Who'd've thought? So soon? Must be a new record for me!
All merriment aside, however- I'm now a college girl! And, like the parasite that college is, it'll be sucking up almost all of my free time. Now, that doesn't mean that Retribution is canceled- never that!- but expect droughts between chapters as I won't have all the time in the world to be working on it.
Also! A wonderful gift/roundofapplause/cookie to my wonderful reviewers- Galalithial and Twilight- The Moon Spirit!
Chapter twelve
Promise
Pain.
That was all he could feel.
He couldn't remember where he was. He couldn't remember who he was.
All that mattered was the pain. The unbelievable pain.
He tried so hard to remember. Tried to push away from the pain. He was someone. He had a name. He had a family.
Didn't he?
The agony wracked his soul to his very core, forcing his memories farther back into the protection of his mind, to where they couldn't fade.
He had to hold on. He had to remember. That was all he had. All he had in the absolute agony. All he had.
EC
Kael shifted back from his hunched position over the spasming body of Thomas, his normally serene features grave. The white Lucario ran a tired paw across his forehead, sighing as he did so, his red eyes closed in worry. The rapid beats from the heart monitor nearby ticked annoyingly on the fringes of his consciousness. Thomas was in his last throws. The energy Tirus had imbued into the Pichu's body was literally ripping Thomas apart as his fragile form readied itself for evolution.
Arceus had said they had a year!
Kael didn't understand what was transpiring with the Pichu. Nothing like this was supposed to have happened. Nothing.
The white Lucario leaned forward once more, placing his black paws firmly on either side of Thomas' whimpering head. The Pichu cried out as he felt the mental intrusions combining with the powerful aura of the Lucario. The double edged probing sword sliced deep into the power struggle aimed at the tiny Pokemon's heart. Kael had to stop the power. He had to stop it.
EC
It was only a temporary venture. The moment Creed was able, this whole 'alliance' thing would reach its inevitable end.
Blackfire told himself that over and over in an attempt to stem his anger at the two new charges under his care. He was already hard-pressed to keep Creed in a perpetual state of life; two more mouths to feed were the last thing he needed.
At least, that's what he told himself.
The boy lifted his head weakly from his bed of leaves, his hazed over eyes staring blankly at the meager fire that lit up their campsite. No recognition crossed over his face. He hovered in a blur for a moment before he set his head gently back down upon his pillow of foliage, a pained gurgle escaping the confines of his chest.
The Lopunny, ever vigilant, rose immediately to scurry over to her master's side, her worried paws scraping over each other as she studied his defeated visage. She knelt down, brushing back the hair from his forehead as she did so. She shifted her stare once over to Blackfire's angry glare, but, unable to hold it for very long, she let out a resigned grunt, and returned her attention back to her master. The Lopunny bit her lower lip in fear.
Blackfire scoffed at her motions. What good would it do any of them to continue to baby over two lifeless bodies? This venture couldn't last for more than a few days; the Stantler's meat was already running low. Either the boy would die and the Lopunny would leave, or Blackfire would have to acquire a taste for rabbit meat.
The Lopunny rose from her crouch suddenly. Without even a glance Blackfire's way she hurried into the burnt foliage, her plush ears leaving behind more than a slight wake in her pass. Moments passed in silence. After several long minutes the Lopunny came hurrying back, her soft paws carrying several assorted leaves.
The rabbit Pokemon wasted no time. She seated herself down once more, lightly placing each leaf onto the flattened surface of a rock. With another stone she ground the assorted leaves into a fine, aromatic paste, mixing them together thoroughly before tossing the grinding tool down. She then smeared the paste all across the boy's wounded head, keeping it clear of his eyes, but placing it strategically underneath his nose so the aroma continued to waft into his lungs.
Blackfire watched with more than a passing interest. The moment the Lopunny paused from her work, he shifted forwards rapidly, grasping the flat stone and pulling it back towards him in a single, flashing movement. He eyed the paste curiously, guessing at its properties. Before the Lopunny could proceed to react, he slapped his hand down atop the mixture, smearing his sweating fingers all across it. Mimicking the Lopunny, he rubbed the solution across Creed's weakened form, keeping a concentrated amount around the deepest of his wounds. "And herb poultice, eh?" He commented. Blackfire snorted. "That'd been nice to know before." Shaking his head and growling to himself, Blackfire used to rest of the paste, keeping an angry eye on the uneasy Lopunny as he did his work. When she simply sat there in uncertainty, one paw still in the air as though she meant to grab the empty rock, Blackfire roared at her. "Don't just sit there!" He spat. "Go get me some more herbs!"
The Lopunny squealed, scrambling to her paws. With a terrified glance shot Blackfire's way, she scurried into the woods.
Blackfire continued to glare at the forest long after the disturbance of her passing dissipated. He didn't know if she'd come back or not. Not that it mattered; he'd hold the kid hostage to get the right ingredients for the pseudo healing potion.
Whatever it took to save Creed.
EC
It wouldn't be long.
Tirus shifted back in his magnificent throne, completely at ease. No, it wouldn't be long. He was so close. The untimely demise of that Charizard did set his plans a bit behind, but that was soon to be remedied. Not having a spy following around Amarri was a minor inconvenience. There wasn't a shortage of Pokemon ready and willing to serve the 'Masters' for the promise of greater glory.
The only thing that did send a dent onto his pristine plans was the way the Charizard had died. From the description given to him by Equilibrium, the fire-lizard had been literally crushed, meat and bone, into an indistinct glob of gore. The ghost Pokemon hadn't done the deed; though he assured Tirus he would have loved doing so. It was something else, a psychic energy from afar.
Tirus narrowed his eyes. There were few forces in this world capable of such devastating effects from so far away. So few.
His eyes narrowed even tighter.
"KYRON!" Tirus called powerfully into the air.
The second-in-command didn't respond. A cold stillness permeated the castle's air, causing an uncharacteristic shiver to slide down Tirus' spine.
Tirus started to rise from his throne, but he stopped. No. This inquiry would require more subtlety. It was best that Kyron didn't know that he had prying eyes watching his every move. "Malevolence." He called lightly into the air.
A velvety Espeon slunk along the edges of Tirus' throne at his call, her two tiered tail sweeping along the verge of Tirus' arm. The creature looked up to her master with her knowing eyes, her ears tilted forward for the commands she knew were forthcoming.
"Call our associate in Mt. Moon," Tirus stated evenly. "Give him a watered down report on the events thus far; never was he with any particular loyalty. Have him research the concentration of local psychic energies, having particular emphasis on the greatest amount of energy output. And," Tirus paused, lowering his bloody gaze to stare evilly at his waiting Espeon. "Assure him that his reward with finally be delivered."
Malevolence nodded at his words. She quietly slipped along the floor, headed to the side door leading to her private communing chambers, the orb on her forehead already glowing with a psychic light.
"Oh, and one more thing,"
Malevolence paused, glancing over her shoulder to stare curiously at her master.
"Rendezvous in my private chambers once you've completed your duties. I have another task for you."
EC
I didn't know the world could be so dark. Was there never to be a dawn? The utter blackness consumed me; I couldn't feel- I couldn't breathe.
Was there anything else? I didn't understand. I...
Something was wrong.
I could feel it. Something splashed along the thickening darkness, coming slowly towards me with practiced grace.
Tirus.
He couldn't have found me again... Not here. Not now...
But there he walked, so slowly, his mane gently billowing in the darkness, his brilliant orange pelt shimmering in the hidden light. This had to be a dream. He couldn't be here. He couldn't... He couldn't...
"Amarri," Tirus began, so softly, so slowly. My spine shivered at his words, my breath hardly escaping past my dried lips.
I stepped backwards, my paws scrambling hard to find a grip in the slippery abyss. I knew this was a dream. I was myself again, as it should have been. I could see clearer now through my magnificent Ninetales eyes. Clouds of darkness swirled around and around each other; there was no depth in this sightless world. Only shadows. Only darkness. A dream.
I took comfort in those two words, steeling my resolve to face my terrors once more. "You have no powers here, Tirus. Begone. Begone from my mind and memories. You have no power here."
That should have done it. He should have vanished, disappeared, into the blackened depths. But there he stood. Stood so quietly. So perfectly.
Tirus' maw angled up into a gentle smile. He padded forward once more, having no trouble at all crossing the vast expanse of sheer blackness. "Oh, but I do." He whispered softly, so softly.
The scene suddenly shifted, exploding from the mellow darkness into a dappled green shade. The multicolored lights ordered themselves quietly into dancing pairs, melding into solid shapes as though they had been born of such. Leaves and trees yielded into the nothingness, their beautiful simplicity taking to a hauntingly familiar turn.
My heart stuttered as I recognized that place. That most awful of places.
We stood in the nursery. The quiet, calm nursery we had chosen to raise our children in. Together.
Nothing from that horrible night remained. The nursery stood as a gentle guardian once more, the domed chapel of foliage letting in a simple, calming breeze, the scents from the silent world beyond barely tickling my nose.
I could feel another presence in the room; a gentle being that tugged on my attention. Almost against my own will were my eyes drawn downwards, towards the soft grass blanket below Tirus' paws. And there I saw them.
My children.
The three of them huddled quietly behind their father, their unsure eyes staring at me with hope and fear. The bravest took a single step forwards, her lipid Vulpix eyes staring back at me with questions burning.
I felt tears flooding down my face, plipping hard against the soft grass below. I tried to speak, so say solace to the children, but nothing could escape past the lump in my throat. I sobbed, staring at them. My joy was exquisite, absolute. There they stood, my beautiful children, their glimmering orbs sharing the love I felt leaking from mine.
"This is all I ever wanted." Tirus whispered.
I lifted my head to stare at him once more. There was a sincere sorrow in his eyes, a pain great enough to rival my own. Tears clouded his crimson eyes, their tails leaking dark trails across his milky fur.
"Please, Amarri. This is all I ever wanted. For you. For us."
I had to believe him. There he stood, the pinnacle of my love, his protective grace shielding my beloved children from harm. There he stood, waiting, un-judging. There he stood, waiting for me.
Waiting for me.
EC
Tirus rose from his soft, downy bed, his movements slow and melodic. The noon sun boomed in through the magnificent stained glass windows, the many-faceted lights twinkling in the clear din of the master bedroom. He could still feel the vestiges of that psychic dream ringing around his consciousness. The sweet smell. The soft touch. His wonderful Amarri.
Tirus didn't have to glance towards Malevolence to know it had been a success. The Espeon was the master at her craft. His dream had been linked to Amarri's. She had shared her mind with him through Malevolence's influence.
Though he bled to sit with her in person, to hold her in his arms, his dreams would have to do. Soon, so soon, he would break her will. She would fall; fall back down into his embrace where she had always belonged.
Amarri would be his once more, no matter the cost.
EC
Emayla jerked awake from her dream, her heart still pounding as she forced the delirium away. The lobby of the Pokemon center ticked away, quite unchanged. The many trainers went about their business, transferring dozens of Pokemon back and fourth between the medical personnel. None paid any heed to the shaken Pokemon trainer as she shook her head to further clear it.
Emayla glanced over her shoulder to stare at the guardian form of Syhn. The Sceptile sat so still as he watched the comings and goings of the many Pokemon trainers. He passed almost as a statue, save for the gentle, rhythmic risings of his chest.
Something had put him on edge.
Syhn's claws scraped hard against the opposing elbow as he sat, his anxiety barely contained as he tried to remain still for his trainer. Every once in a while his breath would suddenly gasp out, as though he was unable to slow himself any longer.
Emayla placed a gentle hand on her Sceptile's arm, causing his steeled yellow eyes to bore directly into her. With an understanding smile she dismissed him from his duties.
With a hardly perceptible bow the grass Pokemon hurried away.
Emayla sighed, rubbing her temples with her fingers. Tirus was becoming a frequent in her dreams now. She could see him, always see him, sitting on the edges of her consciousness. He had never taken a front-row seat to her nighttime wanderings until now, though. He was always the observer in her nightmares, the quiet voice in her dreams.
But now he stood at the center of it all, completely in control of what she saw, smelled, felt, and heard.
That fact alone sent shivers down her spine. Emayla ran a hand across her tired face, reminding herself over and over that Tirus was only human now. He couldn't be invading her dreams. Only psychic Pokemon could do that.
...Unless...
A sudden beeping noise woke the Pokemon trainer from her revere. Nurse Joy hurried out of the emergency room, several clipboards in hand. Emayla immediately shifted her gaze to the swinging doors, narrowing her eyes as she tried to catch a glimpse of what was going on beyond those blasted, impregnable doors.
EC
Blackfire leaned back, angling away from the two strangers in his camp. The sun blew slowly across the western sky; the day was waning. A soft, temperate breeze gently billowed through the deadened forest, offering hardly a respite to the afternoon blaze. From somewhere off into the distance came the shrill call of a lone Hoothoot.
The salve the Lopunny had procured was hardly the miracle Blackfire so desperately needed, but it did give a respite to the sufferers of the camp. Creed could breathe easier now, his ragged flanks now lifting rhythmically in a contented sleep. The infection had been stayed, for now, at least, and the wounds were stable. It would still be a while before the Houndoom was well enough for travel.
But for now, he was alive.
The boy had risen in the short span of time, as well. He sat propped up on his frail elbows, his deep indigo eyes prying across the small encampment. On occasion his Lopunny would fuss over him, insisting to feed him various leaves, or to drink different juices. To some he accepted, but to most he simply waved away. He wasn't quite the one to be babied.
Blackfire crouched moodily over the remnants of his meal. The meat, dried without the tang of salt, was a wasted thing. There wasn't enough for another day of feeding four. The former Rocket lieutenant eyed the two intruders with a snarl. They had healed Creed, yes, but Blackfire wasn't known for his generosity. Either they continued to prove their worth, or he left them dead in a gutter along the way.
"What's your name?"
The question caught Blackfire off guard. The former Rocket lieutenant swerved around to fully regard the youth, his cold visage met with an understanding glance. There was no malice, no confusion, no nothing in the boy's gaze. He simply sat there, watching, waiting.
That simple fact unnerved Blackfire.
With characteristic roughness, Blackfire scoffed at the boy's words, turning his gaze away to glare at an indistinct leaf as though it was the cause of all his worries.
But the boy would not back down. "Mine's Felix. Thank you, by the way, for helping Ditzy. She tells me you've fed her, and protected her from the creatures in the forest. Normally, we'd avoid places like this, but," Felix held up his hands in front of himself, palms facing upwards in defeat. "Well, this wasn't exactly the kind of day I'd hope I'd be spending." There was a sincere smile upon his face; nothing hid under his words. Just an earnest understanding.
Blackfire didn't know how to react; so used was he to anger and hate. But the boy's first question irked him- rang around in his mind over and over. What was his name? It wasn't Blackfire, surely not. That mantle had been placed on his shoulders by the Masters. Then... What was it? Who was he?
"William." Blackfire murmured, surprising himself. "My name's William."
"William." Felix repeated, mulling the words over in his throat. The boy shifted, placing his weight firmly upon a single elbow to raise the opposing arm into the air. "Pleased to meet you."
But the hand Blackfire did not take. He still had misgivings. He still hated.
Felix lowered his hand back down, eyeing Blackfire curiously. But he didn't miss a beat. "Well, thank you again. I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking Ditzy under your wing, despite your predicament."
Blackfire snorted again.
"I can help your Houndoom." Felix added, this time drawing Blackfire's full attention. "It's the least I can do, I mean, after all you've done."
Blackfire eyed the boy skeptically, but he said nothing. He even shifted backwards to allow an easier view of his pathetic Houndoom. Whatever it took.
Helped by the omnipresent Ditzy, Felix rose from his crouch. Limping slowly over to the fire Pokemon, the boy lowered himself down to a kneeling position beside Creed's head. His indigo eyes bore silently into Creed's weakened orbs. His right hand moved methodically, slowly, towards the Houndoom's forehead. With all fingers splayed evenly across Creed's black head, Felix suddenly went rigid.
A white light, an orb of utter purity, sprang fourth between Pokemon and human. The energy emanated strongly across the makeshift shelter, filling the whole clearing with the light. It breathed widely around, gently enveloping the four with hardly a sigh.
Blackfire reeled backwards in surprise, blinking heavily as the light slowly dissipated.
And there stood Creed. The Houndoom licked Felix's head gratefully, his powerful flanks twitching lightly, not a wound in sight. The magnificent fire Pokemon whined as he eyed his master, his devil-like tail swaying back and fourth in eager rapture.
Blackfire stood there, transfixed. He held out a single hand in disbelief. Into his hand walked his Pokemon, the Houndoom whimpering, licking his master's hand in joy.
"H-how?" Blackfire stammered.
Felix shrugged. "Many years ago, my ancestors were among the most religiously devout of any creature alive. They poured their hearts and souls out to Arceus, and, as a reward for their prayers, Arceus granted them abilities like the Pokemon they worked alongside of."
"So you're some kind of freak human-pokemo-"
"No." Felix interrupted. "My family and I aren't any kind of mixture, mutant, or hybrid of the sort. We are the arm of Arceus' divine care, that's all." When his words were met with nothing but a condescending glare, the boy continued. "Imagine it this way, if you will. Humans are Pokemon; normal-type to be exact. Now, as any trainer knows, all Pokemon can be taught different moves. Most learn the move on their own, whether through battle or an experience needing the particular ability. Humans, like normal Pokemon, don't have any particular affinity to the many elements around the world. All we have to throw at the enemy is ourselves; not only that, but our kind aren't exactly battle worthy. So, instead of perfecting our battle prowess, we enlisted in our minds, becoming the top species. Now, that doesn't change what we are. We're still a normal-type Pokemon, however weak we may become. So, like a Pokemon that lacks the natural abilities, all we were given was a TechnicalMachine. Arceus simply taught us a new move; and, like egg-talents borne down from generation to generation, our powers have been passed down as well."
Blackfire scoffed at that notion, but he let the matter drop. He didn't believe in Arceus- (a Pokemon strong enough to create the world!). Ever was he the practical man. Regardless of what powers healed Creed, however, the Houndoom was now well.
And that meant he could continue on with the hunt.
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