Chapter Thirty Eight – Search Party
Alexa remained outdoors, holding Buizel in her arms, until Keith and her frustrated feline Pokémon, Kadia disappeared from sight. As Alexa hesitantly headed indoors, she saw a faint light from outside the village that gradually faded from view; Kadia had utilised her Flash technique. And with good reason, as it was dark out. Alexa let out a quiet sigh as she walked through the front door.
Hayden arrived downstairs and spotted the empty sofa as Alexa quietly closed the front door behind her.
"What's going on?" Hayden asked. Alexa, slightly startled, faced her father.
"He's run away," Alexa answered. "Keith's gone looking for him with Kadia." Hayden noticed Buizel in her arms.
"Look, why don't I get Tidus to-"
"No, dad." Alexa immediately declined an offer that Hayden hadn't even finished making, much to his confusion. "Ryder got hurt in the first place because of Cain, and, as strong as Tidus is, I really don't want to risk his health."
"Do you honestly believe he's gone out at this time of night looking for that boy?" Hayden questioned. Alexa's breathing sped up a little as she appeared to become somewhat stressed.
"Why else would he take that risk?" she asked. "There's already a feud between him and Cain's Hydreigon after he stepped in for Keenan, but he's also aware that Cain's Pokémon tried to outnumber Layla! In my opinion, Layla's brawl with those Pokémon is enough reason for Ryder to want payback."
"I see. But we've told him time and time again not to look for him under any circumstance," Hayden sighed.
"Ryder knows his limits, what possessed him to do something so...so stupid?!" Alexa stressed as she sat down on the sofa. "He was seriously hurt after his first grudge match against Hydreigon, and if he fights again in his condition, then...then he'd..." Buizel felt Alexa's grip on him tightening slightly and looked up at her worriedly. Hayden approached his distraught daughter and gently placed both hands on each of her shoulders.
"Listen to me, it's going to be okay. I know it's hard for you, but you need to stop thinking the worst. Okay?" Alexa was too upset to answer without breaking down, so she merely nodded to confirm her answer. Hayden looked at the front door angrily; he didn't care why he ran away, but he knew what Ryder did was selfish, and only served to jeopardise Alexa's already fragile mental health. It was only fortunate that she wasn't on any form of medication.
In the forest, Keith looked around as Kadia walked slightly ahead of him, harnessing her Flash technique as an improvised headlight. Kadia was about as impressed as Ryder's Houdini act as Hayden was.
"The forest has a spooky feel to it at night. It's...kinda creepy," Keith said. But the Persian paid him no heed. With Ryder's despicable behaviour on her mind, she began to growl nastily, which only served to unnerve Keith, as he believed that she was angry with him for trying to make conversation with her.
All of a sudden, Kadia stopped in her tracks after her ears twitched. She used a paw to signal Keith into following her into the bushes. Keith complied, as he didn't want to cause a disturbance between him and the Persian. The duo soon made their way to a clearing, and they spotted Barlow and Makuhita with a wild Leafeon and Blastoise nearby, both of whom were looking at the Area Ranger.
"Barlow?"
"Hm? Oh, hi, Keith," Barlow greeted. "Told ya I wouldn't be alone, eh?" he teased as Keith and Kadia approached him. "What's goin' on?"
"Ryder's run off," Keith said bluntly. Barlow's eyes widened in shock.
"You're kidding?"
"I wish I was; Alexa's pretty stressed about it," Keith continued. "I tried to set her mind at ease in offering to find him in her place."
"Oy vay... I can't imagine this being taken too well."
"Rrr," Kadia nodded in agreement. Barlow looked down at the annoyed Pokémon before looking back at Keith.
"Let me guess; one of Alexa's?"
"Yep. She's kinda scary, if I'm honest," Keith said nervously.
"Don't take it personally; I'm sure she's just furious with Ryder running off like that." Barlow knelt down in front of Kadia with a friendly demeanour about him. "Right?"
"Reow," Kadia nodded. Barlow stood up and smiled at Keith.
"See?"
"Oh. I guess I can't blame her for that; I wouldn't be impressed if I were in her shoes. Or paws, so to speak."
"Exactly," Barlow nodded. "But I don't get why he'd want to find Cain in his state. He should've learned his lesson the first time he confronted that boy."
"I don't really know why, but I want to find him. Preferably alive," Keith said firmly. Barlow nodded.
"Agreed. We'll look together; safety in numbers and all." Keith thoroughly agreed and the group resumed the search, with Kadia slightly in front of everyone else with her headlight.
Elsewhere, the skinny Absol walked along a lonely path in the forest, looking around cautiously as he walked. He had numerous bruises, a few burns and several healed cuts from his battle against the sparkling Zangoose, and the Disaster Pokémon felt frustrated that he couldn't defeat her. Absol soon felt a chill down his spine and stopped in his tracks, looking around the entire area. A bandaged Ryder slowly walked out of the darkness...and pounced.
OOF!
"SOL!" Absol was taken by surprise as Ryder had overwhelmed him and pinned him down. Ryder was glaring furiously at Absol.
We need to talk, Ryder stated.
"Sol," Absol huffed in defiance. He attempted to push Ryder off of him, but Ryder's grip proved too strong for the malnourished Pokémon.
No, no, no, I need you here. Listen, your so called master has hurt two very dear friends of mine, and I want to find him to get payback. You're going to tell me where he is.
"Absol...?" Absol growled angrily.
Because you can say goodbye to your scythe if you don't, Ryder threatened. Absol simply smirked at the Lucario, believing him to be bluffing.
"Oh, by the way, I managed to talk to the professor about what you told me earlier on," Barlow told Keith.
"Oh yeah? What'd he say?" Keith asked, somewhat dreading Barlow's reply.
"He said he doesn't hate Alexa, but thinks she needs to pull herself together," Barlow answered.
"But she's trying to do that!" Keith exclaimed. "But...Ryder running off hasn't exactly helped anything in that department..."
"I told the professor the measures you told me about when I brought up her mental health," Barlow continued. "He commends her for recognising her faults and appreciates her trying to do something about 'em. But he also brought up her 'recklessness' and said he doesn't understand where she got it from."
"So bravery's just recklessness to him, is it?" Keith asked with frustration.
"There's a fine line between the two, Keith," Barlow said calmly. "He said she's been distracted as of late."
"Can you honestly blame her? Immediately after her mission in Oblivia, she got a call to come back and face up to this clown that's goin' about killing every Pokémon, and it didn't help that Rhythmi practically put her foot in her mouth when she saw Alexa's necklace with Ly-"
"Hssssss...!" Kadia hissed furiously. Keith and Barlow looked at Kadia in confusion.
"I was only going to say L-" Keith was cut off by Kadia's leopard-like growling. Keith sighed. "You don't like anyone talking about her, do you?" Kadia shook her head. "Reow."
"What was that about?" Barlow asked in confusion.
"I don't think Kadia likes anyone other than Alexa, or her fellow Pokémon, to talk about Lydia," Keith guessed. Kadia nodded in confirmation.
Kadia suddenly stopped in her tracks as her ears twitched continuously. Barlow and Keith looked at the statue-like Persian in confusion; the only part of her that was moving were her ears.
"Now what?"
"Alexa said her hearing's very sharp; she can hear things we can't," Keith explained rather quietly. Kadia, honing in on what she was allegedly hearing, sharply turned to her right a little.
"Raarw!" Kadia sped off in the direction she was facing. Keith, Barlow and Leafeon chased after her while Blastoise struggled to keep up.
BOOM!
"AB!" Absol crashed into the ground and skidded along the grass. He had more bruises and his cuts were beginning to bleed once again. Ryder's injuries had become agitated from his little brawl with Absol, as his bandages had become slightly bloodied.
Okay, have you got that out of your system? Ryder asked, patronising the fallen Absol. Absol snarled furiously at the young pup as he struggled to his feet. Glowing in a bright red aura, Absol raced towards Ryder. Ryder, however, was on guard.
BOOM!
Ryder swerved away from Absol's path and the hot-tempered Pokémon crashed into a tree. Absol moved away from the tree and staggered about, giddy from a head-first collision.
Dear me, I suppose not, Ryder sighed. Absol rapidly shook his head and snarled furiously at Ryder again. Reusing his red aura, Absol leapt into the cocky Lucario.
BANG!
AAAAAAAAAGH! This time, it was a direct hit; Absol's Superpower struck Ryder right on his abdomen, where Hydreigon's Flamethrower had struck him previously. As soon as Ryder hit the ground, the two Pokémon engaged in a typical dogfight, exchanging snarls, small barks and most definitely bites. Eventually, Ryder miraculously prevailed, albeit by a narrow margin. Panting, Ryder stood up and quickly shot an Aura Sphere from one paw. Absol tried to leap away.
BOOM!
Absol howled in pain as the Aura Sphere struck one of his back legs, almost rendering him unable to walk. Absol tried his hardest to stand back up, but Ryder approached him.
SMACK!
Absol yelped in pain as Ryder kicked him in the face, forcing him onto his back. Ryder then pressed a foot down on Absol's chest, close to his throat. He looked down at his victim mercilessly.
Now. Let's get down to business now that we've stopped fighting like...well...the Pokémon that we are.
"Rrrrrr..." Absol was virtually powerless to object to Ryder's demands. He had no alternative but to submit to the Lucario's interrogation.
Now then. You and your, uh...friends had decided to pay my friend Alex a visit the other day. I want to know what happened.
"Rf," Absol looked away from Ryder; while he was submitting to the interrogation, nothing could stop him from refusing to answer Ryder's questions.
Okay, let's try another one then. Did you contribute to Layla's injuries? Ryder asked. Absol looked up at him, in confusion at first, but he soon smirked; Layla must've been the Zangoose he fought, Absol assumed.
"Absol..." he confirmed.
SMACK!
Absol yelped in pain as Ryder slapped him across the face. Ryder was not amused at Absol's response.
You're not supposed to be proud of it! Ryder snarled. She's very important to me, and I don't want to see anyone who hurt her being proud of having done so! Now, what did Cain do to Alex?! Absol chuckled.
"Absol..." He then licked the air, as if he was licking something. Ryder, despite not showing whether or not he believed Absol's reply, saw red, and became enveloped in his own aura.
Answer the question, Ryder demanded in a low growl. Absol chuckled again.
"Ab-sol...Absol," he winked. Ryder snarled loudly as he lifted his foot. Absol tried to squirm away, but he couldn't.
SLAM!
Absol choked as Ryder stomped on his throat. Ryder didn't care whether or not Absol was winding him up and was bluffing about what he'd claimed, Absol was riding his last nerve. Ryder pressed his foot back down on Absol's chest, allowing him to breathe properly.
If your master does ANYTHING like that to her again, I swear to Arceus that I will come down on him like Judgement, do you understand me?!
"Absol," Absol replied with a sinister grin on his face.
That's what else I want to ask you; where IS he?
Absol then became aggressive; playtime was over. Absol refused to answer, and gathered small embers in his slightly gaping mouth.
Unless you want a Focus Blast to the face, extinguish your flames, Ryder demanded simply. Now where is that dictator you call your master?!
"Rf," Absol looked away from Ryder again, expressing his refusal to give away his master's whereabouts. Ryder's stance relaxed.
Fine. I guess this Focus Blast is going straight for your n-
RAAAAAAAOOOORWW!
Kadia's roar cut Ryder off mid-sentence as she, Keith, Barlow and the Pokémon hurried onto the scene. Kadia was in front of the group, preparing to pounce.
"Ryder, step away from the Absol!" Barlow insisted.
No way! This is HIS Absol, and I'm trying to get answers!
"I don't care if that Absol belongs to the mayor of Hoenn! Get off of him and come with us!" Keith shouted angrily.
After all the trouble of tracking him down?! Do you know how hard it is to track stuff without using aura?!
"I'm not in the mood for games, and neither is Kadia! Just step down!"
No! You don't get it, Keith, I'm trying to-
"I don't care! Your vanishing act isn't doing Alexa any favours!"
I'm trying to help! I'm trying to find Cain!
"Is it working?" Barlow asked, raising an eyebrow.
W-well, not yet, but-
"Then stop what you're doing and come with us," Barlow said calmly.
Are you kidding? There's no way I'm gonna-
RAAAAAAAOOOORWW!
Kadia leapt towards Ryder and tried striking him with her claws. Ryder, startled, stepped away from Absol to avoid the attack. Kadia prowled towards Ryder, glaring at him and growling furiously. Ryder was intimidated; he knew that when Kadia was angry, she was feral about it. Keith became worried.
"Kadia..." The Persian ignored Keith; her focus was honed in on Ryder. She was furious with him. Her ears twitched as she heard the faint sound of Absol slowly trying to get to his feet. She turned her attention to the Absol and confronted him.
Leafeon and Blastoise walked behind Absol, ready to intercept him, but Absol's attention was drawn to Kadia. Ryder, Barlow and Keith watched as Kadia and Absol circled one another, Absol limping as he walked, exchanging small growls and snarls with one another; they were having their own little conversation. The air around the two Pokémon felt tense; the spectators anxiously awaited for the first attack, anticipating a fight. Absol smirked.
RAAAAAAARGH!
Kadia leapt away from Absol's fangs and claws, avoiding the imminent Bite attack. Absol landed face first into the grass. Absol lifted himself up, spat out the grass and mud he almost ate by accident and snarled angrily at Kadia; she was severely unimpressed with Absol's hastiness.
O-okay, that's enough, Kadia, l-let's just-
"Raaaaorrrw!" Kadia roared furiously at Ryder, causing him to wince. She prepared to pounce at Absol, who began to stagger towards her. Kadia leapt.
SLASHSLASHSLASHSLASHSLASHSLASH!
Kadia unleashed a blinding fury of slash attacks, almost all of them on Absol's face. When the barrage stopped, Absol was left with a face covered in bleeding slash wounds, one set over one of his eyes. Absol, aware of his eye's injury, snarled at Kadia with absolute anger; she potentially blinded him in that eye. Kadia returned the hate-filled snarling. Absol looked back at Ryder, who gulped as soon as he saw Absol's injuries. Absol limped over to Kadia and looked directly at her in the eyes, at a dangerously close proximity. Kadia, despite how close his nose was to hers, maintained her guard and stood her ground. Absol smirked and growled at her silently before he walked away from her with a limp.
"Raaaaorwwraaaaaaaaoww!" Kadia roared towards Absol. But Absol ignored her, and made his way out of the vicinity. Kadia then glared at Ryder.
I-I can explain, Ryder said nervously as the enraged Persian walked over to him.
"Raaaoorrw!" Kadia pretended to leap at Ryder, causing the Lucario to fall onto his back. She loomed over him and growled angrily at him. Barlow and Keith approached Ryder and Kadia.
"Ryder, I'm glad you're safe, but you should not have disappeared like that," Barlow said. "Do you have any idea what you've done by running off like that? After being told to stay put?"
I'm a big boy, I can take care of myself, Ryder said, with unease about his voice.
"RAAAORWW!" Ryder flinched as Kadia roared furiously at him. She growled at him deeply. Ryder looked up at her in confusion.
What?
"Alexa was really worried when she found out you ran off," Keith explained. "I can only assume that Kadia's mad at you for making Alexa worry so much."
...that's putting it kindly, Ryder said, frowning. But all I wanted was to find Cain...after what he did to Alex and Layla, I...I wanted him to pay.
"RAAORWW!" Kadia slapped Ryder with her paw. Her claws weren't extended, so Ryder only had a red mark on his cheek, not slash wounds. "RAAAAOOORWWRAORW!" Ryder became extremely guilty and instantly regretted what he had done. A tear fell down his face as soon as he closed his eyes. Keith approached Kadia and knelt down to her level.
"Come on. Let's get him back home," he said gently, attempting to calm her down. Hesitantly, Kadia stepped away from Ryder and allowed Keith to help him up onto his feet. Kadia gave Ryder one last glare before returning to the front of the group with her headlight. Keith, Barlow, Ryder and the Pokémon followed Kadia away from the clearing.
Throughout the trek, Ryder kept his head down, feeling very sorry for himself; his ears were dropped, his tail was dragging slightly along the ground and he avoided eye contact with everyone. Leafeon had attempted to cheer the sad puppy up, but Ryder ignored her. Barlow was left unimpressed with Ryder's behaviour, but Keith was concerned about Alexa's reaction to Ryder's motives for running away. But both Rangers knew that Ryder showed regret for what his selfish actions had potentially did to Alexa, whose mental health was unstable as it is, despite her measures to keep it together. Keith had also noticed that Kadia looked a lot calmer than she did at the start of the search; her shoulders were loose and she no longer growled to herself. Keith assumed that she was satisfied that they had found Ryder.
Leafeon and Blastoise waited outdoors as Barlow, Keith, Kadia and Ryder made their way into Alexa's house. Buizel smiled at Keith and greeted him, which caught Alexa and Hayden's attention. Layla was also out of her Poké Ball and spotted Ryder. She approached him, angrily.
"Nyah! nyah nyah-nyah-nyah-nyah, nyah nyah?!" she snapped. Keith and Barlow walked over to Hayden. Barlow looked back at the blue and white Zangoose scolding Ryder in confusion.
"What's going on now?"
"Layla's angry with Ryder for running off without telling anyone," Hayden replied. Keith sat next to Alexa.
"Hey...you okay?" he asked worriedly. Alexa took a deep, shaky breath before nodding.
"I think so," she replied. "I-I've just been so worried all this time..."
I'm sorry, Layla, okay!? Ryder snapped back, taking Layla by surprise. Ryder sighed as he looked away from her. I'm sorry...I-I just wanted to make Cain pay for what he did to you and-
"Na-yah...! Nyah-nyah, na-yah..." Ryder walked passed her and over to Alexa.
I'm sorry... I should've considered your feelings when I decided to find him, he apologised. Alexa looked at him.
"I didn't want you to find him!" she exclaimed. Ryder became even more guilty; he had picked up the stress Alexa was feeling from her voice alone. "After what happened when you stepped in for Keenan, I-I didn't want you to have anything to do with him! Y-you've been told repeatedly to stay put!"
I know...! I'm really sorry... Ryder apologised sincerely. Alexa looked away from Ryder. You do believe me, don't you?
"I know you're being truthful...but you're being so...headstrong...I don't know if you'll do the same thing again..."
I-I won't! You have my word! Ryder stressed. Alexa looked at him with tears in her eyes.
"Do I?"
"That's enough, Ryder," Hayden said firmly. Ryder looked up at him.
B-but-
"Enough." Ryder sighed and dropped onto the floor. He sat there, sulking; the last thing he wanted to do was upset his trainer, which he ended up doing when he ran away for his own selfish desires.
"Hayden, I'm going to resume patrolling, is it still okay for Keith to stay here for the night?" Barlow asked. Hayden smiled at the base leader.
"Absolutely, he's always welcome," he replied. "But are you sure you should be out at this time of night?"
"I'm fine, I've got a Leafeon and a Blastoise outside," Barlow answered. "You should worry about your daughter, don't worry about me."
"If you say so," Hayden said. Barlow looked back at Keith and Alexa.
"I know tonight hasn't been kind, but try to get some rest," he advised. "I'll check in tomorrow."
"Thanks, Barlow," Keith thanked.
"Until then, take care of yourselves," Barlow said as he left the house. Alexa handed Buizel back to Keith as her father faced her.
"Come on, why don't you get some rest like he said, eh? You'll feel better in the morning." Alexa simply stood up and walked over to the table with a Premier Ball and a Fast Ball sitting idly on top. She picked them up and held them in front of Kadia and Layla respectively.
"Thanks, girls." Kadia and Layla then returned to their own Poké Balls in a red light emitted from the central buttons on the Poké Balls. Alexa put the Poké Balls back down on the table and made her way upstairs, without saying a word or even looking at Ryder. Confused, Keith followed her up the stairs with Buizel. Hayden turned his attention to the sulking Ryder.
"Okay, your turn; up you get," Hayden said as he took Ryder gently by his arm to help him up off of the floor.
She...she's upset with me...
"Yes, she is. You should've thought about that before you pulled a Houdini," Hayden muttered as he helped Ryder onto the sofa.
How am I supposed to set things right..?
"It's not my place to say in these circumstances; you're the one she's upset with. You'll need to figure that one out for yourself," Hayden explained. "Listen, I'm sure Alexa understands what you were trying to do, but it was still foolhardy of you to try finding that boy in your condition."
But I'm all right! I don't need any more bed rest, I'm fine!
"Even if that's what you believe, Alexa was still worried sick about you all this time. It's not just about you, Ryder," Hayden said as he carefully placed the blanket over Ryder's body, leaving his head exposed. "Your actions can have consequences that affect others as well. Tonight proved just that." Before Ryder could get a word in, Hayden made his way up the stairs, leaving the Lucario with plenty of food for thought. He began to reflect on his actions.
Alexa sat on her bed, looking down at her hands, just like she did before Keith and Barlow had arrived. Keith sat next to her and looked at her worriedly.
"Are you sure you're all right?" he asked.
"I...I don't know anymore," Alexa sighed. "Maybe I'm just worrying too much, but...what if Ryder did find Cain? What if he got severely hurt before you arrived a-and...?" Keith shushed her softly as he pulled her close to him.
"We don't know what would've happened. Just remember the important thing is that we found him, and that he's safe. That's all that matters."
"Hmm..."
"What's happening to you...? You used to be level-headed, but now you're really panicky...what's the matter..?"
"I-I don't know...it's probably just anxiety or something," Alexa replied. "...Keith?"
"Yeah?"
"What was Ryder doing when you found him?"
"Looked like he was interrogating Cain's Absol, hoping to find out where he's hiding," Keith answered. "Neither one was that badly hurt, most of Absol's injuries looked rather old."
"Probably from when Layla fought him."
"Kadia eventually sent him packing, and then she gave Ryder hell for disappearing like that. He was really upset over what he did."
"I know... thanks for finding him, Keith," Alexa said quietly as her eyes began to water. Keith held her in a cuddle, but her tears fell regardless.
"Of course."
To be continued...