Hello dear readers! I hope everyone who celebrates it had a wonderful Thanksgiving ^^
So, if you'll remember last chapter, Ash was taking care of the twins while Misty had a gym inspection. While she was gone, Loki attacked the house and when Misty came back, she found a broken window and her children hiding in terror before finally coming face to face with the man who tried to kidnap her daughter once before.
So what will happen now? Why exactly does Loki want the children? Read on to find out!
"What do you mean all four of us?" Misty ground her teeth.
Loki chuckled and stood up to his full height, silver hair brushing over his naturally evil eyes. "Please don't tell me you're as dense as your husband."
"I won't hesitate to snap your neck," Misty bit. "Just because I have my children here, don't think for a second I wouldn't tear you apart."
"For an expectant mother, you certainly aren't very sweet," Loki commented. "I'm actually rather surprised you don't know what I mean by the four of you. I was simply being considerate and considering your unborn child to be a person."
"The baby…" Misty murmured softly. If that was one person, then the other three were…?
Loki chuckled darkly as an expression of horror crossed Misty's face. He knew instantly that she had realized what he'd meant.
"No!" Misty yelled, her cheeks reddening out of both anger and fear. "You must be insane! I would never let you take me, let alone my children!"
"I'm afraid you don't have a choice in the matter," Loki grinned deviously at the gym leader.
Her breath becoming caught in her throat, Misty looked back down at her terrified children and whispered, "Run you two. Go back upstairs with Pikachu. Please, go."
As soon as Aiden and Michelle tore away from their mother, Loki clicked his tongue and pulled out a silver scepter, holding it out towards the twins. The two young children began to glow a light shade of blue, the same exact color of their aura. Their small bodies were lifted off the ground as they were pulled towards Loki, both of them crying out in paralyzing fear.
"Aiden! Michelle!" Misty yelled, getting back to her feet and running after them. The closer she got to Loki, however, the more she found herself unable to move. Finally, Misty was frozen in place, and her stomach was glowing sapphire blue.
"Look at that," Loki muttered under his breath. "Incredible."
"You're not going to get away with this," Misty narrowed her eyes. It was all she could do at this point.
"Don't worry about it my dear," Loki smiled. "We'll be just fine." Looking over his shoulder, Loki whistled a unique tune, which caused his Salamence to fly over to the window. "Excellent. Take them all back to the airship, Salamence."
The dragon Pokémon puffed out some smoke and lifted the three captured humans onto his back. Loki followed after them, making sure to keep his scepter nearby. Without it, his hold over their aura would disappear, and they would be able to run free. And Loki couldn't have that.
"Pika!"
"Hmm?" Loki turned around, one of his thin silver eyebrows raised in confusion.
Pikachu was standing on the window sill, his beady black eyes narrowed as sparks flew from his cheeks. The electric type was very angry, and willing to fight for his family through whatever means necessary.
"What do you know, it's the Pokémon master's rat," Loki sneered. Pikachu's sparks increased, but Loki was not at all deterred. "Salamence, use toxic and get that filthy thing out of my sight."
Salamence spit out some dark purple sludge at Pikachu. The electric type dodged the first few assaults, but on the fifth turn, it came around too quickly and Pikachu was hit directly.
"Cha!" Pikachu cried out in distress, falling to the floor.
"Pikachu!" Aiden called worriedly, sounding amazingly like Ash at that moment.
Pikachu simply lay on the floor, squeaking quietly as a dark purple strip appeared over his black button nose.
"You poisoned Pikachu!" Misty screamed at Loki, her eyes burning in anger.
"That was the point sweetheart," Loki gently brushed Misty's cheek. Between both the term of endearment and the touch, Misty felt even more disturbed than she already did. She pulled as far away from Loki as she possibly could. Then, a thought popped up in her head.
"Where is my husband?" Misty asked in a steely tone.
"That's none of your concern."
"Actually, he's my husband" Misty bit. "So yes, it is my concern!"
"I've had my assistant take care of him," Loki brushed back some of his silver locks. "But perhaps we can pay him a little visit before we go."
"Mommy…" Michelle whimpered, her eyes closing in fear.
"It's okay baby," Misty sighed, sadness flooding her heart. She wanted to reach out and hold her young daughter until the girl felt perfectly save, but Loki's aura hold on her made that impossible.
"Salamence, take us back to the Pokémon master," Loki ordered. "His family wants to say goodbye to him before they…move on."
His low cackles made Misty's cheeks burn with anger once more. She couldn't understand how this low life could find tearing a family apart so funny. Punching him in the throat sounded good to Misty right about now.
Loki led Salamence to the side of the house, the silver haired man's smile growing wider and more devious as he sighted Ash in an uncompromising position.
"Hello there Castor," Loki greeted his navy haired inferior, who was standing just in front of Ash. By the sidekick's feet was an Ariados, which caused a series of violent shivers to travel down Misty's spine. Gazing up, she saw Ash wrapped up in a string shot attack and stuck to the side of the house, his dark brown eyes flooded with sadness as he looked at his imprisoned family.
"Misty…" he murmured sadly.
"Speak a little louder, dear Pokémon master," Loki encouraged with a flippant smile. Ash glowered at the villain, a special kind of anger flashing across his handsome face.
"Ash please," Misty spoke up in a weak voice. She wanted to scream, to cry out for him and beg with all of her might, but she could feel her energy draining from her body. Could that be an affect of the aura?
"I'm going to help you…" Ash groaned as he struggled against the strong, silky binds. Loki laughed maniacally, while Castor turned his eyes away and looked rather guilty. Aiden and Michelle whimpered sadly, causing Ash to appear even more devastated.
"Daddy…" Michelle sobbed, her eyes closing tightly as tears fell down her cheeks.
"Don't cry princess," Ash begged quietly as he continued his struggle, mouth forming a definite frown. "I hate to see you cry sweetheart."
This only made Michelle wail even more. Even Aiden had tears filling his unusually dull brown eyes, which just broke Ash's heart completely.
"Say goodbye to your family," Loki addressed a speechless Ash. "They'll be coming with me."
"You son of a…" Ash stopped himself, not wanting to curse in front of his children. Holding back the swear, Ash continued in an acid tone, "let me go. Now! Because if you don't, you're going to be so sorry when I find you! I mean it!"
"Nothing but an empty threat," Loki shook his head. "But since you don't wish to bode a farewell, I see that we're done here. Come along Castor."
Whistling yet again, Loki led Salamence away from Ash. Castor sighed and recalled Ariados into its poke ball before following after his boss. Misty looked over her shoulder at Ash, an expression of fear and horror plastered on her face.
"I'll find you," Ash whispered. "I promise."
"By the way," Loki suddenly called out, causing Ash's eyes to flare up. "Your little rat is inside. He tried to stave me off, the worthless thing. My Salamence took quick care of him, fortunately. When and if you ever get out of those binds, you might want to tend to that rat. He's got a little case of poisoning."
"WHAT?" Ash bellowed, his face reddening so deeply it could be mistaken for a tomato.
Throwing one last devious smirk at the Pokémon master, Loki walked away, leaving behind a seething and greatly struggling Ash.
XXX
"Welcome to your new home!"
Misty bit back a growl, wanting nothing more than to spin around and swing right at the silver haired man. But with the twins standing by her feet, Misty wasn't about to attempt it.
Instead, she reluctantly stared ahead into the room that Loki was forcing her into. The walls were made of a cold and shiny metal, barren of anything decorative or comforting. There were no windows, and only one door leading in and out of the room. The most distinguishing feature of the space was a metal framed, Victorian style canopy bed, outfitted with white, lace edged sheets and a soft down comforter. Compared to the downtrodden room, the fancy bed seemed highly out of place.
"The bed is lovely, isn't it?" Loki purred, further irritating Misty. "It was part of my family's estate from when I was a child."
"Yeah, that's great," Misty droned sarcastically as she rolled her eyes. "But there's only one bed, and three of us. Where do you expect me to sleep?"
"In the bed, of course," Loki narrowed his eyes.
"No," Misty mimicked her captor's action. "The bed is where my children will sleep. They always come before I do; I'd much rather sleep on the floor than make them do it."
"Mommy, you can't," Michelle murmured softly. "Daddy will only let you sleep in a bed 'cause of the baby."
Loki chuckled darkly and kneeled down in front of Michelle, causing the little red head to shriek. "Your Daddy isn't here, now is he?"
Misty kicked Loki in the shin, earning a loud hiss from the man as he jumped up and held onto the affected area. He lowered his eyes in order to glare at Misty, and instead was greeting by an equally, if not more, furious set of his eyes than his own.
"Don't you dare talk to my children that way," Misty warned in a hushed tone. "If you get in their faces like that again, I will hurt you."
"Very well," Loki mumbled. Clearing his throat, he continued, "The bed is perfectly big enough for all three of you. Even with that rather impressive stomach of yours."
Misty began to look even more aggravated. When she felt the twins hold onto her legs, however, she returned to a more serene expression and smiled down gently at the two. They were frightened, and Misty knew she had to put up a strong front for them. "What is it sweethearts? Are you tired?" They both nodded, mouths set into frowns and eyes unusually dull. "Alright. Go into the room. I'll be there in a minute."
Aiden and Michelle nodded slowly before scurrying into the room, desperate to be away from Loki. Before she could move after them, Misty's arm was grabbed by the silver haired man, who was still glaring at her.
"What?" Misty bit harshly.
"You'd better learn to control that temper of yours," Loki replied in a hushed voice. It was threatening, although surprisingly calm. "If not, I'm afraid you're going to be very sorry for your actions."
Misty stared back at Loki in disbelief. With a little smirk, Loki turned on a heel and marched away, leaving behind a still bewildered Misty. And unbeknownst to any of them, a quiet spectator was watching the scene from around a nearby corner.
XXX
"Ugh! Come on…just a little more…"
Ash had nearly extricated himself from the web that had been tightly wound around his body. He was trying to get out as quickly as possible, knowing that it was all up to him in order to save his wife and children.
Tears were stinging behind his eyes, threatening to fall. But Ash wouldn't let them. Now wasn't the time for breaking down, for it wouldn't help anyone.
"Ash…what are you doing?"
Ash's head shot up, his dark brown eyes locking on Brock, who was standing only feet away from him. The Pokémon doctor was holding bags in both of his arms, shooting his best friend a rather bewildered look.
"I didn't realize that you and Misty were this kinky," Brock smirked as he raised an eyebrow. "Is now a bad time?"
"Brock, no!" Ash cried, frightening the older man. "This has nothing to do with….ugh! Just help me, please!"
"Is everything okay?" Brock's amused expression slowly slipped away when he saw the panic on Ash's face.
"No," Ash quickly shook his head. "No. It's not. Misty and the kids…they've been taken, Brock!"
"What?" Brock instantly dropped the bags on the ground and ran over to Ash, yanking at the silky threads binding his body. After only a minute, Ash was completely freed, falling to the ground on his hands and knees.
Ash remained in that position for a few moments, panting in an effort to regain his breath. Remembering what had happened to his family, however, Ash shot up quickly, hands balling into fists at his sides.
"I have to go," Ash began storming away, "I have to save them…"
"Ash, wait!" Brock grabbed his younger friend by the shoulder. Ash whipped around and threw Brock a miserable look.
"I can't wait, Brock!" Ash cried. "I need to get Misty and the twins back. They…they need me! And I swear I'm going to kill that stupid…"
"Who took them?" Brock interrupted in a grave tone.
"An evil, evil man," Ash seethed. "His name is Loki. He already tried to kidnap Michelle once before, but I caught him in the act. This time, he tied me up so I couldn't intervene."
"Why would he kidnap them?" Brock still looked very shocked.
"Aura," Ash ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "They all have aura. Well, Misty doesn't. The baby does. But somehow, she's able to use it from inside of Misty."
"That means the baby is extremely powerful," Brock murmured to himself.
"Which is exactly why Misty and the twins were taken," Ash replied quickly. "And why I have to save them."
"Ash, you can't do this alone," Brock called after the raven haired man as he ran back towards the house.
Ash began slowing down as he processed Brock's words. Eventually, he came to a complete stop, glancing over his shoulder. "This is my fight Brock. You can't come."
"You need help," Brock argued.
"No I don't," Ash replied strongly.
"You're stupid to think I'm going to let you do this by yourself," Brock continued just as calmly as he'd done before.
"I'm stupid then, fine," Ash ground his teeth. "But you're still not coming." He whipped around to march away once more, but Brock's words stopped him in his tracks yet again.
"Where are you going now, Ash?"
"The house," Ash muttered.
"Why the house?"
"Because Pikachu is in there. I need him."
"Why wasn't he out here with you in the first place?"
"I told him to protect Aiden and Michelle!" Ash finally snapped. "But he must've run downstairs with them because Loki…" Ash stopped and sucked in his breath before finishing lamely, "poisoned him."
"Badly?" Brock inquired.
"So he claimed," Ash huffed as he continued moving.
"If Pikachu is poisoned that badly, you may not have time to get him to a Pokémon Center," Brock ran up next to Ash, who was looking more and more perturbed by the second. "I just bought some fresh herbs and medicine. Please, let me help him."
Ash stopped walking for the third time since Brock's arrival. His expression was frozen in a state of anger, and somehow, Brock knew it wasn't meant for him. It was meant for the villain who had taken Ash's wife and children from him.
"Try as you might, you won't be able to do this on your own," Brock consoled in a hushed tone. "I know you too well Ash. Misty, Aiden, and Michelle…they mean just as much to me as they do to you. Misty was my fellow gym leader, and she's one of my best friends. Aiden and Michelle are my godchildren. You and Misty gave me that responsibility the day they were born, and I take it very seriously."
"You don't know what Loki is capable of," Ash gazed at his best friend while slowly shaking his head.
"And I don't care," Brock replied sternly. "I won't let anyone do a thing to those three. And if you don't let me come with you, I'll find my own way to get to them."
Ash's face softened, and before long, a reluctant smirk grew on his lips. "You're freaking insane, do you know that?"
"I guess after all these years you've rubbed off on me some," Brock mimicked the little smile. "Now what do you say? Ready to kick some idiot's ass?"
Ash's grin broadened. "Of course. Right after you take care of Pikachu."
XXX
"Mommy, why does Loki want us? What did we do?"
Misty frowned as she stroked Aiden's cheek. The young boy was sitting on the edge of the bed, a rather worried look set on his cute face.
"We didn't do anything wrong, sweetie."
"Then why does he want us?" Aiden repeated.
Misty stopped to think for a moment. She couldn't tell Aiden about the aura, because he didn't know about it. And Ash wanted to keep it that way. Of course, Misty had a strong dislike for lying, but in this case, it was something she was better off lying about.
"Because he's a mean, horrible man," Misty hugged Aiden close to her. "But he won't win. I won't let him."
Aiden's breathing became gentle as his eyes began to close. His small hand fell down onto Misty's stomach, while his head nestled closer into her shoulder.
"It's time for bed," Misty murmured to her tired son. Aiden responded with an incoherent mumble, which caused Misty to smile. She got off the bed, holding onto Aiden the entire time so he wouldn't fall over. Once she was on her feet, Misty gathered Aiden into her arms, something she wasn't supposed to do. It was only for a minute or so, however, so Misty assumed it was alright.
She pulled down the covers as gently as possible, not wanting to disturb Michelle who was already asleep underneath the sheets. Misty placed Aiden down next to his sister, pulling the covers back over both of them as Aiden let out a quiet, content sigh. Smiling to herself, Misty leaned over and kissed both children on the head before walking over to the single window in the small, dreary room.
Misty gave the entire bed to the twins for the night. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep, she was just too anxious. Breathing out heavily, Misty pressed her forehead against the cold glass and stared out into the dark night sky. The aircraft was currently moving, so Misty just watched all of the stars pass by as they twinkled dimly on their nearly black backdrop.
A small, tickling sensation went off in her stomach, causing Misty to furrow her brow. After another moment, the baby began to kick, earning a sad smile from her young mother.
"Sometimes I can't tell if you know what's going on or not," Misty addressed her bump as she pressed a hand against it. "Are you scared or just happy? I wish I knew." The baby kicked again, and Misty moved her hand over to the side of her midsection.
As Misty fawned over her belly, the door to the room slid open, alarming the gym leader. Instinctively, she reached for her belt, preparing to grab one of her poke balls. In doing this, Misty mentally slapped herself. I've had my Pokémon the whole time! Why don't I just attack this jerk? Stupid me…it must be the pregnancy brain.
The shadowy figure stepped tentatively into the room, causing Misty to scowl and grip her chosen poke ball tightly, ready to unclip and enlarge it.
"Don't hurt me…I'm not who you think."
Misty narrowed her eyes to try and get a better look at the visitor. It was hard, however, when there was no light in the room. Finally, she gave up on trying to see the man and instead pulled her shoulders back.
"I can't see you, you know. It's too dark in here."
"Ah, right. I apologize for that."
A light suddenly turned on in the room, causing Misty to flinch and cover her eyes for protection. Once she got used to the bright light, Misty uncovered her bright green eyes and went back to staring at the man.
He was fairly tall, his height and build quite similar to Ash with the exception of a little less muscle than Misty's husband. He had straight navy hair, brushing just over a pair of sky blue eyes and reaching midway down his neck.
"You're his filthy assistant," Misty growled lowly.
"Uh…yes, I suppose I am," he gave a single nod. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Castor."
"And I'm not interested," Misty turned her head away.
"Please miss, I'm not here to harm you or your children," Castor nearly pleaded. "I would never consider such an act."
"Of course not," Misty bit sarcastically, "but you would assist someone else in the deed, right?"
"It isn't what it seems," Castor shook his head. "Allow me to explain…"
"I don't want to hear it," Misty snapped, turning back towards the window.
"But miss, I want to help you."
"If you wanted to help me, you would get me and my children out of here," Misty ground her teeth. "And you definitely wouldn't have attacked and tied up my husband."
"I apologize for that, truly," Castor held a hand over his heart. "All I want is for you to know that you have an ally in this."
"Oh please," Misty rolled her eyes. "You must think I'm some kind of idiot. You're his partner; of course you're out to get me."
"But I'm not," Castor argued. "The only reason I associate myself with Loki is because I have no other choice."
"Everyone has a choice in life," Misty closed her eyes in an exasperated manner.
"Not always. Loki took me in when I had nowhere else to go. I don't know if I'd still be alive if it wasn't for him."
"If he's such a good person, then why is he trying to hurt me and my children?" Misty lowered her head. "It doesn't make any sense."
"Loki has a very strong aura, just like your husband," Castor explained. "But, unlike the Pokémon master, he chose to focus on honing the skill. He wanted to become an aura guardian like his ancestors, and to use the powers for good. He discovered the aura at a very young age, and started working on it. Loki lived in a small region, you see. He lived and worked on his family's farm, practicing with his aura in whatever free time he could find."
"Then what happened that made him such a horrible person?" Misty asked, the tone of her voice indicating a sense of disbelief. She wasn't sure whether or not to buy Castor's story.
"He had a love," Castor continued, "they were childhood friends and married when they were only 20 years old. Her name was Lucina, and she was very beautiful. Lucina knew all about Loki's aura, and she fully encouraged him to strengthen his powers. Not long after they married, Lucina discovered that she was pregnant. Not only that, but the couple also learned that their unborn child had a very strong sense of aura as well. Their happiness wouldn't last for long, however. The area had a known history with aura guardians, so many of their descendents lived in the region. There were several gangs of guardian descendents who wished to use their powers for evil, and not for good. One day, they all united and attacked those who wished to use their aura in a positive manner. The largest attack was on Loki's land, since they knew his unborn child possessed a strong sense of aura. Their goal was to kill Loki and kidnap Lucina, but somehow things went awry when Loki began fighting back. Loki survived the attack, although he was badly injured."
"And his wife?" Misty breathed.
"She was the one who ended up dying," Castor bowed his head. "Their child never even got to live. Not only that, but the entire farm was destroyed; damaged beyond repair. Loki slipped into a state of unconsciousness after the battle. When he woke up weeks later, he was finally told of his wife and child's demise."
"And what does any of this have to do with you?" Misty's shoulders were slumped now, her nails digging into her palms at her sides.
"The attack affected me as well. My parents were descendents of aura guardians. Like your older children, I was a twin. My brother Pollux and I both had limited aura. Seeing as it's the same situation with those two," Castor nodded towards the sleeping Aiden and Michelle, "I'm guessing it's a common occurrence in twins with a family history of aura."
"Did they hurt your family?" Misty hedged.
"Everyone in my family was killed except for me," Castor nodded. "They would have killed me as well, but somehow I managed to escape. Loki found me in the road one day and offered to take me in, seeing as we both had no one left. He was 20 at the time, and I was 12. It was a bit of an odd match, but I was desperate. I was still just a child, and I didn't want to be alone in the world."
"That's terrible," Misty frowned.
"It's been 10 years since then, and Loki has provided me with a comfortable living. We built this aircraft from scratch as our means of both shelter and transportation. After the attack, he'd stopped practicing his aura, but a few years later, I noticed a significant change in Loki's personality. He'd always been angry about Lucina's death, and the gangs that unleashed those attacks upon our region. Soon he was strengthening his aura again, but this time he wasn't going to use it for good. Day after day, I watched as Loki grew more grim, and more full of hatred. He wants revenge for what happened all those years ago and he believes the only way to do it is to become more powerful than those who harmed him so badly."
"Ash, the baby…" Misty thought aloud before gasping. "That's why he chose me. Because Ash has everything that he wanted!"
"Yes," Castor's eyes were dark with grave sorrow. "Seeing as your husband has a powerful sense of aura, and a beautiful wife who is carrying an equally powerful child, Loki sees him as the ultimate enemy: the person who has the life he was so close to having."
"I can't believe after all that happened to him, he would go out to hurt someone just as badly as he's been hurt," Misty shook her head in incredulity.
"The old, real Loki would have never acted this way," Castor persisted mournfully, "but ever since all of that anger overtook his mind, it's exactly what he would do."
"I won't let him hurt my baby," Misty closed her eyes tightly, "I won't."
"I won't either. I know you do not think highly of me, but you must know that I do not agree with my master's current point of view, and I will do everything in my power to protect both you and your children."
"Thanks," Misty responded glumly, her face still pale.
For some strange reason, she felt as if she could trust Castor. She knew in turn that would probably be a mistake, but for now she was too tired to fight it. All she could do was hope that Ash would make good on his word and find her and the twins.
Because being back with Ash was the only way Misty would know she was completely safe.
So there's Loki's backstory. It's pretty tragic, but is it a viable excuse for what he's doing to Misty and the twins?
Also, little fun fact about Castor, I named him way back when I first started this story, and when I decided to give him a twin brother in this chapter, I dsicovered that in Greek mythology, Castor had a twin brother named Pollux! So that worked out well for me :P Apparently, Castor and Pollux make up the Gemini constellation ^^
I got alot of reviews for last chapter, which I am super thankful for! I'm glad to know everyone is still absorbed in this story. I promise it's only going to get more exciting from here on out! Thanks for reading, reviewing, and until next time, keep being awesome!