Here's this month's update! I know you've been waiting for me to update, but I had writer's block, then became busy, then got the insperation to find a way around it, having seen that I missed two update months (well, almost two). I decided taht I couldn't put it off anymore, wrote a summary, last night, then wrote the rest today. It was fun, it was hard, and i hope you enjoy it. This is where things start getting interesting.

Chapter 8 – Kidnapped!

It was early morning as light finally dawned upon the landscape around Twilight Fortress. The forest was filled with the happy chirpings of wild Pidgey, the fields buzzing with many small insects, and the skies already taken by the loud and obnoxious Spearow.

By that time, Flare and Aeden were already eating breakfast with the King and Queen. They were in a large dining room. Golden walls brimming with many intricate patterns. Flare was already deep in conversation with the King, talking about a drought on the other side of the mountains to the east, domestic problems in a village in the north, and recent attacks on other villages in the South. Nothing that Aeden was too interested in.

As they finished, the Queen asked Aeden a quick question. "Aeden, would you like a tour of the castle?"

Aeden looked up at the Queen and then at Flare. Flare nodded, and Aeden answered with a quick and respectful "Yes, please."

"Very well, while you two finish, I'll call a servant to give you the tour." The Queen said, getting up and leaving the dining room.

Minutes dragged on, and Flare and the King left to discuss other, more personal issues. Eventually, the door opened, and a figure walked in. Aeden turned around and was greeted by a friendly face. "Hello, you must be Aeden." His heart froze, and Aeden saw one of the things that scared him more than water.

It was one of the hunters. The Sneasel. As it came closer, he imagined all the ways it could possibly kill him, the only witness to a murder that ever escaped them. Resting a claw on his shoulder, the Sneasel looked into his eyes, her own eyes filled with concern. "Is everything alright?"

Aeden suddenly moved away and studied the Sneasel with wary eyes. Short, teal fur, large white claws, long, red feather, and equally red eyes, all the natural features of a Sneasel. But something was wrong and Aeden couldn't quite pick up on it. Then it hit him. Her body language was all wrong! She didn't act in any threatening, and looked like she actually cared for his well being. A couple minutes passed, and Aeden soon calmed down. The Sneasel waited patiently. Finally, it opened the door again. "Would you like to start the tour now?" Aeden nodded and followed the Sneasel.

Aeden

As we walked through the hallways, we passed many Pokémon, each of whom were busy with their daily chores. The Sneasel stopped next to a door and looked at me. "Here, we have the kitchen," she said before opening it. We stepped in and were rushed with a wave of scents. "As you may notice, everyone here is already preparing the next meal's courses."

After noticing us, and especially, the Sneasel, the nearest Pokémon rushed us out as quickly as possible. I turned to ask the Sneasel why they just did that, but before I could finish, she had already dodged it. "Hehe, shall we go to the move on?"

As we continued the tour, we walked through more hallways. A left, a right, up some stairs, down two; I was getting really lost, with each hallway looking like the other. "And this one's my favorite. I'm sure you'll agree." Finally, we came to a dark hallway. The torches had been put out, and the Sneasel began cursing to herself. She walked through the darkness with me in tow. She unlatched the door and opened it a crack. Light flooded in, and I flinched, but she pushed me in and closed the door behind me. I turned around, thinking she had locked me in, but found her right there beside me. "Go on, take a look."

I turned around and realized that we were outside. It was amazing! We were at the base of the castle walls and across the moat, the filled was a bright green, filled with wild Pokémon. The forest at the edge of the mountain range was slightly darker, and reached for the sky. I could hear the tweeting of the birds, the lapping of the water against the shore, and the buzzing of the insect. And faintly, I could hear the roar of Pokémon hard at work on the inside of the castle. Light filtered through the clouds gently, and made this a truly peaceful scene.

"I can see why you like it so much. It makes a great place to get away." I said, turning around. Then everything suddenly went black.

"Thank you for bringing the boy, Senator Flare." The King said.

"With everything that's happened to him, I hope he'll be alright, and that he can adjust to his new life." The Queen continued.

"Thank you, your majesties." Flare said, bowing deeply.

"May your family live long and happy lives." Flare bowed deeply once more and took his leave, closing the door quietly behind him.

The door suddenly burst forth and a Furret scurried in. Flare entered the room again.

"My apologies, your highnesses, there was an accident and I was late for the tour. I got to the dining room and the boy was not there!"

"Could he have not wandered off?" The Queen asked, looking at Flare.

"I asked around, but nobody has seen him."

"What are you saying?" Flare asked, raising his voice at the Furret.

"I don't know children well, sir, but I think he's lost." The Furret replied, flinching from the Flareon's question.

"No. He wouldn't disobey orders. I've taught him better than that." Flare growled. He then turned to the King and Queen. "Permission to organize a search party? I fear we may have a kidnapper in the castle."

"Granted." The King said.

"Young Furret, tell the scouts to spread out and search for a young Vulpix, possibly being carried away."

"Yes, my queen!" The Furret said, turning and running out of the room.

'How did this happen?' Flare thought to himself, running through the hallways to the barracks. 'How could I be so careless? I'm supposed to protect him!'

"Guards! Assemble!" Flare yelled as he ran into the barracks.

Pokémon dropped what they were doing and filed into formation.

"By the king's permission, I am organizing a search party. The victim is a young Vulpix, male, his name is Aeden. He has not been seen inside the castle since waiting for breakfast. It is possible that he's been kidnapped and taken away from the castle. We're going to follow his trail for as long as we can." Flared yelled, pacing back and forth in front of them. "Now, follow me!" He yelled, walking out of the door and setting the pace.

As the last rays of sunlight streamed across the world, Aeden woke up. Looking around quickly, he saw that he was in the forest. He looked behind him and saw the Sneasel that had pretended to be so friendly to him. He then noticed that his legs were tied together, and his mouth tightly shut. He began to struggle, and the Sneasel held him harder. Soon enough, she hefted him higher and threw him onto the ground. With no way to catch himself, he dropped like a rock and landed against a log. The Sneasel produced some rope and quickly tied him to a tree and put a claw to his throat. "If you make any noise or even think about escaping, you'll be out cold in a heartbeat. You got that?"
Aeden growled as best he could.

The Sneasel frowned and sat down on a rock and began meditating. Aeden began pulling at the rope tying his mouth shut with his front paws. After several minutes, he managed to free his mouth and looked back at the Sneasel.

"What do you want with me?" Aeden asked.

The Sneasel opened one eye and looked at him. "The trick to inner peace is meditation. Why don't you try it while we wait?"

"Wait? For who?" Aeden continued. The Sneasel didn't respond.

"Answer me!" He then yelled. The Sneasel opened both of her eyes and smacked him with the back of her claws. She then stood up, and produced a round piece of wood.

"Where do you keep these things?" Aeden asked in surprise as he tried to recover his balance.

"Magic. Now hold still." The Sneasel said, grabbing him around the neck and shoving the wood around his mouth. She then tied the wood to his back legs and made sure he couldn't move. She then sat back down on the rock to continue meditating.

They had searched all day and found nothing. The scouts returned to sleep, and the night scouts were sent out.

Flare quietly ate dinner with the King and Queen, and was already planning his next search. Whoever had taken Aeden had a reason. Was it someone from their pasts? An attack against him personally?

If only there was a way to know that he was okay. A sign, a message from the gods, anything.

But there was no message. Dinner came and went, the King reassured him that Aeden will be found, and Flare sent a messenger to his family.

It said the following…

"Dear Ember, Crystal, and Acura, as you well know, I have served the Royal family faithfully for a long time. But I fear that a matter of great importance has just come up."

Ember

"I had planned to be gone for a couple of days, but the comforts of home will have to wait. I am sorry to inform you that Aeden has been taken from us. Crystal, I'm sorry. I regret not being there for him, that I couldn't protect him. I know he means a lot to you. Search parties have been sent, but to no avail. I promise I'll bring him back. And until he is found, I will continue to lead the search personally. Acura, be strong for your sister. Be safe, and take care of each other. Much love, Flare."

"He's… gone?" Crystal asked, tearing up.

"Oh, sweety, it'll be okay. Your father will find him. He'll be back before you know it." I said, putting the scroll down and pulling her to me. I buried her in my fur as she sobbed. Acura watched her and walked away. He didn't have to say anything, his body language gave it all away. He was sorry for his little sister. Sorry that she had just lost her best friend, sorry that there was nothing he could do, and sorry that he too, had just lost a friend, despite his attempts to hide it.

I held Crystal close, giving her my heat and absorbing all of her tears. By the time she had fallen asleep, the fur she had been crying in was quite damp. I picked her up and carried her to her bed, nuzzling her back to sleep as the movement began to wake her.

'Oh Aeden… Who could do such a thing?'

As night gave way to the sun's early rays, Aeden continued to struggle. He had not yet succeeded in getting the wood off of his muzzle, nor loosen the ropes that bound him. The Sneasel hadn't moved all night, and he had no way of knowing if she was asleep.

Aeden flinched as a dark figure suddenly dropped out of the sky mere yards away from them. Without even flinching, the Sneasel spoke. "How long do you expect me to hold him prisoner?"

"Long enough." The figure said in a low voice. "Is he the one?" the figure asked. The light had not yet reached this part of the forest, and Aeden couldn't see any details on him.

"Yes. Did you bring it?" The Sneasel asked, still in her meditative position.

"I did." The figure said.

Aeden started struggling harder, realizing that he was in great danger. Suddenly, a foot landed on him, and behind him stood the Sneasel; except she looked a lot meaner. He stared back at the meditating Sneasel, and back at the one holding him down. The Sneasel tossed a large brown bag to the other Sneasel. The Sneasel caught it and opened it, looking inside and picking up a few what appeared to be coins. She bit some and put them back in the bag, tying it closed.

"Now get going." The figure said, waving the Sneasel away as he walked towards Aeden. The Sneasel stood up, bag in hand. Aeden pleaded with his eyes, and the Sneasel glanced at him. Her features began to slip. Her head feather was sliding down, claws becoming larger, and wings started to sprout from her back. She was losing her form, melting right before his eyes! One moment she was a Sneasel, the next, she was a Scizor! All the pieces fell into place then. A Sneasel and a Scizor. This wasn't just a random kidnapping, this was the hunters trying to kill off the only witness that ever survived! Aeden struggled hard against the Sneasel's foot, managing to make her lose her balance. The shape shifter Scizor jumped into the tree and flew away into the distance without a second glance.

"Hello Aeden, son of Astraea. It's about time we meet again." The Scizor said, staring down at the young Vulpix.

Oh, the suspense! The anticipation! I can't wait to write the next chapter. If there's anything you'd like to say, suggest, or ask, go ahead! I love hearing from you guys! No, really, I do. XD