So I have news! The Jade and Onyx Arc, Part One: The Rebellion, is complete! Part Two is now out, and thanks to a review, someone specifically asked for me to update Enlightening the Soul, so I decided to hold up that promise and update!
Also, THERE'S FIVE HUNDRED REVIEWS on The Adventure Saga; The Beginning with Leaf Green. FIVE HUNDRED! That's insane! Thank you so much!
Amy47101 does not own pokémon, only Vale.
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The Adventure Saga
Enlightening the Soul
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Alarms blared, red lights began flashing off of the walls.
Silver whipped around as he felt the ship shake and rock. Lyra let out a shriek of surprise, and he glanced around again.
"Everyone! This is not a drill, we are crash landing! I repeat, this. Is. Not. A. Drill!"
"That's Krys!" Lyra shouted. There was another bone-jarring shake and horrible scraping noise and Silver felt himself grip Lyra's hand tightly. There was a loud thunder of footsteps, and Silver saw a stampede of grunts heading their way. He shoved the terrified brunette next to him against the wall, both of them flat as the grunts stormed past them. As they passed, he heard Ethan shouting about them crashing.
"Lyra, we've got to leave!" Silver exclaimed. He turned to Lyra, and found her pale and taking short quick breaths, tears streaming down her face, though her eyes were distant, as if she had checked out mentally. "Lyra?"
"We're gonna die." she stated, and repeated it, over and over. "We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die." Suddenly, she just collapsed, Silver barely catching her and holding her up by her arms as she lowered her to the ground. "We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die...!"
"No, Lyra." Silver stated. He knew what this was. This was shock. No doubt she was already in a fragile state of mind with this entire series of events, and a crash landing may just be enough to push her over the edge. "Lyra, look at me." he reached up, hesitantly and, despite a rather annoying voice in his mind telling him that he was getting to close to her, cupped her face in his hands and forced her light brown eyes to meet his silver ones. "Deep breath, okay? Follow me."
He inhaled deeply. Lyra attempted to do so as well, but failed as she began shaking and returning to the quick gasps.
"No. Deep breaths." Silver said. He inhaled, then exhaled. Lyra tried again. He inhaled, she inhaled. Both exhaled. A few moments later, she had calmed down to the point where Silver no longer felt the need to worry about her safety. He dropped his hands down and stood, helping the brunette stand. "We have to get going." he said, turning away. He was about to start moving again, but suddenly felt a tug on his left arm. He turned back to see Lyra, with her head bent down, some of her hair shading her eyes.
"Silver, promise me we're not gonna die."
"Lyra-"
"Just promise!" she snipped back, snapping her head up to look at him. Silver knew the likelihood of them surviving this was slim to none, since he could think of a thousand ways that they could die. No doubt that this thing made contact with the ground, the containers holding fuel would explode. If they were to close to that, they would be engulfed in flames. To far away, they'd be blocked by fire and die of smoke inhalation. Somewhere in between, they'd be scorched by flames, most likely suffering third-degree burns and being unable to move.
Judging by the scraping noise that occurred every few seconds, they were brushing the tree's of some sort of forest. It sounded as if someone was trying to gain altitude, since there was a significant jarring of the ship as it raised into the air then the horrible scraping again as it dropped. So they were still high in the air, and he knew his Golbat couldn't hold both of them at once. Lyra wouldn't leave without him, and he knew that if he left without her, the guilt that he felt when he scolded her for gambling back in Goldenrod would come back, only a million times worse because he left her on the ship, and ran. Like a coward.
So that left jumping. No doubt the trees were native, meaning maples or oaks, both which have an average height of eighty to a hundred feet. Depending on the variables, he knew that the drop would either kill them, paralyze them, or break a few bones. They wouldn't walk away unscathed. If he was right and the fuel exploded upon contact, then no doubt the forest would catch fire as well. If they got out, this gave them a minimal amount of time to escape the fire. But with broken bones, possible paralysis, or Arceus forbid, death, getting out would be impossible.
Either way, they were completely and utterly fucked.
Which is why his next words surprised him.
"We won't die." he nodded firmly. "I'll make sure of it." Moron! A voice in the back of his head screamed. The one time lying wasn't going to help him, he lied! He was a moron!
"O-Okay!" Lyra exclaimed, a spark of determination in her eyes. "What are we going to do?"
"We find the nearest exit," Silver stated slowly. And jump. The afterthought occurred in his mind, but knew that this wouldn't make their likelihood of surviving any more likely... But if he was going to die, he was going to die trying to keep Lyra alive.
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"How could this be happening?!" Vale exclaimed as she bolted up, but something hindered her movements. Dizziness washed over her at her all to sudden movement, and she place a hand to her head. The constant shaking of the aircraft did not help her much.
"Vale! We need to get out!" Hood, or as Vale had so sweetly dubbed him, exclaimed.
"Thanks, Captain Obvious!" she shot back, loosing her patience. The ship shook again and she scowled. This was not helping her vertigo! She felt Hood grab her arm and bolted into the hallway, half dragging half leading her. She tried to keep her spare hand over her scars as the room spun around her. She was beginning to have trouble discerning what was the floor and what was a wall. She stumbled to the side.
"Wh-What is this?" Vale asked. A side effect? What did that deranged psychopath do do her?
"Vale?" Hood asked, pausing to look back at her. The ship shook dangerously again, and he, for a brief moment, she supposed, panicked. Suddenly, he had swooped her up over one of shoulders, and was bolting through the hallways at an impossibly fast speed. This briefly surprised Vale, since whenever she saw him, he sorta shuffled slowly, as if he hadn't a care of where he was going and how quickly he got there.
Now they were bolting as quickly as possible. Vale felt the dizziness wash over her again, and her stomach lurched in discomfort.
"Arceus, Hood!" she exclaimed. "Hood, I'm going to puke!" she kicked out her legs and began pounding on his back. "Put me down!"
"Vale!" he exclaimed as she rolled of his shoulder, and felt herself heaving, though not quite puking. She sat up with one hand against her head and her eyes closed tight. He glanced around, then grabbed her arm.
"Hood, seriously don't lift me up ag-" she didn't get to finish. Hood had located the pressure point near her elbow. She suddenly slumped over and Hood caught her falling form before she hit the floor.
"Sorry Vale." he muttered as he hefted her over his shoulder again and continued to bolt through the hallways.
He saw the open gate where assumed most of the grunts escaped with flying-type pokémon. He glanced down from the hatch, the whirling winds nearly blowing his hood off. As he held his hood on his head, a natural reflex like Vale covering her scars, he supposed, he glanced around,seeing nothing but trees. He swallowed nervously. He's done this before, without his father looking, but mostly with two hands. He's never attempted with one hand, let alone one hand as the other held another human being in place.
"Not just any human being," the voice in the back of his head stated. "But your first and only human friend." He studied the trees again, then caught sight of what he was looking for. He took a deep breath, remembering his pokémon friends, then took a running leap. He leapt off the ship, and for a brief moment, anti-gravity took hold, and he felt at peace, like he was floating.
Then gravity kicked in and he was falling. He, however, was focused. He reached out his spare hand and grabbed a bunch of the string shot webbing that Wurmple and Spinark tended to leave behind. He had learned that the threads, while sticky at first, would solidify after about a week of contact with air, loosing their stickiness, and forming what was similar to the sturdy vines that grass types often produced.
He soared through the trees, landing expertly on a branch, much to his own surprise and relief. He hopped up higher, the aircraft dangerously close to crashing. Cringing from the possibility, he placed his forefinger and his thumb in his mouth and whistled, loudly. To his relief, pokémon that hadn't already fled popped out. An abundance of water types, in fact.
"Everyone!" he shouted from the treetop. "There's an airship that's going to crash soon! There may be a fire, so please, use your water attacks, or if one of you have it, rain dance to put it out!"
He glanced back up at the ship, surprised when he saw two figures jump. At first, he thought they were simply straggling grunts, as the others haver jumped the minute the alarm went off. He nearly facepalmed then. If he had thought this through, he could've grabbed some of the parachutes that were hidden throughout the airship. He and Vale could've jumped with a parachute rather than him nearly risking both their lives with his crazy jumping stunt!
He shook his head. He was thinking, heck, no one was! It was a situation of survival. He glanced back to the two who jumped, then widened his eyes, seeing that neither seemed to have a parachute that grunts were required to have on or near them while in flight. He saw a flash of red come from one of them. He heard a female shriek, and realized that the one who was being lifted by a Golbat. He wondered, for a brief moment, why she was screaming since she seemed safe, but realized why.
That was not her Golbat. It was her comapanions'. Wether male or female, he could not tell. He would say female due to his long red hair, but who was he to talk? Regardless... Her companion was still falling.
It seemed like split seconds. He had no idea what to do. He had no idea who these people were. He had no idea why he should care. His father always told him that humans only hurt one another and creatures around them. It's what they strived to do. But they were different. He, and his father, set out to save others. To help them. He was told that he was extremely special. Unique. Important. Destined for greatness.
But he just saw the redhead willingly save the girl! It made no sense. It went against everything he knew. He knew he couldn't just watch him kill himself, though...!
Suddenly, he was bolting, with Vale still over his shoulder, leaping through trees and on branches, trying to get as high as possible to reach him. He knew he had to time this just right, if he didn't. He'd no doubt hurt or kill not only himself, but let the redhead fall to his own death and maybe even harming Vale.
Arceus, did he have a lot to loose.
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Silver rushed towards the exit, and looked over the edge. Lyra let out a small gasp, gripping her bag tightly. He swallowed. It was a long way down.
"H-How are we going to survive?!" Lyra exclaimed. Silver cast a glare at her.
"Those branches and leaves will break our fall!" he shouted over the billowing winds. "We're going to jump!"
"No way!" Lyra shouted. "We'll be killed!"
"I promised we'd survive, remember?!" Silver shot back. "Do you trust me or so you not?!"
"Of course I do!" Lyra shouted back. Silver wasn't surprised by her immediate answer, he's come to understand that she was extremely trusting. To trusting. How she could be, he couldn't understand. How she could trust him of all people astounded him. He was the dictionary definition of a bad kid. Someone anyone else would take the time to avoid. But she approached him casually, like they were old friends.
If his heart wasn't made of ice and he hadn't abandoned all emotions, he would say the unwanted friendship was heartwarming and sweet.
But he was Silver and he wanted to stab his brain for even thinking the words 'heartwarming' and 'sweet'.
"Then jump!" he shouted.
"Wait!" she exclaimed.
"What!"
"I have a request! If I die, please take my pokémon and treat them well! Tell my mother that I wanna be buried next to dad! And tell her despite what she's done to me, I forgive her and I love her and I'm sorry!" he swallowed. She trusted him... and wanted him to carrying out her will if she died?! But then again... There were two people he wanted to know about his death.
"I have a request as well." he responded, quietly. "Find my Mom! Her name is Ariana Sakaki, maiden name, Athena! Make sure you defeat the Masked Rockets! Free Vale from Mask! Help her! I want you to have her train my pokémon! Give them to her! Understand?" she nodded. "And... And one more thing."
"What?" Lyra asked.
"Show her... Show her the same kindness and friendship you showed me, got it?!" he spat it out as quickly as he could, feeling his face heat up, even though he tried to suppress it. "I want my sister to know there's good people out there, because thus far people have done nothing but fuck her over, okay?!"
"I will! I promise!" she shouted. The ship shuddered dangerously, both cringing with fear of falling out. "Hold my hand!" she shot back, tearing up. "Please! If I'm going to die, I want to die knowing I'm holding the hand of someone important to me!"
"Important?!" Silver exclaimed in his mind. He glanced down, and slowly intertwined her fingers with his, and she squeezed his hand out of nervousness. "Ready?!" he shouted. Lyra let out a shuddery breath.
"Yeah!" she shouted. Silver squeezed her hand back, took a deep breath. "On the count of three?!"
"One!" Silver shouted.
"Two!" Lyra shouted. He cast her a glance. She had her eyes squeezed shut, tears falling down her face. She really thought she was gonna die. Silver grabbed his pokéball containing his Golbat, gripping it tightly in his other hand. No. She wasn't dying on his watch.
"Three!" he shouted, both leaning forward. The minute they were falling, Silver felt the fedora on his head fly off, Lyra's flower crown soon after. "Golbat!" he shouted. Lyra snapped her eyes open.
"Silver!" she exclaimed.
"Take Lyra!" he ordered. Golbat seemed to pause for a moment, as if not quite believing his trainer's order to save the other one. "What are you waiting for, you stupid bat?!" Silver shouted. "Take. Lyra. NOW!" This seemed to snap the pokémon out of it's shock. It quickly moved to latching it's rounded legs around one wrist, then moved to the hand that was intertwined with Silver's hand.
"Silver, no!" she shouted.
"Lyra, let go!" he exclaimed as her grip tightened.
"No!"
"Let go!" Silver shouted, wrenching his hand away. Suddenly, Lyra jerked to a stop, Golbat holding her up by her wrists and he was falling, faster, faster, faster.
"No! Silver!" Lyra screamed. "SILVER!"
Was this suicide, he wondered. Suicide was the act of killing oneself intentionally. What is the word for killing oneself if you were saving someone's life in the process? Was there such a word? He had no idea. He didn't know if it was denial or not, but he didn't believe he was committing suicide. People who committed suicide were weaklings that couldn't deal with life. He could deal with life just fine. He had to face reality. One of them had to walk away unscathed. And it was going to by Lyra, not him.
Something suddenly grabbed his coat, and he grunted in surprise and discomfort. He was hoisted up, mid-air, so that an arm was around his waist, holding him under the arm. His eyes flitted around dangerously as he tried to figure out who saved him. All he saw was the front of a gray hoodie. To his right, he caught sight of legs, someone wearing black leggings and white boots. They landed precariously on another branch, the savior nearly loosing his balance.
Silver let out another grunt of surprise as they began jumping down the branches. As they landed on the ground, the ship made contact with the ground, letting out an earsplitting crash. Silver cringed at the sound, but was surprised by what happened: There was no fire.
He waited a moment. Then several more. Then moments became minutes. No smoke. No heated flames. No nothing. He nearly laughed out loud at this. He was so worried about a fire, and there was none!
"Silver!" he heard Lyra shout. The person who saved him has put him down.
"Are you okay?" he asked awkwardly. Silver widened his eyes.
"You! You're that weirdo from the Contest Hall!"
"Weirdo?" he responded. He widened his eyes as he caught a better look at who was slung over his shoulder.
"Hey-!"
"Silver! Oh my Arceus, don't ever do that again!" Lyra exclaimed as she tackled him in a hug. Her chin was resting on his shoulder while he just kinda sat there in shock. "I was scared! You... You idiot! I thought you were gonna... gonna die!" she was crying, practically hysterical at this point. "You promised we wouldn't and I thought you were gonna die!"
"I'm fine." he stated, slightly pushing her off as he stood. He turned to address the hooded teen. "Why are you carrying Vale?"
"She's my friend." he stated simply.
"Like Vale would be friends with a weirdo like you!" Silver shot back. "Why are you carrying her?! Are you going to take her back to Mask?!"
"Mask?" he wondered. "You mean Father?"
"Oh, you're the ass's son?" Silver snarled. "His legit son?"
"... Yes?" he said this slowly, as if unsure it was the right answer.
"Put Vale down." Silver said. This seemed to surprise the hooded teen, and he stepped back.
"No." he responded. "I won't."
"You will." Silver growled. "Or I'll make you."
"I-I can't!" his voice shook. "Just... leave us alone!" then he turned and bolted.
"Hey!" Silver exclaimed, getting up to chase him.
"Silver!" Lyra exclaimed. "We can't right now! We have to find Ethan and Krys, they might not have made it off!"
"But-"
"We'll see Vale again, I'm sure. Just... Just let it go, okay?" Lyra asked. Silver blinked, then scowled, looking away.
"Fine."
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Hood slowed to a run when he was sure that the redhead was not going to follow him. He stopped in a clearing, gently setting Vale down to rest. He was surprised that Vale hadn't woken up yet. Hopefully she'd be up soon... but he was sure she'd need the rest.
He glanced around a bit, and widened his eyes as he saw a crown of pink flowers land off to the side. Glancing at Vale, he slowly walked over and picked it up, surprised to see that they were fake. They looked so real! It was amazing. The beauty would never die...
He glanced at Vale, and moved over to her. He slowly lifted her up by the shoulders, placing the crown gently on her head. He smiled. She looked very odd like that. Very odd, but also very pretty. The pink was a complete opposite of the usual black that she always wore. He sometimes wished she'd wear a different color. Black only made her look paler, almost sickly. That made him sad.
"Son." he stiffened at the voice, and slowly looked up.
"Father." he stated. "I'm sorry. I found her on the ship and she was staggering... I knocked her out and carried her to safety, here."
"What's this?" he asked, pointing to the flower crown on her head. Hood, looked down.
"I thought she would look pretty like that." he said. "And I was correct." The afterthought occurred but briefly, only flitting through his mind for a moment.
"Vale doesn't need anything to make her look pretty. She is an ugly, cowardly creature. She is scarred and pale. She hides behind a mask. She hides her fear and ugliness. You see, son," Mask stated, taking the flower crown from her head. "Vale is an ungodly creature." he dropped the crown, and crushed it under his feet. "And she was never meant to be 'pretty'. Understand?"
"Yes sir."
"Are you... friends?" he asked.
"But it's gotta stay a secret. Arceus knows what will happen if he knew..."
Vales voice echoed in his head, as he shook his head.
"No, father. I was wandering the ship because I was bored, and I found her staggering as the ship was crashing."
"I see." he paused, bending down and turning Vale over. On the belt that wound around her skirt, holding it in place. Six pokéballs were lined up evenly. He took one out, and released the creature inside. Hood recognized it as a Gallade. "Teleport these two back to base. I still have some business I must to attend to." he placed the shrunken pokéball back on her belt. "Son. I will be back soon. I want to see you in your room. We've got more to talk about later."
"Yes Father." Hood stated as Mask turned and walked away. The Gallade glanced over at the duo, tilting his head as Hood took the flower crown and tucked it into his pocket. "I want to keep it." he stated, smiling slightly as he picked Vale up, bridal style. "It'll symbolize my first human friendship."
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So. Damn. Tired. Just... UGGGGGGGHHHH. If there are typos or grammar mistakes in the end, that's why.
Amy47101 signing off! ^.^