DISCLAIMER: SLYBILL DOESN'T OWN POKEMON. ELSE, SOMEONE WOULD HAVE TOLD US WHAT HAPPENED TO ASH'S DAD!
Opelucid Pokemon Centre.
Lightning's breaths were ragged and slow and though his weapons were coated in Joid's blood, the soulless monster showed no signs of tiring or giving up.
"You…strong…de arimasu…" he panted and winced at the hot flashes of pain in his arm. In the course of their fight, Joid had gotten an opening and had taken a large bite of Lightning's arm. Luckily, he didn't rip it off. Unluckily, he had rendered the cowboy's left arm useless for the time being.
"Graaaagh…" Joid drawled, preparing for another attack.
"Doesn't help that I'm better with dual-weapons-de arimasu," Lightning half-joked half-bemoaned, as he lifted the other searmitar and raised it before getting into a fighting stance again. "But I will beat you and save those pokemon. Come on-de arimasu!"
Gladly complying, Joid sped towards Lightning again and restarted his lethal onslaught of blows, kicks and bites all of which Lightning dodged before slashing upwards, ripping Joid's stomach and chest open. Under normal circumstances, the cowboy would've felt uncomfortable but seeing as Joid was incapable of falling to normal blows, he had to resort to killer methods. Once again, the attack failed and Joid sent a savage kick at Lightning's chest, sending him hurtling into the abandoned counter. Slamming against the wooden material, he shook the haziness out of his head before quickly raising his sword-like weapon and blocking Joid's teeth.
"How're you guys doing on your end-de arimasu?" he yelled to the pokemon ahead. Hydreigon's regenerative powers had given them just as much trouble and it didn't come as a surprise to see them also panting hard. But just like their human partner, they too had their varying levels of hero complex and as such refused to give up. Barking, Mienshao initiated a Hi Jump Kick that got Hydreigon in the head though the dragon quickly got the upper hand and grabbed the pokemon before hurling it into a wall. At the same time, it flew up quickly and dodged Haxorus' Giga Impact.
10 minutes later, Lightning decided to end this once and for all.
"Haxorus, Guillotine!" he cried and raised his own searmitar. "Mienshao, make sure to keep Hydreigon in position-de arimasu." With that, he turned and ran towards the medicine area. Joid screamed and followed eager for more blood. Unknown to him, Lightning had formulated a plan.
Haxorus stamped its feet before arching low and growling as its tusks became engulfed in a metallic light. Mienshao followed up by raising the extensions on its arms and looping them around Hydreigon's feet before using all its strength to slam the dragon deep into the wall. Crying out to its partner, the fighting type held the struggling pokemon back and Haxorus grunted in response as its tusks elongated to monstrous proportions.
Now! Mienshao yelled and jumped back as Haxorus launched itself at the three-headed pokemon who found itself stuck in the wall. By the time it looked up to fire its Tri Attack, Haxorus' left tusk delivered a nasty slash on its gut, creating a jagged opening in its blue belly. Reeling back, the brutal pokemon barely saw the other tusk coming for its head and with a roar of agony, the dragon had fallen. Even regenerators can't take one hit KO attacks.
Meanwhile, Joid had stupidly followed Lightning into the medicine lab only to find the cowboy missing. Walking around slowly, he lifted his nose into the air and took a sniff before scampering over to the centre of the lab, ignoring the large shelves of bottled medicine with the word ACIDIC labelled to their sides. At the very centre, the crazed boy found the source of his scent but got a look of confusion at the blood-soaked bandana lying carelessly on the ground. Cautiously, he came closer and picked up the cloth before sniffing it and lapping at the blood in it. If he had any sense, he would've noticed that there was a large vat of chemicals above him and also the several cupboards surrounding him.
"Did you know that crushed berries make a pretty strong acid when allowed to ferment-nya?"
Joid's head snapped up and looked to see Lightning standing on the balcony beside a lever. Before he could move, the cowboy had pulled it down and with a mechanical groan, the massive vat tipped its green shimmering contents on the boy below and Lightning had to block his ears at the horrific scream that rang through the empty Pokemon Center.
"Apparently, that's what the nurses put in their potions when performing surgical operations on pokemon with really tough hide-de arimasu."
Joid's body literally began to melt and Lightning could see the flesh peeling off his bones. However, the monster began to stagger towards Lightning though the latter had anticipated that and pushed down a cupboard of more acid on his opponent.
"That's what ya get for killing Skyla, bozo!" he huffed, taking his bandana before striking a pose. "And the hero once again, saves the day-de arimasu!"
In a minute, the boy left the lab and locked the steel door shut before rushing into the hospital wing with his pokemon. Luckily, there were only three that needed carrying. The rest could walk on their own so Lightning picked up the small Whimsicott and let his pokemon carry the Krokorok and Ampharos.
"C'mon guys! Let's get outta here!" he yelled and began to rush for the exit. Upon coming out though, his eyes widened at the sight before him. Smoke was rising from several buildings and upturned cars littered the smashed roads. People ran around in fright and children wailed for their burning homes and missing parents or pokemon. The air itself stank of burning bodies and every wisp of smoke had a reddish tint, indicating the evident massacre. It was chaos. Pure, raw chaos and Lightning felt anger burn into his very soul. "What the hell happened here?!"
"Plasma..."
Lightning looked to his side to see a man limp past him with terror radiating from his wide eyes.
"Hey, are you okay-de arimasuka?" he exclaimed, rushing up to the man as his legs gave way. Lighting caught him before gently laying him against the road and gasping at his severe burns.
"Plasma..." the man blurted and grabbed Lightning's arm. "They're monsters! Monsters I tell you! They have a Grachomp that's eating people! It's murder! Terrible!"
"Calm down!"
"They killed my daughter and my pokemon! I'm ruined!"
"I said calm down!"
"They're coming!" Slowly, his grip weakened and his head fell back. "They're...coming..."
It took a minute for Lightning to realize that the man had died and when he eventually did, he sharply shifted away from the body, having been unused to being so close to dead people.
"Team Plasma...did all this...?" he stuttered. Above him, a shrill cry was heard and the small group looked up to see his Braviary touching down slowly.
"Whimsy!" the girl on its back cried and jumped off to grab her pokemon from Lightning's arms. "Thank Arceus you're okay!"
"Did you get Drayden-de arimasu?" Lightning asked, getting to his feet. The girl trainer suddenly stiffened and let her expression darken.
"The mayor..." she stuttered. "T-the m-mayor..." The headless body, the black, shadowy monster, the Haxorus guts. Everything felt like a sick nightmare.
"What? What happened-de arimasuka?" he demanded, grabbing her shoulders. "Please tell me-de arimasu!"
Slowly, she parted her lips and willed her dry throat to answer. "He..." Blood. "He..." Innards. "He..." Tentacles. "DRAYDEN'S DEAD!"
Opelucid City Centre.
"What's going on?" Scarlet said to himself at the apparent turmoil that the city was in. "Everything was fine a few minutes ago."
Suddenly, he felt the urge to run faster as his mind wandered to White's and Jolteon's safety. Though he couldn't know for sure, he had a gut feeling that something terrible had happened and from the way White's X-transceiver never got picked, his fears were starting to escalate. What was happening to her? Was she safe? And who caused all this in the first place?
His last answer was confirmed as six orange-haired men came in from nowhere and surrounded. Their dressing had changed to more modern attire but the emblem was still the same.
"Plasma!" he growled. "Outta my way!"
"No can do, boy! We still owe you one for the beating you gave us back in Castelia!" one of them sneered and cracked his knuckles.
"Let's see you fight us without your gloves, Scarface!" another cried and threw a fist at him. Unfortunately, Scarlet was just as good in hand-to-hand combat without his gloves as he was with them so it was no surprise when the foolish grunt found himself on his back with Scarlet's foot on his neck.
"I said get out of my way!" the ravenette barked, making the others cringe. He was as tall as most of them now and coupled with the scar, he was even more intimidating than the shorter boy of three months ago. But they didn't give in. With shouts and curses, they attacked the teen and with an angry groan, he took each one down before shooting off a quick apology and running in the direction of Opelucid's City Mall. He didn't have the time to waste with grunts.
However, more seemed to get in his way and it was all Scarlet could do to protect the presents in his arm.
"Where's Drayden and Lightning when you need them?" he hissed and avoided the next grunt. Senses buzzing, he jumped to the right just in time to avoid a bullet fired from a female grunt.
"You killed my sister!" the woman cried. "Back in Dragonspiral Tower! You killed her, you monster!"
Scarlet felt a quick pang of regret before dodging another bullet and getting behind the woman.
"I'm sorry," he muttered and delivered a swift chop to her neck, knocking her out.
"Take this!" another grunt cried and swung a steel baton at him. Scarlet avoided the blow before grabbing the weapon and twisting it out of his grip. For some reason, he faintly recognised the grunt as he struck him down. The same went for the other grunts that tried to attack him. They were either from Dragonspiral or the train and each one had claimed to have one friend or relative that had been killed or injured in every fight.
Guilt.
The old Scarlet wouldn't have cared to remember the grunts he had killed but at the thought of how circumstances had probably forced them into joining Team Plasma, his conscience began to bite again. Especially the Dragonspiral Incident.
"You killed my best friend!"
"My brother's pokemon was there!"
"My sister will never walk again!"
"You murderer!"
"Monster!"
True that they should've spoken for themselves, considering the havoc they had already caused, but Scarlet still couldn't help but feel terribly guilty at their accusations (most of which were true anyway) especially since he was no longer the bad guy he had first started out as when they had met. Before his mind could wander any longer, he set himself to priority mode and snapped out of his brief moment of self-condemnation. He could address these guys later since White and Jolteon's safety were the topmost matters at hand that needed confirmation. But if there was one thing he had set his mind to, it was that he wouldn't hurt these grunts too much. He had had enough blood on his hands already.
"Sorry," he muttered and took on the offensive, knocking each grunt out with a steel baton to the neck. As soon as the last grunt fell, he dropped the weapon and continued his dash for the city mall. Unknown to him, a red-eyed dragon knight was watching from a the roof of a building with his mouth curved into a toothy grin.
"He's this strong without the gloves, huh? I was right. We really need to use that G-factor."
Opelucid Pokemon Center.
Lightning's fingers trembled.
"Dead...de arimasuka...?"
The ace trainer nodded and recalled her Whimsicott back into its ball.
First Skyla, now Drayden too. The latter's death especially affected Lightning as the old mayor was responsible for Haxorus' evolution in the first place. Plus, Drayden was sort of like a grandfather and mentor to him and the fact that someone took him out made his blood boil even harder.
"Who did it?" he muttered, eyes shadowed.
"I think it was a dark-skinned man... but I couldn't tell if he was a monster or a human because he was doing strange things..." the girl replied and shifted uncomfortably at the odour of charred bodies.
"Did he have tentacles-de arimasuka?" Lightning asked, a bad feeling already coming over him. "And fangs too?"
Wide-eyed, the girl nodded. Shit.
"Draco," he growled with every bit of raw malice he had initially pushed down. So it was him-nya. Sure he's strong but I didn't think he could take down Drayden. That bastard!
Suddenly, the ground began to rumble and Lightning's senses went completely haywire. In an instant, the road directly below him erupted and a discoloured hand grabbed his neck with enough force to nearly crush his throat, making the stunned cowboy cough out a long stream of ruby red.
"What the-" he choked.
"GRAAAAAGH!" Joid screamed and threw him into a steel lamppost. Gasping at the bolt of pain on his back, Lightning took a moment to recover before quickly moving out of the way of Joid's incoming fist.
"Are you okay?" the girl gasped before shrieking as a Hydreigon burst through the ground with its heads ready to snap her in three. Fortunately, Haxorus and Mienshao got in the way and beat it back with their physical attacks. Lightning stumbled towards her before catching his breath and calling Braviary over.
"Take her as far away from here as possible-de arimasu!" he ordered.
"But-"
Before the trainer could object, Braviary's strong feet had gripped her shoulders and she was lifted into the air before being thrown onto its back.
"You should come too!" she yelled and extended a hand. "You're injured and I doubt you can fight that thing!"
"Don't worry. I've had worse-de arimasu," he stated and pulled out his searmitars again. "Besides, I've gotta check on my friends here. Now go-de arimasu!"
Squawking, Braviary flew off and Lightning faced Joid with a half-uncertain-half-disgusted look. He was thoroughly surprised to find that the acid didn't work and he wondered just how potentially powerful this freak's regenerative abilities were. He looked almost as good as new for that matter, save for the discoloured skin, bits of red meat and insides and raw skeletal fingers on his right hand and yet those seemed to heal too. What was more, Joid's expression had changed from disinterested melancholy to wide-eyed fury and the heroes knew that they were in for a ride when he and Hydreigon got together and opened their drool-infested jaws.
Their joint screams were so loud, the roads cracked and windows shattered. Had it not been for Haxorus' tough hide and the bony searmitars Lightning jammed to the sides of his head, their eardrums would've popped. Mienshao was promptly called back into its ball before it could take any serious damage so that left Lightning and Haxorus to fend off their new-found enemies. Unfortunately, Hydreigon launched Joid into Haxorus before it could use any moves leaving Lightning to fight the brutal dragon-type on his own. With a possibly fractured arm and ribs though, he couldn't do too much and before long, took a severe blow to his side. However, that left an opening for him to attack and with a pained smirk, he rammed both searmitars into Hydreigon's central head, pushing into a tumbled car which exploded upon impact, sending Hydreigon up in flames.
Haxorus roared before charging towards Joid with its tusks in position for a Slash attack. The little monster countered by raising both hands in the air and letting the Axe Jaw ram into him, grabbing its tusks in the process. With amazing strength despite his terribly scrawny frame, he stopped Haxorus' charge and flipped the pokemon over before taking its tail and flinging it into another building. Right after he did, Joid felt a massive force on his back that propelled him into the burning car and he shot a glance towards the panting cowboy before going up in flames. That actually seemed to do the trick as Joid's writhing body was charred beyond recognition as with a smoky sigh, the freak extended a blackened arm to the boy before falling back and scattering into complete dust. Apparently, his regenerative powers couldn't catch up to the rate at which his body burned continuously especially as it was still recuperating from the acid bath.
"Return, Haxorus!" Lightning ordered and withdrew his dragon before putting his weapons away. He had wasted too much time with Joid and his body would be at a serious risk if he took one more blow. Plus, he had to find White and Scarlet...and possibly Draco if he could. Turning his back on the flamed remains of his enemy, he decided to head towards the city mall. That would've been the best possible place to check since that was were smoke rose from the most. Where there was smoke, there was trouble and where there was trouble, White was some way or the other always at its centre. Experience taught him that.
The cowboy-catboy-hero was so busy thinking about his friends' safety that he forgot one very, very important rule of every death-fight.
Unless you can see your enemy's corpse before your eyes, be sure as hell that that enemy is still alive.
BANG!
Mint-green eyes widened.
Sandy-blonde hair waved.
The world had gone silent.
And Joid had finally learnt how to use a gun.
Lightning's wide eyes looked down to see blood pouring from his side. From the way everything started to spin, he could tell that he had been shot in a vital spot. Slowly, he sank to his knees and fell face-first against the gravelly ground. The smoky environment was blurring over and his body was going stiff and cold. The blonde had never known what death was like. In his younger days, he would always imagine dying of excessive blood loss in an epic fight to the death. He discarded that dream as he grew older, obviously, but somewhere at the back of his mind he figured there was a high chance of that event happening if he continued playing hero.
Now he knew what dying felt like. The swift pain before general numbness. The brief roiling of emotions. The memories. And then a really bright light. He experienced it all as all the colours he could make out dulled to a sad grey.
Behind the cowboy, Joid eyed the gun he had found lying inside the burning police car he had been flung into. What was this shiny metal in his hands? The trigger pressing had been an obvious accident when he had attempted to throw it at Lightning's retreating back. Oh well. The fun was over and with a huff, he dropped the alien weapon before stumbling towards his foe's body with drool trailing down his chin. Lightning had Scarlet's scent on him and that made Joid want to swallow the boy whole in an effort to satiate his lust for Scarlet's blood, a taste he had never ever forgotten.
Was this the end for our cowboy?
Of course not!
Before Joid could get his grubby hands on Lightning's still body, a large, spiked chunk of steel bashed him right in the cheek and sent him hurtling away from the cowboy.
"Jeez, what the fuck was that thing?" a familiar pompadour muttered and blew the smoking tip of his Cannonball 47. Behind him, his Gliscor charged up a Hyper Beam before shooting down the hidden Hydreigon in the distance. With a roar of discontent, Joid tore himself off the wall he had collided with and charged wildly for the tall, lanky pompadour only to take another steel ball to the face and seven more in the gut. Right as he fell back, a the sound of a truck honking caught his ears and he turned to the side to see the massive face of a construction truck heading right for him, full speed ahead.
BAM!
Joid was hurled twenty feet into the air before crashing through seven street lights and landing in a pile of debris.
Cool LP sent a disinterested look at the truck and smirked. "You sure took your fucking time to get here, Ranger."
The truck's door flew open and a blue-haired man of 22 jumped out before briskly walking towards Joid's twitching frame. "You know what to do, Latios."
Yes Rain, a voice sounded from behind and Joid found himself encased in a pink bubble of psychic energy. Sighing in slight relief, Rain turned and looked towards Lightning's body before extending a finger and poking him in the side where his bullet wound was.
"Hey!" LP barked, rushing over to him. "What da fuck are you doing?!"
"Opening the wound so I can get the bullet out. Duh," the blank-faced man replied indifferently and pushed his finger in deeper.
"But he'll bleed to death!" the hunter snapped.
"Then we'll just have to hope that he's strong enough to hold out for a little longer- Oh, found it." In a second, Rain pulled out the bloodied bullet and wiped his messy hand against his red jacket. "Get me a long cloth or fabric. Your shirt should do nicely. After which you can help me prop him up into a sitting positi-"
"Are you insane?" LP screeched. "First of all, I ain't taking orders from you. Second, this D-and-G shirt cost me 42 000 bucks!"
Rain stared at him with neither pleading nor scornful eyes. His silence was suffocating and LP couldn't bring himself to look away from the ranger's crimson eyes. 3, 2, 1.
"Fine! Take the fucking shirt," the pompadour grumbled and tore off his long-sleeved top (Stop drooling, he's wearing an inner shirt underneath). "I'm only doing this for my sake and to make sure he stays alive."
Rain took the cloth and tore it into sizeable strips before wrapping it around Lightning's torso. "So, we both have the same reasons for saving him, no?"
LP huffed and turned his nose in contempt. "I just wanna ask him where the fuck Scarlet's at."
"Hmph. Same here," Rain remarked and called Latios over. "See of you can devote some concentration into waking him up."
He'll be in so much pain if I do that, Latios speculated uncertainly. Would it be wise to wake him now?
"Everyone has to cope with pain at some point. If he wants to be stronger, he'll have to go through this," the ranger replied stoically. Latios nodded and his eyes went bluish-white. On cue, Lightning's body glowed faintly. In a moment, his fingers twitched and he opened his eyes to see unknown faces staring back at him.
"Yo. 'Sup Cowboy?" LP greeted with a grin.
"Nya...?" was all Lightning could reply before taking a slow look around him. "Where am I-OW!"
"Try not to move too much," Rain advised and leaned back. "Now listen. Opelucid's in a bit of a crisis right now and I'm looking for a certain person. Do you happen to know where Scarlet is?"
"Scarlet...?" he echoed and slowly raised a finger to the city mall. "He should be...with White...at the city mall-de arimasu..."
Nodding, Rain got up and signalled to Latios. "Come on, buddy. And keep that Joid under intense pressure. He should run out of air and fall unconscious at some point."
"I can't seem to read his mind, Latios remarked as he hovered over to his partner. The reports were right. He hasn't got a soul. Just an empty vessel living on basic instinct.
"How Ghetsis did it, I don't know. But I'm sure he delved into something supernatural," the ranger suggested and pocketed his hands. "Use your Boufallant and get to somewhere safe, Gilbert. Things are gonna get seriously dangerous from here. LP, I'm gonna need your assistance in clearing off those Plasma grunts."
"Oh? So robo-ranger can actually ask for help?" the hunter mocked and got up before flourishing his weapons. "I guess I could use the exercise. Plus, following you betters my chances of surviving since I could always use ya as a shield when things get rough. I'm serious. I'll actually do it."
"You are such a savage," Rain remarked blankly. "Whatever. Come on."
"I'm coming too-de arimasu," Lightning declared weakly, getting to his feet despite his injury. "My friend is there...and I've gotta make sure she's okay-de arimasu..."
"Don't be an idiot, kid," LP stated and began moving. "You'll only slow us down."
"I'll have to agree, Gilbert. The wiser thing to do is leave this city," the ranger added, also beginning to move. "Bye."
Lightning looked down before clenching his fists in annoyance. "It's Hilbert, mister. And as a hero, I'm going to save my friend, injury or no injury-de arimasu!"
From above, Braviary swooped in and carried the cowboy off in the direction of the mall leaving an annoyed LP and an indifferent Rain behind.
"Fine then! Die for all I care cos I don't give a fuck!" the hunter retorted and stormed off grumbling about how stubborn kids these days were. Rain on the other hand smirked to himself and followed after the pompadour and his Gliscor.
Opelucid City Centre.
The closer he got to the mall, the harder Scarlet's head pounded and he cursed himself for feeling so weak. He was probably over-worrying about White's current status. Yeah, she should be safe and sound with Aqua and Jolteon since she herself was a strong trainer and person in her own right. Yet, he couldn't shake off that bad feeling that something terrible was going to happen soon.
"There he is!" a grunt cried and flung a pokeball. "Go, Scrafty! Hi Jump Kick!"
Cursing, Scarlet dodged the attack and let the dark/fighting type crash into the road. However, he didn't notice another grunt come up from behind a bend and he gasped as he felt a fist collide with his chest. Though Scarlet had suffered a lot of similar blows in the past, he couldn't help but notice how painful this one seemed compared to the rest. Something was definitely wrong in his system and he suspected that it had something to do with his headache. Gritting his teeth, the ravenette dodged another blow and ducked as the Scrafty sent a Focus Blast from behind. The sphere hit the grunt and exploded, throwing smoke in the air and giving Scarlet the cover he needed to keep moving.
"Things would've been so much easier with my gloves!" he hissed and rounded the corner. He was close. Just a few more corners and he'd be at the entrance to the mall. In a minute, he reached the mall and cast a nervous glance at the sorry state it was in.
"Welcome, Scarlet."
Scarlet turned and saw Draco standing a good distance away with close to twenty grunts and pokemon behind him though the ravenette couldn't be bothered with them. He was more interested in-
"You want to find White, yes?" the knight asked with a broad smile on his face. "Don't worry Scarly. Get past these guys and you'll see her for sure."
"I don't have the time for this, Draco," he snapped. "I'll play with you later!"
Draco chuckled to himself before pulling something out of his jacket and tossing it towards the hunter who caught it and gave it a quick look.
"Why're you giving me an apple?" he asked, a bit peeved at the time being wasted.
"I'd give that apple a once-over if I were you," Draco replied. Arching a brow, Scarlet turned the red apple and noticed that someone had taken a bite out of it. What was more, there were a tiny trace of whitish liquid oozing from its pale core. Experience told Scarlet it was poisonous. It only took a split-second before he put two and two together.
"Where's White?" he growled, crushing the apple.
"Safe. For now," his foe laughed and ran a hand through his wavy hair. "As you can see, time is not on your side. All you have to do is kill these guys and save White. Can't be too hard, can it?"
The hunter swallowed. "Kill...?"
Draco tilted his head. "Yeah. Problem?"
I can't do that! I've hurt enough people already! "I won't kill them."
"Pardon?" Draco folded his arms. "These guys won't rest until their completely wiped. You sure you can handle this many without taking a few lives? Besides, the normal you would've done this without hesitation."
"The old me, yes." Scarlet tightened his grip on the presents. "But I've changed now. Some of these grunts have families who're praying for their return. Even their pokemon have one precious owner or partner that they're trying to help out by joining Team Plasma. I won't kill them. Now move."
Draco's smile fell and was replaced with a dangerous frown. "So now you think by sparing these guys, you'll be atoning for your past mistakes? How sad. Newsflash Scarlet. Someone like you has no right to say such things considering the weight of your actions. After all, you happily murdered several grunts and pokemon in your blind rage back in Dragonspiral Tower."
"I know that!" he snapped and looked down with trembling hands. He had turned into a monster that day and though he refused to admit it, deep down his loss to Ghetsis had taught him a harsh lesson and brought him back to his senses. He knew he was in the wrong back there and had it not been for White, he would've died a killer. "But I'm going to move on. I know that my wrongdoings were a lot. Heck I partially enjoyed it at some point...but being with White helped me steer my mind out of that phase...so I'll say this once again. I won't kill them. Move now. All of you."
Silence.
Silence.
Draco's smile returned and he chuckled before erupting in full out laughter. "Wow! So White actually changed someone like you into a pathetic brat, huh?! Man, you're so dumb! Spouting illogical stuff like that, even the real Scarlet would've slapped you by now! HA HA HA!" Suddenly, the laughter came to an abrupt end and Draco held his arms wide open, gesturing to his subordinates. "You hear that guys? The very guy who killed your friends and partners won't kill you because he's finally feeling guilty. But will guilt bring them back? Of course not! You know what? Maybe Scarly is actually lying. Maybe he really doesn't want to fight you because he thinks you're not his time! After all, he did kill the other grunts on the way here!"
"I didn't!" he objected. "And all that I said was true!"
"Liar!" one of the grunts screamed. "I won't believe a murderer like you!"
"My sister joined Team Plasma so she could take care of me! When I heard she died at your hands, I joined this place just so I could hunt you down!"
Again, cue the guilt. They were partially right after all. But that was then...he didn't mean too.
"I..." he muttered, throat going dry. It was his fault that some of them were even now in Team Plasma. He was the reason for their anguish. He was no different from Ghetsis. Slowly, his heart started to hurt at that realisation and their furious words were sinking in now.
"Rot in hell, Scarlet!"
"I want my Conkeldurr back!"
"You're a monster! A devil!"
"Someone like you doesn't deserve any happiness after all the ones you took from others!"
"Yeah!" Draco added, just for the fun of it. The plan was working. Just a little more and he would be ready.
Slowly but surely, Scarlet's guilt increased and he was starting to lose sight of his priorities as his mind wandered to a certain person who had advised him on his evildoings. Killa Kay. He remembered his warnings back in Chargestone Cave and now he could see that it was slowly starting to haunt him. Were these people right? Was he just fooling himself? How could he have hoped to be happy after all the bad things he had done? Maybe these guys were right...he was evil...a liar...a deceitful, selfish bad guy who deserved nothing more than to rot away in Giratina's fiery world. Someone like him wasn't fit for White. Not by a long shot even with all the kind old man had said. Yes...he was despicable, he was trash, he was scum.
"It hurts..." he uttered, eyes shadowed and expression unreadable.
"Get him," Draco ordered and as one, the grunts and their pokemon rushed towards the guilty teen. However, what they didn't know was that Draco had already activated G-factor and the first grunt that grabbed Scarlet's shirt got his head ripped off in an instant. The attack was so fast, no one had seen Scarlet's hand move but they knew it was him owing to the blood that was suddenly coating his free arm.
"He killed him," one shocked person muttered and grew enraged. "He lied! He was gonna kill us anyway!"
"No, I didn't mean to!" Scarlet denied, looking at his hand with wide-eyes. He had only meant to push him away. Why did his hand behead him instead?
Another person got behind him and tried to bash him in the head with a steel pipe only for Scarlet's arm to block the attack and grab his face. The terrified grunt stared in terror at the equally frightened look on Scarlet's face.
"It's not me...I can't control myself..." he uttered as his hand started to crush the grunt's face. "I'm sorry..."
SPLAT!
"Another one! The bastard killed another one!" they cried.
"No! I swear I didn't mean to!" And that was the truth. He had lost control of his body for no reason whatsoever. Unfortunately, his denials fell on deaf ears and with savage battle cries, the pokemon fell upon him with pure hatred and ferocity for killing their masters.
Guilt. The feeling he had suppressed as a child when he was still an apprentice hunter. It was a feeling all hunters had needed to push down so as not to hinder or jeopardize their own missions. That was the feeling Scarlet got as he littered the floors with pokemon and human blood in his out-of-control act of self-defence. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring himself to stop and in no time, blood lust was slowly creeping in.
"Stop it..." he muttered as he punched a hole through a Conkeldurr.
"Don't come any closer," he mumbled as he jumped away from an attack and sent a skull-cracking drop kick on a female grunt's head.
"What's wrong with me?" he gasped when he tore off another pokemon's arm. Blood was coating him now, giving him a frightening appearance. He badly resisted the voice urging him to smile like a psychotic maniac. The old him was starting to enjoy the screams again.
"It's working," Draco muttered with a smile as blood flew through the air. "It's working!"
Now we all deserve a proper explanation of what this G-factor is so here it is. G-factor was a technique Draco created in which he puts a piece of his pokemon into his target. This parasitic cell invades the target's body system over the course of time, often manifesting as different symptoms that often start out good (fast healing, slight boost in strength) but slowly take a bad turn (headaches, general weakness, dizziness) until it infests the target's brain completely bringing about personality changes, mood swings and, if Draco willed it, complete mental breakdowns. Somehow or the other, Draco can speed up, slow down, erase or change the parasite's actions enabling him to often take control of the target's bodily and mental functions (like making their bodies move against their own will). However, like all parasites, G-factor needed its own energy source to survive. It's not blood. Neither is it proteins. No...G-factor feeds off negative emotions, the best one being guilt. The more guilt it consumed, the more potent its powers became and at some point, Draco could even kill the host just by willing it to. In truth, most of the Team Plasma grunts had G-factor in them without realising it and that was pretty useful when Draco needed to read their minds as it can be passed simply by touch. Now think about every other person Draco had met and read their own minds. Scarlet had used the black scale touched by Draco. Latios had been struck down by Draco's tentacles. Drayden and Haxorus also got touched one way or the other by the devious knight, enabling him to read them too. That was exactly why he could predict their moves and beat them with ease.
So it came as no surprise when Scarlet killed off over half the grunts and pokemon sent his way. He had long since lost himself now and his eyes had glazed over with a mix of apologetic tears and sadistic enjoyment. In short, the teen was a mess. Emotionally, mentally and even physically as his skin had gone grey and his hair had gone messier than Omega's on a bad hair day.
"And now for the finale," Draco chirped and snapped his gloved fingers. Instantly, Scarlet felt something spike in his chest and he put a hand to his pounding head.
"What's going on? My head-!" he groaned and sank to one knee in pain. One grunt used that chance to get close enough and he and his Gurdurr raised both their weapons high.
"Rot in hell, Scarlet!" he yelled and they brought their weapons down on him. Now bear in mind that Scarlet had been using one arm all this time as he needed the other to hold White's C-Gear present. So we can all guess what happened when the free arm was too busy holding his aching head.
KER-SMASH!
Silence.
Silence.
Scarlet looked up with reddening eyes at the hand he had held up to defend himself. The box was squished completely and from the bits and pieces of pink metal poking out, it was obvious that White's 200000 pokedollar limited edition present was destroyed beyond repair. The ravenette blinked...and dropped the box as his arm fell limp. Slowly, another dark emotion came up and the grunt gulped as scarlet energy began to swirl around the hunter.
Rage.
Scarlet let the emotion grip his troubled soul and before his opponents knew it, his arm shot forward and grabbed the nearest grunt by the neck. To say the grunt was scared would've been the biggest understatement of a lifetime as the Scarlet before him had assumed a much darker appearance, scythe-like fangs and black blood pouring from his red eyes. His hair had also spiked up and gotten much more frazzled...and were those tentacles snaking out of his back?
"What the hell?" the man muttered. He looked just like Draco when he got mad.
"The final stage of G-factor," Draco smiled and pocketed his hands. "Takes over the host completely, swallowing their souls and turning them into raging hybrids of destruction. Kinda like a mini-me." With a happy sigh at the blood scattering through the atmosphere, the knight put a hand to the transceiver in his ear and said, " Joid. It's time. Terra, get the weapon ready."
Opelucid City Centre.
Rain! Trouble! Latios exclaimed as Joid's yellow eyes snapped open. With an insane cry, the boy began to beat at the bubble, cracking it with each hit.
"Uh oh! He's gonna fucking break out!" LP cried and pointed his guns to the bubble though he scowled as Rain put out a hand.
"He doesn't look like he'll fight us. Instead, he's more of in a hurry, right Latios?"
Though I can't read his mind but yes, it seems so. Should I release him?
"Do it," Rain nodded. Latios took a slow breath before removing the bubble. Instantly, Joid tore past them and gave an incredible leap that sent him high into the air and unto his awaiting Hydreigon's back. The duo hissed at his captors before taking off west where the mall was.
"After him!" LP cried and the men got on their pokemon before flying after their lead.
Opelucid City Mall.
Draco stifled his crazy laughter at Scarlet's deranged killing rates. It was just so funny because not up to ten minutes ago, the ravenette had declared that he wouldn't kill anyone. Amazing how the combination of words, guilt and microbiology could bring out the absolute worst in humans. In 2 minutes flat, every single one of the grunts and their pokemon lay dead before his feet and Demon-Scarlet turned his red irises to the very one who had made him into what he was.
"Draco," he growled through gritted teeth. "I've done your stupid game...now where's White."
Draco's mouth trembled and he had to press his palms to his lips to stop the laughter though it still came out as short snorts that made Scarlet raise an eyebrow.
"What...?" he growled impatiently.
"Oh Arceus..this is just too priceless..." the knight snorted again. Suddenly, Scarlet was right before him and he gave a mock gasp as the scary ravenette grabbed his collar and lifted him up.
"Where. Is. White?" he growled in a dark voice that surprised even he himself. "Talk."
"Heh, Fine!" the knight stated and raised a finger. "She's right behind you."
Opelucid City Mall.
Scarlet's red eyes shrank and he dropped Draco before slowly turning.
Standing before him was the very girl he had sought to save. Blood coated her cheeks, shoes and even strands of her hair. With the way the clouds had covered the sun, the little light that had bathed her gave her a ghostly glow especially since all he could see on her face were her extremely wide yellow eyes.
"White," he breathed in relief with a small smile on his face. "Are you alright?"
The girl remained silent and Scarlet curiously took a step towards her.
"White? What's wrong? Are you hur-"
White took a step back from him as his hand was just about touching her shoulder. Puzzled, Scarlet took a step forward again and she took one back, further distancing them. Something was wrong.
"...White...?" he echoed, looking into her eyes. Suddenly, he knew what the problem was. It all lay in her expression and rapid breathing.
Fear.
"What are you...?" she whispered and Scarlet felt a pang in his heart.
"It's me, Scarlet. Remember?" he asked, thumping his chest with a clawed thumb. That terrible feeling of his was back with a vengeance and he had a faint inkling of what the point in all this had been all along.
"Who are you...?" she repeated again. "Scarlet never looked like a monster."
Guilt.
"White, believe me. It's Scarlet you're looking at," he stated, drawing closer to her only for her to step back again, fright evident in her shifty body language.
"That's true, babe. He's the real deal," a voice said from behind and two slender hands dropped against White's shoulders, earning a growl from Scarlet. However, his expression softened when he saw that it was Aqua who stepped out of the shadows though her expression made him uncertain.
"Aqua, what's going on?" he asked.
"Ain't it obvious, kiddo?" she replied and he caught the sneer in her voice. "White's scared of you cos you turned into a monster. Duh."
"Monster?" he asked and looked to the store window beside him. Staring back was a horned, red-eyed, grey-skinned, razor-toothed humanoid with six black tentacles trailing from his back. It looked almost like the disaster from Dragonspiral and with a start, Scarlet's slowed brain woke up immediately. White had seen this. She had seen him kill the grunts with that partially ecstatic look on his face, No wonder she didn't believe him.
"S-Scarly...?"
The ravenette's head snapped towards White and he instantly regretted looking into her eyes.
"Why...?" she asked airily. "Why do you look like this...? And why did you...do all this...?"
"I..." and that was as far as he could go.
"I'll answer!" Aqua piped up and grinned. "This is Scarly's true self! The demon pokemon hunter who's only too glad to taste blood!"
"That's not true!" he objected. "It's just that...that...Why're you saying that in the first place? Shouldn't we get outta here-"
The brunette laughed. It was a long, jeering, sinister laugh that made Scarlet cringe.
"I should've known..." he growled and tensed. "You're with Team Plasma."
"Bingo," she chirped and looped her arms round White's waist. "And you're with the Organisation of Pokemon Hunters or ORPH for short! Now we're even!"
Scarlet froze.
"Pokemon...hunters...?" White echoed and felt her lip tremble. "That's a lie...right?"
Silence.
"You're kidding..." she muttered and gave a nervous laugh. "This is just some birthday joke...right? The surprise present?" Please say yes.
"Nope!" Draco laughed cruelly and grabbed Scarlet's shoulders. "The real deal, ditz. You've been travelling with a hunter all this time!"
White's expression faltered. "What?"
"You heard him," Aqua replied and faced Scarlet. "Or would you prefer it straight from the hunter's mouth himself?"
At this point, Scarlet wished for the ground to just swallow him or something. But this was the inevitable confession so he'd just have to go through with it.
"It's true."
White's face fell.
"I was just following you so I could get to Reshiram since hunting him down was my current priority."
"For 49.5 million too!" Draco added, increasing Scarlet's inner shame and guilt.
At this point, the girl's expression had gone dead blank and try as he might, Scarlet couldn't look away from her eyes.
"So...what would have happened after you took Reshiram?" she asked and Aqua's grin widened.
"Say it, boy," she growled.
"...Under normal circumstances...I would've killed you," he stated and his eyes shook. "But I-"
"But he waited until your birthday so he could make the exchange with his clients who happen to be Team Plasma!" Draco sang. "Today was the arranged date after all."
"No! That's not true!" Scarlet objected.
"Then what is true?!" White exclaimed, hurt lacing her strained voice. "You were using me all this time. After everything we've been through...All the things you said...were they lies too? Was everything a big fat lie to steal a pokemon so you could sell it for money?"
"Ouch," Aqua whispered gleefully as each of White's words struck Scarlet like bullets.
"It wasn't," he objected and shook his head. "Okay, at first it was but things kind of changed along the line. I thought a lot about it and I didn't want to take Reshiram anymore cos I couldn't bring myself to kill you!"
"Yet!" Draco chipped in.
"Shut up!" Scarlet barked and extended a hand to White. "Listen White. I know what you're thinking but I assure that I've changed now! I'm no longer the bad person I used to be. Honest!"
White looked at him before lowering her head. "Is that so? Then why did you mindlessly slaughter these people and pokemon?"
Scarlet opened his mouth to say something but found out that he had nothing for that question.
"How can you lie like this?" she continued. "You say you've changed. Yet there's no proof for it. How then can I be sure that all we did was true. The times when you had said you were proud of me for winning. Was that a lie? Was our journey together just some big game for you?"
Scarlet's guilt had probably reached a scale of ten now. "White...I..."
"I just need to know one more thing, Scarlet," she cut in and looked up with teary eyes. "What was I to you after all this time?"
Scarlet clenched his fists and grit his teeth. Slowly, his monstrous attire fizzled off as reddish energy and he faced her as a human being now.
"Initially, you were a pawn. But travelling with you after all this time made me realise just how foolish and wrong I had been in the past. So you became my friend though after watching you grow into the strong trainer you are now, I wanted us to have been much more than that." Slowly, he extended his hand to her again. "Please White. I'm sorry I kept my identity from you all this time. Please believe me."
White stared at him with a dull expression before recalling all her memories with him. Everything seemed so fake now. All the words, the smiles, she had put her faith in them only to have everything smashed to pieces on her own birthday. What was more, Scarlet still had the nerve to stand before her against a bloody backdrop, with that small smile on his face and his arm extended out to her, begging her for her shattered trust and forgiveness. Yet, despite the hurt she felt, her inner nature yearned for his presence. Her innocent mind still saw something in him that made her want to believe him once more.
But with Reshiram taken out from her body, the trainer couldn't stop the doubt and distrust springing up within her. The initial shock, hurt and confusion was still ever present in her eyes and slowly, a tear rolled down her cheek as she took a deep breath to answer the ravenette.
"Scarlet..." she began and everyone held their breaths. "After all I've seen and heard today, it'd be extremely hard to believe all that you've said so far. Especially since I now know what you truly are...I trusted you, Scarlet. I trusted you. And though I wanna trust you again, I...just can't."
Scarlet's face fell slightly and Aqua was just about to add a snide remark when White added something totally unexpected.
"Though I can't bring myself to trust you, that doesn't mean I hate you for this either."
"Huh?" Aqua blurted.
"Really?" Scarlet croaked. She doesn't hate me?
"Actually, I'm happy now that you owned up and told me everything...even if it was with Team Plasma's help. Now that you've got nothing burdening your mind, you look far freer than you've ever been and somehow, that makes me really glad. Maybe now, you can go on living without worrying about what this ditz is gonna do when she finds out everything."
"White..."
"I want to apologise for any trouble I caused you along the way," she added and more tears fell. "It must've been troublesome having to run around with an airhead like me. After all, I was just a naive pawn anyway so it's not like I really mattered much. I'm sure you probably hate me now...but it's okay. Even if everything was a lie, I'll still hold on to those memories we made together. I don't care if you were using me for something else."
"White..." Scarlet uttered. He badly wanted to speak. To tell her that his feelings for her were the complete opposite. But his mouth refused to move anymore upon seeing the smile she took on. It was a sad smile, the kind you'd see on a person who'd felt like they'd lost everything important to them.
"I forgive you, Scarlet," she said and put up her own hand. "I forgive you for using me like that. I forgive you for all the lies and pretence and if you're really willing to change, I'm more than ready to put my trust in you again. Because I love you, Scarlet. "
Everything froze. Scarlet stared at White with wide eyes. She loves me...? She's willing to forgive me? But I don't deserve it...yet I can't help but feel so happy...
Slowly, his feet started moving and with a start, Aqua noticed his skin going grey again.
"Draco," she growled.
"Don't look at me, it activated on its own," the knight shrugged and snapped his fingers. Grunts surrounded the moving teen but he still continued towards White. "Stop him."
"You love me...?" the boy echoed and White nodded.
"I love everything about you, Scarlet. Even down to your scars. I don't care if they're terrible or make you incomplete. I think they make you look even more beautiful."
"Really?" he asked, a small smile on his face. The grunts charged at him with all their might but by some unknown power, the boy's speed tripled and in a near instant, he had passed through the entire group. The strange thing was that they all immediately fainted afterwards.
"Damn," Draco hissed and started moving forward.
"Your true self too. The fighter in you. I think it's admirable though you might need some work on it," she added.
"Seriously?" he asked, hope welling up in him. Draco came up from behind and put a firm hand on his shoulder.
"Stop, Scarlet-"
BAM!
The knight flew back a good 40 feet away from the force of Scarlet's punch and crashed through a window.
"Oh great," Aqua hissed and pressed her ear transceiver. "Terra, ready the weapon."
"But the thing I love most about you, Scarlet, is your very personality itself. You really and truly cared for those you considered friends. Even if everything else was just a lie, that one thing was true. I saw the way you treated Jolteon and I wished I was as close to my pokemon as you two are. I noticed the friendly and kind attitude you displayed to Violet and Vann too. Even the attitude you showed for my friends. I'm sure it was fake at first...but you soon acknowledged them too. I knew that because of the way you cried with me when Skyla died. Those tears were real too."
"Yes," he breathed. Joid landed behind him and lunged with his fangs bared but without even looking back, Scarlet threw out a fist and sent the freak far, far away. "They were real."
"So...that's everything I guess," White finished and looked down again. "And if you don't feel the same way, I'll understand."
"Aww, how romantic," Aqua sneered and grabbed White's arm before pulling her back. "I'll have to say that I didn't expect that. Oh well, I've let you see him one last time so let's go."
"Go?" White echoed and felt that her senses dull again.
"And thankfully, the poison is taking its full effect now," the brunette added as White began to sway. "I can't believe you temporarily broke out of null consciousness just to say all that. Oh well, that's what makes you the perfect sacrifice."
"Sacrifice...?" White whispered before falling back. Luckily, a grunt came up and caught her before scooping her and standing beside Aqua.
Upon hearing the word 'Sacrifice', painful memories erupted within Scarlet and his walk turned into a slow run. He knew now why Team Plasma had targeted her all this time. It was because she was just like Jade. Innocent and carefree.
"Not again," he muttered and his speed increased. "I'm not losing another precious person again!"
"Buy us some time!" Aqua hissed and every pokemon and grunt in Opelucid ran in and blocked Scarlet's way. With a roar of anger and desperation, he fought against each grunt, gaining more strength as his will to save White increased.
"White!" he cried, suddenly finding his mouth free again. "It's true that I used you initially but our journey together wasn't false! It was real! I put my heart and soul into everything we did together! Hell, I stopped seeing you as a pawn and more as a person. You showed me how beautiful the world could be if I looked at it from a different point of view! Sure, it looked the same initially but as your being there made it a whole lot different! And you matter to me, White! You matter a lot! I really meant it when I said I was proud of you! Who wouldn't be after all the challenges you and your pokemon went through? And your relationship with them is flawless!"
A grunt's Bisharp slashed at his chest, drawing blood and Scarlet winced before dodging another slash and sweeping the pokemon's legs from under it, making it topple and get its blades stuck in the ground. As he proceeded to move again, two more grunts grabbed his arms before a Scrafty rammed its fist into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Despite that, he shook off the grunts on his arms and flipped them over before blocking Scrafty's fist again and knocking it out with a sharp blow to the neck. The other grunts continued to gather like lice but Scarlet beat off everything in his way in his desperate attempt to get to White. He didn't care when he took a steel beam to the ribs. He couldn't be bothered with the arm that had surely gotten broken when he blocked a Watchog's Iron Tail. He didn't even stop when a Drapion's pincers slashed his sides, terribly injuring him. No, all that pain would go away at some point but if White was taken from him and killed, he didn't know how he would ever live with himself.
"He's not stopping!" one grunt cried.
"Well, send in more grunts and pokemon!" Aqua snapped harshly, wishing she hadn't left Kingdra back with Terra. "Speaking of which, is that weapon ready, Terra?!"
"Just a few more minutes..." he stated through the receiver.
"Hurry up, will you? Scarlet's suddenly gone berserk and-"
Aqua stopped as she saw the green-eyed hunter appear right before her and the grunt beside her. Behind him, several pokemon and grunts lay still but alive.
"You actually beat 'em," she muttered and a mad grin came over her face. "I sent half of the entire Team Plasma force and you beat 'em all just to save an airhead like her?! You're even more of a monster than me!"
Scarlet said nothing, taking the time to catch his breath before raising a hand and sending it towards her face with crushing force. It it hit, the brunette would probably have a fist mark for the rest of her life and though instinct told her to dodge, her body refused to move as an unknown feeling overcame her.
SMASH!
Aqua felt nothing. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked to the side to see Scarlet's fist lodged into the wall behind her which instantly shattered as soon as he withdrew his hand. He didn't hurt her but he had succeeded in paralyzing her with fright and with a ragged breath, she sank to her knees in shock.
Seeing as she was immobilized, Scarlet turned towards the shaking grunt and smiled slowly. "You know what to do, right?"
Slowly, the grunt laid White against the ground and ran for his life, leaving Scarlet to attend to the girl.
"White, are you okay?" he asked, seeing as her breathing was slow. He sighed in relief as she extended a hand and stroked his bloodied face.
"Speak...for yourself...Scarlet..." she whispered and smiled.
"Don't worry about me. I need to get you to the hospital so we can get the poison out," he stated and winced at the bolts of pain stabbing his sides. Those attacks had taken a lot out of him but he had to endure so he could get White to safety. If he was lucky, maybe he'd run into Jolteon too.
"My body's...too weak to move and...you can barely move yourself...I'd say we're pretty much stuck..." White joked and Scarlet felt her hand fall from his cheek.
"We're not stuck," he objected and grabbed her hand. "I promised myself that I'd protect. Even if it kills me, White, I'm getting you outta here!"
"Right..." she laughed weakly, yellow eyes beginning to lose their shine. "Hey Scarly...I'm gonna lose consciousness soon...so I just want to know something...What were you planning...to tell me...later on today..."
Slowly, the ravenette smiled at her and put a hand on her cheek, wiping her tears. He knew he needed to move fast but he still felt compelled to say it now.
"White, you changed me. I used to be evil and I don't blame you for not trusting me but I just want you to know that if not for you, my life would've been a continuous train wreck. I would've died too had it not been for you. Also, you were never a burden on me and I'm so happy you actually forgave me for all the worry and disappointment that I put you through."
"You're...welcome. Please...get to the point..." she laughed, earning a smirk from the ravenette.
"Heh. Fine," he giggled and took out a box from his pocket. "Don't worry, it's not a wedding ring. It's a promise ring. I'll give you the long story later but all in all, it shows that I want to continue being together with you. You know what that means, right?"
White blinked and her smile grew wider as more tears rolled from her eyes. "Scarlet...you baldie..."
"Happy birthday, ditz," he said and opened the box, showing her the pure-white ring. "And I love you, White. That's the truth. Please give me another chance to make everything right again."
White's acknowledging smile made all his pain disappear and Scarlet had never been happier than this day. He had confessed, White had forgiven him and all was right with the world.
Then tragedy struck.
"That was the most touching confession I had ever heard."
Before Scarlet could move, a hand grabbed his neck from behind and tore him away from White before slamming him into a wall. Draco's expression had warped into a malicious grin now and with a mad laugh, he slammed Scarlet repeatedly against the wall before flinging him forward and into Joid's awaiting arms.
"You're the first person to actually piss me off this much, Scarlet," the dark-skinned knight cackled as Scarlet struggled to break free of Joid's hold. "First, you hijacked my G-factor. Then you used it to take care of my subordinates. How the hell did you do that? And don't give me those crappy explanations about emotional power. Are you some kind of monster?"
With a smirk, he crossed over to White and pulled her up roughly.
"Hey! Let her go!" Scarlet barked, seeing the pained look on White's face. She could barely stand before and her body was aching all over.
"Just what power does this airhead hold?" he snapped harshly and held her face. "Is it your love for her that gave you this much strength? Or does she hold some kind of power that boosts your own endurance? Just the thought of it makes me want to rip her head off and drink every last drop of her blood!"
"I said let her go!" Scarlet screamed, flipping Joid over and rushing up to them with his arm raised into a fist. "You're hurting her!"
"Oh hush up!" a voice called out and Scarlet felt a whip wrap round his arm before pulling him back. Looking to his side, he saw Aqua, equally grinning maniacally, holding the leathery material. "You made me feel so human just now and I'm so disgusted with myself. Who would've thought someone like you would've instilled fear into me, a dragon knight?! You are so screwed!"
"That's your own bloody fault, Aqua!" Draco yelled and pointed his mad eyes at Scarlet. "At least he didn't touch you. Do you know how soiled I feel right now!"
His grip on White tightened and she yelped in pain, making Scarlet only madder.
"Damn it!" he cried and snapped the whip before charging for Draco again.
"Let-" he raised his fist.
"Her-" Draco saw it come closer to him.
"GO!"
SHLUK!
...
...
White's eyes widened as blood splattered against her cheeks.
Scarlet stared at the hand he hand used to try and punch Draco. The arm that was now in the air, separated from his body.
By the time he realised his predicament, Joid had snapped up the severed limb in bite and Scarlet screamed as blood sprayed from the horrifying injury.
"Now, Terra!" Draco yelled, retracting his tentacle. From the building a good distance away, Terra aimed the weapon, a long, speargun-like launcher and smiled to himself.
"Die, brat!" he exclaimed and pulled the trigger, launching a harpoon-like projectile that lodged itself right into Scarlet's chest, passing through his back, stabbing his heart and coming out through the triangular scar on his chest.
Everyone went silent as Scarlet slowly looked at the weapon poking out from his bleeding chest. Pain. Inexplicable, highly unbearable pain surged through his system and he opened his mouth to scream only have blood gag his throat as it flowed up his neck and spewed from his mouth like rushing water.
The world started to spin and shake and Scarlet staggered to keep his balance before pointing his gaze at White. She was screaming something but he could barely hear her now and before he knew it, she had fallen into null consciousness and could only stare at his slowly sinking frame.
"Thank Arceus the poison finally kicked in again," Draco sighed, carrying the girl up and walking up to Scarlet's body. "She was quite strong to have resisted its null-consciousness-inducing effects for so long."
"Maybe seeing him injured like this sent her back into null consciousness from shock," Aqua speculated, also walking up to them. "Now the last memory she'll have will be of Scarlet's death."
Another person came to the scene and Scarlet noticed the native-american leather boots walking up to him. With a huff, Terra crouched and grabbed him by the neck before giving him a scornful look.
"Revenge completed. What do you think of me now, boy?" he sneered and let go, leaving the ravenette to fall on his side. "That weapon took a lot of time to set up."
"What does it do again?" Aqua asked, tapping her chin. "And now that I think of it, wasn't Scarlet supposed to be alive. He is the guilty sacrifice after all."
"To your first question," Terra began and tapped a button on the butt end of the harpoon sticking out from Scarlet's back. With a whirr, the machine pulsated and Scarlet's eyes widened as he felt his blood being literally sucked from his dying body. "The weapon drains the target of all his blood and by extension, his soul. After all, the blood contains life."
"How gruesome," the brunette grimaced before looking to the box in Scarlet's remaining arm. With a wicked smile, she bent and took it before flipping the lid open and whistling at its contents.
"As for the second question, and I daresay my answer might be supernatural, Ghetsis said that Scarlet's body is too...scarred and that makes his soul to look unpresentable for Kyurem to devour since it can be quite a picky guy. It's like trying to eat a jam doughnut with mould on it. Bleagh. So that's why the empty vessel, Joid was chosen. As he can regenerate, we don't have to worry about him being too scarred or too ugly to eat," Draco piped up and nodded to Terra who pressed another button. The tube-like harpoon opened at the back and the knight pulled out a long, red object resembling a thin sword. Upon seeing it, Scarlet's stomach lurched as it looked like a thinner version of the same one Ghetsis had used to kill Jade.
"So that's why Joid keeps trying to eat Scarlet. He was merely doing his best to get a soul," Terra concluded and tossed the glowing sword filled with Scarlet's blood up into the air. The ravenette watched in despair as Joid swallowed the weapon whole and began to laugh wildly as his chest began to glow. In no time, the triangular scar formed on his chest and his hair changed to complete black and with a deep breath, Joid gave a cry of accomplishment and turned to the other knights.
"So, satisfied now? How'd it taste?" Draco quipped.
Joid gave a smirk, very similar to Scarlet's, and pulled a thumbs up. "Tasted like a jam doughnut."
Terra gawked, Aqua gaped and Draco simply laughed.
"You can talk now?" the brunette gasped and looked to Draco. "What the hell?"
"Don't what the hell me, bitch! Do you know how hard it is to act when you've got no soul?" Joid snapped and shuddered. "I felt like an animal. I could barely think. Oh well, I've got Scarlet's soul now so I should be capable of normality now."
"Good, good," Draco chuckled and turned to look at the destroyed city. "I had a lot of fun today but it looks like it's time to go."
"You said it," Aqua remarked and stretched. "I'm gonna need a bath. I kinda feel sorry for Alphy. She would've loved to watch."
"I got a call actually from Bronius. He says she went missing," Terra piped up and pressed a remote and a giant, black, ship-like vessel floated from the clouds and hovered head of them before letting out a steel, gangplank.
"I'm sure she's just hiding in one of her secret corners to sulk," Aqua quipped. "She was always good at doing that."
"Ah, who cares. So that's our ride, huh? The Plasma Frigate," Joid whistled and put his hands on his hips. "Looks fancy. Oh? Scarlet's soul seems to be in a bit of turmoil."
"Don't blame him," Draco replied and turned to face Scarlet with White in his arms. "This is the end, Scarly. I'll tell White you said bye."
"Hurry up and die, baldie!" Joid sneered and waved at him. "Thanks for the soul. We purposely didn't take all of it since we wanted you to still be alive to watch your precious airhead leave. And guess what, I'm the guilty one now! I get to die instead of you!"
"You seem so happy about it," Terra deadpanned before walking up the gangplank with Joid skipping after him.
Scarlet, who up until now had been fighting unconsciousness, saw Draco taking White towards the floating ship. Seeing his one and only light disappearing before his eyes, the ravenette extended his shaky hand towards them and moaned as the hand was stamped down by one of Aqua's pointy high-heels.
"You've lost, Scarlet," she declared and held the promise ring up before dropping it against the floor and stamping on it with all the sadistic glee she could bring up. "You'll never see White again so I doubt you'll need this anymore, especially since you can't take jewellery with you to the afterlife. So watch as the girl you love is snatched from you and die happily at the fact that you won't see her getting stabbed on the promised day. Adiós, hunter."
"S..top..." he groaned as Draco climbed the gangplank. Aqua followed and turned to wave at him before disappearing into the ship's deck. With a mechanical groan, the gangplank retracted and the ship was slowly lifting back into the air, carrying the only source of Scarlet's happiness away. Forever.
Scarlet had lost everything. His brother, his mother, his best friend, his arm and now the only person in the world who loved him and was willing to accept him for the person he was. And the thing that pained him the most was that he could do nothing to save them or get them back. Nothing.
"No..." he sobbed tearfully and coughed out blood again. The hole White had filled was back again, worse than ever and it brought a friend along too. Death was here. It was beckoning him. So what else could Scarlet do but close his eyes and let the cold darkness swallow him completely. As his breathing ground to a halt and all life functions shut down for good, he remembered all the happy moments he had shared with White, Jolteon and their kooky assortment of friends. It was all over now and he would miss those wonderful days. With a small breath, he saw the ship disappear over the cloudy horizon and only then did his eyes finally dim.
The scarlet hunter made his tragic exit that day with only one five-letter word on his lips. A colour that carried so many meanings and so much lost hope. A simple word that described the starkness of the world yet illuminated it with such bright intensity that it laid bare all truths and emotions hidden away in the deepest recesses of the heart.
White...
Opelucid City Mall.
Lightning stared at the sight before his eyes. Blood, grunts and pokemon lay everywhere and he had to hold his mouth so as not to gag. Behind him, Rain rushed into the area and looked around with perplexed eyes.
"Can you feel his presence, Latios?" he asked quickly. Latios closed his eyes for a minute before slowly shaking his head.
"What the fuck happened here?" LP gasped and picked his way through the bodies before growing uneasy. "Where's Scarlet? He's supposed to be here, right?"
Lightning had already dashed off, looking around the massive building for any clues. Then he got to the courtyard and looked in surprise at the mass of grunts there too. However, these one's were very unconscious and that made him sigh in relief before taking a look at the damaged Starmiebucks. He did a double take when he saw White's familiar pink satchel lying carelessly beside the broken window and he quickly rushed up to it before stopping as he saw something else that caught his eyes. A small trail of blood. Slowly, he traced the trail until he came to the mall's other entrance that faced the open hills at Opelucid's outskirts. Ignoring the grunts there, he kept scanning the place until his eyes rested on the heap lying on the floor with something like a spear impaling its middle.
"Nya...?" The cowboy cautiously came closer and shuddered when he found the heap to be human. A black-haired young boy with a scar running across the bridge of his nose- "SCARLET?!"
Rain and LP heard his scream and came over only to stop and stare at the horrifying sight before them.
"Dammit! DAMMIT! I was too late!" they heard Lightning cry tearfully as he pulled the weapon out and looked into Scarlet's face.
"Is he...?" LP asked, though he knew the answer.
He is. Latios nodded and stared grimly at the scene. Scarlet is dead.
Author's Corner.
Slybill: What's with me and long chapters? Haha...stop looking at me like that. It had to happen, right? Right? Okay, I won't lie, it took me a while to think about how this chapter would go and this just happened to be the best conclusion. I'm sorry if you got confused or anything. I ain't too good with this stuff. Sorry, got something in my eye...I think I'll just retire and bring up the next chapter soon. BTW, this is the end of this volume and to those who have patiently waited and gone through it all with me, Thanks a lot. Radiant Sunrise, the last chapter, is coming and expect dramatic fights, unlikely assistance and the very best in our good and bad guys. Slybill signing out.
END OF VOLUME THREE: THE CIRRUS CLOUDS THAT PROPHESY THE FALL STREAKS OF A COMING APOCALYPSE TO THE WORLD.
A Simple Pokemon Story by Slybill. (Thanks for staying up till now ;)