Note: Another two weeks, another update. Oh, and for those who were wondering/curious, Soul is 13 and Silver is 14. This story takes place roughly two years after the start of Soul's Pokemon journey.

Follow Me
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Eight
Water Veil

"Come on, Soul, let's get out of here," Silver said, heading for the exit.

Soul nodded and scooped Chocobo into her arms. "...What's the matter, Chocobo? Are you cold?" The bird Pokemon was shaking, staring beyond her shoulder. Puzzled, she turned around and instantly froze. "Silver!" she hissed in a deathly whisper.

With a small growl, he turned and joined her side. "What?" She gestured in front of her, and, rolling his eyes, Silver turned. "Wha...What the hell...?"

The eyes behind the waterfall narrowed, and a deep voice-not audible to the ears, but completely in their minds-asked, "Who are you?"

Sheer terror. They stood motionless, unable to move, barely able to breathe. Should they say something?

The voice asked more urgently, "Why have you come here?"

Swallowing to dampen her throat, Soul replied with a cracking voice, "W...We're sorry to have bothered you. We're...looking for someone, you see, and-"

"The person you seek is not here. Leave this place now while my judgment is still fair."

Recoiling a bit, Soul gulped and nodded. "Y-Yes," she said, and she grabbed Silver's arm, adding quietly, "Let's go."

Silver didn't move but instead stared firmly at the silhouette behind the waterfall. Mustering up the gall, he clenched his fists. "If you can sense that who we're looking for is not here, then maybe you can tell us where he is."

There was a pause, masked by the sound of rushing water, in which Soul swallowed and looked anxiously between Silver and the creature behind the curtain of water.

"...I cannot," the voice finally replied.

Silver growled angrily. "You can't or you won't?" he yelled. "You're supposed to be so powerful, and yet you can't find one person?"

The eyes behind the waterfall narrowed, and its voice boomed in their heads, louder than ever. "I need not meddle in your affairs, human! Who are you to enter my sanctuary and demand divination from me? Mayhaps you're merely poachers, here with delusions of claiming me? I am no prize of men, and you are no longer welcome in my retreat!"

The sheer amount of psychic power used by the creature to speak to them made Soul's head throb and her nose bleed. She felt herself starting to feint when an eerie glow surrounded her body. She turned to Silver, who was also aglow, and gasped as the two of them started to float upwards.

"Begone from my sight," the voice cautioned in a stern tone, "and never darken my domain again."

All at once, there was a rush of color. The background melted together until there was nothing but white, and she felt her body dropping in a dizzying spiral. Resisting the overwhelming need to vomit, Soul clutched Chocobo tightly and prayed for their survival.

There was a sudden plummeting sensation in her stomach she more commonly associated with riding an elevator, then a hard slam as her entire body impacted with a hard surface. Then there was nothing.

Swimming in blackness. Cold. Empty. Nothingness. Solidarity. Alone. Was she coming or going...? Was...Perhaps...Was this death?

"O...S...ul."

She couldn't be dead. She just...She just couldn't be. She was much too young with so much left to do.

"Oi...So...l."

Not to mention her feelings for Silver hadn't been properly addressed. How could she die at a time like this?

"Oi! Soul!"

Her eyes shot open. There was warm sand beneath her. In her arms she held her unconscious Torchic, and the sinking sun set the sky ablaze in shades of reds, pinks, and oranges. Her entire body felt heavy, and she couldn't move, despite her best efforts.

"So, you're finally awake then?" a jovial voice said. "I was wondering when you'd finally come to."

The voice was behind her. She tilted her head upward to try and get a better look.

The boy with dark gray eyes flashed a toothy grin. "Well hi there! Think you can sit up any?"

In her disorientation, it took her a while to realize that she knew him. All at once it came to her, and in a cracking, dry voice, she said, "...Gold...?"

Selected quote from the next chapter:
"Ah, Soul, you really shouldn't touch that."