown me on his back. The magnificent beast pranced away as Wes tore another gash on the Cipher Admin's thick body, ripping the sleeve of his under armor so wide that the shirt itself crumpled to the ground, leaving his opponent shirtless. All traces of red pain seemed to vanish the instant he realized he had been bested. He threw his head back and roared, splitting the ears of any trainers nearby. The silver feather glinted menacingly behind the film of blood as Wes raised it at the ready to charge.

"YOU WILL DIE FOR THIS!" Dakim made a move that seemed to be a lunge but at the same time was too frightened to carry it all the way through. Stamping his foot like an indignant third grader, he took Entei's pokeball and crushed it in the palm of his hand, quivering with rage. The beast simply nodded once, confirming there was no choice but to do so with his old prison. "SHE'S ALMOST READY. THE DARKEST WRETCH IN THE POKEMON WORLD WILL NOT STAND ASIDE FOR THIS!" He took the other Haze-infested ball and threw it at his feet.

The ball opened and shadows poured out like smoke at a pop concert. It covered the ground, masking our feet beneath any icy cold sheet of black before trailing idly off the edge and fading before straying for the rest of the group. At first I thought it was empty, nothing but a play to escape. But Dakim stood still, eyes bulging proudly and fists curled up at the ready.

Espeon and Umbreon were almost too short to see past the smog. They pricked their ears and squared their shoulders in case they needed to leap out of the way from a surprise attack. There wasn't an attack on any of us, but it was a bit startling when the shadows slowed and started flowing from the edges to the center of the platform. The temperature around us dropped. It was quick, almost like the flash of lightning. But a dark figure stood in the center of the platform, red eyes blazing so brilliant that the Haze swarmed around them like moths to a flame. Two black wings snapped open like old wood splintering, clearing away every last bit of Haze from our feet. The black dragonite stood, her moon white claws clenching time and time again, as if she had lost feeling in them.

"S-Serenity," I whispered. The beast whirled to face me. Several rows of orange teeth met my words by dripping pink drool at Entei's feet. The round and cuddly snout I had learned to caress in my childhood was riddled with scars and marks of abuse. Her black scales were chipped and in agonizing disarray. Her blood red belly clung tightly to her ribs like someone had sucked the jolly fat from her bones. As I watched her pry open my gaze and look for any traces of hostility or weakness, tears started pooling in my eyes. "Who did this to you?" She snorted at me.

"Her name is not Serenity. This trophy is Vex, queen of the Shadows!" Dakim threw back his head back in laughter. Entei shifted uneasily as the dragon took another step towards us, chilled and rotten breath breathing down on us.

"Serenity, stop. Don't listen to him." Her evil eyes watched as I slowly lifted my hand, showing it to her front and back, and started to move it towards her. She leaned forward to press her forehead against mine. Her mouth opened and let out the most gruesome, wet hiss right in my face. I could smell that she hadn't eaten anything in god knows how long. "Stop it. You know who I am. Quit it." She pressed harder, nearly fitting my head in her mouth. It was getting to the point where the fear was starting to set in.

"Not now, Vex. We have things to do." At her masters' command, the giant Shadow beast spun around, whipping Entei with her massive tail. The dog pokemon was nearly knocked off his feet from the force. A chuckle escaped Serenity at the sound of him shuffling to keep his stance.

"She's not Vex! That's Serenity!" Entei was glad to let me off his back. The dragon pokemon looked over her shoulder at me, eyes narrowed in curious interest. "Serenity! Stop this right now! Come here!" Her lips drew back in a snarl. "Don't give me that shit, young lady! You know this isn't you!"

Wes was at my side, sliding the feather into my palm. My hands shook as I worked to position it in my hands comfortably. Serenity's snarl vanished.

"Afraid?" I called, swinging the golden blade over my shoulder. "You shouldn't be!" My legs seemed to work on their own. I charged right at my old friend, sword at the ready. "Don't worry, everything will be alright!" My legs seemed to brim with energy the instant I jumped into the air. Serenity watched with skeptical eyes as I attacked from above, bringing the golden sword down right on her bony head.

CLANG! The sword hit her like an iron pipe. The violent quivering of my sword rattled the bones in my hands as well as the rest of my body. It vibrated its way out of my hand and on the ground, where it chimed like a gong. I landed beside it, hands tucked under my arms. Ow, ow, OW! Sweet Arceus that hurt like hell! My teeth were chattering from the force; I had to clap both of my hands on the sides of my jaw to keep them from shaking right out of their sockets.

Dakim laughed. "You think that puny blade will do anything to her? Try again next time, kid." Serenity snorted. Dakim approached her from behind and climbed onto her back. Regardless of the weight, she didn't seemed in the slightest bothered by it. The black dragon opened her wings in preparation to fight. I shouted her name over the sound of her vigorous flapping, but whether she heard me or not, she did not respond.

There was a moment where it looked like she was just going to stand there and buffet us with her gusts of wind. When she jumped off the platform, Metang and Golem grabbing onto her ankles, it was only a matter of seconds before she was lost in the bright blue sky.

Wild Entei Appeared!

Entei Turned Friendly!

Shadow Dragonite Appeared!

Rui Is Unable To Battle!

Shadow Dragonite Fled!

Saving Game…

Game Saved!