In front of us towers the mysterious building that oversees the city with its colossal shadow eating the little light that's left in this land.
Going through the city was a real challenge with chimeras on every corner. This time we couldn't afford getting into a fight with a horde of the cannibalistic creatures–we are too tired. We took a bit of time to rest when we were in the hospital, as well as take some moments to heal those who needed it, which were all of us.
Ness and Link also had it rough while we were separated, having encountered a couple of unknown chimeras, one of which bit a piece out of Ness' hat, something I didn't notice right after we reunited. Link, in the other hand, told us the precise–and rather lucky according to Ness' comment–positioning of his shield saved him from the sweep of some big chimera.
They told us more of their journey, but I have forgotten most of it so far. At that moment I was just glad they were relatively fine, and thus I could save the little energy I would've used to remember.
Gray, colossal, eerie, those are the first words that come to my mind as I lean my head back to look at the building at its full height, which has a double door big enough to fit an elephant.
Ness opens the doors with a gentle push–they were unlocked.
Stepping into the building an image comes to my mind: Porky on his strange spider-robot. He is just as big as the entrance. That explains that.
The first floor is rather simple, some machines scattered around and a few toys. I get the feeling Porky built this place this big just after the sake of it.
Each of us was inspecting the surroundings of the first floor until Link called us, "I think the next floor is there." He looked up; a big, squared hole led to the second floor. It was high above, though. A two-story house could fit and barely reach the other floor.
This is no issue; I can reach up there with a PSI-boosted jump. Yes, here I go.
"Ah," Lucario caught our attention. "This seems to be an elevator." He examines the panel in the far side of the slightly elevated platform we are standing. "There are three floors. I will click the second one."
The machinery hums and then begins to take us to the next level.
The first sight of the second floor is a shocking one. My three companions are, too, taken aback; Ness and Link let out a synchronized gasp.
An abundance of machines and surveillance equipment spreads all over the floor; at the far end of the floor, a massive panel showcasing several part of the planet covers the wall.
I don't pay much attention to the overwhelming amount of technology, for the screens are what catch my attention.
I trot across the room and observe the surveillance footage attentively. The hospital, the city hall, the chimeras littered all across the town. I even spot the restaurant we were in with two different angles to watch it.
I shake my head, "Porky was watching us," I say under my breath, "Where is he now, though?"
"Found anything useful?" Ness approaches me.
"Not really," I respond. "Figured Porky was watching us the entire times."
"We lost the element of surprise the moment we arrived." Ness looks around, "No surprise the bastard isn't here."
"You know, there's a strange sensation, don't you think?" Lucario asked from behind. "Is the same feeling I normally get from your aura."
"Now that you say it, I actually sense a kind of familiarity around."
"I see computers, screens and stuff I don't have any idea what it is, but does anything here actually helps us?" Link asked.
"Apparently not," Ness says, and looks at the elevator. "There's still another floor, right?"
"Yeah, we better go there," Link says.
We go back to the elevator and I press the button for the next floor.
A shiver goes down my spine and I suddenly feel colder.
This room is full of equipment for creating chimeras. Two colossal glasses extend across the left and the right, separated in several sections. All of them contain chimeras, dead and alive.
Similar to the chimeras outside, these ones caged here are bound to resort to violence and cannibalism if they wish to survive–even though what kind of life awaits them here on.
This floor easily surpasses the first two in size. The space for the chimera is massive just as the rest of the space for equipment and other stuff.
"This is a nightmare," Ness whispers.
Indeed it is.
"Let's stay together, we cannot trust in the chimeras," Lucario says.
Weaving through the hallways of equipment with the caged chimeras acting like barriers is sort of claustrophobic.
Some of the chimeras just stand there watching us, while others engage in a relentless battle to destroy the glasses that keep us safe. In fact some glasses already spot a few cracks, a sign to be aware of the surroundings.
"So are we looking for something in specific?" Ness asks, throwing nervous glances at the chimeras.
"I guess anything that helps us find that Pokey guy," Link responds.
As I evade a destroyed machine on the floor, a piece of paper nailed on top of a desk catches my attention.
"Hey, wait a second," I call the others.
A large nail pierces the paper though the center, for which I try to draw the nail out, but it hardly moves. I try again, adding some PSI, and succeed, revealing the nail to be the size of a knife.
I leave the nail on the desk and pick up the piece of paper that has some kind of blueprints in it. The figure drawn reminds of… Oh, no; Porky's project with Claus.
"What is that, Luke?" Ness asks.
"They are some blueprints," I say. "Porky is planning to do something with my brother," and I crushed the sheet of paper.
"You think that will help us find him?" Link asks.
"I hope I can find them both. The thing is now I know Claus is with Porky." I looked around as I realized something. Couldn't that sense of familiarity be Claus'…? In that case, where could they have gone?
"So your brother was here," Lucario said. "That explains the trail of aura similar to yours." He walked around for a moment before speaking up again, "The thing is that the aura of your brother suddenly disappears."
"Hmm," Link catches my attention. He stands at the other side inspecting a machine which I can't see well from here–other equipment blocks my view. "Isn't this a teleporter? I mean, it looks like one."
My attention shuffles completely to Link. I am about to go there when a terrifying sound resonates.
Glass shattering.
Instantly, as a chill runs down my spine, I dart around–just as my companions do–with widened eyes in search of the sound.
I look behind us and a shower of glass rains upon the floor. Time slows down.
Four chimeras snapping their jaws viciously walk out of their isolation probably craving for the fresh meat in front of them; fresh meat they haven't eaten in who knows how long.
Behind them a figure–another chimera I suppose–surrounded by clouds of black smoke it puffed like the chimney of a steam train. I can't make out what type of chimera is, and I don't really want to anyway.
"Where to!" Ness asks and his voice cracked. "The t-teleporter?"
"It seems like the best idea," Lucario said. "Let's hurry!"
The three of us break into a run with Lucario leaping over tables and chair with enviable swiftness. Alongside Link, they check the teleporter.
"To your left!" Ness screams.
But even before Ness warned me, I sensed a creature dangerously close; I took Ness' warning as a good moment to act. I charged a bolt of electricity on my left hand and, as I jumped over a small table, I spin around shooting the PK Thunder alongside a fierce cry. I struck the chimera in the eyes as planned. I fail to land and slip, tumbling down and crashing with my back to a table, a pile of paper raining down in front of me.
"Lucas!" Ness shouts, he sounds a bit far from down here.
Another chimera from the one I hit looms over downed obstacles and looks down at me with hungry eyes. I try to gather any energy left on me for another PSI attack when three arrows whistled above me and pierce the face of the chimera. It cries in pain and backs up.
I stand up quickly and see the other three chimeras coming swiftly towards me. I turn around and see Ness throwing an attack. "PK Flash!"
I don't look back for the result of Ness' move and keep moving forward across the large room.
Ness and I join Lucario and Link at last. "Thanks for that," I tell Link, who still holds his bow in his hands.
Lucario addresses Link, "Explain to him what you saw." He then points at the computer apparently connected to the teleporter.
"Sure!" He responds. "Look at this, Lucas."
As much as I want to pay attention to Link's words the constant rumble the incoming chimeras create breaks my concentration.
"We got you covered, guys; hurry and figure out how that thing works!" Ness says.
"Right," begins Link, "I got a few minutes to check this out before the chimeras broke free, and it seems to have a history of past locations the teleporter made. And the last location is your homeland, Lucas, the islands. I think Porky and your brother went there. Maybe, just maybe, if we go through here we can go where they are. However… this may also be a trap, we can end up anywhere, and no one here knows how to configure a teleporter we have never seen before. You think we should…go?"
We have gotten back into track. This could be the final lead we needed to find Porky. I am risking my friends' lives here. The lives of the inhabitants of their city. Is a bet to find my brother. A bet that I'm already losing. But if we don't go through that teleporter, there's nothing left to do here–only wander endlessly without food, water, hope.
I take a look at Ness and Lucario who are slowly backing away from the chimeras.
And that black smoke from the chimera is beginning to cover everything. I can't see the opposite end of the room anymore–only half of it is smoke-free. And it's advancing very fast. We'll soon be covered by it and who knows what will happen to us…
"Let's go!" A cry not even I saw coming comes out of my mouth. "We are leaving here!"
Lucario unleashed a final aura attack before he and Ness hurry to join Link and me.
"We must evade the black smoke before it's too late, but how far will we go through the teleporter?"
"There's no answer for that," I say and activate the teleporter with the last location used. The gate that works as the teleporter will be deactivated in less than a minute.
"Go!" I don't think twice, there's no time for motivational speech as our motivation was about to be crushed by the incoming chimeras. I run mindlessly toward the teleporter to set the example for my team, who just watch me with a bit of doubt in their expressions.
The glasses breaking, the chimeras' chaos and my team, all disappear when I enter in the swirling black and blue portal. My heads drums with an instant headache. Legs and arms go numb before they seem to disappear into the blackness that surrounds me.
I will never get used to this crap.
How much time has passed? What if this was a trap after all? What if this wasn't a teleporter to begin with and I just led the last hope we had into a void of nothingness. It's the only way I can see this anymore since I am no more than a floating conscience.
My arm is tickling. Wait, what?
I can feel my arms again, and my legs, too. The headache has come back and a second later a white light fills my eyes. After not having seen anything but black for an eternity, I feel as if my eyes were to burst from the incoming light but they don't.
I feel the air travelling all around me once more. I breathe in and start to differentiate the colors–no more blinding light. Green; I see a lot of it and then my body speeds up, no longer grasped by the portal. I almost fly for a second before landing face first on a field–my mouth greeted by a handful of dirt and grass.
I grunt and rest there for a few seconds sprawled on the grass, thankful I didn't stay in that void anymore.
As I get up a gale of wind blows above me and my teammates reappear. Link, Ness and Lucario all fall to the ground as disgraceful as I did.
I stand up and look around. I smile when I see my friends again. I didn't kill them–good.
There's somebody else, though.
A few meters away from the landing area a stranger man is kneeling, his arms used as a support while his brown hair is victim of the gravity and casts a shadow on his tanned face. In that same position he turns his face at me and locks his brown eyes with mine. A smirk spreads all over his sweaty face.
"Hey," he says trying to catch his breath–for some reason he looks exhausted. I squint at him. Who the hell is him? Why is he here?
"Where are my manners?" he tells me. "How are you, brother?"