Into Reality Ch. 5 –First Encounter…
Previously:
Making my way out the front gate I review all of the times I logged in a journal the previous night for areas that I could increase my overall performance. I reviewed how long it should take me to get from point A to point B… Our group launched over the finish line with 2 laps to go. I knew the leader wouldn't have enough energy to sprint in the final 200 meters so I was safe. As for the guys in front and behind me, they would put up a good fight…700 meters to go as the two guys in front fell back into their seats after an unsuccessful attack. At this I seized only opportunity and I reached for my drops as I launched myself out of my saddle and attacked around a corner and put as much power as I could into each stroke as I swung my bike side to side putting me in overall third…200 meters to go, now was the time to give up every last bit of energy I had left as I directed all my power into the two machines I had that would spin my pedals and my rear wheel propelling me forward. For the final time I picked myself up and reached for the drops…I dug deep and used whatever energy I had left as I approached the finish line … 5...4...3...2...1... GO, as my computer made a little gunshot noise and I began another race against the clock… this time, with my friends...
Present time…
Long before I ever met Raid or Latias, I befriended someone special to me, someone that showed the same interest as me, someone that had inspired me further to pursue my dreams… I followed a single motto ever since…
"Strive towards your dreams, do the best you can do every single day to be the best you yourself can be, but you must work to achieve your dreams, don't compare yourself to others to become better, do the best you can do…"
It had been a long week with the usual ups and downs any normal thanksgiving week away from school would offer but me, Latias and Raid found a way to cope with it all. I went on my regular cycling rides around town with a couple of my friends enjoying the sights with occasional in-between races amongst each other for bragging rights. I won some but not enough to say anything. To put things into perspective, it's been another long week as both my school teachers and my Pokémon mentors have been hammering me with work regardless of their being school or not. Needless to say, I needed a nap…
"Speech"
'telepathy'
*actions*
Date: December 1, 2012 (Saturday)
Location: My room, Home
Time: 8:45 a.m.
Situation: Waking up…
My parents were in the kitchen having an early morning breakfast while my brother was outside in the back yard playing around with our dog Blacky. Latias was wide awake already playing around with a ball of yarn getting ready for today's event while Raid had just woken up from his wonderful slumber.
It had been a while since Latias had her last meal so naturally she went to the one person she knew who could get her an apple… I however was still fast asleep … but she didn't mind…
'Marlon, Marlon! Wake up! We're going to be late "again". You kept us up all night yesterday talking about today and now you can't even get your lazy end off your bed? Get up!' Latias frustratingly yelled at me telepathically shaking me from back and forth trying to get me to awake from my glorious slumber. 'If I don't get my apple because you didn't want to wake up, I promise you you'll regret it…'
I didn't budge. She continued this tactic for a while but to no avail.
A now desperate & hungry Latias was trying everything in her power to get her favorite fruit. 'MARLON!' She continued shaking me violently from side to side almost about to cry from desperation.
(Latias used thrash attack… it was super effective)
Raid came down from their room located directly above mine only to see his sister making her situation more difficult. 'Sis you're not going to get anything from him like that. I think you knocked him out again with all the thrashing you just gave him, I mean look at him, he looks more dazed than he normally does when he's sleeping,' He said with his arms crossed.
Latias let me fall back in bed and blushed at how much damage she just unleashed upon me. 'Oops, I didn't mean to, I thought he was just playing around again,' Latias countered trying to save herself.
'Yah, like last time you thought you though he was playing around sleeping when he actually was...'Raid countered back now smirking.
'He was talking, I was sure that he was awake' Latias retaliated.
'Let's not forget the time when you thought he looked through your diary and you knocked the living daylights out of him.' Raid resisted. 'That night, he was just sitting by himself by the pool in the back, and when his parents came out to check on him, they were freaking out wondering how he ended all beat up and bruised. I was wandering around in the front garden so I didn't see anything at the time. All I heard was you screaming and the next thing I think I knew was you beating him up even though you accidently left you diary open to begin with. I don't even think he saw you coming that time.'
'…' Latias blushed profusely realizing the full extent of her actions.
'Oh well, try to wake him up with less violent methods, I'll try to get us something to eat.' Raid said volunteering to get breakfast as he exited the room.
Latias mustered up some of her leftover confidence and asked curiously. 'But what about Marlon's parents, their having their breakfast right now, how are you going to get by them?'
'Don't worry, I'll think of something.' Raid said smiling evily as he floated out of the room.
Latias tilted her head to one side wondering what her brother meant but turned back to the unconscious human in front of her and once again tried getting me to wake up as she picked me up once more.
'Marlon…. Marlon… wake up, please? I'm bored and right now you're making it worse…'
No response.
Suddenly, a light bulb appeared in Latias's mind as she carefully dragged me into the bathroom, closed the door behind her and set me down in the shower. 'I'll give you five seconds to wake up or I'll let the shower hose do the talking.' Latias wasn't exactly bluffing but there was nothing I could do to stop her. '3…2...1…'
She turned a knob and used the shower hose as she sprayed me with a "refreshing" stream of freezing cold water only to be met with the same result as before… only adding to Latias's desperation, as well as confusion.
Latias uses water gun…
It was not very effective…
Latias uses frustration…
She became desperate…
'Marlon! Wake up!' Latias yelled as she began shaking me again like before, but this time I slowly awoke. Noticing this Latias psychically gathered all the water on my now soggy clothes and separated it from me as she dumped all the water down the drain. Then, she quickly grabbed me and threw me back in bed as she flew up through the hole in the ceiling that connected my room to hers, acting as if nothing had happened.
I slowly but surely got up only to be rubbing my head from an "unknown" immense pain. "Uh, what happened, I feel like I just got caught in a hurricane (don't ask, my first experience with one wasn't too pleasant). My head hurts." I looked around and noted that it was 8:07 in the morning. I pushed the pain aside and quickly jumped out of bed as I grabbed the clothes I had prepared the night before and changed in heartbeat.
Latias peeked down from her room down through the ceiling as she "cooed" in happiness seeing that I was now awake, all while trying to keep a straight face for what happened moments ago. I looked directly up with a smile, "Morning sis, you ready to go today?" I asked Latias curious to know how she felt. 'Actually, Raid and I haven't had breakfast yet. Do we have any more apples left in the fridge?' "Yah my mom told me yesterday that she already resupplied in apples. I'll go get you som…."
*BOOM!*
"What in the world was that?!" I asked completely taken off guard and frankly shocked to hear such a massive explosion nearby. 'It sounded close, in the back yard.' Latias confirmed me. "Let's go find out." I told Latias, running out of my room into the hallway as she followed suit, only to be stopped by Raid with an armful of apples as he cooed happily and took a bite out of an apple, 'I got breakfast *takes another bite*… want one?'
Latias just happily ignored the present situation and took an apple from Raid while I just stood there jaw dropping. I knew right then and there Raid was responsible but it scared me to think of what he must've done in my back yard.
"Raid?" 'Yees.' Raid answered playfully. "What did you do in the back yard?"
'I just grabbed all the gasoline and wood from the back along with a bunch of other cans with the sign "highly flammable" and through them in the center of the pool on a piece of wood and lit them on fire. I was trying to get the attention of your parents and I think it worked, although I didn't expect that massive explosion in the end. You might want to tell everyone in the surrounding area that it was a small experimental mishap before anyone calls the police.' *takes another bite*
I stood speechless, with my mouth open trying to process the information I had been given, "o^^^^o"
'Just kidding, do you really think I was that crazy to go all pyrotechnic in our backyard?'
*brief moment of silence*
"Yes." Both Latias and I said simultaneously.
Raid looked over to Latias confused.
'What? I think you're crazy enough to do it.' Latias telepathed as she chewed into her apple. Raid on the other hand only looked with more confusion as to why his sister had "changed sides" all of a sudden.
'In any case I just faked an explosion and projected the sound of one into all of your minds just making it seem like it actually happened. No one else heard it, only those inside the house heard it.' Raid assured me only to be met with my "are you crazy look".
'Okay, that's creepy, now if you excuse me, I'm heading upstairs to enjoy my meal, where I can enjoy my breakfast without any creepy stares.' Raid floated out of the hallway and into my room followed by an anxious and hungry Latias.
Not wanting to get myself hopelessly lost, I pushed the matter aside made my way to the kitchen. I opened a cabinet door looked around for anything appetizing.
With my whole family outside trying to figure out what that loud explosion was earlier, I on the other hand was struggling to open a bag of bananas as sandwich began to burn in the microwave. This only made me panic more as I tried to prevent the house from burning down.
A few minutes later of fighting and I had a warm/crisped bowl of pasta with a couple bananas on the side.
Back outside, my parents finally gave up trying to guess what happened and my mom was the first to greet me.
"Marlon did you hear the blast outside?!"
"What blast? I just woke up." I asked back putting on a believable 'what?' look. This wasn't exactly the first time I had to fake something I already knew.
"How on earth did were you able to stay sleeping after a blast like that?" My mom replied refusing to give any ground to me trying to get me to 'spill the beans'.
"Well I just don't know. All I know is that I woke up about half an hour ago." I fought back also refusing to give in to the other as I took a bite out of my banana.
My mom was stubborn to admit but I was too, if not more. "Really? I think you had something to do with this."
"How did I manage to pull off such shenanigans if I was in bed with the door out closed?"
"I don't know… Never mind, go eat your sandwich." My mom said as she just walked out of the kitchen, denying her defeat.
With my mom out of the kitchen, it was just me again and sandwich…
Skipping ahead…
(8:55 a.m.)
After a satisfying breakfast I regrouped with Raid and Latias outside in the back of the house as we discussed today's plans.
My dad was outside with us so I resorted to using telepathy to keep our conversation private. 'So, Raid, Latias, you both ready to head out? We have to leave before 9:30 a.m. if we want to have a chance to see all the amazing shows they'll have.' I asked as I pretended to be fixing my bike that was hanging from the garage ceiling.
'We're both set and ready, the question is are you?' Raid replied from outside as there wasn't enough room for them inside.
'Everything's set, all I need is the all clear from you two and we can head out. My parents already said it's okay to go as long as I call them at 10:30 a.m. sharp. I told them I had a meeting for key club and that I needed to head out fast.' I explained.
'We're ready to go whenever you are. Although I'm not so sure going to Edwards Air Force base is a good idea. Don't you think there security would be pretty tight at this time of the year?' Raid asked not wanting to have to engage in any form of battle today.
'Don't worry, and besides, they only have an air show once every 2 years. It'll be fun. What could possibly go wrong?' I tried to raise confidence in Raid so that he would enjoy the trip.
Raid on the other hand didn't like his chances if something did go wrong while we are there, but tried his best to remain happy.
'Well if everybody's ready, we'll head out now.' I said as both Raid and Latias nodded their heads.
My mom was in her room while my dad was trying to fix the pool pump in the back yard. The coast was all clear as I ran for the driveway. Halfway down I stopped and double checked my surroundings.
'The coast is clear, go ahead and change.' Latias assured me.
I looked down at my figure, and closed my eyes smiling. I focused on my Lati image self as flashbacks of my memories as a Latios came back and then all went dark around me… there I stood looking into a mirror 10 feet away from me, in a world completely black. At first glance the mirror reflected me, but as I stepped towards the mirror it changed its reflection and showed an image of me in my Latios form. I stepped towards my Latios mirror image now just 3 feet away from me. I stuck a hand out and reached for the mirror as my mirror self raised a paw and did the same. We locked eye contact refusing to look away as we each glared into each other's eyes.
We both made contact with the mirror simultaneously not breaking the glance between each other.
The mirror shattered spectacularly as the world around me came back to me as I regained self control.
To Raid and Latias, they only saw me glow as a light glow surrounded me as orbs of light floated into the sky as my human form shifted into my brown Latios form. I looked like any other Latios, mind that I was dark shade of brown where there was blue and my eyes retained their normal lightly dark shade of brown shade as the triangle on my chest remained red like any other Latios.
Blinking, I looked around. Latias gave me a "claw's-up" smiling along with Latios, who was checking the area as they remained invisible. I did the same changing my down with a mere thought as I raised my paw to see saw my paw disappear into thin air. I put on a small aerodynamic bag I created before around my back and strapped it in place around my chest.
Without warning, I rocketed into the sky blasting rock and sand into the air as Raid and Latias pursued setting car alarms off my process. I stopped about 500 feet up looking down as I saw the cloud of smoke dissipate. 'Guys, we're going on an adventure' I said smiling.
I snickered to myself at how awesome it was to be free. Raid and Latias caught up not soon after as we all looked at each other. Raid was next to smile sinisterly as he blasted off towards the streets below. Latias and I pursued following right behind as Raid got low to the ground blasting cars with a rush of air going about 200 miles. Raid turned sharply around corners and weaved through power lines as Latias and I did the same. Finally, he stopped and blasted directly upward with a huge amount of speed as we followed. Raid was the fastest of the three of us with me and Latias relatively matched in speed. Latias and I eventually caught up as Raid took his spot behind me. I took point and led the three of us north towards Edwards Air Force base where the excitement would be….
Well it's the voice again from before, so this will be it for this chapter, It totally has nothing to do with the title right? It so wasn't worth waiting for right? Oh well, you'll learn to get used to it. *grins evilly*
As always please leave a comment below and have a TERRIBLE day *cue THUMBSDOWN!*
Just kidding, I'd never leave you guys hanging like that… *coughs* maybe…
Resume:
Raid, Latias, and I were now doing 400 miles per hour at 30,000 feet (high up in the sky where there are plenty of clouds in our face). We blasted around each other racing to see who'd get to the base first.
I blew past Raid doing 450mph but was quickly caught by Latias who drafted behind me and blasted in front with a grin of victory, but was quickly taken away by Raid who took the lead once more but Latias pursued with me following from behind.
'Raid you're mine!' I telepathed yelling as I charged towards the front again. 'Not if I beat him first!' Latias fought back. 'I'm still going to beat both of you.' Raid replied to the challenge.
It was a battle for bragging rights again with all of us going all out. Raid rocketed to 500 mph with me and Latias chasing him down. Latias and I were from tired; in fact we were more psyched to beat Raid that we put the meaning in speed as we went from 450 to 600 in seconds as Latias took the lead with me following close behind. (Related back to the previous chapter… drafting…). Latias eventually gave way as I took the lead and blasted ahead.
This went on all the way to the base…
18 minutes later and we were rocketing across the sky (invisible of course). We were flying so fast trying to beat the other that no one noticed that we over shot the base entirely.
Raid was in front and found out first as his hit the brakes as he stopped as hard he could throwing his whole body forward as his head, wings and arms flew forward from the inertia he carried but quickly recovered only to be hit from behind by two energetic Lati's going 500 miles per hour…
We all collided with me in the middle as we all fell from the sky all dizzy and confused as we broke our invisibility. Latias recovered first from the huge impact and got back into her flying position. I quickly picked up on the situation and did the same with Raid doing the same a couple feet below me.
Raid regained his posture and took point as I took left wing and Latias at right. We changed our downs once more becoming invisible once more as we rocketed towards the ground doing 375 mph doing dead vertical. We all held formation and at the last 30 feet Raid quickly changed his position and pulled up hard with me and Latias trying to do the same. We all made it through the maneuver with smiles on our faces as we made our way towards the base…
But little did we know we were being watched…
Inside an unknown building…
"I have eyes on the targets. Proceed to phase one… Roger, scout one out..." A soldier said into his radio as he spied on the three flying objects from a distance using his high powered thermal goggles…
Outside the base…
With no cameras around or any way to know we were here, Raid, Latias and I all managed to find a good spot the change into our human images. I was wearing my favorite brown hat with a small vest on, dark brown digital army-camouflage style shirt, and dark jeans. Raid just wore a darker shade of red shirt, a white cap and a dark pair of cargo pants. Latias on the other hand was wearing a long skirt with a light blue shirt.
I adjusted my aero bag so that it would fit me properly and soon after, we were walking towards the entrance to the base. I had taken the liberty of buying tickets for the three of us ahead of time as I handed Raid and Latias their tickets. Latias gave me a thank-you hug as Raid did the same.
At the gate, we were met with a couple teams of security guards and police cars driving around. All three of us remained pleasantly calm and handed in our tickets. We were later inspected by the police via metal detector as they looked through my bag to check for anything suspicious. Nothing was found much to my amusement. I knew they didn't look everywhere or thought hard enough because I designed a way to hide certain pieces of equipment that were disassembled in the bag appear to be normal every day essentials.
With all of us past the 'wand of doom area' Latias had called it, we made our way to the main attractions, the jets.
'Those security guards kinda' freak me out' Latias said as we made our way through an open hangar.
'Don't worry, their just there to try to lower the chance of anything bad happening within the base that would spoil our time here.' I explained to Latias and she nodded, understanding.
First up was an F/A-18 Hornet. To me it was a sight to behold, but to Raid and Latias, it was like watching a kid in a toy store, adoring every little thing.
"This is awesome. This jet's obviously been through a bit from the oil markings on the exhaust and hydraulics." I mentioned as I thoroughly examined every single piece of the jet, much to Raid and Latias's amusal, but they didn't feel the same way with the jet especially after their encounter a couple weeks back.
'All I see is a weapon of mass destruction that ends the life of others and kills nature in the process.' Raid replied with obvious disgust. 'I hate to say it, but I agree. Human psychology troubles me sometimes.' Latias added.
"Guys come-on, lighten up a bit, we're here to enjoy the show and have a few smoothies along the way." I said trying to convince my friends to enjoy their time.
Raid abided along with Latias as we continued our look around while I grabbed a little camera I packed in my bag earlier and took pictures wanting to cherish every memory we were together. We were enjoying our time, but we were still a bit on edge from our earlier encounter.
Many jets and helicopters later, along with group photos and interesting facts later, Latias found a map nearby and informed us that the next show would be in 5 minutes and that we needed to get to the bleachers for a good view.
"Well what are we waiting for, let's go." I said as we started running for the bleachers.
Once there, we took the highest seat as Raid and Latias waited wondering what they were about to see. We all knew that whatever the pilots did, we could do 100 times better. I grabbed my little gray Cannon camera and looked for a good angle of the jets behind the bleachers.
Not soon after, four Blue Angel F/A-18 Hornets came screeching across the sky in their unique Diamond formation with the pilot in front and back upside down putting on an impressive show of control and handling. Every applauded as the four broke formation in a near collision maneuver as the right pilot accelerated and pulled hard to the left as the pilot on the right slowed and turned hard left as the pilot in front and back pulled up and crossed in another near collision maneuver.
The four put on an amazing show as everyone applauded and cheered the pilots' efforts. Raid and Latias even found themselves doing the same. Their ridiculous maneuvers in their specialized jets continued for several more intense minutes as the pilots came close to the audience in crazy head on charges passing mere inches of each other's wings. Soon after, the four made a spectacular landing to end their performance as everyone let go of their emotions and cheered happily for the performance… but the show wasn't over…
Not soon after, four F-22 Raptors raced towards the bleachers from the distant horizon as they screeched overhead. As they passed by, the commentary introduced the "Sky Fang" squadron. The four lined up in a row and pulled up and held a high alpha position as they flew slowly across the runway in a straight line, wing with wing. The four pulled off the maneuver as if it were nothing.
(A high alpha is a ridiculously difficult maneuver to pull off in a jet as the pilot holds his plane in a near vertical position not allowing his plane to rise or fall as the aircraft literally hovers forward).
The four recovered from their stunt and rocketed off into the sky. We could all see them coming around for another flyby.
As each jet passed by, me Latias and Raid saw something we hoped to never see again, scaring us half to death. We recognized the symbols on each of the jets rudders. The same jets we had encountered in the past were now back and flying in perfect unison right in front of us. Time slowed as each plane passed as Déjà vu occurred to all three of us. What happened next was completely unexpected.
As the four pilots of Sky Fang Squadron landed back to earth, the intercom turned on.
"Will Marlon S please come to commentary stand? We know you're in the bleachers. There's no reason to hide."
I froze along with Raid and Latias. I could see security guards coming around and blocking off the exits. We were trapped. Without any other option I did as I was asked and made my way down. I told Raid and Latias to stay with me and to keep an eye out so I wouldn't get attacked from behind if the time came.
We made our way to the commentary stands below.
Once there I introduced myself and asked why I was called. First they wanted proof that I was who I was, but I persisted and asked again, "Why was I called." The commentary asked for identification but I repeated myself. Eventually, the person asking gave way and explained himself. Not soon after, I was introduced to another person. This time, the person was in a G-suit used by pilots in fighter jets. The man had a couple honor medals badges sown into the arm part of his suit.
At first glance, the pilot appeared to be in his 30s, but looked familiar. After reviewing my past experiences (with the help of my new psychic powers) I quickly recognized the pilot.
"Ben? ... Is that you?" I asked curiously, confusing Latias and Raid.
"That's captain Ben to you boy," the commentary corrected me.
"Captain? Wow things have changed," I said surprised.
"Wow, you remember me, to be honest I thought you'd forget me. It's nice to see you again Marlon. How's school treating you?" Ben asked.
"Fine, couldn't be better." I said, happy to re-establish an old friendship.
'Marlon, mind explaining who your friend is?' Latias asked.
'Ben is a great person and friend I met when I was just in elementary school. His squadron happened to come by and everyone got a chance to be with an official fighter pilot. Ben's different because he opened up to me and he showed me a reason to fight hard every day, he showed me that everyday does make a difference and that I should stride for my two dreams. One of my dreams already came true, the other was to do the best I could everyday and to go down doing everything I possibly could.' I explained as Raid and Latias quickly understood the situation.
"So it surely has been a while since we last met don't you think?" Ben asked.
"Sure has. How's the team treating you?" I asked curious to know what happened to the squadron while I was absent.
"Not so good, in fact the team separated. I'm all that's left." Ben said, a bit upset at what's happened over the years.
"Sorry for the loss. Well how's life treating you?" I asked trying to change the subject.
"Everything's fine, although I do miss having the team together. I'll get over it eventually, but that's not exactly why I asked the commentary to bring you down here. Do you remember that drawing you drew me of an airplane you designed when you first met me? You called it the Sky Raider." Ben asked.
"Oh yah, I remember that. I drew more detailed versions of it afterwards that I sent to you, but what does that have to do with today?" I replied.
"Well I carried that drawing around with me and one day, after our debriefing, a researcher just so happened to see the paper from my suit. I showed it to him and he was quite intrigued to say the least. Well it just so happens that when some of the researchers got together, they decided to build a prototype." Ben explained.
"Really, and they used my design?" I asked.
"Yup, that prototype has been thoroughly tested and redesigned to get the maximum benefit of flying and I think it's reached its perfection. Even the hardware and software put into the thing was done to the specifications you wrote out behind the drawing. I'll tell you that plane is a sight to see. In fact, it's in this very base as we speak." Ben pointed out.
"Really?! Take me there now! I've got to see it with my own eyes first! This better not be some kind of joke!" I demanded.
"Don't worry, I was headed there to begin with, I'm second in charge of the project so don't worry too much about security. As long as you're with me, you'll be fine."
Ben began walking towards the research side of the base with me, Raid and Latias following suit. "You haven't even introduced me to your friends yet." Ben said causing Latias and Raid to flinch slightly.
"Oops, sorry you guys. Captain Ben, this is La… I mean Tia on the left, and this is Raid on the right. We're actually related."
"Related huh, you guys don't look similar." Ben stated making me think twice.
"We were just reunited. They're from another part of the United States… Utah." I faked.
"Utah huh, that's cool." Ben continued walking as the rest of us sighed in relief as Raid patted me on the back and gave me a thumbs-up.
We entered a big white building connected to a single hangar.
"I'm going to get in touch with the head researcher and ask him to open the main hangar. I want you to stay here and try not to get yourself lost. This place may look small but it's bigger than you think. Trust me." With that Ben walked down the hall in to another room. Now it was just me, Raid and Latias.
We weren't used to staying still so naturally we began to wander around. Next thing we knew we were in a completely different room of the one we just came through. Looking around we all could tell the scientists here had a ton of equipment everywhere as massive electrical cables covered the walls filling in every single gap not leaving a single opening of the original wall. The walls were also lined with complex looking computers with equally complex keyboards showing little resemblance to the standard home keyboard.
As we entered another room we were met with even more complex computers as wires were hanging from the ceiling as well covered the walls and floors. For me, this was a LOT of equipment and hardware just for one jet.
'Is it just me or does the amount of equipment here seem like overkill for just one experimental project,' I telepathed to my friends not wanting for hidden surveillance cameras to catch our conversations.
'I was thinking the same, this just doesn't add up unless the plane you designed truly is this complex that it requires this much hardware,' Raid replied equally puzzled along with Latias as they weren't used to having this much equipment in one area.
We continued to walk around as we each noticed that we haven't encountered a worker or scientist. This only added to our confusion as we pressed on our investigation.
'Latias watch our back, Raid keep an eye out for anything suspicious, I'll watch the front. We don't need any complications. Our presence here is already considered against the law, no need for outside disturbances.' I said as we each took our position in a crooked triangle formation with Latias in back, Raid in center, and me in front.
Further investigation showed blueprints of the jet I designed in my early years as well as the modifications made to it. The shape had remained relatively the same but engine size and cockpit configuration had been changed to increase the plane's efficiency. We also found a couple of the badges that must have belonged to the scientists that worked here. We made note of the names and went ahead.
We pressed on moving deeper into the lab only to be met with the same result. The rooms were completely empty mind the equipment hoarding the room, as well as no sign of Ben anywhere. The air was starting to get tense as everyone felt it. We were all alone and there was no one around. Just when we thought things couldn't get more interesting, we heard a loud crash down the hall.
We all rushed for some form of cover following the natural duck and cover procedure performed by trained military infantry teams that I had learned from a friend in cadets. I hid behind the door leading to the next room where we heard the crash as Raid and Latias waited behind me. Latias tapped Raid who tapped me signaling they were ready. Latias put one hand on Raid as he put one on the back of me as we entered the room in a single line staying in a low crouched/profile position. Upon entering the room we split behind individual carts as were heard someone screaming for help in the background yelling to be set free. I looked as Latias and nodded ash she did the same with Raid. We each advanced taking our surroundings into our utmost attention as it may be useful later. We approached the next door at the end of the room as Raid paired with Latias on the left of the door while I took the right. I peeked into the room, but to my surprise no one was there.
We nodded once more and entered the room taking cover behind another object. I scouted around from behind the cart I was hiding behind as I saw Raid and Latias doing the same. Out of nowhere we heard the same yell from before as we each pinpointed the source to a closed room about 10 feet from our position. I told Raid and Latias to stay keep their distance just in case something happened as I proceeded towards the door. What I found was unexpected. When I opened the door, I found a couple scientists unconscious in a pile in the center of a small room.
At this point nothing appeared to make any sense. I stood up examining the situation as Raid and Latias remained hidden looking around for anything that was considered a threat.
Raid was only a couple feet from me as he looked around. As Raid looked around he looked out the only window in the room. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a microscopic glint in the distance as his instincts took over.
'MARLON GET DOWN!' In a burst of speed Raid got out of his crouch position and tackled me down. At the exact same time I was tackled a single bullet pierced the window shattering it into multiple pieces. Raid took complete command and ordered his sister to attack the shooter. 'Sis, use psychic on the shooter NOW!'
Latias didn't hesitate and stood up and quickly spotted her target. 500 ft away was a lone sniper in a ghillie suit running in the distance. She grabbed the person with ease and paralyzed head down with great effort into the horizon surely ending his chances of accomplishing his mission, and possibly his life. Not soon after did Latias get back down and crouched over gasping to herself as to what she just did to the human but quickly joined Raid who was trying to make sure I was okay. I was breathing deeply from the intense moment as I quickly checked myself over and got back onto my feet, thankfully unharmed. Raid did the same and thankfully we were both alright.
'Thanks Raid, you saved me there. I owe you big time for that one. I should've been paying attention.' I said eternally grateful for the save. Raid on the other hand didn't mind and just let me get on with what I was doing. 'Just make sure you watch yourself alright. We're obviously not at home right now. Latias stay close and watch yourself too.' Raid said.
Outside…
A soldier was on the other side of the wall whispering into his radio, "We have a man down, I repeat man down. Requesting backup now! … Roger, proceeding to phase two."
Back inside…
As we pressed even further into the lab, we eventually entered the hangar area. There we came across the thing we all came to this Arceus-for-saken place for. Right in front of us was the machine that I had dreamed of seeing... The Sky Raider. There were no windows as the lights above us provided the only sources of lighting.
The jet had swept forward wings for increased mobility and stability along with twin vector engines to allow for quick maneuvers whenever needed. The cockpit was concealed in the front as the bullet proof glass blended in with the rest of the plane making it appear to be one piece with the plane. Raid and Latias stayed behind again as I approached the plane. The plane was relatively small compared to other military jets but still packed the punch needed to compete with the militaries high end jets.
After scouting my surrounding and making sure the area was clear, I got closer to the front of the jet. Once there, I stood up and placed my hand on the cockpit window as it lit up and the glass became transparent. The canopy opened allowing entrance to the plane. This caught me by surprise but entered the plane nonetheless. Remembering everything I wrote on my original design, I got in and followed standard plane procedure. This however didn't work as the plane appeared to have been set up differently. I changed tactics and used what knowledge I had on the plane to start it up, and after a couple of switches and levers later, the plane roared to life. Power began to flow through the plane but for some reason, flight control was prohibited. A screen lit up in front of me asking for a password. I scratched my head a bit and entered the letters G…L…1…. To my surprise, the screen unlocked and a joystick appeared below me. As happy as I was, I knew I couldn't do anything till I found Ben.
Raid on the other hand sensed a disturbance nearby and signaled for us to get down. Latias used her psychic powers and scanned the area to find a squad of soldiers making their way towards the hangar bay. Raid and Latias were outside while I remained in the cockpit. I changed the window display so that it would camouflage with rest of the plane. This made it impossible to see the inside of the cockpit from the outside.
Moments later, as expected, a bunch of soldiers appeared around the base all wearing police badges and carrying custom M-16 carbine rifles aimed directly at the cockpit (a.k.a. me) completely unknowing of Latias or Raids presence.
One of the soldiers stepped forwards with his rifle down ordering me to get down and surrender the aircraft. I was about to scan his mind for background information but Raid beat me to the punch.
'Marlon, Latias and I already checked these guy's memories, they have no relationship to any official military branch. They terrorists! Whatever you do, do not surrender that jet. We've got your back. I'm on your left behind the dumpster. Latias is on your far right behind those computers in the back. We can flank them but we'll need a brief distraction. Think you can give us one?' Raid explained the situation.
I grinned from the inside of the cockpit ready to provide the distraction. Recalling a scene from the movie Stealth, I hooked my mp3 into a port of the main computer and blasted the insides of the cockpit with rock music.
The soldiers were instantly taken off guard by the random action and lowered their guns. Latias and Raid took this advantage and in a spectacular flash of light all the soldiers were on the ground motionless. Raid briefly assured me that none were harmed and that each soldier was just in a minor comma from a psychic burst their minds. Raid explained laughing on the inside as to how easy it was to mess with the human mind.
I took a deep breath reassuring myself as I exited the cockpit. I jumped onto the ground below grabbing my friends making sure they were safe.
Suddenly, the hangar doors opened as a large group of soldiers appeared along with a couple groups of humvees, each with a soldier on top aiming a machine gun at the three of us.
The three of us were honestly stunned as another soldier walker forward with a megaphone in hand. "Son, you've caused us a lot of trouble in the past. We've been trying to find you for quite some time and now here we are, face to face. We know your secrets and what you can do. Now if you don't mind, save us the trouble of shooting you and your friends and get into this here humvee so we can take you to our base to do some experiments."
We were all stunned but I recovered first, "Now before I do anything, I think you should tell me who you are and what organization you're from."
"Sorry boyo' but that's a secret. Guns at ready men!" The commander ordered.
I was a frankly on edge as I was trying to think of every possible way to escape while protecting our secret. Latias on the other hand scanned the commanders memories and determined that our secret was had already been exposed to each soldier as she could see videos of every single one of us from the memories of each soldier. She also determined that these soldiers were also not related to any form of government. 'Raid, Marlon, these guys already know our secrets, there's no way we can hide from them.' Latias said in fear about their safety.
'Then lets give them a show to remember. What do you say Marlon?' Raid telepathed in-between the three of us, confident in our abilities.
'A Pokémon battle? Sounds good to me, how' bout you Latias?' I replied telepathically.
'Ready when you two are. Let's do this guys.' Both Raid and I felt Latias's confidence build as we quickly formulated a battle strategy.
"Your time's up kid, now we take you by force!" The commander ordered his men to grab me but I wasn't ready to go down without a fight.
To prevent the unknown organization from gaining any more Intel, grabbed a homemade flash bang and threw it at the soldiers which exploded soon after it was thrown. In that brief flash, Raid and Latias changed back into their Latias and Latios forms and became invisible flying upwards and out of sight. The flash disappeared and I left standing alone.
The soldiers were puzzled but quickly understood the situation.
'Marlon we're in position, ready on your signal.' Latias said ready for an assault.
"Now you're finished. Latias use ice beam on the humvees now! Raid, luster purge on the ground teams!" I commanded my friends as Latias froze the humvees in solid ice while Raid blinded the ground troops with luster purge and got in close and used his version of close combat.
In a matter of seconds, a majority of the ground troops were decimated while the remaining were left frightened as they began shooting into the sky in hopes of scoring a hit. Little did they know, they were just wasting their time.
"Latios, finish them off! Dragon claw!" I yelled as Latias positioned herself beside me (still invisible).
With a burst of speed and anger, Raid came diving in and slashed through each of the soldiers Kevlar like a hot blade through butter.
(Finally, slashing leftover tree stumps during training actually paid off)
Raid was absolutely enraged as his mind was set on protecting those he cared for. With every single soldier eliminated along with the general, each of us made a scramble back for the hangar, feeling it was the only safe spot left to recuperate. We shut the hangar doors one last time and destroyed the opening mechanisms. No way in, but no way out. Raid took a second to breathe while Latias and I were trying to tend to each other trying to get ready for the next wave. Suddenly, a bunch of jets flew directly overhead the hangar.
"They're here for us, they know were here. Looks like they really want to capture us or they wouldn't have sent this many soldiers," I explained my thoughts.
'I guess you're right. We won't last long here, we need to start moving.' Raid suggested still breathing deeply after his previous attack.
'But we won't last long outside in the open either, there's nowhere to hide. It's all flat ground with no buildings in a 150 foot distance.' Latias explained.
Suddenly a plan hatched in my head…
Back with Ben inside the research building…
"Thank you professor Orden. Don't worry the jet will remain in good hands. We're just gonna have a quick peek and be on our way before you know it." With that, Ben exited the main office and made his way to where he had left me, Raid and Latias.
"Man, look at the time, I left them there for over an hour now. Marlon's not going to like me being late again." Ben said as he neared the entry point.
"Marlon, sorry for being late, professor Orden wasn't exactly available at the time so…" He then noticed that we were nowhere in sight.
"Oh no, don't tell me…" Ben was now running towards the hangar worried for my safety. Little did he know I was in more danger than he would have originally thought…
Oh no! What will Marlon and his friend do this time as they are trapped from all ends by an unknown military force determined to bring hum, and his friends down to experiment on... Will Marlon and his friend get away in one piece? Will Latias get captured! Will Captain Ben be killed in the process! Will I make it home in time for lunch! Stay tuned and find out. Next time on INTO REALITY!
OH! This chapter was certainly quite the thriller to make as well as being one of the longest I 've ever done at about 8,200 words! *Gasp* But the most interesting thing for me is to know you guy's and girl's thoughts on the story... *cue random cricket*
Please seriously, I can't make the story better if no one even offers a suggestion. Please I beg you! LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW OR I MIGHT DIE FROM NO ONE RESPONDING!
Thanks to Mr.001 for leaving a message behind for every chapter :thumbsup: Just leave a message below and your name could be next on the list :)
I DON'T own the idea/theme of Pokemon. I DO HOWEVER, own the character Marlon and Raid the Latios and their names I also own the Idea and the theme/name of the Eon Squadron. It's all © by me marcturbo1.
And for those wondering what I look like in either my human form or Latios Form... feel free to check the description below :)
Latios Form Marlon : gallery/#/d5hqhuw
Human Form Marlon: gallery/#/d54z2me
just something to help visualizing ;)
In any other form of ending a story... Have a nice day ;o