Author's Corner.
Lightning: Ohayo-de arimasu! This is your number one cowboy-catboy-hero speaking! Slybill is happy to announce that his writer's block has finally lifted so expect some more action soon! He's also hard at work with the movie so keep your eyes peeled! Lastly, there's a few things I have to clear up-de arimasu. Ahem!*Raises finger*
To Omega the omniscient and Riolutae: IT'S HILBERT- DE ARIMASU! NOT GILBERT, NOT ALBERT AND CERTAINLY NOT SHERBERT! GET IT RIGHT, BAKA!
To PikaMewGirl: I'm honoured to have captured your heart...but mine belongs to one woman and one woman only-de arimasu! But however, however but! That may be subject to change according to Sly- de arimasu!
To PokeToddSweeny: I know where you live. Nuff said-de arimasu.
To Riolutae: I just had to let it out now. RIOLUTAE'S A SHE- DE ARIMASU!
Everyone: TAIHEN DA!
DISCLAIMER: SLYBILL IS TOO MINDBLOWN BY THE ABOVE REVELATION TO OWN POKEMON. WHAT NEXT, OMEGA IS ACTUALLY A GUY?!
Underground Plasma Castle, Unova Region.
Draco slipped on his waistcoat and began working on his cuff-links before rolling his crimson eyes as his sensitive ears picked up the loud bang on the floor above him.
"What the fuck is with your strength?!" he heard their gothic visitor exclaim.
"Can you not swear everytime you speak?" another voice, most likely Alphinia's, replied haughtily. "Besides, machinery like this is easy, human."
"That's what you always say...and why d'you keep calling me human, human?"
A very audible growl echoed through the corridors and Draco was fairly certain of what was coming next.
"Are you...growling at me?" Camille asked.
"No, that's what my stomach makes whenever I see A-cup humans. Of course I'm growling, goth!"
Silence ensued for the next couple of seconds before another crash reverberated throughout the halls.
"Take that back, Bitch!"
"Get off me, bug!"
"Bimbo!"
"Tiny!"
"Saber-tooth!"
"Magma-brain!"
"Blonde!"
"Imp!"
"Sagging-breasts!"
"They do NOT sag!"
"Oh yeah? Let's see about that!"
The sound of fabric ripping and Alphinia screaming was enough to make Draco arch an eyebrow.
Silence.
Silence.
"Woah...your boobs are huge..."
"..."
"...Can I touch 'em?"
"..."
"..."
"GET OFF ME, YOU PERVERTED TRASH-Mmph...urggh..."
"Eew! You're bleeding on me again!"
That was Draco's signal to step in and in a split-second, he was walking into Camille's workroom with a roll of bandages and his ever-oblivious smile.
"Time to change your bandages, Alphy!" he said in his sing-song voice.
"I'm...okay," the blonde hissed raggedly, wiping the blood off her mouth and stumbling to her feet.
"I trust that the workload isn't too much for you, Camie?" he continued, shifting his gaze to the other girl, whose greasy top now sported a splash of red.
"It's a little...bizarre...but nothing I can't handle," she replied before walking up to a long, white work-table littered with various small machine-parts, tools and diagrams. "I've even got some new results too. Your equipment is really top-notch."
"It's only because we've got a genius-technician to use 'em," the knight replied with a laugh as he led his sister to a seat. "Let's see what you've got."
Head swelling with pride, the goth strolled over to one side of the table and picked up a couple of bullet-shaped devices.
"Dragon Slayers," she proclaimed and selected one pellet before flicking it at the test-model, a Salamence-shaped mannequin. Upon contact, the pellet opened up into a four-cornered hook, rooting itself into the model. Instantly, it glowed and before long, the fake-Salamence was enveloped in a net-like material that crackled with energy.
"What does it do...?" Alphinia asked, wincing as her brother lifted her blood-soaked top. Her question was answered as the orange energy glowed brightly and the model deflated in a matter of seconds. "Huh...?"
"Elementary my dear bimbo," Camille replied, earning a growl from the blonde. "It coats the pokémon in a laser field that emulates a Giga Drain. The bigger and stronger the dragon-type, the more energy it loses to the field. Struggling doesn't help as it only drains the energy faster."
"Convenient," Draco remarked.
"That ain't all. Depending on the function, these Dragon Slayers can either reflect the pokémon's moves back at it or, for control-purposes, convey the user's feelings to subdue the target. Like a Capture Styler and a Pokéball rolled into one."
"Amazing," Draco exclaimed. "Where would we be without you?"
Camille blushed and rubbed her head in slight embarrassment. "I could only get this far with the specs you gave me. And the other scientists deserve some credit too for helping me." Although the specifications look very, very similar to that of a certain someone I know...
"If memory serves, there was one item of more importance," she heard the man add. "Is it ready?"
"Yeah..." she replied slowly and walked up to a far end of the lab before pulling out a long, metallic case labelled DANGER across its shiny surface. "I still don't know what it will be used for...or why you even fucking need it but I'll assume it's really important."
Her fingers trailed the locks before snapping them open and lifting the top off. Cold gas billowed from the case making Alphinia shiver a little.
"It's..." Draco began as the gas cleared and a devilish smile lit his face. "...Perfect..."
"I don't wanna intrude or anything," Camille said with an uncertain cough. "But...what do you need this...thing...for?"
"Just for retrieval purposes." The group turned to see Aqua leaning on the doorway. "We just don't want too much of a struggle from our target."
"Target...? This could kill a Wailord. Just what kind of target is it?" Camille asked in wonder. Alphinia merely bit her lip in slight anxiety. She knew Ghetsis to be very cautious...and brutal...person, but this was a little too far, even for her standards.
"A dragon," Draco replied coolly and walked up to the door before stopping and grabbing the doorframe. Camille caught a glimpse of his face and she arched a nervous eyebrow at the red dots replacing his shadowed eyes.
"A dragon?"
"Yes," he continued ominously and the doorframe cracked under his intense grip. "A very stubborn dragon."
Twist Mountain, Unova Region.
Scarlet had to bend back a little to see the top of the mountain from the ground and he whistled at its sheer height.
"Huge," he muttered and Jolteon echoed the action in his own language.
"Scarly! Jolteon!" White called to the two before handing Scarlet a coat and wrapping a scarf round Jolteon's neck. "It get's really cold at the summit so we'll need all the warm stuff we can get!"
"Yeah yeah," the ravenette groaned and put on the coat. The fur-collar tickled his neck but it was manageable. "C'mon. The sooner we cross this mountain, the better."
"Right!" White replied with a salute before bounding up the stone steps and into the mouth of the cave. Scarlet followed at a distance, keeping his eyes on the airhead in front to make sure she, and inevitably he himself, wouldn't get lost. The area was dark save for the small lamps dotting the rocky walls. Years ago, the mountain was a big mining area where diamonds, fossils and other rare items where dug up hence the abandoned mining carts and rusted, forgotten tools littering the caves. According to White, Scarlet learned that there was a big earthquake that shook the mountain, causing several internal landslides that injured many and buried few. Since then, mining was shut down to prevent such hazards and now, only pokémon remained.
"But Clay said its safe for walking now," White had added. "Just so long as we stick to the safe route."
"Safe route..." Scarlet echoed before hissing as White's finger poked into his forehead.
"You've been awfully quiet these few weeks," she remarked, bringing her inquisitive face close. "What's up?"
"Nothing," he replied, pushing her hand off and walking past her. "Just been thinking lately."
White giggled. "Too much of that and you'll get wrinkles. Like Cheren!"
"A-choo!"
Cheren sniffled and Bianca tilted her head.
"Cold?" she asked and he shook his head.
"Someone said I have wrinkles...Do I?"
Some hours passed and the trio encountered a lot of ice-type pokémon with the occasional fighting-type or rock-type, all of which weren't "cool" enough for White. By the time they reached an opening, Scarlet was sure that White's pokedex was filled to the brim with ice-types. Her bag was also bursting with nifty items they picked up along the way.
"Is this place cool or what?! I've never seen so many Rare Candies in one place!" she exclaimed in excitement as they sat down to rest.
"Makes you wonder who dropped 'em in the first place," the ravenette mumbled, feeding Jolteon with some Pokémon food from his bag. "So you'll feed them to your pokémon?"
"Only one each," she replied and Scarlet sweatdropped.
"Thought you wanted to make them stronger," he remarked and White shook her head.
"Drug overdose is bad for their health."
"Uh-huh..." he muttered before shivering a little. True to White's prediction, the temperature was beginning to drop. A good sign for the hunter as it meant they were closer to the top. "Let's go."
White nodded before getting up, tightening her scarf and putting Jolteon into her bag. The snow would be deep so she figured it'd be best to keep the electric-type on high ground. The teens stepped out of the cave and flinched at the harsh, cold wind that greeted them.
"You okay?" Scarlet asked as the girl wobbled.
Steadying herself, she nodded and began trudging her way through the knee-deep snow. "Watch out for the pokémon here. They can get a little grumpy if they see things they're not used too!" she called.
Scarlet fingered the cube dangling from his belt before following the trainer and recalling the path they would take. From their current position, it'd be an uphill trek to the flat-topped summit before crossing over to the other side and descending down it. The only real hindrance would be the steadily-falling temperature of the environment, a breeze for the hunter considering the fact that he had staggered through a frozen tundra way-back-when. With what White was wearing though, he had a feeling that she'd be on his back soon.
"Should've worn thicker leggings," he muttered as he eyed her legs.
...
The air was tense.
Scarlet didn't know why...but he was very sure he had felt this tenseness before when the setting was stretched so tight, you could burst it with a drop of a pin.
"Scarly?"
White's breath against his cold ears made him jump a little before steadying himself. As he expected, she had gotten too stiff to walk and the hunter took it upon his tsundere-self to carry her until her legs had lost their pins-n-needles feeling from the freezing snow.
"SCARLET!"
"What?" he barked harshly.
"Jeez, about time you listened!" she snapped back before shivering again. "The summit's got some caves and trenches. Let's stop there and rest."
She was right. The gray sky looked like a snowstorm was broiling too and that wouldn't be very good for all three of them.
"Fine." In minutes, they found a small cave and Scarlet sat his cargo down before checking his X-transciever. 17:13.
"Get Emboar out," he said as he brought out his cube.
"But she'll get too cold to blow some flames after a while. Plus, we don't have any wood or stuff to make a fire," White replied, watching as he set the cube to glove function.
"Take it," he said, holding it out to her. "Touch Emboar. The fire-boost should raise the heat of the air round you, keeping you warm. Make sure to keep Jolteon close to your side."
White's eyes sparkled comically as the items were dropped onto her open hands.
"Wow..." she whispered, feeling the soft material. Slipping them on slowly, she wiggled her fingers in front of her face before pulling out a pokéball and releasing Emboar. Resting her palms on her pokémon's belly, she closed her eyes and let out a content sigh as warmth flowed into her shivering frame.
"What about you?" she asked, noticing Scarlet who had begun to walk out of the cave.
"There's something I've gotta check out first. I won't be long," he replied flatly and disappeared into the snowy atmosphere. That scent of danger and slight nostalgia was still lingering in the air and the hunter felt it necessary to at least survey the mountain. Making sure to dodge past the pack of Beartic in the distance, he zig-zagged his way through the small glaciers and past some ice-filled caves before he came to a particularly large cave, much bigger than the rest. From the way his heartbeat spiked, he was pretty sure his intuition was right and with a raggedy sigh, he pulled out his gun and set it to kill-mode before walking into the cave.
"Weird..." he muttered as he scanned the environment. "How'd it get so warm in here...?"
The area was deep with several ice crystals growing out of the walls. Icicles projected from the ceiling, dripping water unto the stony floor, making the place eerier with its steady noise. If he didn't know any better, Scarlet would've thought that this area was dug out with a gigantic drill of some sort, judging by the machine bits on the ground. Walking further into the cave, he scanned the walls and settings and the farther he walked, the more he thought that someone had been digging here very recently. He also guessed that such a person didn't want visitors judging by the craters and holes smeared with dried blood, most likely caused by Pokémon moves.
"I wonder if they're still around..." he murmured. In time, he came to a big, steel door and he trailed his gloved fingers against the lukewarm material. Suddenly, his memories rushed back full force and he staggered back before holding his banging head. It was like they were fighting to resurface, one would flash through his eyes before another would slam his brain right in the middle of the first. Worse still, new memories started to bubble and unfortunately for him, they were the ones of when he first entered that hellish facility. Swallowing them all down and pushing them into the deepest recesses of his mind, the hunter pushed against the door before scowling. Obviously, why wouldn't it be locked...
Looking around, his green eyes finally came to rest on a large scanner embedded in the icy wall beside him. He stared at it for a second and he smiled a little, remembering how he and Jade would sneak into labs to play with the chemicals there. It was fun...until Jade swallowed a bottle of dilute Hydrogen Peroxide.
"Here goes nothing," he sighed, licking his fingertips and placing them firmly on the scanner. He doubted the possibility that this would work and when the door refused to open, he considered blowing it open. However, the scanner flashed green and a loud click was heard before the door dragged open.
"Welcome subject S," a mechanised voice droned as cold smoke poured out from within making Scarlet shiver. His mind screamed trouble and his hunter's intuition told him to turn but his legs stepped forward. Behind him, the door slid back and closed itself, sealing its secret back from the outside world.
The hidden room was dome-shaped, the murals were the same and a massive ice-crystal sat amidst several smaller ones within a seemingly bottomless chasm that probably led to hell if you fell far enough.
"W-what...?" Scarlet murmured, thoroughly taken aback. "W-Why...?"
His green orbs rolled to the side, recognising the stone seats lining the walls. Those spectators had sat there. His feet took him down the walkway and up to the colossal crystal. Cain's Machamp had dragged him here. His trembling hands reached out and scraped the ice. Something had come out of it that day.
"What...is this doing here..." he said to himself.
"The chasm shifts from place to place."
Senses clicking, the hunter turned sharply and aimed his gun at the unwelcome noise.
"Easy boy. Easy..."
From the shadows, a shape drew forth and Scarlet's eyes narrowed. The man before him was gangly and somewhat weather-beaten with eyes were narrow and seemed to swallow one in their gray pools that bore stories, undoubtedly horrific or tragic. His dark hair was a mess, swishing in the wind and dancing in rhythm to the flapping of his cloak.
"Who...are you...?" Scarlet asked cautiously, lowering his gun. Save for the pokéball dangling on a chain around the man's neck, he looked relatively harmless.
"Should say the same for you," he replied, voice slightly cracked from the cold. Walking down the steps, he paused at one of the seats before plopping down with a heavy sigh.
"I thought hobos looked for...warmer...places," the hunter remarked, facing the crystal again. Something about the laughter that followed struck him with another wave of nostalgia and he tightened his grip on the gun.
"I look like a hobo, don't I?" he chortled heartily before rubbing his chin. "I should really lose the beard..." Seeing as the teen ceased to reply, he looked up at the crystal before letting out a tired smile. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
Scarlet's eyes went half-lidded before he touched it again. "Yeah...I guess..." Turning again, he faced the middle-aged man and thumbed the shiny structure. "You said it moves from place to place. Explain."
"Hard to talk when you've got a seventeen year-old hunter pointing a gun at you."
Scarlet sweatdropped before pocketing the item. Nodding, the man continued.
"Legend has it that this place is alive or something. From the murals and stuff, strange things used to happen here. And it's all because of that." His long finger pointed at the crystal. "Caught some Team Plasma grunts trying to get something outta the ice."
Team Plasma again, Scarlet thought to himself. Why are they digging for that monster...?
"Did they get it out?" he asked. The man shrugged his shoulders.
"Beats me. I didn't want any trouble so I cleared out."
"...oh..."
The older ravenette ran a hand through his hair before sighing and leaning forward. "To tell you the truth, I used to search for this thing too a few years back."
"Thought the legend was true...?" Scarlet asked.
"It is true, kiddo. And thanks to a certain someone's influence, we discovered how the chasm follows the tectonic movements of the earth, allowing us to pinpoint where next it would pop up. An earthquake later, we found it in Sinnoh."
"We?" the hunter asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Adventurous scientists looking for change," he replied sadly and looked down. "We did some sick stuff. Desecrating sacred grounds to look for clues. Delving into areas of research we weren't supposed to even know about. Gathering orphans and pumping them full of chemicals to flip their emotions. And worst of all...resorting to such an ancient yet effective method for awakening that...thing..."
Unknown to the man, Scarlet's eyes had glazed over and the gun was back in his hand, twisting silently until it formed a black glove over his twitching hand.
"What did you guys need orphans for?"
Oblivious, the man closed his eyes and rubbed his chin. "Hmmm...how do I put this...we needed their souls."
"..."
"The higher-ups would've known more than me, but I do understand that the beast needs a couple of specific requirements for it to wake up and be used. Souls just happened to be one of 'em," he continued, leaning back against the seat. "Not just any soul either...but hey, why'd you wanna know useless stuff like this."
"...Did it feel right, doing what you did?" the teen asked as the glove's fingertips stretched into metre-long talons.
His still-oblivious companion smiled a slow, sad smile. "Chemicals weren't the only things we used. For some reason, the kids were divided into two groups. One group was tortured with all kinds of stuff while the other had had its members treated like angels. Unfortunately, I was assigned the torture group along with some sadistic colleagues of mine. Let me be the first to tell you...it was hell. I couldn't even sleep at night because the screams were too many...even after the sessions. But nonetheless I kept on going, following the traditional scientist code. After the next thirty screams and deaths, I got used to it. So to answer your question, no...it didn't...and I'm thankful for being able to escape after the Promised Day eight years ago. I didn't expect the boss to kill every scientist affiliated with the project but he had to cover his tracks anyway."
"Unreal..." the hunter mouthed but what came next made him cringe.
"There was one kid though that amazed me. He was a boy, pretty frail-looking too with blood-red hair. He'd been brought in from nowhere with no memories of his past life. Also, no matter how much we tortured him...he never screamed. Or cried. Not even once. He'd just stare at us with those green eyes of his and that used to freak me out. Eventually, he broke...and then his hair got a streak of black running down it. I'll never forget that expression on his face that day as my colleagues celebrated."
"That insane expression that comes from one-too-many electric shocks to the brain by provoked Magnemite," Scarlet said, slowly rising to his feet. His face was shadowed now and through the reflection in the ice, he could see the man's puzzled expression.
"Yeah. Exactly like that..." he said before getting a second look at the teen. "Actually, you kind of look like him..."
A smile spread across the hunter's face.
"One last question," he stated, turning to face the man. "Who was that certain someone that hired you?"
"Ummm...he's a pretty popular name in this region. Goes by the name Ghetsis Harmonia."
Knew that name rang a bell.
"Professor Hale E. Finnian," the hunter called out, taking a step forward.
The man looked up sharply. "Hey...how'd you know my-"
His question stopped as he glimpsed at the teen's eyes. Hard, devilish, stormy, glowering, ecstatic and just the tiniest bit insane. Also, they were dangerously familiar.
The clawed hand stretched out and hung aimlessly by the boy's side.
"Thank you for your cooperation."
"Scarly's been gone a while, hasn't he...?" White remarked as Jolteon stretched on her lap and yawned in response. Sighing, she checked the weather outside and huffed at the harsh winds that blew thick snow and hail across the landscape. "He'd better get back soon or he'll freeze. Just what is he doing out there anyway...?"
Blood dripped unto the cold floor, staining it with red spots that seemed to freeze into red crystals.
"Huh...?" Hale stuttered, looking down at the large hole in his middle. Blood trickled down his mouth and with a gasp, he sank to the ground. Unfazed, Scarlet stared at him for a second before looking on at the darkness before him, peeved at the fact that he wasn't the one who killed him.
"A gentleman never gets his gloves dirty," a sing-song voice rang and steps clacked, echoing throughout the cave.
"Thanks, but you kinda ruined the moment," Scarlet replied before raising his claw and getting into a fighting stance. "Mr.P."
The mummified man chuckled. "How long did it take before you knew I was here?"
"Not too long. I pretty much found out after a minute or two." The claw glimmered. "So...is there something you're hiding from me or did you stab him just to clear away the witnesses?"
Mr.P fell silent before doing a little dance, moving forward with each step until he came to rest beside the injured scientist. First thing Scarlet noticed was the lack of Pokémon or tools with which he had used to stab the professor.
"Something I should know about...?" he asked cautiously.
"Yup. There's been a slight change of plans," Mr.P replied, twirling. "The deadline...has been shifted!"
Scarlet twitched. "To when...?"
"We want Reshiram by the end of the month," he sang before placing his foot on the professor's head. "So you'd better hurry up."
"End of the month?!" the hunter exclaimed. "But-"
"Is there a problem, Mr Scarlet?" he chipped in. "Or is that talentless toy of yours weighing you down with her foolish training?"
"She has a name!"
The outburst echoed throughout the cave and Scarlet himself marvelled at the fact that it came from his mouth. Mr.P froze for a second before raising a finger and wagging it at the hunter.
"Oh my..." he started, moving past the dying man and towards Scarlet. "Me thinks our hunter has gotten himself into some kind of situation." He was right in Scarlet's face now. "Has she become something much more than a lead?"
"No," he stated flatly. Through the tiny openings in the bandages, Scarlet noticed the crimson eyes staring down at him. They were...strikingly similar to those of a certain fan-girl he knew. Also, they looked like they were mocking him, looking down on him like some bug or piece of trash that didn't deserve to live.
"Be careful, Scarlet," Mr.P said in a slow, dangerous tone. "You are delving into things best left untouched by the teenaged mind. Train the girl, get Reshiram and collect your reward at Lacunosa Town. Am I understood?"
"...I wanna know something."
The bandaged client tilted his head. "What?"
"Is it your company that's digging out that monster-pokémon in the ice?" Scarlet asked, face stoic.
"Oh that old thing? We dug it out a long time ago. However, he won't wake up until we fulfil the necessary requirements-Oops! Looks like I've said to much already!" The client raised his collar and turned. "Brr, look at the weather. Gotta go!" As he started for the exit, Scarlet's weapon was raised high in the air before the hunter dashed forward sharply and swung the blades at Mr.P's back.
CLANG!
The claws stopped in mid-air and no matter how hard he pushed, Scarlet couldn't get the blades past the space inches from his client's back.
"Forcefield...?" he grunted before gasping as something thich and heavy slammed against his side, sending him spiralling into the ice-crystals. Hissing as his back collided with the gigantic crystal, the teen looked up again and his eyes darted to and fro, searching for whatever pokémon had hit him. Except for the two men in the room, there was nobody else making the hunter do a double-take at Mr.P whose back was still turned to him. His eyes widened however as the air around him bent and contorted.
"Don't take me lightly, human," the man growled, bandages slipping to the side. Black, curly hair danced in the rising mist and Scarlet's heart skipped a beat at the familiar dots-for-eyes look that only homunculus...and Dragon Knights...possessed whenever their switches were flipped. Tipping his fedora, the mist disappeared sharply and the air stopped twisting. "Bye bye, Ginger!" he called in his silly voice again and waved before stepping out of the room. His head popped back in again shortly after. "Oh yeah, you'd wanna get that wound checked! Bye!"
Scarlet arched an eyebrow. Wound?
PLIP. PLIP.
He looked down slowly...and his eyes went wide at the icicle poking out of his side. That invisible hit must've shoved him into the tips of the smaller crystals. Ouch. The hunter stared at the injury for a full two minutes before sighing as he remembered that someone was still waiting for him.
"I'll probably cauterize it when I get to Emboar," he mumbled, easing himself out of the icicle. Wincing at the squelching noise his side made, he ignored the pain and with a jerk, pulled himself out of the blood-slathered icicle. Taking a deep breath, he walked up to the door before looking back at the man on the floor. Rolling his eyes, he staggered back to him and kneeled before turning him onto his back.
"Hey!" he barked, slapping his bearded face. "Don't fall asleep or you're really gonna die."
Groaning, the man opened his eyes. "S...?"
"It's Scarlet."
"Oh yeah...that's what Jillian named you..." he replied before biting back another moan. "Damn, it hurts...aren't you gonna finish me off?"
Scarlet clawed weapon retracted and returned to gun-mode before he pocketed the item.
"I was," he said, taking off the cloak and tying it round the man's waist. "Until that guy stabbed you. Then I realised that there was something he probably didn't want you to accidentally tell me."
"Yeah...go figure..." he chuckled before his expression went calm again. "I wouldn't mind dying...in fact, after all I've done, I actually contemplated suicide."
"So why're you still alive?" the teen asked flatly as he brought out a whistle from his jeans and blew hard. No sound came out, but he seemed satisfied at the action. "Well...?"
"Well...before the events of that day, Ghetsis had every scientist slaughtered to contribute their souls to the monster-pokémon. I was lucky I had to take a dump at the time."
"That was a long one," the ravenette chipped in, sitting down and inspecting the wound in his side again.
"Yeah, we had tacos and Tamato berry sauce for lunch that day. Talk about luck. Anyway, I escaped and wandered around for a little bit since I had no home to go back to. Plus, I was still haunted by the screams and blood and all that. At some point, I decided to end it all...but just as I was about throwing myself off the nearest cliff, I met this guy."
He fumbled around his neck before pulling off the pokéball and pressing the button. A flash later, a smallish, white, humanoid-looking pokémon with a big green helmet-like covering over its eyes stood beside Hale and chirped in worry at the wound in his middle.
"A Ralts," the hunter stated matter-of-factly and face-palmed. "Of course. What other pokémon is capable of changing a suicidal person's mind?"
Smiling, Hale rubbed the pokémon's head. "It's okay, Lucky. I'm made of tougher stuff." On cue, blood spurted from his mouth again. "Or not..."
"Why'd you name him Lucky?" Scarlet asked although his mind was on when their rescue would get here.
"I met him on the cliff, dangling from a broken branch on the edge. Apparently, he was chasing the leaves flying in the autumn wind and found himself in that predicament. I've done enough evil things so I just decided to help him out. Unfortunately, the branch broke from my weight and we both took a long drop with the open road below ready to crack our skulls in half. Then...a miracle happened..."
"Miracles don't exist," Scarlet sighed.
"I never believed that too...but what else would I have called it when a truck transporting pillows drove in from nowhere. We fell right in. Right buddy?" Ralts nodded in agreement and both of them chuckled. "I named him Lucky after that. Been inseparable ever since."
The hunter found himself smiling. "Mushy."
"Thanks...say, Scarlet," he mumbled as his breathing hitched. "I ain't gonna last long...and I know I deserve this...but for all it's worth, I'm sorry for whatever we put you through..."
"Apology not accepted," he cut in flatly before giggling at the man's expression. "Although I'll let the others know when I visit their graves."
"Thanks..." Hale deadpanned before looking at his concerned pokémon again. "Also, I've lived my life...and travelling with this guy was the highlight. Maybe...you can get him a home...since I'm done for anyway..."
The hunter was silent for a second before he slowly rose to his feet and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Do it yourself," he stated, ignoring the disappointed look in Hale's eyes. "I'm not ready to saddle myself with another burden." The ground began to rumble and Lucky looked around in apprehension as the air warmed up considerably.
"Besides," Scarlet added, looking at the ice ahead of them. "If you think you're gonna die without fessing up then you've got another thing coming."
The ice split and cracked and Ralts stared wide-eyed at his trembling surroundings.
"So man up, Hale!" Scarlet stated and put up his grin. "You're made of tougher stuff, remember?"
BOOM!
The ice shattered to bits behind the hunter and steam billowed from the hole in the rocky wall.
"Took you long enough, ditz!"
White's Emboar clambered through the hole and her trainer hopped off her shoulders before Jolteon climbed out of her satchel.
"Scarlet!" she cried and the hunter sweatdropped as both girl and pokémon charged towards him before tackling him in a hug. "We were so worried!"
"My side! My side!" he choked out in exasperation.
"Woah, Scarly! You're hurt!"
"Thanks for stating the obvious, bubblebrain! And licking it won't help, fuzzball!"
Hale watched the group bicker before smiling broadly.
"To have moved on from that warped boy you used to be," he whispered as darkness covered him. "At least one of them turned out alright...thank...Arceus..."
Author's Corner.
Violet: New character, past memories. If you ask me, I'm still confused.
Draco: No one knows my pokémon! No one knows my pokémon!
White: Oh! Pick me! Draco's pokémon is-!"
Burgh: Restrain her!
The cast dog-piles on White and Awesome walks into the room holding a manuscript.
Awesome: Where's Sly? We still need to work on Scarlet and Rain's fight against Ghetsis!
Burgh: Restrain her!
Awesome: Hey! What're you-!
Slybill trots into the studio, clearly ignoring the scuffle going on in the recording room.
Slybill: So...Lightning versus Draco...White versus Brycen...and another good guy dies...Yep! I've gotten the script down. Awesome, when're those special effects for Reshiram coming up?
Scarlet: STOP SPOILING THE FREAKING SHOW!