Hey guys, I'm putting my comments at the top for a reason. You'll see why.
I think I did really bad, I mean seriously bad this time with the writing, cause I don't have enough experience with this technique, and I sort of - well bombed it. But I'm putting this chapter up for the heck of it. Yeah, people are probably going to say "This is the worst ever." and leave this story.
But I'm writing for those who do want to read this story, such as Lupyne. I forgot to mention my thanks to Opengunner last chapter so I'm giving my thanks now. I hope I don't disappoint you guys.
Now, on with the show!
"OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"
"CUT IT OUT MANDITE!" I barked, pressing my ears flat against my head. I looked over to Aurora, who was doing the same motion, wincing from ear pain. This is going to be the last time Aurora asks Mandite to sing. Although it was amusing that she regrets her foolish question, I'm suffering from it too, and I am the innocent one. Mandite can't sing, or at least I wouldn't call screaming singing.
"NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE MILLION, NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE THOUSAND, EIGHT HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL!!!!!" I groaned; how this song went is that the singer starts at nine-hundred ninety-nine million, nine-hundred ninety nine thousand, nine hundred ninety-nine and counts down one every single round of singing. I had a bad feeling this song wasn't going to end anytime soon.
"NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE MILLION, NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE THOUSAND, EIGHT HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN BOTTLES OF BEER!" Mandite wailed, flapping his wings to an unknown beat.
"Someone make him stop!" Aurora pleaded, trying desperately to block out the sound. I only wish there was someone.
"TAKE ONE DOWN,"
"It's all your fault!" I yelled over Mandite's piercing voice. Aurora only bared her teeth, wincing from the magnitude of the singing.
"PASS IT AROUND,"
"Mandite PLEASE!!!" She cried, but Mandite remained oblivious, and kept right on chanting his little song.
"NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE MILLION, NINE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE THOUSAND, EIGHT-HUNDRED TWENTY-SIX BOTTLES OF BEER!"
"I can't take it anymore!" Aurora hissed between gritted teeth. I nodded in agreement. I am about to go insane if I have to listen to another bottle of beer being orally passed around by Mandite again.
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"MANDITE!!!!" We both yelled at him. Mandite looked at the two of us in surprise, his eyes wide, holding a wing in front of him to shield himself.
"What?" he said indignantly. We both stared at him, our ears still pressed tightly against our heads by our shaking paws. He looked back and forth, back and forth until he realized for himself what he has done.
"Oh," he said, "you guys don't like my singing, don't you?" I hesitated – I did not want to hurt the little warrior's feeling, but I have to say something.
"We -" Aurora started, but Mandite interrupted her with a wave of his hand.
"Chill," he said, "Uncle Tally never liked my singing, either," I sighed with relief, and removed my paws from my ringing ears. Aurora did the same, and Mandite laughed, shaking himself. Skipping ahead of us, he continued to follow the path traced by the small trickles of water that once was a great river. Suddenly, to my surprise, he stopped abruptly, staring at the water. I, too, examined the water, but I found nothing peculiar about it – it was just regular water, not tainted, not oddly colored. Mandite slowly resumed his skipping, but kept his eyes on the water, warily. I looked over to Aurora, who too had noticed Mandite's strange behavior.
[What's wrong with the water?] I heard her voice echo in my mind. I quickly scanned over the water with my eyes, and sniffed for any scents. I found nothing.
[I do not know.]
[Do you hear something?] Aurora asked me. I tilted head, swiveling my ears in order to try and catch the sound Aurora had been listening too. I came across a soft, thundering noise. It wasn't terribly loud, not even loud enough for Mandite to hear. It was a distant noise.
[Does it sound like thunder rumbling?] I asked Aurora, and she nodded. I listened to the noise again. Strange, it seems to be gradually getting louder. I quickly glanced up at the sky – it remained a beautiful blue, clear and free of a single cloud. I hear the thundering, but where was it? What was it? If it is not thunder, then what could this noise be? The noise continued to grow increasingly louder.
[Lucario,] Aurora said nervously.
[I know – what is happening?] I said, understanding what she was trying to say. By now Mandite had completely stopped and stared at a puddle that sat offside the trickling water. He remained still, so incredibly still that it worried me. I ran over and bent over to peer at his face. His eyes were wide, and filled with obvious fear, staring at the puddle. I glanced at the puddle and then noticed something wrong for the first time - there were minuscule ripples running through it. Nothing had made the water disturbed like that. Mandite sucked his breath.
"I want you guys to find high ground – and fast." Mandite may be a youngster, equally matched with a young voice, but right now it was extremely grave and serious. I nodded, and looked over to Aurora.
"Try to climb up the ravine." I said, and she nodded. Mandite looked up at the two of us, and joined our search. The sides of the ravine were sandy and high, making it difficult to climb up. Even worse, the loose sand was being shaken by some unknown force. I was clinging to one of the walls, with the dirt constantly slipping under my feet. If I fell, it would be a dangerous drop – I was high enough off the ground that if I lost my grasp, my neck will be in danger of breaking. Or if I flipped onto my feet in time, the shock of the sudden impact of the ground will shatter my bones, or paralyze me. I strained my muscles to keep a grip. Carefully, I placed my foot higher, my stomach dropping when it slid slightly. I breathed the dusty air created by me trying to scale the wall.
"Hurry!" I looked back to see Mandite, anxiously flapping his wings. A thought struck me as odd – why wasn't Mandite flying? I fell the sand loosen beneath me, so I quickly climbed higher to prevent myself loosing grasp. Steadily and strenuously, I slowly found footings and climbed higher and higher up the ravine. I blinked, the sand particles irritating my eyes. I stretched my arm further, and felt the grassy rim of the ravine. I pulled myself up and onto the cool grass. I panted for a few seconds, before I got onto my feet and called out to the other two down below.
"Just follow my path." I bent down and pointed out where I came from. Aurora glanced at me and then looked down at Mandite. I heard faint voices.
"Mandite, you go first." She said, and gestured towards me. Mandite stepped back.
"No, it's -" All of a sudden, I felt rumbling beneath my feet. The ground was shaking, gradually growing stronger. I looked up to see in the distance the ravine being drowned. Crashing and tumbling through the dried riverbed was the long awaited snow melt, all at once, and all at a wrong time. The thirst-quenching water was coming rapidly as a flash flood, one with a deadly momentum. I felt my stomach drop out of me, and my eyes widened. Aurora and Mandite were still in the ravine – they could drown in a second, or knocked unconscious from the sheer power of the water. Anxiously, I yelled down to them.
"Hurry! It's a flash flood!" But it was too late – Aurora turned to where the thunderous rumbles sourced from. The water was close enough for her to see – she didn't have any time to climb out. I couldn't breathe; Aurora would not even stand a chance against that powerful torrent. It would drown her, and she would die. The whole world seem to move so slowly, only the sound of my heart beating remained as my surroundings were drained deaf. No, no – this can not be happening. I never felt so afraid, but not for myself. My friends were in that ravine, only moments guarding them from the crashing currents. And what could I do? I stood there, helpless – no one here was fast enough to rescue both people. Whitewater rushed towards them, its fingers grabbing greedily. I prepared for it to engulf Mandite and Aurora. I closed my eyes, wishing to stop seeing, to wake up and find it all a dream. But my aura vision kept sight on them. If this was the last time I'll ever see them, I will watch them till the end, as they give their last stand. During those seconds, my mind dwelt on Mandite. He was a good kid, funny and playful, with curious quirks. I wonder what his uncle would have done, but I pushed that aside. I turned my attention to Aurora, her breathtaking, intense eyes flaring defiantly in the face of death. She always had been brave, brave enough to keep a smile on her face in her everlasting hurt. So inquisitive, intelligent, and yet so young. I can not believe that this was the end – it just can not be. I had always shunned her aside, dismissing her, and only thinking on my concerns. Oh, Aurora, I'm so sorry. I only wish that I can take time backwards and make things right. You deserved more than what I gave you – you deserved a better friend. My heart was squeezed tight in a painful clench, aching from the iron grip. What will I do without Aurora? She was my constant friend, always there for me. I'm so sorry, Aurora. I promised I wouldn't let you drown under my watch, and yet here we are. I watched the two through my sight of aura, fear and overwhelming sadness engulfing me like the water about to swallow them.
But my eye caught a sudden shift in aura. Aurora stepped in front of Mandite and suddenly I was blinded by a flash of bright blue. I regained my sight, and saw a hemisphere of pulsating aura running around Aurora and Mandite, shielding them from the tide. I felt my mind go numb – to generate that shield, that must have required a large magnitude of aura, which Aurora luckily had. It would take large amplitude of aura and strength to keep it there. Once a aura manipulator has pushed passed comfortable using limits, it is painful to draw upon more aura that helps one live. How long can Aurora last? I watched her being slowly pushed back by the momentum of the water. Oh, Aurora, please hold on! I was still of no help – the water swiftly moved around the shield, meaning that I can be swept away before even readying myself to reinforce Aurora's barrier. I only can hope for Aurora and Mandite, and hope for the water to slow. But the torrent kept rushing, and through my special sight I saw the thick layer of aura, its smooth curving lights, becoming jagged. The shield was failing, breaking apart. If the water was not going to kill her, then the shattering of her own protection will. It was a deadly game on play. I watched the light become fractured, breaking into obvious segments. No, Aurora, please hold on... I was begging anxiously, my legs shaking from fright. Only if the water would slow down! I watched Aurora turn back to look at Mandite, and glance again at her shield. I knew she was guarding Mandite and herself, but how much longer could she last? The shield was soon going to implode, and it would kill her, and no one will be left to save Mandite from the strong currents. Aurora glanced back at Mandite, and then suddenly shifted her entire shield to face him. Seconds separated Aurora and the voluminous whitewater beast, and she summed her aura back together, and in one catastrophic move, she sent all of it into the ground in front of Mandite. Dirt, mud, and water flew into the air, along with Mandite. The force was powerful enough to send Mandite airborne, saving him from a death by drowning. But what of Aurora? I took a final glimpse of her, one brief second of her standing tall, eyes dancing in magenta flames, one last glimpse before the froth and fluid crashed upon her. I stopped breathing.
"AAAH!!!" Mandite fell onto the ground behind me. He groaned in pain.
"Ow, that hurt!" he mumbled, and rubbed his foot. I gazed into the foaming water. She was gone – gone. I can not believe it. It's too horrible to be true – I cannot live without Aurora, no matter how irritating her "what-ifs" were, no matter how demeaning it was to constantly watch her back for danger. I felt too empty. She cannot be dead, it simply wasn't realistic. My mind shut out all sounds from the world. I didn't want to hear Mandite complain about the impact that saved his life, nor the rushing water that murdered Aurora. I didn't want to hear anything. I shunned the world from my ears, my heart hurting. My breath came in short, ragged gasps. Only less than half an hour an ago we have been laughing with each other. Life changed too fast, too fast for her. Now she's gone. Aurora, I'm so sorry... You only wanted a friend – why couldn't I see that? I should have been nice to you in the first place. You should have been the one who climbed the ravine first. It should have been you who is standing here alive and I drowned. You deserved life. My thoughts, memories, and regrets raced through my mind as I closed my eyes, gritting my teeth, just to keep the world away from me. I did not want to see, feel, or hear anything anymore – I was that furious with myself.
But I cannot shut out telepathy. Through all of the silence, I heard the softest, the faintest sound. It was so weak, but yet I heard it.
[Lucario!] My eyes widened. I knew that voice. Aurora was alive – at the moment. Without thinking, I started running along the bank, trying to come closer to the source of the voice, but the voice called no more. I kept running, though, hoping that Aurora would call out again. She just had to.
"Lucario, what are you doing?!" Mandite cried, running to keep up with me.
"I heard her!" I yelled back, not even bothering to explain our telepathic bond. But Mandite didn't ask anything else, only keeping in stride with mine. Desperately, I called out through my mind.
[Aurora! Answer me!] I anxiously waited for a response. Only silence answered, and my heart filled with worry – did she pass out? [Aurora!]
[Lucario...] Aurora's voice was so faint in my mind. She didn't have much more time to hang onto her life. I thought – maybe I could find her if I was only fast enough. If running cannot get me there on time, maybe I can use the water's speed to aid me. I skidded to a stop. Mandite slowed his pace.
"Lucario, what are you doing?!" he said. I regained control of my breathing.
"I'm going in after her." I explained, and prepared to spring into the froth and spray. I heard Mandite call out to me.
"There must be another way!" Mandite cried, "What are you, crazy?!"
"Yes!" I didn't care how I answered the question. I leaped off the bank, and dove into the freezing water.