Chapter 27

"Retrieve Umbreon," I urged. Wes didn't need to be told twice.

"What do you think we do about this?" he asked, clipping the ball back to his belt.

"The only way we have." I held out my hand, palm to the ceiling. A small bubble emerged from it, casting a golden glow between the two of us. The floor was smooth marble once more, but the walls and ceiling were blocked by Haze that fell from above like a drizzle of rain. I could feel the chill of it against my skin like a soft winter breeze. Goosebumps pricked my skin. "We have to go straight through it. Miror B. didn't have any trouble with it if he came running this way." He slipped his hand into mine.

"There'll be no need for that." Ein's voice came from behind us. When we spun to face him, the light from the room we had entered from had shut itself, leaving us in the pitch black. My golden bubble still shone, but against the Haze and darkness it was dimmer than a small candle. Wes and I put our backs to each other, bodies rigid in fear. "You shouldn't be going where you're not allowed, especially after you have the chance to leave." His voice was above us. I could hear him climbing some unseen stairs.

"We're not leaving until you give Rui back her sword!" Wes shouted. His voice echoed off distant walls. Ein laughed, this time further away.

"I thought I told you that was your sword, Rui." He seemed to be ignoring the fact that Wes was talking to him, nor that he existed at all. That happens when you get creamed on sight by him. "Oh, who am I kidding? You won't believe me. So I think it's best that you hear the truth."

A hollow clatter sounded in front of me. Lying at my feet, absorbing Haze and spitting out fine golden glitter was my sword. The temptation to grab it was strong, but Wes and I both knew that it could've been a trap. We stayed still, observing it anxiously for any signs that it was truly rigged.

"You can pick it up. I have no use for it." He paused. I pictured him smiling. "It's too weak to do any damage to us anyway."

The lights flicked on. The stadium I had pictured was not much different from the real thing. Mable floor, walls, and ceiling. The Haze made it harder to see further out, but everything was visible.

Especially the giant Shadow Lugia perched above us.

There was not a single thought when it came to grabbing my sword that time. The instant it was in my hands it was aimed at the sea bird. Her piercing glowing eyes narrowed in my direction, challenging me to make a move. She didn't look too interested in fighting me from the giant swing Ein had made for her, but just being in her presence was scary enough. She was huge, larger than any pokemon I had seen before. She only only twenty or thirty feet above me and yet she had to lean forward slightly to fit in the football dome-size stadium. Ein was sitting on a saddle-like pad from her shoulder to avoid her razor-sharp scales.

"I have an offer for you two." I didn't notice it until now, but he had a bit of a lisp to the way he talked. Seeing how his lips and tongue were just as fat as a lickitung, I wondered how I missed it before. "Lugia doesn't like to fight, even in her Shadow form. Because of this, she and I have decided to try and end our quarrels in a sensible manner."

"Sensible," I scoffed.

"Listen to the offer," Ein said quickly, impatient. "You two have been more than annoying to our plan, and for no real reason, may I add?" He didn't wait for us to reply. "I say we end the fighting right here, right now. No more kidnapping, no more blood, no more nothing."

"So you'll release all the Shadow Pokemon to the care of Bonding Shadows?" Wes spoke like he was sure that he was surrendering.

"Oh no, no, no!" Ein's face lit up in what I guessed was a smile. "You two and Bonding Shadows will leave us alone, or we'll tear you apart one by one. Starting right here, right now. Agree and surrender, or die. How's that sound?"

"We can't take that offer." Wes and I spoke without hesitation.

"We'll take our chances," he added.

"You don't understand." Ein stood. Lugia's scales bristled and the sharp flaps on her back started to stand erect like knives. "I don't find it hard to kill children. I won't lose sleep over it. I might sleep better knowing you two wouldn't be here to screw up my works."

"They're not works!" I shouted. "They're pokemon! They're just as important as any human! And all you do is hurt and torture them! I bet you don't get any sleep at all!" His smile vanished. Did… did I actually hit that nail on the head?

"This is your last warning, Yurika." He raised his hands beside his head. Lugia's eyes started glowing. The Haze started falling harder upon us. "Take him and leave, or stay and be slaughtered. The choice is yours."

Wes and I paused. Then, in unison, we both brandished our weapons. My sword, his pokeballs. The two of us had a fire that his words couldn't snuff. Just seeing the rebelling, the lack of fear, the open disregard for his purpose put him on edge. He stifled the look of rage on his face and lowered his hand quickly.

Shadow Lugia roared. The walls around us trembled from her voice. Wes and I forced ourselves not to cover our ears even though we could feel them being pierced like knives. The beast couldn't open her wings until she dropped to the floor. The floor shattered from beneath her, crunching as she took wide steps toward us. Her scales stood perpendicular to her body, razor sharp edges trembling in excitement. She bared her yellow fangs, dripping pinkish foam on the ground.

Wes had both pokeballs in his hands but even I knew that he wasn't going to endanger Umbreon or Espeon. When the Lugia was within reaching distance of us she snapped her jaws and extended her neck. I was so paralyzed by the sight that Wes had to grab me and pull me out of the way before I was eaten whole. She wheeled on us, hissing. When she snapped again I was able to jump out of the way but Wes was grabbed by the tail of his coat. Lugia's teeth had a firm grip on him. My heart caught in my throat from the other end of the room as I watched him struggle to pull free. Then, as she reeled him in, Wes suddenly focused and drew a small blade from his pocket, stabbing the Shadow Pokemon in the eye.

My eardrums vibrated painfully from her heart-wrenching scream. Shadow pokemon or not, no living thing should be put through that pain. I didn't blame Wes. Ein had cornered us to fight or die. It had come to this whether or not we wanted it to or not. She bucked her legs and opened her wings to screech again, this time drawing blood down the sides of my head. Wes rolled out of the way to avoid being trampled. Ein jumped off the saddle before it was throw across the room in her painful rampage.

"Kill them!" His voice was shrill. "Kill both of them! Kill them now!" Lugia snapped her head in our direction. Wes had failed to retrieve his knife and had instead left it in her right eye socket where blood dribbled down her cheeks like tears. Her lips were trembling, pulled back over sharp fangs. Her throat hummed the sound between a growl and a whimper.

Wes and I backed against the wall. Shadow Lugia dipped her neck parallel to the floor and crept forward with her her turned to the left to better see us. She used her wings as front legs to squeeze herself closer to us, as the dome ceiling was lower near the walls. A trail of black blood was left behind her, spreading unevenly on the shattered tiles.

Wes and I held fists and sword at the ready. This wasn't even slightly enough to start phasing her. She approached slowly, enjoying the look of terror on our faces. This is where she began to play with us, snapping her jaws close enough to think she was going to eat but instead missing on purpose. I felt that was even more dangerous. If we stepped out of the way in the wrong direction, she would kill us by accident. Why did that sound so much worse? She prodded us with her wings, tearing our clothes and flesh on her scales. Within a few minutes our clothes were so torn the cold of the room started getting to us. We shivered, painfully pressing up to each other regardless of the tears in both clothing and flesh.

"You've had your fun!" Ein had kept his distance for some time now. He was just as terrified of being trapped in there as we were. Lugia obviously didn't mind fighting and bloodshed as much as he had let on. "Kill them! You can eat all their friends if you make a good example of these two!" The shadow licked her lips, accidentally tasting some of her own blood in the process. This did not phase her. It looked as if she actually enjoyed it. She paused, pondering her next move.

"I'm sorry." Wes had probably said this once or twice already but I had been so drained from dodging her that I hadn't heard. Just as my sword had deflected off Serenity, Shadow Lugia was immune to the blade. I was afraid to strike her because my blade vibrated so painfully in my hands I feared it would shatter. "I should've taken you out of here when I got the chance."

"If we did that-" I panted "- then we wouldn't have gotten my sword back." Wes leaned against the back wall, eyes stuck on Lugia. She was still thinking of the funnest way to kill us.

"Forget the sword. I wanted our relationship to last longer than this!" Lugia paused, suddenly tuned into our conversation. "This is bullshit. Right when I got the courage to kiss you!" My heart both leapt and dropped. I took his hand in mine.

"At least it happened. I'd prefer this than not at all." He pulled me into his arms so quickly I thought that Lugia had struck. I couldn't see his expression from over my shoulder. He trembled, squeezing me tighter against him. I embraced him back, taking in his warmth and the smell of cinnamon that desperately clung to the remains of his clothes.

"Thank you for following me," he whispered. "You've been willing to stay with me from the start. If it wasn't for your determination, I wouldn't have been able to get to know you." He moved his hands from the small of my back upwards, drawing me closer. I let him press his face into my neck. My heart caught in my throat. For a moment, just a moment, I was in heaven. This is what heaven felt like.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Ein's face was red with rage. "KILL! THEM! NOW!" I glanced back at Lugia. Wes and Ein couldn't see it, but I did.

She was crying.

Cipher Scientist Ein Would Like To Battle!

Shadow Lugia Attacked!

Shadow Lugia Is Stunned!

Shadow Lugia Used Tears!

Saving Game…

Game Saved!