Hey everyone, sorry for the late update been rather busy lately and I haven't had a chance to really type much, but I think I'll just throw this chapter out there to keep the story moving. Also, a quick thank you to Farla for reviewing my story and yes, I thank you very much for pointing out those plot holes for me, although I do have some explanation for them. Most things that don't make much sense in this story based on the whole anima concept will be revealed as the story goes on, as I didn't wanna have a huge spammage of explanation in the beginning, but I guess I'm not doing such a good job of introducing world elements slowly haha xD...

But still, thank you muchly, Farla. Oh, and I apologize for Cyrano's selfish character, but he is actually that way.

Anyways enough rambling and onto the story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon

Chapter 5: The Captives

Trundling.

That was a word she had learned recently from her older brother. The sound she was hearing now - a dull, constant rattling - matched "trundling" in her mind's eye. It was like she lying in a wooden cart, its uneven wheels causing it the pitch to and fro...

She opened her eyes.

It was dark now, nearly nighttime. The sky above was still faintly tinged with oranges and pinks, but the stars were just beginning to peek out of the dark velvet way up high. Ida turned her head slightly and saw another person staring intently at her. She was a girl who looked to be slightly younger than Ida herself. Her red eyes glittered in the dark. She held a finger up to her lips, still staring. Ida blinked in response and turned her head back up, where she saw bars above and around the cart. They were moving, and she and the girl weren't the only ones in the cart. She could hear a multitude of footsteps around her, all crunching in the grass, and she could hear the occasional whimper of a child or the sharp voice of someone older - likely one of the captors reprimanding the prisoners.

"Hurry up, kiddos," a nasally voice said. "If yew wanna rest, you better keep movin'. Our ship is just straight ahead."

"I wanna go home," a girl cried softly.

There was a faint whoosh, a slapping sound, and then a shriek of pain. More soft sobbing, and Ida's insides boiled when she heard the man hiss, "You ain't goin' anywhere, but you'll be going into a ditch if you keep whinin' like that."

Ida moved slightly, as though to get up, but the other girl put a hand on her shoulder. "Not yet," she whispered. Her necklace, one with round, red beads, clinked slightly when she moved.

"But-" Ida protested, but the girl's hand quickly covered her mouth.

"What're you doing over there, Tallasia?" a soft voice said.

Ida moved her head slightly and saw that she wasn't the only one in the cart. From what she could see in the dim light, there were about five other kids in the cart. Most of them sat or lay on the wood, sulking or napping. The one that had spoken was another boy who was peering curiously at Ida lying in the cart.

Tallasia shook her head almost unnoticeably, but he seemed to understand. He turned away and leaned against the side, an absent look on his face.

The cart suddenly pitched to a halt. Ida slid upward from the momentum and bumped her head. She winced and scowled, looking at the girl Tallasia questioningly.

Tallasia leaned forward so she could whisper right into Ida's ear. "One of the prisoners used Sleep Powder on you and knocked you out after you fought too much, and then they put you here in the prison cart because they have deemed you a high-risk anima."

"What does that mean?" Ida hissed.

"It means that you're powerful and they don't want that. This cage can contain your electric shocks and various other basic attacks. They put most of the high risk kids in here, and the rest are outside walking with all of the Team Reaper guards."

There was a small amount of murmuring outside the cart. Tallasia looked up briefly, and bent down again.

"I'm going to use a light Hypnosis on you so you aren't fully awake," she whispered quickly. "It'll make things easier. Erin will carry you."

"But why?"

Tallasia was already staring intently into Ida's eyes, her own irises glowing a vivid magenta. "Because they might separate you from us," she replied.

Ida sighed softly as her mind drifted into a state of half consciousness. Her eyes closed. Though her awareness was dimmed, she could hear loud voices speaking around her. The cart was jerked roughly. Strong hands grabbed her arms and in moments she was on someone's back, her legs being held up in someone's elbows.

"Move towards the ship and keep quiet," that same nasally voice said commandingly. "Just go on up the ramp there and the men will lead you to your holding rooms. If you try to fight, we'll save you for last and then throw you out of the ship once its in the air."

"Where are the high-risk kids gonna go?" someone else asked.

There was some unintelligible mumbling, and then, "... doesn't matter, she's useless as is. Might as well..." But Ida didn't hear the rest.

She was quickly regaining full consciousness. She was being piggybacked by someone, probably a stocky boy. There was a light touch on her knee, so she opened her eyes and looked at her surroundings through the slits. Unfortunately all she could see was the girl Tallasia, walking alongside her. She couldn't afford to move her head, so Ida merely rested against the boy's shoulder. For some reason, she wondered if it was Cyrano, but it couldn't be - this boy was too stocky to be her older brother.

The kids, still surrounded by many men, entered a bright lobby. Ida had to close her eyes again and then open them because the light stunned her. She heard low voices talking, and then they were led into a hall. After a long walk down a wide corridor and down some stairs, she heard a loud man state, "All right, one kid per cell. You, boy, just dump her in the bed and come out lickety split."

There was a grating metal sound, like an iron bar door being slid open, and then Ida was being placed on a scratchy mattress. She kept her eyes closed and heard the door slide shut. There were more prison door noises, a shuffling of footsteps. It was a long time before she heard a final, distant clang, then more footsteps, then fading footsteps as it climbed the metal stairs. Finally impatient, she jumped out of bed and took a look at where she was.

It was a pathetic little jail cell, with just four feet between the bed and the bars. There was a small opening on the bottom for food to be slipped in. There were no windows around, just a cold grey wall. She heard murmurs ringing through the hallway.

"Why were we taken here?"

"What do they want with us?"

"This place is too small!"

"I wanna go home..."

Ida went up to the bars and saw a boy sitting in the cell across from her, the same boy she had seen watching her in the cart. He smiled at her.

"You're awake," he said.

"What happened?" Ida asked him. "I was fake sleeping all the way in here so I didn't get a chance to see where we went into."

In the cell diagonally across from her, Tallasia sat on the floor and sidled up to the bars. "This ship is called The Harvest. I believe the group that took us is called 'Team Reaper'. That's what I heard they were called anyway."

Ida held onto the bars and did an experimental static shock on it, but Erin immediately cried, "Whooooaa whoa! You be careful. Metal is conductive - you might accidentally shock more than those bars if you put enough electricity into it."

She let go immediately. "Sorry." Ida looked at the stairs, which weren't far from her cell, and then decided to sit like Tallasia. The boy across from her did the same.

"My name is Ida," she told them. "They caught me in Primordia Town."

"My name is Tallasia." The other girl's voice was soft and wispy, much like her appearance. She pointed to the wall on her left side, probably pointing at the boy. "This is Erin. He's the one that carried you in. We're both from Toleranti Town."

Erin smiled. Though he had a big body, Ida thought he looked like a very gentle person. "I'm a Wooper anima," he said almost shyly. "So I wouldn't be too affected by your electricity, but I'm worried about the others."

Despite the situation, Ida laughed. "That's okay. Sorry for being a little dangerous. I'm a Pikachu anima." She looked at Tallasia. "I'm thinking you're a... Misdreavus anima? Your eyes look like it and that necklace reminds me of a Misdreavus."
She nodded and smiled. "You're observant," she chimed.

Ida shrugged. "Naw, my brother's best friend used to teach me all kinds of things so..." Her voice trailed off as she thought about Freyr. And her brother. Where was he right now? Did he get taken along with the rest of the kids? She was sure she would have noticed him if he was. Maybe he didn't get caught, and was left back at Primordia. She hated to picture the thought of her older brother coming home and finding that she was gone, taken forcefully by the men in uniform that had raided her hometown of its children. He would be worried sick, and so would their parents.

There was a sudden shudder that ran through the ship. Most of the children cried out in surprise as the prison hall lurched. A thundering rumble manifested itself in every inch of the ship's body.

"We're taking off," Tallasia said. "Now our fates are in their hands."

Ida stumbled to her feet, feeling determination surge through her limbs. "No!" she shouted. "I'm not letting them take us." A few stray bolts danced around her.

Across from her cell, Erin also leapt to his feet. "Ida, be careful!" he cried.

There was one final jolt that sent everyone tumbling to the floor. Then Ida felt gravity press down on her as the ship took to the air.

Hope you all enjoyed and reviews are greatly appreciated .b and agghh I just have to thank you again Farla for reviewing, perhaps this isn't the most solid story but I am grateful you even bothered to continue reading after noticing its flaws!