If you haven't checked my profile, Kissing the Night Sky was removed. So I'm sorry, both to the site and those of you who enjoyed it. I will NOT be reposting it. I'll do my best to make this a story that is just as or better than KTNS. Thanks
NESpirit
Chapter 6
Urgh… I feel terrible… This headache is excruciating… urgh… Madison woke up on the cold stone floor. She groaned as she pushed herself up and to her feet. She carefully examined her surroundings. It seemed as if she was in a dungeon of some sorts… or closer to a tower. The ceiling of the circular room couldn't be seen, and a window about 30 feet up let in the only light. A door that looked as if it was made of marble appeared to be the only way out. She couldn't think straight. She was dehydrated… Feeling dizzy, she looked around and saw a large glass of water. She walked to it, picked it up, and drank it down quickly. Feeling better, she now was able to focus. How did I get here? One name sprang into her head; Landon. Her mate… she remembered the two of them cuddled up sleeping, and then the next thing she knew, she was here. Could he be the one who put her here? No. He wouldn't do that. He loved her too much.
She heard a voice outside. "Is the Leafeon awake yet?"
"How would I know? Master Palkia should have killed her, then killed the Umbreon after he killed the others."
Madison want to break through the door and kill them. But she couldn't. She was not trained in combat. She was the daughter of a merchant and a librarian. Not that it mattered. The lack of plant life here would keep her powers from being any help. Physically, she was weak. Even Landon teased her about it sometimes.
"If you ever get captured, you should know how to defend yourself."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."
Now she regretted it. She sat down, and sighed. Crying wouldn't solve anything now. She had to use her wits and quick thinking if she wanted to escape. She looked at the door. The hinges were on the outside, eliminating the possibility of destroying them. She got up and gently tapped it. Marble, as she expected.
Outside, she couldn't feel any plants either, which was extremely limiting. She accidentally dropped her ring, and heard it hit the floor. *Clink* She blinked. It sounded as if there was an opening underneath this prison. She gently tried pulling up one of the stones. Hmm…
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*Skish, skish skish* Tsunami gently skipped stones along the lakeside. It had been a day since they had all left Lily's cave. Nothing much had happened. Pallene argued they should try find a place to blend in, while Siarnaq thought they should try attack Palkia. The couple's tempers had flared to the point of them destroying a bush and Pallene tackling Siarnaq. Lily had barely been able to drag off the Ninetales. The two had walked away from each other without a word. That had all happened an hour ago. Tsunami examined the shore to find a rock to his liking. "Hmm…" He wound up his arm for another toss when he heard the flapping of wings behind him.
"Ay, Tsunami. I tried to talk to Siarnaq like you suggested."
The Vaporeon turned to face him. "And?"
"He glared at me, then said, 'Fuck off, birdbrain.'"
Tsunami sighed. "I wonder if they'll be fine."
"I saw Lily run off after Pallene. She was probably trying to comfort her." Aero looked at Tsunami. "It's pretty impressive that you convinced her to come with us. You said you invited her last time…"
"Yeah. She refused. But maybe something changed her mind?"
"Maybe you?" Aero landed down next to him. "She's obviously awkward around you. I may not be the most experienced when it comes to girls, but that jitteriness…"
"No."
Aero sighed. "Whatever dude. Don't let the fish escape your net."
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The five sat around a small fire, courtesy of Pallene. Siarnaq sat opposite of his mate, while Lily was sitting next to Tsunami. In a tree, Aero was roosting contentedly. All five of them were eating some roasted berries and mushrooms. Nobody was talking. It was as if the conflict between the couple was affecting the whole group.
She looked to the Vaporeon, who was slowly eating a mushroom. He glanced at Lily for a second, before asking, "Is something wrong?"
"No!" she said quickly. "I was just wondering if you wanted my mushrooms. I'm not a big fan of them."
He blinked, before nodding. "Sure." She tried smiling as he took the mushroom from her bowl. "Thanks." He ate it quickly.
"Pallene… umm, not to make any decisions yet, but maybe we could go to the nearby town. You know, until we can come an agreement," he added quickly.
She glared at him. "You expect me to agree to that?!"
"Umm, well…"
She chuckled. "Alright. Sounds fine."
The other three all smiled, while Siarnaq breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks."
She smiled at him. "Let's put this behind us. We'll find that town tomorrow, and discuss it once we get there."
Lily yawned, then pulled a blanket out of the sack she had been carrying. All four of them had carried some essentials from her cave. She pulled out a blanket, and leaned back against the smooth grass. She pulled it over herself, and looked to her right, surprised to see Siarnaq and Pallene curled up underneath a blanket. The were kissing passionately, and, to avoid embarrassing them, quietly got up and moved elsewhere.
"Hey Lily." She turned to see Tsunami watching her. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, I'm just trying to find a spot to sleep…"
"That's cool. Here, the grass is soft right over there." He motioned with his tail next to him.
"Oh. Isn't that kind of close to where you are?"
He shrugged. "Err… if you're uncomfortable with that. Here, I'll move…"
"No… It's fine."
He twitched his fins. "Well then, goodnight…"
"Yeah… goodnight, Tsunami." She was already falling asleep as she said those words.
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"Hmmm…" Landon took a bite out of an apple. The Umbreon was sitting in a tree, overlooking the fire. He watched the Espeon and Vaporeon, who were sleeping close together. He looked at the Vaporeon's sword, which was a good ten feet away, leaning against a large tree. Landon looked at his blade, its edge glinting in the moonlight. He had a pair of razor discs he had bartered for in his pack. Only so we can be together, Maddie… He dropped the core to the ground, and jumped silently off of the tree. He snuck next to the Vaporeon, whose breathing was slow in his sleep. Then he sighed, and sat down. I can't do this. They're Eeveelutions like me. I don't know if they deserve death or not… but I'm not going to make this decision tonight.
This was why Master Zeal the Zoroark never trusted him to make a good assassin. "A good assassin never has a conscience," he had explained.
For all his killings, Landon had been struggling, especially of late, to finish targets. He had begun to develop a sense of justice, and realized that they may not always deserve his services.
The more he thought about it, the more he began to realize that they looked not too different from himself and Madison. He huffed as the Vaporeon's fins twitched, and Landon slowly slipped into the darkness. I will find you Madison… I promise…
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*Splish*
Lily blinked. Is it morning already? But the moon was still high in the sky and dawn didn't seem like it would arrive for another few hours.
*Splash*
What is that noise? She threw the blanket off of herself. "Tsunami…" She tried to wake the Vaporeon, but he was gone! The splashing started again.
She stood up silently, then walked over to the lake. The splashing of the water was more frantic now. She could hear the sound of metal and water ringing along the night air. What she saw was beyond belief! Standing on the water was the mythical Pokemon Suicune! A legendary so rarely seen that many questioned he existed! The water type was dressed in some steel armor, seeming to shimmer as he stood there.
On the shore was Tsunami, blade in hand. His cloak blew in the wind. The two stood there, motionless. Suddenly, Suicune turned to her direction. Even though she was a safe distance away, she thought she saw a knowing expression in the water-type's eyes. Then the legendary sank into the water. And through the wind, she swore she heard, You know not who this child is, Espeon…
Tsunami quickly slipped his blade into its sheathe, and walked along the rocky shore. "Lily... Lily! Are you alright?"
"Y-yeah. I'm okay. Th-that was Suicune, right?! My god, what happened?!"
"Well," he began as he stood next to her, "I was skipping stones again. I couldn't sleep. Then out of the water came Suicune."
"I heard metal! What happened?"
"He said, 'Let me test you, child.' Then he charged me. We sparred a bit, neither of us able to land any hits. Then you came, and he vanished."
Lily debated whether to mention what Suicune had said as he had vanished. "You know not who this child is, Espeon…" She blinked. Had she imagined it?
"Lily… the legendaries… their appearances… is it nat-"
She sighed. "If you truly lost your memory, then I expect you don't remember the great war…"
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Many, many years ago, so long ago that now no Pokemon living can recall, there was a great war between the legendaries. All of them lived in a special island kept afloat by their majestic powers, or at least that was what it was rumored. Arceus, the lord and leader of the legendaries, mysteriously disappeared, never to be seen again. Without their leader, the council of legendaries collapsed into discord and turmoil. There were two Pokemon who had the support to lead; Palkia and Dialga.
Being the eldest and wiser, as well as believing in the good of mortals, a large number of the council believed he would be the best leader.
But Palkia was envious, and he believed that mortals could be the most wretched Pokemon around, willing to stomp out each other if necessary. Palkia challenged Dialga to a duel for leadership, and, with use of a sacred relic, beat the stronger Dialga. Now the leader of the council, he ordered Dialga imprisoned to the dungeon of the mythical fort.
Many of the legendaries who followed Dialga were cornered and pressured to support Palkia, and many ultimately agreed. But those who knew the truth ran down to the ground, and lived amongst us; Suicune is one of those.
So Palkia, who hated the mortals so much, became the reaper of them, moving from land to land to execute those criminals. He would kill them all if a law Arceus set wasn't in place.
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"But why would Suicune search me out? And attack me? He must believe in the good of mortals."
"I, I don't know… a lot of it is true, but there may be some mistakes…"
The Vaporeon sighed. "I just don't know what to make of what you've told me."
"I know..." She turned around. "L-let's go back to the others." They walked back to the clearing they had been sleeping. Lily thought about what she had just told the Vaporeon. Then something struck her; they had beaten Palkia! That was something not even Dialga could do. So… perhaps…? No… Suicune… could he be seeking their help? But his ominous warning resounded in her mind…
"Lily… has anybody ever seen the fortress?" Tsunami was lying under his blanket, next to her.
"No. I'm sorry… Palkia himself is real, so there is some truth to it. But it is also so ancient… it could be part myth…"
He sighed. "I keep getting this feeling… my past… before joining Siarnaq and Pallene and Thrymr… it is entwined with the legendaries."
Lily nodded. I really do wonder what Suicune meant… and what could Tsunami be hiding from me, whether intentional or not? She looked at the Vaporeon's sleeping face. Can I trust you?
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"Yeah… room for five…" Tsunami watched Siarnaq slide a bag of coins to the innkeeper, a Kirlia. She telekinetically lifted the coins out of the bag, counted them, then nodded before sliding a key to the Absol
"Room eight. Enjoy your stay."
The Absol smiled. "Thanks." He motioned for the other four to come, and they walked down a hall.
Siarnaq handed the key to Pallene, who twitched her tail in surprise. "You're not coming?"
"Nah. I want to get a drink with Tsunami. Talk about some guy things…"
She sighed. "Alright, then… come up quickly."
Lily glanced back at Tsunami before following the Ninetales. Aero had decided to go visit his "friend", the Swellow again, so he wouldn't be staying with them.
"Yeah, a rice wine for me, and…"
"Just water," said Tsunami.
"You heard that." The bartender, an old Flareon, nodded before pulling out two large metal cups of the refreshments.
The Absol took a big swig of the wine, then said, "You know, Tsunami… you know why I called you here."
His scythe was strapped to his back. Tsunami didn't know how alcohol affected this Absol, but a scythe-wielding dark type sounded quite scary, especially if drunken. "Why?"
The Absol looked at Tsunami. "I know my limit. I hate the alcohol honestly. You should know that. I just use it when I need to think."
"To think?"
The Absol huffed. "I want to know your opinion. Do you think we should go after Palkia?"
"I just heard the story from Lily…"
"Mm…"
"I think… well, I think we should go after him. He took our friend from us, and I think we should go after him."
Siarnaq sighed. "Good to hear. That was the easy part." He took a sip of the wine, before placing the cup down with a clink. "Now I have to face Pallene's wrath. Angry mates, Tsunami… some scary shit."
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