Chapter Eight- Scarce Loyalty

Airi rose up from the small bed in Valiance's cottage. She surveyed the surrounding area, looking for anything of note. The room was medium sized, with two doors that led to the bathroom and kitchen respectively. The exit was on the opposite side of the bed, with a small bookcase and a window next to it. She stood up from the bed and wandered over to the window, peering outside. She could no longer feel the stares she had felt from before. Airi let out a long sigh, resting her face on her hand as she looked into the night sky, counting the endless stars. She counted them for a whole minute, stopping as bright ball of red flew into the sky. It soon faded into the night, before a loud, earth shaking roar sounded in the distance.

"What…?" Airi gasped, carefully opening the front door. Another roar came from the distance, causing her to hide behind the door. Was Mr. Valiance alright? Airi wondered, glancing around the area for his presence. She slowly stepped outside, staring towards the direction of the flare. She surveyed the area once more, before gritting her teeth and running towards the forest.

…...

Blythe sat back, watching Feral closely as the ship beached on the island. Feral hastily hopped down, gesturing for the crew to follow him. Once a majority of the crew had exited, leaving about five members besides him, Blythe tossed out a Pokeball, releasing a Crawdaunt. Two of the remaining crewmates tossed out a Quagsire and a Pelipper, using them to throw the other three overboard.

"Deal with the Wailord!" Blythe commanded Fafnir, rushing to the nose of the ship. He stood over the crew, pointing at Feral. "I challenge you, Feral! I'm taking my ship back!"

Feral let out a toothy snarl as a smaller group of the crew broke off, sending out Pokemon of their own. He glared at the pirates who remained at his side. "Kill them all!"

"With pleasure!" The metal toothed woman sneered, sending out an Omastar. "You traitors are doomed!"

…...

"Well, looks like it's now or never!" Fredricks shrugged as he opened up Draco and the others' cell. "Get out there!"

"Thank you!" Draco nodded, sending out Dratini and rushing up the staircase. He, Mailys, Wake, and Indigo all reached the top of the ship, stopping in front of his father. "Dad!"

"Well, this is certainly much more unexpected than expected…" His father sighed, glancing out to the sea. The entire ship rocked as the Wailord slammed its massive body against it, sending Indigo and Mailys overboard. Draco and his father glanced over nonchalantly, watching as the two emerged from the water. Mailys looked around with a visible snarl. "...And that's all you, son."

"...Good luck with the Wailord." Draco shrugged, as his father sent out and mounted his Dragonite. He placed Dratini onto his head, as his father took flight, and jumped off the ship into the water below. He landed beside Mailys, splashing her with water. "Sup?"

"Thanks for that…" She groaned, splashing water back at him, before slowly wading towards the shore.

"Man overboard!" Wake shouted from above, face planting into the water, splashing all three of them. He recovered after a brief moment and looked at the rest of the group. "You didn't see that."

"Let's just help the sort of good guys…" Indigo sighed, standing up from the water and walking through the shallow water. The rest of the group followed after, joining the battle. Indigo sent out a Marshtomp as a random pirate attacked them with a Cloyster. "Rock Slide!"

"Cloyster, use Icicle Spear!" The pirate retaliated. The Cloyster fired a volley of sharp icicles at Marshtomp, who swiftly evaded the attack. Marshtomp summoned a storm of boulders that struck the enemy. Cloyster was sent flying back into its trainer, rendering the duo unconscious.

"Next!" Indigo challenged, waving for another pirate to attack him. Draco noticed Feral fleeing into the forest as the metal and rotten toothed pirates halted Blythe's chase.

"I'm going after the big lizard!" Draco announced, using his smaller size to evade the pirates with Dratini still on his head.

"Draco wait up!" Mailys shouted as she chased after him. Wake attempted to follow, only to be cut off by two pirates. He tossed out a Kingler and began to battle his way through the pirates alongside his son.

…...

Airi reached the source of the flare, looking around the area. The surroundings were completely normal, with no signs of any activity from anyone. She winced as a loud, deafening roar came from behind her. She twisted around to face a massive Feraligatr in a torn coat and a black tricorn.

"You!" The Pokemon spoke up, pointing its claw at her. "Did you do this!? Where are my boys!?"

"Y-you can talk!?" Airi gasped, falling on her bottom. She kicked up dirt as she tried to run away. "H-how!?"

"Answer me!" The Pokemon bellowed, causing the entire forest to tremble. His top jaw went up like a pair of pliers as he lunged for her. Before he could reach her, he was knocked away by a swift strike from a Dratini.

"Airi!" Draco and Mailys called out simultaneously, appearing behind the Feraligatr. Airi hastily took the opportunity to toss out Kirlia.

"Confusion!" Airi directed. Kirlia fired a blast of psychic energy at the Feraligatr, causing it to stagger. "Another one!"

"Extreme Speed!" Draco assisted. Dratini shot forward with blinding speed, striking at the Feraligatr from numerous directions. Kirlia quickly blasted the Feraligatr with more psychic energy, knocking it on its back.

"This is why I hate kids!" The Feraligatr wailed, clawing the ground as it stood back up.

"You two can do it!" Mailys cheered from behind Draco. "Water is weak to Grass!"

"Grass, huh?" Airi pondered as Dratini charged the Feraligatr once again. It let out another roar, grabbing Dratini before it could strike. "Magical Leaf!"

"What a great snack-" The Feraligatr attempted to speak, only to get struck by a storm of glowing leaves, causing it to drop Dratini. The storm blew away the tricorn it was wearing, carrying it to the shore in the distance. The Feraligatr looked at the group in rage. "That's it! I'm not playing around anymore!"

…...

"Dragonite! Thunderbolt!" Fafnir ordered his Dragonite as he flew over the Wailord. Dragonite charged electricity in his antennae, before firing a bolt of electricity into the water, forcing Wailord to jump out. Fafnir observed it, noticing that it was much larger than a regular Wailord. Its exuded an oddly ferocious aura, sending a chill down Fafnir's spine. "Another one!"

The Wailord jumped from the water as Dragonite charged electricity, slamming its massive body against him, sending the duo further in the air. Dragonite quickly zapped the Wailord as it fell back down to the water, causing a massive splash of water to hit the boat. The Wailord retaliated with a blast of water from its blowhole, hitting Fafnir and Dragonite directly, knocking the two back again.

"This thing…" Fafnir growled, noticing that Dragonite was already panting. He noticed that Wake and Indigo were slowly routing the pirates who had remained loyal to Feral. "Looks like this thing really all we can help with, Dragonite…" He chuckled, wearily.

Dragonite let out a passionate roar, charging another bolt of electricity.

"Let's give it all we got!" Fafnir motivated, swinging his arm forward. Dragonite flew back as Wailord fired up another stream of water, narrowly evading the blast. Dragonite let loose another Thunderbolt, forcing the Wailord up once again. It launched itself towards the duo once more, its mouth wide open. "Take it out!"

Dragonite let out a roar once more, firing a blast of fire into the Wailord's mouth, forcing it closed. The Wailor coughed up smoke as it tilted into the air, facing its nose to the sea below. Dragonite dashed to the other side of the Wailord, revealing its vulnerable stomach. Dragonite covered himself in a blue flame and slammed into the Wailord's belly. Wailord's entire body undulated as the attack hurled it towards the beach. It landed on its back with a resounding thud, kicking up sand and dirt.

"I... didn't even plan that…" Fafnir gawked, petting Dragonite. "Good work. Let's get a move on, partner!"

…...

Blythe faced down Mags and Slugg by himself, keeping at an even footing with the duo. He gestured to the side as his Crawdaunt managed to defeat them with ease as Fredricks and the Wakes defeated the remaining traitors.

"I'm outta here!" Mags panicked, trying to run away along the beach.

"Wait up!" Slugg retreated alongside her and the defeated crew. Without warning, the Wailord was launched from the ocean, landing in front of the retreating group. Blythe looked overhead as Fafnir Fang flew into the forest.

"Not bad." He complimented, walking up to his traitorous crew. They all held up their hands, with a few getting on their knees. "Now then. Anything to say?"

"We're sorry, Captain!" Slugg apologized, bowing his head. "It was Mags' idea to follow the lizard!"

"He promised us more money than we could imagine! Surely you understand!" Mags rationalized. "Please don't kill us!"

"Kill you?" Blythe scoffed, walking behind the two. "I'm not a fan of killing. That'd be a waste of resources, see?" Blythe informed, placing his arms around the two. "You're right about understanding, Mags! Instead of wasting resources, I'm gonna do what pirates do best! Be an opportunist!" He announced, holding his arms in the air. "A talking Feraligatr! Do you know how much an egghead and or a billionaire of questionable sanity and morals would pay for that? I say we repay Feral by selling him!"

"Yeah!" The entire crew celebrated, healing their Pokemon for the upcoming battle. Blythe noticed a familiar hat on the shore and made his way towards it.

"Welcome back my old friend." Blythe snickered as he picked up his captain's hat. He dusted it off and placed it firmly on his head.

…...

Feral reeled back as Draco's Dratini struck him once again, before Airi's Kirlia followed it up with another Magical Leaf. Feral's nostrils steamed up and he opened his mouth, charging a blue orb inside. He bit down as he was struck by electricity, shattering the orb.

"It's over! I defeated your Wailord!" Draco's father announced as he landed beside them. His Dragonite was visibly drained, but clearly still capable of fighting.

"How!?" Feral snapped, backed into a corner.

"Lots of Thunderbolts." Draco's father joked, letting out a long sigh. Feral growled once more, kicking up dirt with his tail. The dirt hit the entire group, causing them to reel back in surprise.

"I'm not losing here!" He howled, barreling past the four of them back to the beach.

"After him!" Mailys commanded, chasing the Feraligatr with the rest of the group. They finally caught up at the beach, noticing that the pirates who turned against Blythe corned them and Feral.

"Ready the ship! We're leaving!" Feral demanded, pointing his claw at the leaders.

"I'm afraid that my crew doesn't work for you anymore." Blythe informed, stepping up from the crowd. The pirates all snickered to themselves as they prepared their Pokeballs. Blythe leaned back, laughing at Feral. "Look at him! Beaten by a couple of kids! How tough can he be!?" Blythe argued, pointing his hand towards Feral. "Ignoring the fact that he beat me! Y'know what..." Blythe scratched his forehead. "...Just get him."

"You…" Feral growled, turning to run down the beach away from the group. The pirates all sent out their Pokemon, from Crawdaunt to Barbaracle to Blastoise. The myriad of Pokemon all pelted Feral with their attacks as he attempted to escape, forcing him to jump around to evade. He knocked away a Tentacruel with his tail, launching it behind him at his pursuers. His enormous feet shook the ground and tore up the sand as he struggled to get away.

"Stone Edge!" Fredricks commanded a Barbaracle. It blasted a volley of jagged rocks at Feral, striking him directly in the back. Feral let out a pained howl as he landed face down in the sand. He instantly brushed off the attack and crawled away on all fours. He skittered towards a tree, ripping it from the ground and hurling it at the pirates. Blythe instinctively ducked below the tree, dodging it as it landed on three pirates behind him. The rest of the pirates quickly clambered over the obstacle with absolute ease.

"No!" Feral shrieked, forming a blue orb in his maw. He charged the orb, before twisting around to blast the ground behind him in a broad sweep. The bright blue beam froze the land before them, creating a massive wall of ice.

Blythe halted in front of the wall, looking both ways, before sprinting towards the ocean. He cut around the ice, preparing his Pokeball. "Damn!" He growled after glancing around, stomping on the sand. A few of the remaining pirates joined him, only to turn around in disappointment.

"He got away?" Fafnir inquired as he and the others caught up. Blythe shook his head as he kicked up more sand.

"'Fraid so." He answered, brushing off his hat. "He surely would've sold for a high price…" He groaned, turning to look at the defeated Wailord in the distance. "Then again, I'm sure we'll get quite the pay for that one."

"Have you seen anything like it before?" Fafnir pondered.

"I have." Blythe informed, nodding his head in affirmation. "We capture these… feral Pokemon and sell them to the eggheads at the League. They said its some kind of disease." He shrugged. "I don't care personally as long as I get paid."

"I'll have to look into that." Fafnir muttered to himself. He shook his head, before turning to face Wake. "So, now that we took care of your sea monster, what do you want to do?"

"I'm gonna take a long nap." Wake stretched, looking out to the sea. As if on cue, the sun began to reveal itself in the distance. "I hate staying up past my bedtime."

"Also Airi's back." Draco reminded, holding up his finger. Fafnir turned to face the young girl, letting out a gentle smile.

"Glad to see you safe, lass." He expressed. "So, mind telling me what happened to you?"

"I met a nice man." Airi giggled. "He let me stay in his cottage."

"Uh…" Mailys coughed. "Did he… do anything creepy?"

"...Surprisingly not." Airi chuckled with a shrug. "He was really… stern. Stern, but nice. Wonder where he went?" She pondered, tilting her head. "He said his name was Valiance."

"That's a weird name." Draco commented.

"I'll have look into that later as well…" Fafnir yawned, rubbing his eyes. Blythe stretched as he walked up to the group.

"I'll take you all home. It's the least I can do to repay you for your help." He offered, gesturing to his boat. He turned to face Wake and Indigo. "And don't worry 'Captain', we'll go back to being enemies tomorrow."

"...Sounds swell." Wake let out a weary smile. "Got anything strong on that boat of yours?"

"Lots!" Blythe laughed happily.

"Then let's get on home!" Wake let out a hearty laugh.

…...

Feral emerged on another side of the island, stepping onto the large rocks that lined the cove. He climbed up the cliff, shambling onto the the grass as he searched around. He glanced back to the sea, noticing that the pirate ship had begun to leave. "Ya haven't seen the last of me… I'll be back! I'll have a whole army of my kind! We'll destroy all of ya!" He roared at the top of his lungs.

"...Pirates, really?" A terribly familiar voice insulted from behind him. Feral twisted to look at the forest, glaring at the red eyed, green haired man. He dressed himself in a long coat, with a single straight saber sheathed on his right side. "How far you've fallen, G1-W3, Feral. How very far indeed."

"G2-P5…" Feral snarled, glaring at the man. "Gallant. Are you the one who…?"

"Fired your friend's flare?" Gallant finished his sentence, tossing forward a blue stone. "That belonged to G1-W2, Blast." He informed, pulling out a flare gun. "However, I'm afraid he wasn't the one who fired off the flare."

"A… trap…" Feral snarled, feeling every last cell in his body tremble. His breathing began to grow harsher as he curled back his lips. He straightened his back to stand up tall, looking down on Gallant. "Yer a dead man."

Gallant remained perfectly still, watching Feral's every movement. Feral bellowed loudly, shaking the entire ground. He split his image into two, then four, then six, then eight.

"Which one's the real me!? One of my boys taught me this neat trick!" Feral boasted, every image of himself speaking as one. "Special Technique! Double-"

Feral was cut off as Gallant slashed down his chest in less than a nanosecond. With a sigh, Gallant backed away from Feral, sheathing his weapon.

"How… did… ya… know?" Feral coughed, toppling over. Gallant knelt over his body, holding a radio to his mouth.

"This is Gallant." Gallant announced, speaking to his intelligence operator, Maria. "Mission successful. The targets have been eliminated."

"Excellent work, Gallant! Remember to retrieve anything and everything of use!" Maria congratulated in a restrained, yet peppy tone. "I'll begin the report." She informed. "Should I mention the girl you found?"

Gallant gazed out to the boat in the distance, watching as it slowly disappeared into the horizon. "The girl? If only she listened to my order…"

"Gallant?" Maria questioned, her voice full of worry. "Are you alright?"

"...The girl left the cottage last night." Gallant alluded. "You can guess what happened."

"I-I'm sorry for your loss..." Maria sympathized. "I'll refrain from mentioning it in the report. Get some rest."

"Of course." Gallant sneered, putting away his communicator. "Airi. You were quite… adorable? Yes. Adorable. Cuter than that witch in every way." He chuckled, a warm smile forming on his lips as he stared out to the vast ocean. "Let's hope you don't do anything foolish."