In this chapter, we get to see the conclusion of the fight between Team Fossil + Luke and the villains Clawface and Rudy.
I'm still accepting OCs! Give me all you've got, readers! See the first chapter for the nitty-gritty details!
-.-.-.-.-.
Luke was terrified. Yes, he was easily frightened. Yes, he had been abandoned by his parents at a very young age and thus had a lot to be scared of. But never had he seen anything so horrifying.
His best friends in all the world, Wyvern and Pteryx, were locked in a brutal duel with two bad Pokemon, one of which wasn't hiding the fact that he was an infamous murderer. Luke trembled and cowered in his hiding place as Clawface's Drill Peck narrowly missed Wyvern's chest.
Pteryx noticed the near miss and momentarily ignored Rudy the Krokorok. "Dragonbreath!" he screamed, sending a pulse of pink energy at the Fearow. It struck him in the face, sending him sprawling.
"How do ya like that, Scarface?" the Archen taunted. Clawface's eyes flashed with murderous anger at the insult. "Don't call me that!" he screeched, running at Pteryx in a maddened frenzy.
But Wyvern was quick to defend his little brother. "Rock Slide!" he cried, summoning a portal above "Scarface" and Rudy. Massive boulders slid down from inside the portal, forcing the two to move it or get crushed. The ground shook as the boulders plummeted one by one.
"Stone Edge!" Rudy growled, becoming surrounded by a ring of sharp-edged rocks. With a burst of willpower, the rocks individually fired themselves at Pteryx. He was struck several times, being sent sprawling to the ground.
When he looked up, Wyvern and Luke could see that his Defeatist ability had activated. Fear greater than anything Luke had ever experienced was present in those wide eyes as Rudy advanced on the little Rock-and-Flying type.
"Har har har!" the Krokorok guffawed. "One little blow and all yer nerve runs outta you! Now let's finish you off, Tweety! Strength!" He whipped his powerful tail out from behind him, threatening to smash Pteryx.
At the sight of his friend's plight, Luke became courageous. "Enough!" he screamed. "Protect!" He zipped out from his hiding place and threw up a blue barrier that blocked Rudy's powerful tail.
Pteryx, Wyvern, Clawface, and Rudy all blinked in pure astonishment. The normally timid Victini had become proud and determined. His big blue eyes shot a poisonous glare at Rudy for daring to hurt his friend.
"Enough is enough!" he declared, flames forming around his hands. "I don't know who you are, but you'd better get away from my friends, or else!"
Rudy guffawed, long and hard. When he caught his breath, he wiped a tear from his eye and choked, "Or else what? You'll bite me ankles? Har har har har!"
Luke screamed with rage. "That does it! V-CREATE!"
His ears became infused with a fiery light. With another yell, he blasted Rudy with a huge V-shaped flame that sent the Ground-and-Dark type flying into a house. With a moan, Rudy fell still.
Clawface seethed with anger and vengeance as his teammate fell helplessly to the ground. "I'll kill you, shrimp!" he raged in a terrible voice. "I'll peck out your eyes! I'll skin you alive and roast you with your own fire!"
The Fearow screeched and rose into the air, orange light gathering at the back of his throat. "Die, impudent wretch! HYPER BEAM!"
The orange beam, sizzling with pure power, blasted out from Clawface's beak and streaked toward Luke. And at that moment, the confidence leaked out of him and the light of fear returned to his eyes.
-.-.-.-.-.
Gaby raced away from the town square, away from the crowd and away from the villains that had tried to mug her for the Shard. They hadn't gotten it from her – of course they hadn't. Even when struck so hard that she bled from the mouth, Gaby had stayed stoic and silent. She was strong that way.
The Kirlia finally allowed herself a moment of rest, dropping to her knees and panting for several seconds. Those two will be fine, she thought, thinking of the two brave fossil Pokemon that had come to battle the bullies. They're strong and bold, I could sense it in them. But the little Victini – oh, how I worry for him.
She shook the image of the admittedly cute Pokemon out of her mind. Such thoughts would only distract her from her task. And that task was to deliver the Shard. Gaby must deliver the Shard to the Guardians as a first step toward saving the world.
"Gaby!" came the familiar cry, and the teenaged Psychic-type looked up dazedly – the attack had taken a toll on her. But now, dashing toward her was her worried mother and a worried-looking Tirtouga.
The Gardevoir swooped down and hugged Gaby tightly, weeping with relief. "I'm so glad you're all right!" she cried with happiness, sniffling. Gaby gently pushed her away and said quietly, "I'm fine, Mother. I'm perfectly fine." But she let her mother fix her "hair" and the blue hair clip that was her trademark anyway.
The Tirtouga shuffled forward and raised a flipper. "What happened?" he asked. Gaby stared at him until her mother nodded for her to speak. She said, "Nothing much. Two Pokemon thought it would be fun to push me around."
It was a lie, but one that Gaby thought necessary to tell. What could I have told them? That I'm in possession of a legendary item that could be the key to stopping the natural disasters, and the two were murderers that would do anything to get it? I think not.
"But where's Wyvern and Pteryx and Luke?" the Tirtouga pushed her. "Where are they now?" Gaby opened her mouth, but something happened to instantly silence her.
A colossal explosion shook the ground, with smoke coming up in massive amounts toward the town square. A crowd of Pokemon fled from the obvious destruction.
"My gosh!" cried the Tirtouga. "They need our help!" He crawled forward at as fast a pace as he could manage, but was outstripped by Gaby and her mother as they rushed to the scene of the crime, both of them wondering if it was already too late to help.
-.-.-.-.-.
Smoke filled the air as Clawface's Hyper Beam hit like a pile driver. Wyvern himself was busy coughing, trying to purge the smoke from his lungs, but at the same time his heart was crumbling. There was no way Luke, his friend, would have survived that.
But as the smoke cleared, Wyvern's eyes widened. Clawface looked similarly shocked, and Rudy was soon to see as well as he slowly regained consciousness.
It was Pteryx, Quick Guard already fading as he fell to the ground pathetically. Luke was safe behind him, staring at the fallen Archen with shock and worry fusing together in his eyes.
Clawface was very annoyed. This was the second time Pteryx had interrupted him as he attempted to kill someone. But it would be the last time. He readied another Hyper Beam, aiming it at the motionless Rock-and-Flying type and ignoring the incredible cost of energy the previous Hyper Beam had taken from him.
But then, Luke's eyes sparked once more with determination. "Not this time!" he cried, leaping into the air and readying an attack. "Fire Blast, go!"
Luke hurled a star-shaped blast of flame spinning straight at Clawface. Too close to dodge the wave of fire, he took it head-on, and the sheer force of the attack sent him spinning into the air, only to crash back down to the ground, unconscious.
The Victini's determination ebbed away to be replaced with excitement. We did it! We defeated those bullies! he thought.
With the immediate threat out of the way (Rudy was still trying to get the world back into focus), Wyvern rushed over and scooped the much smaller bird Pokemon up in his arms. Pteryx was limp, and didn't stir. Luke hovered closely over him, gazing at him with the usual fear and worry.
"Will he live?" Luke gulped, tears forming in his eyes. Wyvern shook his head – he had no idea. There was indeed a slight pulse in Pteryx's chest, but would it last?
"Give him here," the soft voice said, making Wyvern flinch badly. The Kirlia from before was standing there, looking worse for wear but otherwise perfectly alright. Wyvern handed her Pteryx's body, and she looked him over.
After a mere glance, she said certainly, "He'll live."
Luke wept tears of joy at this simple remark, and the Kirlia smiled ever so slightly. Tortuga appeared suddenly around the corner on the far side of the market square, shuffling as quickly as he could toward his friends. "What happened here?" he asked, going into a rare panic attack. "Who got killed? What should we do?"
The Gardevoir that Wyvern hadn't noticed until now shushed him. "At ease, dear," she said soothingly. "Your friend will be alright. He is in desperate need of a doctor though."
Luke put in helpfully, "There's a clinic just across Seaside Village." But the Gardevoir shook her head. "I'm afraid his injuries are too severe for that. He'll need a real doctor, accustomed to situations like this. There is one on Diamond Island, if I recall."
Wyvern visibly relaxed. Diamond Island, home of the Diamond Faction, shared a direct trade route with the Water Faction. Getting there would be easy. "We just need a boat," the Archeops said, frowning. Could they find a boat quickly enough?
A voice cut through his worries. "We have a boat," said the Kirlia. "Can they use it, Mother?" The Gardevoir nodded at her words and replied, "Of course. You can pilot it if you wish – you're old enough now, and you know the boat better than anyone."
Luke tilted his head curiously. "Who're you?" he asked. The Kirlia replied with a small curtsy. "My name is Gaby. Pleased to meet you, and thank you for saving me."
The Gardevoir beamed at her daughter's good manners. "I'm sure the five of you will get along splendidly," she said cheerfully, despite the grim situation. "Now, I cannot go with you – I have to manage my shop, after all, and I have another little one to take care of as well. Gaby, you'll be alright with these four?"
Gaby nodded. "I'll do my best, Mother," she said, then hugged her goodbye. The Gardevoir left soon after that, still a little teary-eyed.
"What about those two?" Tortuga asked the instant she was gone, pointing with a flipper at Rudy and Clawface. Wyvern looked pained at the decision he had to make – he had to look after his little brother, but if he did, then the two could get away. He supposed Rudy wasn't so bad, being only a thief and bully, but Clawface was a notorious murderer that could get away with more if he escaped. Was it really worth letting the Fearow go?
He looked down at the motionless Pteryx, and made his decision. No murderer, no matter how bad or how big the bounty is, he thought fiercely, is worth abandoning my little brother for.
"Come on," Wyvern announced, regaining a little bit of his usual cheer. "We need to head for Diamond Island! Gaby, where's your boat?"
The Kirlia pointed in the general direction of the docks. "Follow me. I can show you the way." She began to walk off past the unconscious form of Clawface, giving him a good, defiant kick before leaving him for good.
Luke hovered after Gaby, with a look on his face that suggested he wanted to talk with her but was lacking the nerve. Wyvern kept well behind them, allowing Tortuga to catch up with him and walk beside him.
"Hey, Tortuga," Wyvern said after a moment as they left the market square behind them. "Why did Clawface decide to go after that girl? What's in it for him?" Tortuga shook his head and responded uncertainly, "I'm not quite sure. But if he was willing to push her around, there must have been something in it for him. Maybe she's more important than she looks."
Wyvern shrugged, thinking privately to himself, Clawface came all the way to Seaside Village and risked showing his face in public, all for one Kirlia. What is he planning? Why is Gaby worth all that trouble?
The Archeops shook his head to dispel the uncertain thoughts gathering in his head and redoubled his pace to catch up to Gaby and Luke. "Hey, slow down!" called Tortuga, but he didn't notice.
-.-.-.-.-.
Clawface woke up to a throbbing pain in his head, chest, tail – pretty much everywhere. But his head was in the most pain. He untangled himself from his own cloak and stood up shakily. Elsewhere, Rudy was slowly getting up as well.
Snorting to himself, the Fearow stomped over and slapped the Krokorok in the face. He woke up with a startled yell. "Whatcha do that for?" Rudy snarled.
"Because you deserved it!" Clawface shot back. "I don't know why I bothered hiring you to help me get that Shard. I could have done it myself."
Rudy was incensed. "Like it was my fault that rescue team showed up," he muttered, trying to curb his anger. "Not like it was much of a rescue team. Looked more like a buncha wannabes if ya ask me."
Despite himself, Clawface nodded agreement. "They were pathetic," he said. "But that little one – where does he get so much power?" He lost himself in thought, muttering softly and stroking his beak all the while.
He didn't even notice Rudy leave in disgust. Clawface didn't care about the thief – all he wanted was to find out how to get that Shard, and possibly where the little Victini got his intense energy.
Mind made up, the Fearow rose into the air and flew off in the direction of the valley, where his allies, the Darkfeather gang, awaited his report.
-.-.-.-.-.
Rudy stormed off, fuming. When Clawface had hired him, promising 1000 P to help him get something he called a Shard from a little Kirlia, it sounded very worth his while. Mugging Pokemon was what he did best, and taking a legendary item from a girl would be like taking candy from a Pichu.
It had gone easily enough – despite the fact the Kirlia turned out to be extremely stubborn – until those three had turned up. Just who did they think they are, messing with him and a notorious killer? Either they were really brave or just plain stupid.
Nevertheless, Rudy had gotten his tail handed to him. "Next time an infamous criminal asks for my help," he grumbled, "I'm saying no."
The worst part? He had to walk all the way back to the desert – which was halfway across the continent. Today just ain't my day.
He was so busy grumbling to himself that he barely took note of the dark shape that slunk up to walk beside him. When it didn't leave, Rudy growled, "Get out, Sylvester."
The Liepard smirked darkly. "Another failed theft?" he asked with mock pity. "I'm sorry to hear that. Maybe if you were a little bit more like me" –
Rudy whirled on his rival. "If I were more like you, I'd be hidin' like a coward in the shadows, askin' fer money and valuables! I don't trick people into givin' me what I want – I scare 'em off and take it by force!"
Sylvester smirked again. "And how well is that approach going for you as of late?" he asked. Rudy glowered at the cat-like Pokemon. "Very well, make yer jokes. You stick to doin' what you do, and I'll stick to what I do."
With that, the two thieves fell silent. But Sylvester piped up again, "That Clawface, he's a nasty piece of work. I can't believe that even you were stupid enough to take a job from him."
Then he was forced to run, if not for his life, then for his good health.
Sylvester didn't scare easy, but when angry, Rudy was a particularly scary guy.
-.-.-.-.-.
Pteryx is in danger and Clawface has escaped! Can things get any worse for Team Fossil and their friends? And just what is this mysterious Shard that Gaby seems to have gotten a hold of?
Keep asking yourselves those questions, because I'm still trying to figure it all out myself.
Sylvester belongs to Lady Monopolist.
OCs are still needed! Although I have no particular preference, I need HEROES! I need an awesome exploration/rescue team to swoop down and save the day!
Also, if any of you that have already submitted OCs have any other ideas, I'll gladly accept them. I don't mind if you give me one or two other characters to use!