Chapter 30 - A New Threat
Sparks knocked loudly on the front door of the house.
"Food delivery!" Ziggy called out loudly from beside him.
It was a pleasant day out in Radiant City, and Sparks was out with Ziggy in the suburbs. He glanced over at his Buizel companion and smiled. Ziggy was holding two bags of groceries, the same amount Sparks held, and was standing proudly with a smile on his face. He was wearing his new hoodie, one Sparks had picked out for him from the marketplace that actually fit him properly, with the hood down and sleeves rolled up. Clipped onto the hoodie was Ziggy's new badge, coloured a plain white with a black centre.
Eventually the door to the residence opened up and a Liepard poked her head out. She was an older Pokémon; not quite a senior, but getting on in her years for sure. Her eyes first went to Sparks, which was natural as he was taller and took up more space.
"Good afternoon, ma'am," Sparks greeted her courteously.
"We brought your groceries!" Ziggy chirped happily from beside him.
The Lipard took notice of Ziggy for the first time, and Sparks cast him another glance as well. Ziggy had taken remarkably well to his newfound position as a member of the guild. He had flown through preliminary training and had just been promoted from 'Recruit' to 'Trainee', hence the new badge. The only major difference was that Ziggy could officially take jobs and requests now, though with certain restrictions. It seemed some of his guildmates had been right. Now that Ziggy had a purpose and a focus in life, he was doing leagues better than before.
"…Oh!" the Liepard muttered after a slightly uncomfortably long period of silence, "Oh, you're with…the guild?" She looked back at Sparks and focused on his badge.
"We got everything you requested," Sparks said, holding up his bags, "I double checked, so everything should be in order."
"Ah, well…" the Liepard said, pausing again, "I see. I see, yes. I understand now. I was just…I didn't expect that…" She then cleared her throat. "Never mind. Could you just leave them here inside the front door?"
"Sure!" Ziggy said brightly, and took the initiative to bring his bags in first.
Only a few short minutes later and the two were back on the street, job successfully completed. Sparks had taken notice that the Liepard had only said thanks to him, and had made it a point to pay him the gratuity specifically. Ziggy either didn't notice or didn't care, though. He was all smiles.
It was still a remarkable sight to Sparks. The sun was shining today, making Ziggy's fur especially bright, golden and noticeable. In spite of this, though, he was marching boldly. It truly seemed like random stares from onlookers didn't bother him at all anymore.
"That went pretty well," Sparks commented, "You doin' all right?"
"Yeah! That was fun!"
"Heh… Well, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself."
Sparks looked over at Ziggy. He had to admit that he was watching over him perhaps a little bit too much. Sparks always tried to be available to join Ziggy now that he was selecting his first missions. He still worried a bit about Ziggy and his newfound exuberance.
Honestly, though, Ziggy seemed like he was just running on pure positive energy these days. That badge did bring him one thing for sure, and that was a sense of self-worth. Just a bit of pride to make Ziggy feel confident in himself and to not let smaller things bother him.
Sparks sighed softly. If only he could do the same.
"Tomorrow's your day off, isn't it?" Sparks asked after they walked in silence for a few minutes.
"Yeah!"
"Any thoughts on how you want to spend it?"
Ziggy put a paw to his chin and thought about the question for a few seconds. "Ooh!" he then brightened up, "Can we go to that really cool ice cream place tomorrow?"
Sparks chuckled softly. "Well if you can find somebody to go with you, then sure. I can't go, though. I have to do an important errand for Danika tomorrow."
"Aw, okay," Ziggy said, not in disappointment but in simple acceptance.
"Actually," Sparks then spoke up, "Wait a minute. That ice cream place is in the same part of town that I have to go to. It's, like, only three or four blocks away. Maybe I can take you after all."
"Really? Awesome!"
"Or…Well, maybe not. See, I'm going to Jiuji Labs tomorrow on Danika's behalf to check up on something. And, well, you would definitely not be allowed to come in with me. So I'd have to leave you alone out on the street for a really long time…"
Ziggy turned and looked up at Sparks. He looked like he was about to say something, but ended up staying quiet. Sparks wondered if Ziggy had been about to display that newfound confidence and suggest he would be okay on the streets by himself for an hour, but the realistic side of his brain shot the notion down.
"Maybe someone else can come with us?" Sparks suggested, "There might be somebody else who's free. I don't think anyone else on the Active Team is off tomorrow, but…"
"Hmm…" Ziggy murmured, "Well, I mean it's okay if we can't. It was just an idea, and we can get ice cream some other time."
"Wait, I've got it!" Sparks then exclaimed, "How could I forget? We have a Pokémon at the guild who loves ice cream, probably more than any other food out there in the world…"
"I can't believe Sparks told you about my secret weakness…"
Sparks looked over at Dante and playfully stuck out his tongue. "Isn't Ziggy trustworthy with knowing your weakness?"
"Nobody should be entrusted with my secret weakness. Not even you. Lest the world be destroyed and I can't save you all because the villain tempted me with an ice cream sundae."
The trio of Pokémon laughed and kept on walking. They were in the south side of Radiant City, the opposite side from the guild. Dante was leading the way, as he knew where Jiuji Labs was located. Sparks was interested to see what would happen today. The reason he was going to the labs was so they could discuss what was going on with their mysterious rock friend.
Danika was tied up with a personal matter, and she and Carmen had orchestrated things so that Sparks had permission to go to the labs in her place. He was eager and also very curious to see what this visit had in store.
"What flavour are you getting, Dante?" Ziggy asked, looking up at the Lucario excitedly. There was still a twinkle in his eye as he looked at the celebrity.
"White chocolate is the best ice cream flavour, and I will hear no arguments," Dante replied playfully.
Ziggy let out a huge gasp. "I…I love chocolate!"
Sparks smiled as he looked over at Ziggy, walking happily alongside Dante and wearing nothing but the fur he was born in. Sparks suspected that being alongside both Dante and himself had played a part in convincing Ziggy to go without his hoodie for today. Whatever the reason, Sparks was proud of him.
He was also enjoying giving the stink eye to anybody that stared as they walked past.
"It's just around this corner," Dante announced.
"Gosh, we're way over here," Sparks remarked, "I can't even remember the last time I've been to this part of the city…"
"I've never been here before," Ziggy said, "Then again, it all kinda looks the same to me…"
Dante led the way some more, the sword-wielding Lucario making his way around a corner in the streets. Ziggy and Sparks followed behind him. Once they were around the corner, they saw the place that they were no doubt looking for.
Jiuji Labs was a fairly large building sitting between two taller buildings, but it was unique in that the front-facing side of it was rounded and it didn't have a flat roof. It looked as if somebody had taken a giant sphere and cut a slice out of it. The building was painted white with a few blue accents here and there. A stylized logo was printed on the building above its main entrance, displaying its name in warm but not garish colours.
"I actually thought it would be bigger," Sparks quipped.
"It's plenty big enough for the work they do," Dante said with a laugh.
"All right then," Sparks said as he reached for the fanny pack around his waist, "Got my letter from Carmen in here. Should be all set."
"How long are you gonna be?" Ziggy asked him.
"I'm not sure. Hopefully not too long. I'm just getting some reports after all. Just hang out with Dante here and I'll be back before you know it."
"Okay!" Ziggy replied cheerily.
"We'll find something to occupy the time," Dante said with a nod.
Sparks looked over at the Lucario apologetically and said, "Sorry you can't come in with me. I know you're familiar with this place."
"It's fine," Dante said, "I doubt I'd be let past the front desk anyway since I don't have an official reason to be in there."
"Well, all right," Sparks then said, "Don't get into trouble while I'm gone, you two."
Ziggy and Dante waved at him as he turned and walked off, heading towards the unique building. Sparks hadn't heard about Jiuji Labs until Dr. Hilo had introduced himself. Danika had once tried talking to him about some of the work they did there, but her excitement over the subject made it hard to understand her.
He reached the front of the building before long. The front doors were opaque and windowless, but there weren't any signs restricting entry or asking him to knock. Sparks grabbed the handle and pulled one of the doors open.
As he stepped inside, Sparks found himself in a relatively small room. It was slightly curved, matching the outward shape of the building, but not very deep. There was a desk directly opposite the doors, a few chairs near some windows looking out into the streets, and one large, solid metal door off to the side. There were no windows on the opposite wall, leaving the contents of the building aside from the waiting room concealed.
Sitting behind the desk, looking at something intently that Sparks couldn't see, was a red Oricorio. She looked to be the front desk attendant, so Sparks approached her. "Hello?" he spoke up.
While he was internally fearing that the Oricorio would be the stuck-up type, due to her not even looking up when he entered the front door, he was pleased to see her look up at him with a sweet, welcoming smile. "Good afternoon," she greeted him, "Welcome to Jiuji. How can I help you?"
"Hi, I'm here to see Dr. Hilo? He should be expecting me."
"You must be Miss Danika's associate," the Oricorio said pleasantly, "Please take a seat and I will return shortly." She used one of her wings to indicate the seats near the windows, and then stood up and made her way to the metal door. Sparks sat down and watched her enter it and close it behind her.
There was nobody else in the room, so Sparks just sat quietly and waited. The room was painted in whites and off-white colours, giving the room a very clean and clinical look. He had to imagine that the metal door marked the point where only authorized personnel were allowed to enter, and he was lucky enough to be one of those.
Soon enough, the door opened again and the Oricorio emerged. She silently made her way back behind the desk, and then seconds later someone else walked out of the door. A familiar Inteleon in a white lab coat emerged and quickly spotted Sparks.
"It is the most frustrating thing," he said as he approached, "but I cannot for the life of me hold onto the memory of your name. And let me tell you, as a scientist this is most irritating. I must profusely apologize and ask you once again."
Sparks stood up and chuckled softly. "It's 'Sparks'."
"Yes!" Dr. Hilo proclaimed, "Yes, of course. Honestly, I must admit that it is rather baffling how I cannot keep track of a name with such an obvious connection to your typing. Perhaps it is simply too fitting of a name, hm? Haha… Ah well, I suppose that will just have to remain a mystery. And speaking of mysteries, may I formally welcome you to Jiuji Laboratories."
"It's great to be here," Sparks said cordially, "Danika extends her good wishes and is very sorry she couldn't make it today."
"Indeed. Please give her my best. I would have rescheduled, but we have been extremely busy here as of late. For…obvious reasons."
Sparks' expression darkened slightly. He had a feeling he knew what Hilo was referring to, and it had something to do with mysterious creatures coming from weird portals in the sky.
"Well then," Hilo piped up, "Shall we enter?"
"Lead the way!"
Sparks was actually surprised by how small, simple and plain the laboratory was. Perhaps that was just fantastic expectations borne from not knowing what a 'lab that deals with the mysterious' would entail. Still, though, Sparks had been delighted to see what Juiji had in store.
Dr. Hilo had led Sparks on a brief, truncated tour of the main floor, where most everything took place. There were many scientist Pokémon of a wide variety of species working either with pen and paper or actively on experiments. Everyone wore a white lab coat, the same kind that Hilo wore, and all of them gave Sparks a friendly smile as they passed.
Sparks saw Pokémon working with colourful chemicals, something with microscopes, a particular Charmeleon blowing concentrated streams of fire onto something, and a rather large group all studying photographs. There were also many Pokémon engaged in activities that Sparks simply didn't comprehend; all he could say was it looked like they were doing sciencey work.
There were only a few adjoining rooms, which Hilo explained were for more delicate work that couldn't be contaminated by anything and other such requirements. There was an elevator at the back and Sparks could see balconies up above for a second and third floor, though he didn't see anybody up there at the time.
What Sparks was most impressed by was the fact that the labs had a computer, just like the one Danika had back at the guild. It looked almost the same, if perhaps slightly bigger. Even though nobody was at it, a series of numbers and letters were flashing by rapidly on the screen. Hilo explained that it was in the process of calculating something. Sparks' mind was boggled at the prospect.
After the short tour, Hilo had brought Sparks over to one of the separate rooms and allowed him inside. There, he showed Sparks photographs and sheets with scientific findings regarding the mysterious rock. Sparks had been hoping to see the rock itself, but Hilo said it was currently undergoing another test and couldn't be disturbed.
Sadly, though, the briefing had been ultimately disappointing. Dr. Hilo and his team had made no significant findings about the strange object. All of the information he had relayed to Sparks simply detailed what the rock wasn't. It didn't give off any psychic readings, it didn't have any unusual aspects to its mass or temperature, and it didn't react to a long laundry list of stimuli like fire or electricity.
"I honestly wish I could tell you more, my good friend," Hilo said as they were exiting the room, "but that elusive breakthrough has not happened yet."
"It is a little disappointing," Sparks replied, "but I can tell you and your team are really hard at work. And I also understand that work on this thing is secondary to work studying the Nihilego."
"Ah, well, not as much as you might imagine," Hilo admitted, "Mostly because we still only have eyewitness reports to go off of. We've been doing some work out in the field, where the sightings take place, but honestly at the moment there's not much we can actively do…"
"Well, I hope you have luck in both endeavours…Both of them have been on my mind quite a lot lately…"
"I do not blame you. They are to me as well…"
Soon after, Hilo led Sparks back out the door and into the front lobby.
"Well, thank you for seeing me today. Danika promises to try and make sure she can make it out next time," Sparks said. He then held up the small folder he had been given and said, "I'll make sure she gets these notes too."
"Do take care of them. They are rather important."
Sparks put the folder into his fanny pack, finding that it just fit inside with a little gentle bending. "I will," he said, "This was fun! Thank you for allowing me in to see the lab."
"Oh, for a friend of Danika's is it no trouble at all. I am glad you enjoyed our little establishment," Hilo replied with a pleasant smile.
"Well, I should get going," Sparks said once everything was squared away, "I've got Pokémon waiting for me outside. Don't want to keep them waiting for too long."
"Ah, well, don't let me keep you then," the Inteleon replied, "Have a perfectly wonderful day. I will probably see you again at some point."
Sparks and Hilo said goodbye to one another, and soon enough Sparks was out the door. He briefly shielded his eyes from the sun with the flat end of his tail. He glanced around the area in front of the labs.
Dante and Ziggy were nowhere in sight, but this wasn't unexpected. He figured that they would have wandered off instead of sitting around being bored the whole time. Sparks grinned as a giddy little feeling went through him, knowing that he could now do something that he couldn't before.
Sparks tapped the badge on his chest and spoke into it. "Ziggy, bud! Where'd ya go?"
There was a momentary pause lasting a few seconds. Then his badge lit up again. "I'm still getting used to that," the young Buizel's voice replied.
"Heh…" Sparks chuckled, speaking back through the badge again, "I'm all done. Where are you guys?"
"We're just a block over. Uh…Dante says it's to the right when facing the lab."
"Okay. I'll come meet you guys there."
Sparks then took his time walking down the street, passing by the many buildings and the bustling Pokémon running to and fro. It was another day deep in Radiant City, just like any other day. It still never got old.
When he turned the corner at the end of the street, Sparks found he had arrived at a small plaza between the streets. It was bordered on one end by a small green park, and the other three sides by streets and buildings. It wasn't anything particularly spectacular, just an open paved area where cubs could play street hockey or buskers could play music.
The most notable feature of the plaza was a larger-than-life statue of an Ampharos striking a dramatic pose. Sparks was fully aware of who the statue depicted, even though there was no plaque or anything identifying him. Only one Pokémon ever posed like that.
Ziggy was standing nearby at the edge of the plaza, and Sparks walked over to him. His attention, however, was on the activity in the middle of the plaza. A crowd had formed, consisting mostly of cubs but also plenty of teens and adults. At the centre of it all, predictably, was his old friend Dante the Wanderer.
"Our local celebrity's found admirers, huh?"
Ziggy turned back to look at him, and flashed him a smile and a greeting. "Yeah, I guess. These cubs just came running up, all like 'Ohmigosh you're Dante!' and before y'know it, this…"
Sparks chuckled. "Yeah, this happens sometimes…"
The Lucario was looking around with friendly smiles at everyone around him, though Sparks could detect just a hint of strain in his expression. At the very least he wasn't being bombarded with autograph requests. Instead, Dante just seemed to be doing what he did best; telling stories of his adventures.
"Think we should go save him?" Sparks asked glibly.
"Heh. I dunno," Ziggy replied, "I think he's enjoying himself…"
Sparks turned to regard the Buizel, again marveling at the fact that his golden fur was on display. "You seem like you're enjoying yourself too."
"Well, yeah! Duh!" Ziggy quipped, "We get ice cream after this!"
"That we do, that we do…" Sparks chuckled softly to himself. "You're doing really well out here today."
"Thanks!"
"Dante was talking to me just yesterday about how well you've been doing…"
Ziggy whirled around to face him. "Really?" he blurted suddenly, "D'ya think he was impressed?"
Sparks held his tongue and just gave Ziggy a bemused look.
Suddenly, the golden Buizel's fur wasn't so golden anymore, at least around his face. "I-I-I mean…" he stammered, "I, uh…Eheh…"
"Tell me the truth," Sparks said, though not at all in a pressing way, "Would you have gone without your hoodie if somebody besides Dante had come with us today?"
"Uhh…" Ziggy said, the rosy blush of embarrassment still smothering him, "May…Maybe not…"
"Heh, I thought so. Don't worry about it, though. I'm just glad you like him so much, because it's honestly a positive influence on you."
"I mean, yeah," Ziggy said, his pep starting to return, "Just…He's so cool!"
"He's pretty spectacular."
"I could never do the kind of stuff he does, but…I think when I was a little cub…I used to dream about being someone like him…"
Sparks chuckled again, and ruffled the fur on Ziggy's head with his paw. "C'mon," he said, "Let's go see if we can extract him."
Ziggy felt just a little bit conflicted. He liked being near Dante, the super cool Lucario, but he hated being near big crowds like this.
It felt like at least five minutes had passed since he and Sparks had gone over to try and 'rescue' Dante from his crowd of admirers. A few of them had dispersed, making the crowd smaller than it had been before, but there were still plenty of Pokémon surrounding Dante in the plaza.
There were still five cubs; a Pichu, a Cleffa, a Cyndaquil, a Chespin and a Joltik. Besides them, there were some other older Pokémon as well. Ziggy couldn't match any of the cubs' species with those of the others, so he wondered if any of them were parents. Maybe the cubs just lived nearby and their parents trusted them to play in the plaza.
Ziggy was hanging back from the crowd, watching from the sidelines as Sparks tried and failed to bring the 'Dante show' to a close. Nobody was paying attention to him because Dante was the centre of attention. He had long since learned to ignore when Pokémon stared at him, but still he enjoyed the reprieve nonetheless.
"Didn't I already tell you about how I took down the crazed Mega Tyranitar?" Dante said with a laugh.
The cubs started clamouring to hear the story, and Ziggy smiled and shook his head. He'd heard Dante tell that story before, and he knew it was a good one. He wouldn't blame the cubs if he had told it already and they just wanted to hear it again.
Ziggy truly did admire the Lucario, and he would never tire of hearing Dante talk about his adventures. If it didn't sound so frightening, Ziggy wished he could have been on one of those adventures just to see Dante in action. Still, though, he would happily settle for just the stories.
Some more time passed and Ziggy started to get bored. The five cubs, in particular, couldn't be dragged away from the Lucario with an iron crowbar. They were enamoured by every single word Dante said. Ziggy glanced over at Sparks, wearing a patient smile but somehow looking impatient nonetheless. Ziggy allowed himself a little smile. It was nice day, a nice peaceful day, out with some of his most favourite Pokémon in the world.
So, of course, that peace inevitably came to a sudden end as a very loud crack sound suddenly pierced through the air.
Ziggy's heart dropped right into his stomach and his eyes went wide. He knew that sound. He'd heard it before, and it was a moment he would never forget. It was such a strange, distinct sound that was unlike any sound that anything else could make. It was unmistakable, and it filled Ziggy with a nauseating level of dread.
Predictably, everyone in the plaza had fallen silent at the sound of the crack. Less than a second later a huge tremor struck the earth that knocked everyone present to the ground, a powerful wind swept through the plaza, and something in the air flashed and began to glow a bright white.
Ziggy tried to scramble to his paws, but the tremors were continuing. Pokémon nearby were yelling and screaming, and nobody could get their balance. Ziggy saw Sparks nearby, who wore the same look of dread that he himself was wearing. Though he couldn't hear the Raichu's voice, Ziggy saw his lips form the word 'No…'
The tremors stopped, but nothing else did. The bright glow concentrated to a singular spot in the air above the plaza, and the wind continued to howl wildly. Ziggy, without taking his eyes off of the glowing spot, quickly scrambled over to Sparks' side. "It's coming…!" he shouted.
"No! Not here, not now!" Sparks shouted back.
"N…" Ziggy whimpered, "Nihilego…"
The glow faded, revealing what Ziggy and Sparks both expected and dreaded to see. Just like before in the park, a 'hole' had formed in the air above the plaza with cracks emanating out from it. The same 'portal' that had brought Nihilego to their city, and the havoc it wrought along with it.
Some of the Pokémon in the plaza had fled, but most were too disoriented and still laying on the ground. Everyone was looking up at the hole in the sky, though, shouting in confusion and terror.
"Sparks! What do we do?!" Ziggy shouted in a panicked voice.
"I…" Sparks replied, but his voice trailed off. Ziggy caught a glimpse of the unprepared look on his face. "We…We have to get everyone back. Out of the plaza. Remember, that thing's brimming with dangerous electricity so nobody can get too close to-"
The Raichu was cut off as a sudden deafening roar cut through the plaza. It was a terrifying noise, unlike anything Ziggy had ever heard before. He had once been roared at by a Tyranitar, but that didn't even compare. Then the portal suddenly opened itself wider, the cracks around it growing larger, as a creature emerged from it.
Ziggy's breath caught in his throat. He stared in abject terror.
That was no Nihilego.
What squeezed through the portal instead was a massive red creature that succumbed to gravity as soon as it was through and landed in the plaza with a mighty crash. It was absolutely massive; at least eight feet tall and towering above every Pokémon that was present. By the time it had stood up from off the ground, it cast a shadow over most of the nearby Pokémon.
It was similar to a typical Bug-Type Pokémon, as it had a thick exoskeleton and a pair of partially-transparent wings on its back that resembled a Heracross' wings. That, however, was where the similarities to any Pokémon ended. It stood on four spindly legs that came to a thin, almost sharp point at the bottom. It had an absolutely massive torso with two huge arms extending from it, all of which were brimming with incredibly powerful-looking muscles. A Machamp would look like a twig compared to whatever this was.
Its head was the most terrifying part of it. Simply a flat, dome-shaped skull with two large antennae sticking out from the top of two black orbs that might possibly have been eyes. At its front, where the mouth would be, was a frighteningly long protrusion that looked like a sharp knife or needle. It was almost half as long as one of its arms and came to an extremely sharp point, almost looking like it was wielding a sword on the front of its face.
"Wh…what…?" Ziggy squeaked in terror.
"Dear merciful Arceus…" Sparks murmured.
The creature took a few seconds to survey all of the gathered Pokémon, then stood up tall and let out another massive roar. Many of the Pokémon in the plaza screamed in horror. The creature lifted up both of its huge arms and swung them around. One of them ended up hitting the Ampharos statue that was right behind it. The statue immediately crumbled under the impact, fracturing into pieces and falling over like it had been made of cardboard. It smashed to the ground with a cacophony of noise.
Pokémon around started to scramble, screaming as they went. Sparks hopped up onto all four paws. "Ziggy, get back!" he commanded, and then immediately rushed over to the side. From the other side of the small crowd of Pokémon, Dante was running in the opposite direction towards Sparks. Once they were next to one another, they both span to face the creature and adopted defensive stances. Dante's sword had already been drawn.
The ground shook as the creature, growling loudly, took a menacing step towards the two Pokémon. It was immediately clear that this Pokémon was not acting like the Nihilego. This one was visibly aggressive.
Ziggy then realized with a spike of panic that he had been sitting on his rear-end in the middle of the open for far too many seconds. Sparks told you to get back, what are you doing?! Ziggy quickly heeded the panicked voice in his head and scrambled to his paws. He quickly sought out shelter and saw a chunk of the destroyed statue nearby. It was the closest safe spot he could see, so he dashed over to it and hid behind it. It was just large enough to conceal him from view, and it also allowed him to look around the side of it so he could see Sparks and Dante without being seen by the creature.
"I'm guessing this isn't Nihilego!" Dante said to Sparks. He had a firm grip on his sword, held in both paws in front of his midsection and pointed up towards the creature. The Lucario had his teeth grit, never once taking his eyes off of his opponent.
"If it is, it's nothing like the ones we've seen…" Sparks replied. Ziggy winced at the sound of fear in the Raichu's voice. His pose was much more withdrawn and defensive than Dante's was.
"Is it dangerous?" Dante asked loudly.
"…What?" Sparks replied incredulously.
"Is it…you know, electrical? You said the last ones would kill you if it touched you. Is this one the same?"
"Ah!" Sparks exclaimed in recognition, "Uh…No, actually. No, there's no electricity. This one's different!"
"Good. In that case…Let 'im have it, old friend!"
Sparks' ears perked up. "Right! Of course!" He then took a few steps back, while Dante moved in front to partially block him from the creature. His cheeks started to spark with a familiar blue-tinted electricity. Ziggy immediately knew what was happening. If this one wasn't electrical, then it would be susceptible to Thunder Wave!
The creature took one step forward, but Dante growled loudly and held up his sword threateningly. This was all the time that Sparks needed. He stepped around Dante, faced the creature defiantly, and fired a dazzlingly bright bolt of blue electricity directly at the enemy.
The Thunder Wave struck the creature right in its chest before it had a chance to react. It roared in distress as the blue bolts danced across its entire body. It stopped in place, stiffened up, and started twitching slightly. Ziggy silently cheered; the paralysis had worked. He saw Dante and Sparks let out sighs of relief as well.
But then, with a low, long growl, the creature's thick arms began to move again. Slowly at first, but then it was as if it had just broken out of a pair of invisible iron shackles. It raised its arms up skyward, stomped down with one of its legs, and let out another massive roar.
Sparks looked up at it with the most shocked expression. "What…?" he said, "But…But how?"
"It's powerful…" Dante growled.
"But it can't…!"
The Thunder Wave hadn't worked at all. In fact all it did was make the creature even angrier, as it started moving towards the two Pokémon with an unexpectedly high speed. It lifted up a fist, pulling it back and aiming directly at the Raichu, who was still just looking up at it in shock.
Dante swiftly stepped in and intercepted the punch with his sword. There was a loud clang, as if his sword had just struck metal, and the creature appeared to suffer no damage. Dante pushed it back with an awe-inspiring amount of strength, and took up a defensive position in front of Sparks. "Get out of here! Now!" Dante shouted at Sparks.
Sparks didn't move as Dante intercepted another punch and blocked it, grunting loudly as he pushed the creature back a few feet. Sparks didn't heed his words, though. He wasn't running away. Unfortunately, this wasn't a case of Sparks being brave and sticking by his friend. Ziggy could see, even from a distance, what was happening.
The Raichu was still staring up at the creature, who was now engaged in battle with Dante. He was shivering, his ears were pinned against his skull, and his mouth just hung open uselessly. Dante and the creature were fighting right in front of Sparks. His PTSD was getting triggered once again.
"Sparks!" Dante shouted loudly, "Run while you still can!"
Miraculously, the Lucario's words seemed to cut through Sparks' advancing panic. He briefly shifted his gaze to Dante instead, and then backed away while remaining on all fours. With every step he took, the panic visibly grew on his face. Ziggy could see he was fighting against all the horrible PTSD stuff that was about to hit him. Even from afar, Ziggy could hear him whimpering and sobbing in distress.
Thankfully, and to Ziggy's immense relief, Sparks backed up enough to spot another hunk of rubble from the statue next to him. He quickly leapt behind it, but ended up collapsing to the ground instead of landing on his paws. He immediately curled up into a quivering ball as his panic attack fully gripped him.
Though Ziggy wanted to be concerned about Sparks' wellbeing, his gaze was forcibly drawn back over to Dante. Loud clangs filled the air as Dante attempted to drive back the creature with swings of his sword. The creature just blocked them by holding up its arms and letting the sword loudly ricochet off of them. Was this thing a Steel-Type too? Ziggy couldn't help but just watch, utterly enraptured by what he saw.
Dante's foe made a move to attack, rearing back one of its fists and letting loose a wide-swinging punch. Dante just swiftly ducked to the side and let the punch sail past him. He immediately brought up his sword to counterattack, but the creature blocked it by holding up its other arm. Before the clang even rang out, Dante's other paw started glowing blue. With the grace of throwing a frisbee, Dante tossed the Aura Sphere right at the creature's head.
The glowing ball struck its target, but the creature just shook it off. It looked no more than mildly inconvenienced.
"Ziggy!" Dante shouted without looking at him, causing him to perk up in surprise, "Call for help!"
Ziggy gasped. Of course! What in the world was he doing? He needed to contact the guild right away! Dante didn't have a badge and Sparks was out of action, but he had a badge now. Ziggy ducked lower behind the piece of rubble, though still peeking out and keeping an eye on Dante, and practically slapped his paw against the badge on his chest.
"Carmen!" he half-hissed, half-shouted as loudly as he dared.
"Ziggy?" her voice replied after only a small delay.
Ziggy winced. Even though her voice was relatively quiet coming from the badge, he was still terrified that any noise would alert the creature to his hiding spot. "Another one of those monsters showed up!" he said quickly, "Send help! Now!"
The demeanour in Carmen's voice changed immediately. "Another Nihilego? Where?"
"The place with the big Ampharos statue! But it's not a Nihilego!"
There was a pause. "It's…not?"
"It's something worse!"
Before he could say anything else, or hear whatever Carmen's reply was, a loud roar from the creature nearly made him scream in terror, and then the ground lightly shook as it slammed one of its feet down hard. Dante danced back deftly, his paws barely touching the ground until he came to a stand a fair distance away. He held up his sword with both paws threateningly. The Lucario's lip was peeled back, barring his teeth. Ziggy had never seen Dante look like this before; it was a jarring difference to his normally calm, mirthful appearance.
The creature seemed undeterred by his threats. After only a brief pause, it launched forward with another attack. It attempted a few more punches, each of which Dante deflected with his sword. Ziggy was utterly awed by Dante's apparently incredible strength. The creature then tried lifting a fist up and bringing it down on top of Dante from above. This apparently caught the Lucario by surprise and forced him into a dodge roll to the side. The ground shook violently as the creature's fist slammed into the ground where Dante had been only milliseconds prior.
Dante formed and tossed another Aura Sphere while in the process of ending his roll and getting back up onto his paws. Like the one before, it didn't have much of an effect. Dante let out a growl of frustration. He was glaring daggers at his foe, and Ziggy silently promised himself to never do anything that would ever get Dante to look at him like that. The creature stepped forward to punch him again, but Dante held his sword in both paws and impressively managed to deflect it away with a powerful swing. He then let go with one paw, which he balled into a fist, and that paw started to glow bright white with a hint of blue. While the creature was still recovering from the deflect, Dante zipped forward unexpectedly fast and delivered a lightning-fast punch to its midsection.
Despite the circumstances, Ziggy couldn't help but be wowed by Dante's Meteor Mash. It actually did make the creature stagger back, but only slightly. It roared in defiance.
The plaza was mostly empty now, with Dante holding the creature's attention so it wouldn't go off and attack anyone else. As Dante moved in with more impressive swordplay, Ziggy quickly glanced over to where he had last seen Sparks. To his dismay, the Raichu looked no different than before. He was still huddled up in a ball behind his piece of rubble.
"What do you want?" Dante called out. Ziggy looked back to see that Dante had made some distance between him and the creature and was again holding his sword forward defiantly.
The creature just growled aggressively.
"Can you understand me?" Dante called to him, "Please stop this! There's no reason for violence!"
Unfortunately, either the creature didn't understand or didn't care to listen. It promptly dashed forward, with a swiftness that hadn't been seen before. It swung one of its hands out, attempting to slap Dante with the back of its hand. Dante stepped back and batted away the slap with his sword, but Ziggy immediately saw that this left his defenses open. The creature reared back its other fist, which started to glow white, and swung it directly towards Dante's head.
Ziggy's heart skipped a beat as Dante brought his sword around and held it up to block just in the nick of time. He intercepted the powerful punch, which made that same clanging noise as it struck his sword. However, the momentum of the punch still managed to knock Dante right off of his paws. He let out a yelp as he was flung back about six feet, landing roughly on his back.
At that moment, Ziggy gasped. "Wait a minute…" he whispered to himself, "I've seen that b-"
The creature then leapt forward suddenly, right towards the downed Lucario. Dante had no time at all to stand back up, and Ziggy screamed in terror. The creature landed heavily upon the ground over top of him, its large palms braced on the ground on either side of him. Dante struggled to react, but then the 'drill' on the creature's face began to spin.
This thing was about to drill straight into Dante! "No!" Ziggy cried out. Dante was shuffling back and reaching for his sword, and Ziggy honestly couldn't tell if he would be able to save himself or not.
Suddenly, a jet of water struck the creature right in the side of its head. It grumbled in discomfort, and the drill stopped spinning. This momentary distraction was enough for Dante to quickly roll over onto his front and then spring forward like a Buneary, escaping the creature's trap.
Ziggy's heart skipped another beat. Where had that come from? He quickly turned his head in the direction it had come from, and he saw Dante do the same.
There, standing at the edge of the plaza, was none other than Dr. Hilo. Ziggy recognized him immediately, even though the Inteleon wasn't wearing his white lab coat. He had one of his hands held up and was pointing two of his fingers directly at the creature, both of which were subtly glowing blue. He wore a defiant yet troubled look on his face.
Ziggy heard a short roar, and whipped his head back to see the creature standing up. He looked back at Hilo again, who grit his teeth as the glow around his fingers intensified and started to…bubble? Suddenly, a quick but powerful stream of water erupted from them, zipping through the air and striking the creature right in its head again. The Inteleon then dashed into the plaza, heading over towards where Dante was.
"Hilo!" Dante called to him in surprise.
"I could hear the commotion even through the thick walls of my lab. I got here as quickly as I could," he replied in a serious tone. Ziggy then recalled that his lab was only a block away, and it was where Sparks had just been.
The creature was facing them aggressively again. Dante had his sword back up, pointed right at it, while Hilo was back a good six feet behind him at least.
"Nice Snipe Shot," Dante commented.
"I'm afraid it's the best I'll be able to do. I'm a scientist, not a fighter."
The creature advanced towards them, so Dante threw a quick Aura Sphere at it to hold it back. "I've been trying everything. Haven't found its weakness yet…"
"These things disappear after a short while, don't they?" Hilo asked.
"That's what they've done so far, according to the newspapers…"
Hilo glared at the creature, and pointed his fingers at it threateningly. "Then we just have to hold it off until it leaves."
They couldn't converse much more, because the creature then lunged towards Dante once again and the fight was back on. It swing its arms and fists wildly at Dante, who blocked and countered with his sword. Meanwhile, Hilo held back and kept his aim trained on the creature. When the opportunity struck, he unleashed another shot of water at the creature. Apparently the move was called 'Snipe Shot'.
"Don't let this thing get to Sparks!" Dante called out while in the middle of a wild flurry of sword swipes, "He's behind some rubble to your right."
The creature continued its assault, refusing to let up even once. Ziggy kept on cowering behind the chunk of statue he was behind, his eyes glued to the action. He was incredibly thankful that Dr. Hilo had arrived when he had, or Dante might have gotten badly hurt. With the Inteleon backing him up, Dante was fighting more boldly and even going on the offensive.
Honestly, Ziggy wasn't as worried as he had been when the creature first showed up. Seeing Dante in action like this, Ziggy was confident that he would be able to hold this thing off until the portal reappeared and sucked it back up. He had heard of Dante's amazing battling skills before from stories, but seeing the Lucario fight for real was something else entirely. If it weren't for the actual danger, this would've been one of the best days ever.
Dante yelled loudly as he brazenly leapt towards the creature, swinging his sword in a wide arc and catching it right across the torso. Like before, frustratingly, it didn't leave a scratch. This creature apparently had very thick protection. It tried to retaliate against him, but Dante leapt to the side. A blast of water struck the creature in its head, briefly disorienting it. Dante then leapt up again and swung his sword higher, towards the creature's thick neck.
It roared out, and there was a very faint trickle of blood. Dante had managed to damage it, showing that it wasn't invincible. This disoriented the creature even more than the Snipe Shot had, which allowed Dante to follow up his sword slice with a powerful Mega Kick before he even landed. Ziggy had to keep himself from cheering as the creature toppled over and landed roughly on its side. It wouldn't have mattered much, though, as it would have been drowned out by the loud crash that erupted as the heavy foe slammed onto the ground.
A high-pitched scream barely reached Ziggy's ear over the loud sound. Whoever had screamed sounded close. Too close. Without even looking, Ziggy could tell that the voice had come from within the boundaries of the plaza. He thought everybody else had run away already. He didn't want to take his eyes off of the dangerous creature, lest he be caught off guard, but he took a chance and quickly looked over his shoulder.
Ziggy gasped. He wasn't the only Pokémon hiding behind a piece of rubble in the plaza. Huddled together behind another chunk of the statue not far from where he was were the five cubs from earlier. The Pichu, Cleffa, Cyndaquil, Chespin and Joltik who had been listening to Dante's story. He could see terror in each of their eyes. They were hugging each other, quivering and crying.
A loud crash from nearby made the Chespin cry out again, after which the Pichu frantically tried to shush her.
Ziggy quickly flipped around so he was facing towards them, but remaining low on all fours. These cubs were all in danger. They needed to get out of the plaza, and right away! They all looked too terrified to move, though. The Cyndaquil noticed Ziggy looking at them. Ziggy could see the desperation in his eyes, silently pleading for help, even considering how small and beady they were.
"Look out!" Hilo's voice called out, followed by an angry roar and another crash. Ziggy crept forward so he could peek around the other side of his rubble chunk, and saw the creature shaking its head and causing water droplets to fly off. It then reached down and picked up another piece of rubble, a rather sizeable one, and effortlessly threw it with its massive arm. Ziggy heard Dante yelp in surprise, and then there was a massive crash as the block impacted the ground.
Looking back at the group of cubs, Ziggy grit his teeth. He needed to act fast and get these cubs to safety. He tried to quickly think of a plan, but kept second-guessing himself. There were too many variables in a chaotic fight like this. Though it left him with a dreadful feeling of fear in the pit of his stomach, Ziggy knew he would have to wing it.
Ziggy poked his head around the side once more, looking at the battle. He couldn't see Dante or Hilo, but he had a good enough view of the creature from this vantage point. He watched carefully. The creature hadn't once looked in his direction, as it was focusing all of its attention on fighting Dante. Ziggy waited until the creature made a move, so that even more of its focus would be directed away from him, and he then made his move. Ziggy dashed out from his hiding spot and zipped across the open plaza over to where the cubs were hiding.
As terrifying as it was, this was second-nature to Ziggy. This was exactly what he used to do all the time when he was stealing food from merchants and hiding himself away from the public. This left him with a weird mixture of fear and confidence that he mostly tried to ignore.
Ziggy skidded to a halt, nearly crashing into the cubs, and fell down to his belly once he was behind the rubble. He inched his head around the corner just slightly and looked towards the battle again. Dante was giving the creature a flurry of slashes, and it was blocking each of them with its hard skin. The creature hadn't noticed him.
After a quick breath of relief, Ziggy turned to the cubs. They all remained huddled together, and all looked up at him with fear-stricken gazes. The Cyndaquil's gaze drifted and he ended up looking at Ziggy's badge. "It's not safe here," Ziggy whispered to them, "We have to get out of here now!"
None of the cubs dared to say anything, but none of them had any objections to give anyway. Ziggy then bit his lip as he realized he now had to figure out how he was going to solve this conundrum. Furthermore, whatever he was going to do, he had to do it fast.
"Uh…Okay…" Ziggy whispered once he had given it some thought, "Okay, um…listen. I'm gonna stay here and keep watch. You guys need to run over to where I was hiding. That spot right over there. It's closer to the edge." He pointed with his paw to the other piece of rubble.
The five cubs all looked up at him in terror, and Ziggy heard a few of them whimper.
"I know it's scary. I'm scared too," he told them, "but we have to. Just wait until I say 'go', and then run over there as fast as you can. D-don't worry. It won't notice you while it's, y'know, fighting…" He looked down at them and tried to convey as much urgency to them as he could. "So, who's first?"
At first, they all remained rooted to the spot by fear. All they could do was look up at him with wide, quivering eyes. Ziggy, dismayed, started thinking about ways to carry them to safety instead, which would be a lot riskier. However, finally, the Cyndaquil nervously spoke up.
"Y…You're…" he whispered anxiously, "You're…with the Rescue Society?"
Ziggy brightened for a brief second. "Yes! Yes I am. Come on, now. Let's go." The Cyndaquil nodded, though he looked no less nervous, and Ziggy motioned for him to crawl up next to him. Ziggy then peeked around the rubble again, seeing that the trio of Pokémon in the plaza were still fighting. Neither side seemed to have gained any advantage over the other. Ziggy watched carefully, trying to ignore the heavy shroud of responsibility that was smothering him.
"Go!" he hissed. Thankfully, the Cyndaquil heeded his command and dashed out into the open. Ziggy kept his eyes on the fight while the Cyndaquil was in his peripheral vision. He watched to see if the creature noticed him, but it was too engrossed in the battle with Dante. About two seconds later, the Cyndaquil was behind the far piece of rubble.
"Okay," Ziggy said, "Next? Who's next?"
Thankfully, seeing their friend make the journey unscathed seemed to give the others more trust in Ziggy. Though they remained just as terrified, they no longer hesitated. One by one, they crouched next to Ziggy, who then watched the fight and carefully chose a moment to send them running. Thankfully, they were all rather swift and made it between the two hiding spots quickly. Ziggy constantly had to fight back against the voice of self-doubt in his head, which kept asking what would happen if he made a mistake.
Soon enough, though, all five cubs had made it to the other piece of rubble. Ziggy quickly zipped over to them, crossing the open space in less than a second. This spot was further from the battle and closer to the edge of the plaza than where the cubs had been before, so it was at least marginally safer.
Unfortunately, Ziggy had no idea what the next step was.
A loud cry caught his ears, and he quickly peeked around the piece of rubble again. To his horror he saw Dante stumbling back, uninjured but off-balance. His sword had clattered to the ground a few feet away. The creature was already running towards him, glaring vehemently.
Hilo stepped in from the side, hastily bringing up his hand to form a Snipe Shot. Ziggy could see sweat pouring from the doctor's forehead, showing he was already running out of steam. However, before he could unleash his Snipe Shot, the creature made a sudden turn to the side. It lifted up one of its beefy arms and then, without even stopping, swatted Hilo away like he was a tiny Cutiefly. Hilo was sent flying back and landed onto his back on the pavement roughly.
Ziggy barely had time to worry about him, because the creature already had its other fist raised to strike at Dante. The Lucario, growled in determination and held up both of his paws. It looked like he was pretending to hold his sword, even though he didn't have it anymore, and Ziggy was confused until there was a quick flash of blue. To his astonishment, a long glowing blue bone suddenly materialized in Dante's paw. He held it firmly and used it to block the creature's attack, then used it like his sword to deflect the creature away from him. Dante then got back into his fighting stance, now gripping the glowing bone as if it were his sword.
Then, Ziggy looked over at Hilo. He was flat on his back, sprawled out and eyes closed. The creature had knocked his lights out, and now he was unconscious.
Ziggy's panic went into overdrive. He had to get these cubs out of here now. Things were getting bad! He quickly whipped his head around, desperately searching for a solution. By chance, he happened to catch something out of the corner of his eye.
Just across from the edge of the plaza, Ziggy spotted a narrow alley between the buildings. He took one look at it and realized one thing for certain; that alley was far too narrow for that bulky creature to fit through. Ziggy and the cubs could hide in there until it left!
The only downside, however, was that the distance between the alley and their current hiding spot was at least twice the distance from where the cubs had initially come from, and there was nowhere to hide along the way. In theory, Ziggy could use the same plan again. He could watch for the creature to get distracted and send the cubs one at a time. It would be twice as risky, though.
That feeling of worry and self-doubt started getting worse, and Ziggy had to fight off his approaching panic. These cubs were counting on him. It was up to him to get them to safety. Even now, all five of them were looking up at him with their big, round, terrified eyes. Ziggy bit his lip so hard it started to bleed a little. He didn't have time for this.
As another loud clanging metal sound reached his ears, Ziggy came to a quick decision. All at once. Wait for the perfect time to go, and then all six of them would run at once. They could afford to do this because the end goal was a safe spot, rather than just another hunk of statue to hide behind. Ziggy gulped loudly, tried to keep from throwing up, and peeked around the corner again.
Dante was panting by now. He was starting to lose endurance against this horrifying thing, though he still looked just as capable of fighting. Hilo hadn't gotten up and was still lying unconscious off to the side.
On the other paw, Ziggy couldn't believe his luck. Dante and the creature had rotated in their fight, and now the creature was facing directly away from him. This was the perfect time to go! "Okay!" he harshly whispered to the gathered cubs, "On three, everybody run for that alley over there as fast as you can! Got it?" He wanted to wait for them all to say okay, but realized quickly that he didn't have that luxury. The creature could turn around at any time. "One, two, three!"
They all took off. Though Ziggy was the fastest, he slowed himself down to make sure they all made it okay. The Cyndaquil and Pichu were pretty fast and took the lead, the Joltik remained at Ziggy's pace, while the Chespin and Cleffa lagged behind a little. Ziggy just focused on their goal. Nothing else mattered except getting there, and getting out of reach of this dangerous creature. They crossed the open plaza quickly, and soon enough the Cyndaquil and Pichu had already leapt right into the alleyway.
"Aah!"
Terror gripped Ziggy's heart as he turned and looked over his shoulder, which turned to an icy dread at what he saw. The Joktik and Chespin kept running, thankfully, but the Cleffa had tripped and fallen on her face.
Ziggy quickly skidded to a halt and turned around, now using his full speed. He dashed back over to the Cleffa as fast as his paws could carry him. He reached her and grabbed her small body with his paws to help her up. Panic spiked right through his brain. There was no time for this! A crazy idea formed in his brain and he latched onto it desperately.
So, Ziggy lifted the Cleffa up into the air, focused for a minute, and then unleashed a Water Gun right into the middle of her back. Thanks to her remarkably light weight, she was propelled through the air by the water stream and sailed roughly but ultimately harmlessly into the alley. Water splashed down onto the plaza ground, but there were no cubs in sight. All five had made it into the alley.
"ZIGGY! LOOK OUT!"
Turning his head to the side, Ziggy's perception of time seemed to slow down as he witnessed the sight of the massive creature charging directly towards him. Its huge fist was raised, ready to strike him, and the drill on its face was spinning rapidly. It was already close to him and approaching fast. Ziggy barely had time to open his mouth and scream.
At the last second, something slammed into the side of Ziggy with a powerful Quick Attack. Pain rippled through his midsection as he was sent tumbling sideways, out of the way of the creature. Through his spinning vision, Ziggy saw that it was Dante who had tackled him out of the way. When Ziggy landed nearby on his rear, he saw to his dismay that Dante had now taken his place. He didn't have his sword with him, and he wasn't holding his glowing blue bone thing.
And he had no time at all to react before the creature's fist slammed into him with a powerful punch.
Dante was caught completely off-guard by the strike and was knocked back roughly to the ground. He grunted in pain as he landed on his back not too far away.
The creature didn't slow down. It leapt forward, tiny wings buzzing behind it to give it an extra bit of height and distance. Dante didn't have a chance to get up. He couldn't even move before the creature was on him.
Ziggy could only watch in silent horror as the creature landed. Dante's loud piercing scream filled the air as the creature's drill sunk right into his leg. There was a splash of blood.
A mere second later, a large brownish shape whizzed through the air and slammed right into the creature's side. It was knocked off balance. Ziggy looked up and saw, to his astonishment, that the attacker was none other than Tora. The Pidgeot flapped her wings and rose higher, and she was soon joined in the air by many other avian Pokémon of various species. Each of them had a shiny badge clipped to their feathers. Rescue Society members who could fly had arrived.
They all started dive bombing the creature, zipping through the air with impressive speed and creating a cacophonous hurricane of feathers and talons that the creature simply couldn't keep up with. They drove it back, pushing it towards the middle of the plaza.
Then one of the Pokémon, a Talonflame, opened his beak and unleashed an Ember attack. As the flames fell upon the creature, it visibly recoiled and let out a screech of protest. It was weak to Fire-Type! They had finally discovered one of its weaknesses. From there, any of the avian Pokémon who had any sort of Fire-Type move unleashed it on the creature, and the tide of the battle finally turned.
Then, only about 30 seconds after Tora and the others had arrived, there was a familiar loud crack. A bright flash, a brief tremor, and then finally, mercifully, a portal appeared in the middle of the plaza just slightly off the ground. Wind began to whip up, and the creature roared in distress again. It looked like it was struggling, fighting back against some unseen force. It was as if the portal was pulling it in by some invisible rope, and it was trying and failing to fight against it.
The Talonflame bravely dove in once again, and unleashed a powerful Ember attack. It struck the creature directly in its torso, knocking it back straight into the portal. It roared loudly as it fell through, its voice growing quieter as it disappeared from view. Seconds later it was gone, the portal vanished, and everything stopped.
It was gone. It was finally gone.
Silence, however, was not what followed. The air was still filled with terrifying screams of agony.
Immediately the avian members of the Society fluttered to the ground. One went over towards the knocked-out Dr. Hilo, the Talonflame went over to where the portal had been, but all the rest of them quickly gathered around Dante.
Ziggy's heart hammered hard in his chest and he couldn't stop quivering. He was still lying on his back, and for a moment he was just spaced out; completely overwhelmed by what had just happened. Dante's anguished screaming continued, though, which eventually brought Ziggy back down to reality. Dante was hurt!
He quickly stood up, stumbling a bit and eventually settling on all fours, and then ran towards the congregation of avian Pokémon. Ziggy had never heard anybody scream like this before in his whole life, and it was Dante of all Pokémon who was making the terrifying sound. How badly was he hurt? Would he be okay?
Tora noticed him approaching, and turned away from the group to face him. "Ziggy…" she said, extending one of her wings out to block his way, "I don't think you sh-"
Ziggy didn't care, nor did he listen. He roughly pushed past Tora, making her yelp in surprise, and then squeezed his way past the ring of feathery bodies. Somebody was calling for a doctor and one of the Pokémon took off. "Dante!" Ziggy shouted breathlessly once he was finally past the barrier of Pokémon, "Dante, I-"
His words died on his tongue, and his breath caught in his throat. Ziggy fell onto his rump and clasped his forepaws over his muzzle as a look of pure shock appeared in his eyes. It felt like his heart stopped as he stared in complete disbelief.
Dante was lying on his back, in the same position as when he had been attacked, and he was writhing around in agony. The Lucario's eyes were clenched shut, his muzzle was perpetually open in a never-ending string of screams. There was blood everywhere. It was splashed all over his fur, and there was some on pretty much every part of his body below his chest spike. It formed a morbid red puddle on the plaza beneath him.
There was a lot of blood, a sickening amount of blood, and it made Ziggy's stomach churn. The source of all of Dante's spilled blood, though, was easy to see. It was gushing out of his right knee from where the creature had stabbed him, looking like a vile red waterfall. Likewise, blood was also pouring out of Dante's leg.
His leg, which was laying on the ground a few feet away.
Ziggy stared, transfixed by the horror that was before him. He couldn't look away, he couldn't say anything, he couldn't even breathe. The others were trying to usher him away, but it was far too late for that. He had seen everything. It was hard to miss a Pokémon's severed limb.
He had no idea how long he sat there and just stared, but finally something broke inside of him and he couldn't look anymore. With a cry of distress he turned tail and ran away, pushing past the avian Pokémon again. He didn't get far before his stomach forced him to stop and collapse on the ground, where he proceeded to lose his lunch.
In an instant, what remained of his strength gave out. He thankfully managed to avoid collapsing into his own sick, but that was the only good news worth talking about. Vile, vivid images of what he had just seen assaulted his mind until he couldn't take any more and passed out.
