Chapter 26

Just as expected, when we stepped into the doorway, the door shut behind us. The inky darkness was swept away immediately by a wave of red light. A stadium, we had walked right into a stadium taller and wide than five doors placed end to end. Instead of marble, the entire room was made of white metal. Almost every square inch of it was dented, torn, or scratched. Pokemon had been battled here. And from the looks of it, they weren't battling for the fun and sport of it like I had been raised to know.

"One would think you two would leave as soon as the chance showed itself." At the other end of the stadium, a familiar figure struck a pose. "Ein may have let you past, but I sure as hell won't let you move another step!" Five different stage lights focuses on him. The tall, fabulous Miror B. had returned. "I don't believe we had a proper battle, now, did we?"

"We don't have time for this!" Wes shouted. "Where's the sword and Serenity?"

"Serenity?" Miror B. put a finger to his lips in thought. "You mean Vex? I think you do."

"No, we mean Serenity!" I stepped forward. "Where is she?!"

"She is busy learning how to use that sword of yours." Miror B. struck another pose. "After you wouldn't take it back after Ein went through to add all those great new adjustments, who else could he hope to wield it?"

"That's not my sword and you know it!"

"It's your sword, alright. I saw Ein work on it with my own eyes! But enough chat! Let's battle!" He pulled a single pokeball from his waist. It had been enveloped with so much Haze that it was impossible to see any of the red or white that identified it as a pokeball, but instead just a fountain of darkness. "Ein sure as hell knows how to cook up a good pokemon."

Before Miror B. could hope to throw his ball, Raikou broke free, breaking the ball in two. The massive pokemon skidded to a stop on the smooth metal, dirty brown fur reflecting on the floor like a mirror. He bared his yellow teeth, foam dripping from his lips onto his jagged claws. Like Suicune and Entei, the cloud on his back had been deflated. His tail hung limply behind him like a deadweight. The colors of his fur was matted and brown, a carpet of knots and filth.

I put a hand out in front of me, motioning for him to relax. He roared, advancing a hasty few steps in our direction. Wes grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back. Even Umbreon and Espeon seemed hesitant about nearing him. They couldn't battle this maniac. But what choice did we have? I didn't have my sword.

"Let's see how he fares against the famous Rui!" The Cipher Admin backed away. "Go ahead, do what you like, Raikou!" The Shadow Pokemon snarled in his direction before snapping his head back at us. One of his fangs had been broken at the tip, leaving behind a jagged stump. As he approached, he licked it repeatedly, loving the taste of the foam that dripped from it.

I know Wes was standing in front of me protectively, but both of us knew that his pokemon weren't going to attack a pokemon as crazed at that. His breaths were ragged and filled the whole room with the sound of his wet lungs. It was almost too loud to think. Too loud to realize that I had a trick up my sleeve as well.

I stepped past Wes and put my fists up in front of me. Raikou growled, spittle flying from his teeth in a spray. He charged, claws making obnoxious clanging sounds against the metal. For a split second I thought that was where our story ended. How the war between Bonding Shadows and Team Cipher stopped, being torn apart by a shadow legendary dog.

But it wasn't. Because when he was close enough I opened my fists and channeled that same energy I felt in the Under. Two golden bubbles flew from my palms and struck the pokemon from both sides, pinching him in place until they both joined. From his prison, the shadow pokemon paused. His eyes, wider than dinner plates, flashed from red to orange. His matted fur flashed the groomed, soft pelt it had once been before. He was changing. By Arceus, he was being purified from just being in the bubble!

"What are you doing?!" Miror B. shouted, slicing his hand through the air. "Get the hell out of there!"

"Don't!" My words went without being heard. The electric pokemon raked both front paws in front of him, tearing the bubble open before it popped. He dropped to the metal floor, missing the landing. When he found his way back to his feet, his eyes were ignited in red fury.

I balled my fists once again. When the pokemon charged, Wes and I had to sidestep to avoid being clawed in two. When I hit him with the bubbles this time, he stayed in there long enough to give us time to distance ourselves. Wes returned Umbreon and Espeon into their balls, deciding it was the best idea given our current situation.

Raikou freed himself again. The entire room was filled with the painful sounds of his screech. Lightning danced off the floor and ceiling, jolting Wes and I painfully. I grabbed his arm and sealed each of us in our own bubbles. The sparks from the floor only bounced off us, leaving neither of us shocked. This is probably how the battle was going to be, I told myself. Flying around a stadium throwing bubbles at a legendary dog.

Makes sense.

Raikou charged. Wes and I pushed our way higher in the stadium, barely missing the beast's claws as he tried to grab us from the air. Roaring in frustration, he sent a powerful beam of lightning in my direction. It hit the bubble and the hair on my arms and the back of my neck stood up. I shook my head and heard my hair crackle in response. If I was hit directly just once, that'd be the real game over.

He leapt again, this time high enough to pop the bubble I was in. I grabbed him my the tooth and sealed him in his own bubble. I had to quickly pull my arm out before he amputated it. I didn't realize I had let go of my only support that kept me from falling until I was halfway to the ground. That's when common sense kicked in. I trapped myself in another bubble just a second before I would've hit the ground.

"Stop playing around!" Miror B. shouted. He reached through the bubble and secured a tight grip around my neck. "Why do you oppose us? Why don't you mind your own business and leave us be?!"

"Because you took Serenity," I coughed. "Because treating pokemon like a tool or turning them into a fighting machine isn't right! Why should I let any of you harm pokemon the way you do?!"

"Power!" He used both hands to pin me to the ground by the throat. I dug my nails into his flesh, drawing blood. "Why stand by and train pokemon all day when you can get one that'll either win or die? Why would anyone waste their time with weak pokemon?!" I heard Raikou drop to the floor behind me.

"Rui!" I could hear Wes struggling to pop the bubble I had trapped him in. I guess there was no real way to get out of those yourself, was there? Raikou was growling, approaching hastily.

"Now!" Miror B's expression was crazed. "Finish her off!" Raikou was suddenly above me. He opened his jaws, seemingly to swallow my head whole. Instead, the beast grabbed Miror B's arms and threw him off me. The surprised Cipher Peon dropped to the floor a short walk from where I was. "What are you doing?! Kill her! Obey me!" But his words were in vain.

Raikou had been fully purified.

He scanned Miror B. up and down, reading his demanding body language and red face. One paw in front of the other, he began to approach him. One step, two steps, three steps and he was finally close enough to the Peon to scare him. Screaming, Miror B. turned tail and ran deeper into the lab. Raikou gave chase until he exited through the door he had come from. That's when the pokemon looked back to me. He nodded his head once. I smiled at him. Then the pokemon turned tail and started off after Miror B. once again.

"I had almost forgotten you could do that." Wes had made his way down from the air and back on the floor, where his bubble popped. "I didn't know it would purify a pokemon."

"I didn't know it either," I admitted, getting to my feet. Wes shot me a dazzling smile.

"Lucky guess, than." His smile faded. "What happened to your sword?"

"Before you came to save me today, Ein tried to get me to touch this sword he told me was mine. It had a Haze around it and it hurt to get near. He tried telling me it was my sword but…"

"It's not your sword," Wes assured me. "They've been working on that sword for a while. I know because they took it from my skarmory when I first joined Snagem. He more than likely told you it was yours so you'd take it."

"What's wrong with that sword?" I asked. "What did he do to it?"

"Ein was the first one to make a shadow pokemon. I don't doubt he wanted to be the first one to make a shadow weapon as well." He saw the look of concern on my face. "They can't do anything to your sword. That kind of purity can't be messed with by the likes of them."

"So it might be down here?"

"More than likely. They don't know that you can work magic with those bubbles. They think that keeping it from you makes you unable to purify shadows. Luckily that's not the case." The two of us started walking towards the door Miror B. had fled into. "Whatever you do, don't touch that sword that Ein wanted you to, even if he tries to force you into it."

"Why?" I asked, slightly afraid to know the answer.

"Have you heard the phrase 'the bigger they are, the harder they fall?'" I nodded. "The scientists here firmly believe that the purest pokemon make the most evil shadows. That's why they had me run all the way to Saffron City to steal your dratini. They knew that pokemon raised with children are some of the sweetest creatures. They also saw that you were an unusual child who was extremely good with pokemon. Targeting Serenity was the top of our list."

"So Serenity…"

"Yes, she is the most wretched shadow pokemon in her current form. And because you're the light, a pure human that's able to purify pokemon, touching that sword would turn you into something even worse than Vex." He paused. "You'd be so evil, it would be incurable."

Once we had entered the door, the two of us found ourselves in yet another stadium. Or, I thought it was a stadium. Our footsteps echoed loudly and I couldn't see the ceiling, so I was assuming it was large. The inky blackness stopped us in our tracks. There was no way we were going to continue blind.

"Umbreon," Wes whispered, holding out the dark type's pokeball. He emerged in front of the two of us, yellow rings pulsing quickly in excitement. He looked straight ahead, night vision eyes scoping out the darkness for us. He took a step forward and squinted, focusing harder. "What do you see?" The pokemon looked back to Wes and shrugged. "You can't see through it?"

"It's not darkness," I realized. "This whole room is filled with the Haze."
Rui Used Bubble!

It's Super Effective!

Raikou Has Been Purified!

Miror B. Fled!

Saving Game…

Game Saved!