Not the best title ever, but it'll do, I suppose. I hope you readers can guess which characters will be making a return in this chapter!
-.-.-.-.-.
Clawface stepped forward with a semi-malicious smile on his beak. He was trying to appear more pleasant than usual, which wasn't something he often practiced. However, even the murderer had to admit that sometimes diplomacy was necessary (not often, though).
The other three Pokemon closed in a few paces, surrounding Adrianna. The Gardevoir instinctively backed away, clutching Topaz more tightly. The baby Ralts slept on peacefully, unaware of what was happening.
"What, exactly, do you want from me?" Adrianna asked, forcing herself to remain calm. It wouldn't do well to panic when she and her little one were trapped by four suspicious Pokemon, one of which was a well-known killer.
"Not much, actually," Clawface said casually, with a flick of his wing. "Yeh'd think that thieves like us would want everythin' from our victims," Rudy rasped helpfully on the sidelines. "But we don't this time," Sylvester put in, lazily eyeing the two Psychic-types.
Adrianna remained silent. The Fearow waited for her to say something, and when she didn't, he continued, "Look, we could spend all day with this silly chatter if we wanted. But we don't, so let's cut right to the chase. We want – ahem, we require – the Shard that your daughter has. …That was your daughter, right?" he added, clearly referring to Gaby.
"She was," Adrianna confirmed cautiously. "But I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. What Shard?"
Rudy, Sylvester, and Shadepelt exchanged skeptical glances, but Clawface's gaze never wavered from the Gardevoir. "I see," he said slowly. "I didn't think someone would share the fact they were holding onto a legendary artifact, even to their mother." He gave Adrianna a nod, as if he understood her ignorance completely.
Meanwhile, her mind was in turmoil. What Shard is he referring to? How long has Gaby had it? Or do they simply have the wrong Pokemon, and it's someone else they're actually looking for?
But before she could say any of this out loud, Clawface was speaking again. "I guess I'm going to have to ask your daughter myself," he sighed. "Rudy, Sylvester, Shadepelt, keep this one company while I go find the Kirlia." And with a single flap of his wings, he was flying toward the housing district.
Of course, Adrianna knew that Gaby was far away from Seaside Village, and Clawface's search was for naught. However, when he didn't find her, he would probably get frustrated or angry, and that didn't bode well for her. She had to escape, but how could two Psychic-types, including one who couldn't even walk, fight off three Dark-types?
All Adrianna could do was hope that Clawface wouldn't find the Shard – and not take it out on her when he realized Gaby wasn't there.
-.-.-.-.-.
The last of the valley blew by as the two owl Pokemon left the forest behind them. "See?" Barn said. "No trouble at all. We bypassed the Darkfeather fort entirely." Elf had to admit that he was indeed right.
"Now where is this village you were telling me about?" the Hoothoot asked him. Barn tilted his head one way and thought about it, hard. After a moment, he said hesitantly, "I think we should be able to see it if we fly high enough. It's supposed to be just beyond the mountains."
Elf nodded and flapped her tiny wings in relative silence. Barn stroked ahead, seeing the craggy cliffs coming ever closer. Soon, he thought, we'll be past those mountains and out of the wild. We'll be immersing ourselves in Pokemon society – how will we fit in exactly?
But doing so was the only way to find out about the Guardians. They needed to be warned of the Darkfeather gang. From their time spent in their hideout, Barn and Elf had discovered that they were looking for something called a "Shard". What they wanted it for was anyone's guess, but they privately doubted it was for the general, Mara, to hang on her wall and admire.
The air turned crisp and cool as the two friends flew up a hundred feet or so to avoid crashing into the mountain peaks. There was slightly less air up near the peaks, but it was nothing life-threatening. Barn twisted his head this way and that to admire the fantastic alpine scenery, with the snow-capped cliffs and pine trees growing on the slopes.
The mountain range wasn't especially large, and they reached the other side after about a half hour of fantastic flying. Barn looked down at the ground far below them and said to Elf, "Your eyes are sharper than mine. What can you see down there?"
Elf squinted and muttered to herself uncertainly, and then replied to Barn's question. "I see a lot of mist, probably because we're so high up. But I see a kind of blotchy thing way down on the ground. I can't describe it, but it might be the town we're searching for."
The Noctowl soared downward, carving a great arc in the sky as he tried to see as well. He squinted, then replied, "Yes, I think you're right! Let's fly down and see!" The smaller owl Pokemon flapped madly to keep up with her friend as he dove down farther, noticing as the air became saltier and more humid, due to the proximity to the great briny ocean.
"Yep, it's definitely a town!" Barn cried. "I can see buildings!" But just then, something caught his attention off to the side, and he stopped flying momentarily. Hovering there and observing that which caught his eye, he motioned for Elf to fly in front of him. "Elf, what do you see there?"
The Hoothoot saw what he was getting at in seconds. "I see a bunch of Pokemon," she observed. "Three of them look like they're surrounding that other one!" Barn gritted his beak and made a decision. "Come on," he told her. "If those Pokemon are indeed surrounding the other, they're probably ganging up on it, and that means we're going to have to save the day!"
Barn folded his wings and plunged down from the sky, diving rapidly toward the suspicious scene unfolding down below. Saving the day… this is what the Guardians do! he thought with an inexplicable thrill of pure excitement.
He was coming in fast, and he could see that the shifty-looking Pokemon were a Krokorok, Liepard, and Purrloin, and the one they were surrounding was a Gardevoir. Dark-types are always up to no good! Barn thought to himself, charging toward the Liepard. "Take Down!" he hooted, bracing for impact.
The Noctowl slammed into the Liepard with such an impact, he hurt himself as well. "YOOOOW!" the Liepard yowled as Barn's speeding form hit like a feathery bullet. Barn swooped up and around, then landed on the ground near the tall Psychic-type.
"Leave her alone, bullies!" he declared in what he hoped was a good Guardian-esque voice. "Um… they are bullies, right…?" he added in a whisper to the Gardevoir from the side of his beak.
She nodded frantically. "Yes! My name's Adrianna, and they're keeping me here while they wait for their boss to return! Who knows what they'll do to me and my baby!" With a start, Barn could now see a baby Ralts sleeping in her arms. No one threatens babies! he thought, rage filling his heart.
By now, Elf had caught up to him, and the Liepard had gotten to his feet. "My my, such brave birds," he said smoothly, wincing slightly as he tried to maintain his cool attitude in the face of injury. "Brave, or just stupid?" the Purrloin, possibly a sister or daughter, added, unsheathing her claws with a hungry look in her eye. Elf gulped and tried to keep Barn in between her and the black cat.
"Either way, they're gonna pay fer messin' with the Life Stealers!" the Krokorok growled, cracking his clawed knuckles. "So that's who you are," Barn declared boldly, drawing himself up to his full height – a head shorter than the Gardevoir and a full two feet higher than the Liepard. "The Guardians will hear about this, mark my words!"
Inwardly, Barn was quaking. The only non-Psychic-type attack he knew was Take Down, and Elf had Peck. Against Dark-types, they were pretty much asking for a near-impossible fight to win. But they had no choice. We have to prove ourselves heroes if we want to join the Guardians, Barn thought determinedly, masking his fear well.
"With the Guardians, huh?" the Krokorok laughed. "I was expectin' a heftier bunch than you two featherbrains!" Barn realized from his words that this group was wanted by the Guardians. Good to know.
"Are we going to fight, or just talk?" snarled the Purrloin, clearly itching for a fight. The Liepard silenced her with a wave of his paw (and an accompanying cringe of pain). "Excuse my sister," he said apologetically, "she's always like that."
But then, an unexpected voice came ringing out. "What's this about a fight?" it called, bored-sounding. A powerful Fearow landed at the head of the trio. "Seriously, you three. All you think about is fighting. Try expanding your minds."
The Krokorok scowled and muttered, "Coming from the murderer…" The bird swatted him with a wing to keep him quiet.
"Did you find the Shard, or at least the Kirlia?" the Liepard asked eagerly. The Fearow shook his head.
"No," he said in a voice that somehow didn't bode well for either Barn or Elf. "She's mysteriously disappeared, right after we attack her for an attempt at the Shard. Something tells me Miss Innocent here indeed knows about the artifact and her daughter's role." He gave the Gardevoir a poisonous glare, and she drew back and clutched her little Ralts tighter.
"Think we can take on the three lackeys?" Elf whispered to Barn. He nodded with a slight grin and replied, "I thought you'd never ask! Let's kick some tail feathers!"
With shrill screams, the two owls shot into the air to do battle. "Hmm," the Fearow said, "looks like the fledglings have some spirit. But thank you both, by the way. Now I can grab you for my own without having to rely on the Darkfeathers to do it for me! Guess now it doesn't matter that the Kirlia's missing!"
The Beak Pokemon turned to look back at the Gardevoir. "But that still doesn't give you the OK to leave. No one, no one lies to Clawface!"
And with that, he swept forward, ready for battle.
-.-.-.-.-.
On the main route to Diamond Island, a ship sailed through the choppy waters. This wasn't very unusual, as many ships went back and forth through this path. Seaside Village and the Town of Peace shared a trade route between each other, so it was normal to see boats passing through.
What was unusual, though, was the fact that this ship wasn't carrying goods or other cargo – unless you counted injured Pokemon as such.
Wyvern was crouched in the cramped cabin of the Tranquility with Luke at his side, looking over the unconscious Archen in his bed. Pteryx hadn't stirred in hours, which was very worrying. Gaby had said that he would live, but that wasn't much comfort when the First Bird Pokemon could be in a coma – which is usually what happened when one took a Hyper Beam to the chest and survived.
"Come on, bro," Wyvern said, trying to keep his spirits up. "Can't have you at death's door, Pteryx. Who'll I laugh with or work with, or even make fun of, if you're gone?"
Luke was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching over Pteryx. "Pteryx, you're strong," he said, then turned to Wyvern. "But Wyvern, you're strong as well. You can't have a breakdown when there's still hope. The doctor at Diamond Island will take care of him. Have faith!"
Wyvern blinked. Luke was often at his strongest when defending a friend, and that was exactly what was happening now. Luke wanted Pteryx to feel better again, and that hope was turning into strength. His words took on a new energy because of this, and Wyvern found himself inexplicably believing the Victini.
The Archeops nodded, and Luke smiled kindly. "I'm going up to the deck," he said. "Take care of your brother."
Luke floated out of the cabin and down the corridor, climbing up the steps and unlatching the escape hatch at the top. He found himself on the deck of the Tranquility, with the salty sea breeze lashing with a pleasant roughness and the sight of Gaby steering the ship.
He floated fully out of the hatch and over to where Gaby stood. She had her eyes on the horizon, but instantly knew that Luke was there beside her. "What is it?" she asked without tearing her gaze away from the waves in front of them.
Her directness surprised Luke, who found himself stumbling over his words. "W-Well, I j-just… I just wanted to s-see if you're alright," he stammered. Gaby looked at him this time with curiosity, although she also seemed to be studying him as well. Her red eyes bored into Luke's blue ones, and he suddenly noticed that he was blushing. He hastily looked away and took a deep breath.
"A-Are you OK?" he asked timidly. Gaby sighed and replied, "Yes, I'm fine. I just don't feel like talking." In truth, she never did. Other Pokemon viewed her as vague and mysterious, which was fine with her. Gaby didn't trust others with her secrets – least of all the Shard.
"I'm sorry to disturb you," Luke said after a second. Gaby forced a smile as she replied, "It's fine. You're not disturbing me."
The Victini blushed again and stayed silent.
They stood there in silence for a while longer, with Luke stealing glances at Gaby occasionally. He found her very mysterious and intriguing, not put off in the least by her quietness. Instead, he found himself almost drawn to her – he didn't know why this was. After all, Wyvern, Pteryx, and even Tortuga were better company. Maybe, he mused, it has something to do with her eyes. She has the most beautiful eyes…
His wistful thoughts were interrupted by the sudden appearance of Tortuga, who popped his head out of the water beside the ship. "I don't see much up ahead!" he yelled over the breeze. "No Sharpedo, no Basculin – not even any Magikarp! But there's a lot of driftwood floating around, there seems to have been some kind of destruction around he" –
A huge crashing sound cut him off, accompanied by a flash of light from overhead. Gaby averted her eyes to the sky, which was covered in thick black clouds. "Luke, get back down below," she ordered sternly.
Luke was taken aback by her directness. "But" – "Do it!" the Kirlia screeched. She felt a huge pang of guilt as she saw fear and sadness in those eyes. I can apologize later, she thought as Luke dejectedly went back below deck. But I have other things to deal with right now…
And then the rain started. Huge, stinging drops that hammered on the deck like hail. Gaby winced as she was subjected to the elements, with the wind blowing the water right into her face as she struggled with the wheel.
I curse myself for not deciding to learn Psychic… she thought furiously as she tried using her strength to keep the ship on course, and as a Machoke once told her, she was hopeless at muscle-work.
Tortuga was fighting his own battle against the rough current, trying to keep his head above the water. Gaby noticed him yelling something, but couldn't pay attention at this very moment. Is this a natural disaster? Is this a hurricane? she wondered, then refocused her mind on the job.
But if it was a hurricane, then there was no way she'd be able to power through it. Even Lugia himself couldn't swim through this safely.
Over the fury of the wind and rain, Gaby heard a bellowing cry. Several massive blue shapes appeared on the surface of the increasingly rough waves. A pod of Wailord had decided to surface, shooting up massive amounts of steam and water from their blowholes. On any other day, this would have been a magnificent sight – Gaby herself loved Wailord-watching. But today, it was a sight that brought no comfort. The gargantuan Water-types' wailing cries sent chills up her spine as the noises twined with that of the howling wind and battering rain.
The combination of noises – the shrieking of the wind, the hammering of the rain, and the bellows of the Wailord – formed a wall of sheer sound that threatened to drive Gaby mad. At last, she couldn't take it anymore and screamed, silently pleading for everything to stop.
And then, the tearing winds reached their zenith. Overwhelmed by the cacophony of sound and driving monsoon, the Kirlia simply gave up. The gale-force wind picked her up and slammed her into the mast of the ship. And then the world went black.
The Tranquility was spinning and rocking dizzyingly in the storm, with no one to keep it under control. Tortuga shouted in fear and moved to somehow aid the ship, but before he could do so, a huge piece of debris was flung from the depths and clonked him on the head.
The fossil Pokemon went limp, and the last thing he saw before the darkness claimed him was the Tranquility being blown toward an unknown destination, taking its passengers with it.
-.-.-.-.-.
Some character development going on here – the best of which is Luke's obvious crush on the Kirlia. What do you think – should they pair up in the future, or will love be doomed to never blossom?
Anyway – what will the outcome of the terrible storm be? Will Team Fossil and their comrades get out alive? And what of Team Biosphere, still swimming for the Elemental Islets? Will they survive or perish?
Character requests and reviews are still as welcome as ever XD
See you soon, readers!