Chapter 8
Attack on the Mind
A shiver filled Tetheron's chest as he looked at Freya's face out of the corner of his eye. He could see her fists clenched tightly, with a cold stare in her eyes. They focused downwards, on the mon that lay at their feet.
She took a deep breath and ordered, "Move him over."
Gathor nodded. He cupped his hands underneath one of the Drapion's shoulders and heaved. He carefully lowered the mon onto his back and stepped away.
A knot formed in Tetheron's stomach as he cringed, staring into the eyes of the dead Drapion. Its pupils were about the size of a Pidove quill's point and surrounded by a grey, faded iris. Even worse how bloodshot those eyes were, as if they were frozen in time while the body endured some form of agony.
Tetheron slowly looked to the side, crossing his arms almost without thinking. Poor guy.
Upon hearing his sister sigh, he closed his eyes and waited for her to say the ugly truth.
"Yes…it's him."
His claws burrowed firmer on his arm. His closed eyes pressed harder, scowling as he exhaled harsher out of his nostrils. Bastards.
"Sorry to have to show him to you like this, miss," Tetheron heard the ranger say with a heavy sigh following.
"It's fine," his sister answered. "I've seen a corpse before. It's just…"
Tetheron's eyes popped open and glanced over to Freya, curious about her sudden pause.
"What bothers me is the manner of death."
Oh? Raising a brow, Tetheron looked back at the dead Drapion, taking a second to gulp down his disgust.
"Yeah," the ranger added, scratching a spot under his head's natural helmet. "Uhm…I hate to ask you this, but do you have an idea how this mon died? Suffocation, maybe?"
Tetheron looked at Gathor, who shook his head and answered, "Naw, he looks roughed up, yeh, bu' Drapion necks are wide on dah inside. It'd take a lotta squeezin' tah close it, an' his neck don't look like it's been squished at all."
True…There's no way that amount of force wouldn't leave some kind of visible damage to the neckline. Tetheron pressed a fist to his throat, pondering.
Suddenly, Freya spoke. "His eyes are a dead giveaway," All eyes turned to her except Tetheron, who kept his gaze on the Drapion.
"Huh?" The ranger asked, more surprised than curious.
Tetheron listened carefully as his sister explained.
"His irises are grey, but when he came here before they were green. A mon's eyes only grey like that completely when their soul has been damaged in some irreparable way. And considering his eyes are that bloodshot, I'm betting he was placed under some kind of mind trauma. Perhaps by some psychic's mental invasion."
Well, that's troubling. Wait… Tetheron took his gaze from the Drapion and looked at his sister. "Wait."
"Hrm?" Freya looked back at him.
The Blaziken pointed at the dead mon. "He's a dark type though," he informed.
Freya's face went from listening intently to eye-rolling irritation. "Miracle eye exists, brother."
"Well…yeah but-" He scratched the back of his head for a second, eventually giving up on a rebuttal. Guess that's true, but still. He looked back at the body. It'd take a lot of psychic power concentrated on a mon's mind to do that level of damage. There's probably plenty of psychics that 'could' do it, but why crush his mind like that in the first place?
His thoughts were interrupted by Freya theorizing out loud again.
"Of course, damaging a soul doesn't necessarily kill a person, since souls do have the ability to heal themselves over time. However, I believe his soul was destroyed before his mind was crushed."
"Huh?"
Freya sighed and raised three fingers. "There are three known attributes to what makes a mon. A body, a mind, and a soul. All three are needed to be a person and the absence of even one results in a mon not being itself. Think ferals."
"Well, I know that miss, but how does that relate to what you're saying."
Clenching her claw into a fist, she raised it to her eyes and pointed to the ruby iris in her right eye. "Say I fire a move that was strong enough to pierce my head through. If my brain was destroyed that would kill my mind, which serves as the middle mon for the body and soul. With it gone, the body wouldn't be able to operate on a physical level due to impulses and the soul would die due to its link to a physical essence being destroyed. If this happens, my irises wouldn't change color."
"Because yah body an' soul's connection is severed. So dah body can't detect if dah soul is dead or not."
"Correct," she said with a pleased smile. "And the Irises our eyes have are linked to the soul's status, at least that's the theory. Nobody is entirely sure how these three exactly relate to one another, but the timing of death for any of these factors seems to be a rule for a mon's passing."
Freya then pressed the finger to her forehead and continued. "Now, instead of a move, let's have our attack on my mind be a mental one and for simplicity's sake we'll have it easily breach any defenses my mind has. What do you think would happen?" She took her claw away and answered the question. "The mental side of my mind would feel the attack first, with the body reacting afterwards. And if this mental attack was powerful enough, it could breach my mind and obliterate the soul within before the physical side of the mind would cease functioning."
The ranger's eyes widened as he snapped. "I see, so then the iris would grey out because the mind can let the body know the soul is gone."
Freya nodded. "And without a soul to guide a body, it would be operating under just the mind's instinct or chemical releases. Ergo, a Feral. So here's my theory of what happened."
She knelt down and placed a hand on the corpse. "I believe whatever attack this mon had on his mind was powerful enough to crush the soul side of his mind, thus killing the mon's soul. However, whatever attack did this must have been too strong. There are a few ways that could happen, but the main thing is that the physical mind had such a recoil that is sent him into a state of shock that they couldn't get him out of. Either way, whoever did this used too much power behind the blow."
Gathor stroked his chin, adding, "Yah, cuz breachin' a mind takes a lotta psychic poweh focused on dah victim's head."
Freya nodded. "Plus, the brain has natural mental barriers that aren't easy to get over. It takes breaching through them to get to the mon's head." She flattened her right claw and tapped one claw from her left talon onto it. "And a seasoned psychic knows how to concentrate their psychic energy onto one point and pushed hard enough to breach it."
"Woah, woah, slow down a second," the Chesnaught said, emphasizing the request by extending his arms outward in a "stop" fashion. "So, how does that make a mon's mind crush, if it's just at one point?"
"Well, normally it's effective to focus on one point, but that comes with the risk to the mon's mind. For example, if I break through the barrier with too much force, I could easily damage the mind or crush it completely, killing the soul along with it."
"Like breaking through a wall with a move," Tetheron added.
"Exactly, which is why psychics need to temper their abilities before doing this. It's also why psychics do mind drilling over time instead of just one attempt."
"So." The ranger crossed his arms. "Whoever did this, was too rough?"
"Probably, some oversight must have happened that was effective enough doom the Drapion rather than simply knock him unconscious. So if they were after something in the Drapion's head, like memories, it would be crushed along with the mind."
"Which would explain why they haven't found this place yet," Tetheron muttered to the rest as he stared into Freya's eyes with a stern look. "But that also means that we have a powerful psychic looking for us."
Freya nodded with a grave scowl on her face.
Gathor gazed at the body with a sympathetic scowl. "Poor guy," he growled as he clenched his fists for a second. "At leas' dey couldn' find wha' dey needed from 'im."
The Charizard nodded, though she seemed to still be filled with unease. "I agree, but the fact they got the messenger means they aren't just here for Life Gathering." She walked over to Gathor and slid her claw into his. "I think it's best we keep a low profile for a while longer."
"Yeh," Gathor answered, tightening his grip around her hand. He turned towards the ranger and asked, "So, who reported dah body, anyway?"
The Chesnaught's eyes lit up for a second, then shifted to a strangely professional look. "Oh, well it was this Heliolisk fella. Norfarion I think. Got the same brand as you guys."
Gathor raised a brow. "Swift?"
Freya rubbed her chin with her free hand, a little perplexed as well. "They're already here?" she mumbled as she looked at the ranger. "Did he mention his name?"
"Nope, seemed to be in a rush."
Tetheron smirked at the news. Sounds like Swift, being in a rush. But dang. He scratched his beak a little as he chuckled in his mind. Leave it to that twerp to find a dead body on his way here. His smile faded as a thought struck his head. "Wait, just Swift? Garon wasn't with him?"
"Uh…who?"
Sighing, Tetheron elaborated, "Garon. A Garchomp. Norfarion like the rest of us. Was this Heliolisk with a Garchomp like that?"
"Nope," the ranger said, shaking his head. "It was just him that reported the body body."
"Hmmm…" Something about this method left a lingering feeling of offness in Tetheron's head. Seeking more information, Tetheron stepped closer to the ranger and asked, "How did he report the body?"
"Huh? Oh well…" the ranger stuttered a bit uncomfortable at Tetheron's sudden, serious pressing. "He took it to the hospital in town, though the body seemed already deceased to him. He immediately came to the ranger station afterwards, at least that's what he said."
Tetheron's eyes widened, making the stranger start fidgeting in nervousness.
"That's what happened…s-sir."
Slowly, Tetheron looked at Gathor and Freya, both with their eyes as wide as his. "Do you think Swift could hav-?"
"No," Gathor bluntly interrupted, stepping away from Freya and stomping over to the ranger. "Swift couldn' have carried dat mon by himself." He growled as he got up in the ranger's face, making the poor guy start shaking at this invasion of personal space.
"Where's he now?"
"Who?" the ranger said with a shaky voice with a little voice crack at the end.
Gathor growled in frustration, making the ranger give a little yelp. "Swift, da heliolisk guy. Where's Swift?"
"Uncle Swift's here?"
All eyes turned towards the direction of the voice.
"Seliph!" Freya shouted, quickly stepping in front of the Drapion's corpse upon seeing Seliph jogging over to them. She fiercely scowled at him, causing the poor boy to freeze up. "What are you doing out here‽"
"I…well," he stuttered, his focus torn between answering his mother and whatever she just stepped in front of.
"Answer," Freya demanded in a harsher tone.
Seliph gave up looking past her and instead focused entirely on his mother. "Um…I saw you all from the window and came out to see what was going on."
Freya's eyes went wide. "Are Jaron and Ciecro inside?"
The feathers on Tetheron's back stood up as he felt the rush of dread fill his body. Thankfully, it died down a little upon seeing Seliph nod his head, although something else about the boy's answer had caught his eye. Seliph's eyes were shaky and scared.
"Seliph, you shouldn't be out here," Freya said with a calmer tone, though this didn't seem to disperse this new sense of fear in her son.
The Blaziken's eyes narrowed. He's putting the pieces together.
"Who's tha-" Seliph began, but hushed up as Freya gestured him to stop. She turned and looked at Tetheron straight in the eye, with a stare far more soul-piercing than any captain he'd ever had the bad luck to piss off. Course, this was his sister, so he met her gaze with a stalwart, serious one and silently waited for her request.
"Tetheron, take Seliph inside the house. Find Jaron and Ciecro, and don't let any of them leave your side under any circumstances."
Nodding, Tetheron walked over to the still processing Seliph and gently placed a hand on the poor boy's shoulder. "Come on champ, let's go."
Seliph didn't budge, almost like he was frozen in time.
Sorry sport. Tetheron's hand swung down and firmly grabbed Seliph by the wrist, causing Seliph to yelp in surprise.
"Wha-?"
"We're going inside," Tetheron stated, calmly put with authority. He started towards the house, pulling Seliph along without too much difficulty, mostly due to Seliph being light and too shocked to put up any resistance.
The boy's incoherent stuttering added to the nagging feeling of dread in Tetheron's mind. Despite this, he didn't even consider giving it an ounce of his thought or time. This wasn't his first close-up dance with death, but it did take considerable more effort to stay focused, due to how many loved ones were also dancing.
He took a second to look back at Seliph. The boy's eyes were starting to form tears as worriedness took shape in his eyes.
"You heard your mother," Tetheron answered as he shot his gaze to the front door. Although he hated leaving it on just that note, so he added, "I'll explain once we get inside."
But could he? His eyes lowered a little as his one-shot-focused mind finally began to acknowledge his fear, confusion, and concern. It wasn't hard to picture himself in the boy's skin. All frozen up with fear and struggling to understand; God knows how many times he'd been shocked about something.
Course, he had a duty to fulfill and one that was far more personal than just some other mission in the middle of an ongoing fight. Freya's pleading stare was burned in his mind in such a way it helped melt his body's wishes to freeze and think about the implications or future. Even if it meant dancing with death while staring it in the face without flinching, he would. Freya needed him to, and good brothers help their sisters in times like this.
His musings ceased as he felt a sudden tug from Seliph's hand. He quickly spun around just in time to see the boy clasp his head and scream as loud as he could.
Tetheron gasped, letting go of the Seliph's hand, which instantly went to hold the other side of his head.
Seliph fell to the grass and began tossing around, crying from some kind of head pain.
His feet felt heavy, as he slowly began to move towards Seliph, till he was startled by Freya's sudden appearance. "Seliph!" She sat him upright and frantically checked his head for what was wrong.
Tetheron's mind and body felt out of touch with time. He simply watched in dumbfounded silence; taking in the pained screaming form of Seliph and the panic stricken Freya, doing her best to calm the child and figure out what was wrong.
"Snap out of it!" He heard a course voice shout before receiving a harsh push that sent him sprawling to the ground. He looked up to see Gathor staring down at him for a second with a vicious glare that seemed uncannily similar to Freya's horrified face earlier.
The Feraligatr quickly spun around and joined Freya's side.
"…Uh…I." Tetheron sat up and looked at the couple, just in time to see Freya's face calm.
She mumbled something underneath her breath, gently cupped Seliph's head into her claws, and lowered her head till they were level with his. "Seliph, look at me," she softly commanded.
Seliph obeyed, slowly opening his eyes which were filled with tears and bloodshot in agony. However, the site of seeing his mother appeared to bring some relief, or perhaps hope.
With the stoicism of a commander and the calmness of a still sea, Freya asked, "Seliph, I need you to tell me. Do you feel someone else's presence? Like someone is squeezing your head?"
A psychic! Tetheron's spun onto his knees with a horrified stare on his face. Could it be the same one that killed-…No, I don't want to think about that. He shook his head harshly as he cupped a hand over his face that started shaking profusely. His claws pressed firmer as he growled in his mind. Fuckin' calm down, damnit!
"Someone get a dark orb, now!" Freya's shouted, prompting Tetheron to take his hand away from his face.
Of course, that'll- But before he could finish, Gathor rushed past him towards the house.
Tetheron shut his beak firmly. Gathor knows where to find it. As he turned to look back at Freya, his eyes noticed and stopped on the ranger. The Chesnaught was staring in petrified horror at Freya and Seliph.
Glad I'm out of that, Tetheron mumbled in his mind as he got to his feet and briskly joined by Freya. He dropped to a knee and took over as main support for Seliph's sitting up. "I've got him, keep talking to him." He then looked at the boy and encouraged, "Seliph, you're a fighter."
Seliph leaned his head back to look up at Tetheron with tear-soaked, quivering eyes.
Every fiber in Tetheron's being wanted to snap, to look away, or go tear apart the thing doing this to his nephew. "We're here, you're gonna be okay," he assured the Frogadier and began to gently rub the boy's back. He glanced up at Freya and nodded.
For a split second, Freya's stressed face showed an ounce of calm or hope. He didn't know which, just that he was glad to receive the hint of appreciation. It didn't stay for long, as she snapped back into helping Seliph.
"Seliph, listen to me." She pulled him close. "Calm your mind and empty it. Remember your lessons. The best mental defense against a psychic invasion is to give them nothing to latch onto and remain calm. Just take deep breaths."
Despite his constant sobbing, Seliph started taking slower breaths. "S-she wan-n-ts th-" He suddenly cried out in pain and lurched forwards as if he'd been struck from behind.
Tetheron quickly intercepted Seliph's fall with his free hand and held the boy upright. "I got you." Hurry up Gathor.
Freya resumed. "Seliph, if anyone else is talking to you other than me, don't listen. Just focus on your breathing and my voice."
Seliph slowly opened his eyes, looking at her with a pained expression as he shook violently.
"That's right," She encouraged, brushing Seliph's head tenderly.
Suddenly, his eyes widened as he cried in fear. "I…I see her mom," he sobbed, with a hint of panic breaths following.
"Shhh, it's alright."
"Yeah," Tetheron added, rubbing the boy's back once more. "It's only in your head. She isn't here, just me and your mother."
"But…I see…" Seliph closed his eyes and despite his whimpers, once more tried to slow his breathing. His shaking began to soften and his convulsing muscles began to lax.
A glimmer of ease shined in Freya's eyes. "You're doing good son. Just keep it up and she'll be unable to la-"
Suddenly, Seliph let out a yelp as he fell forwards, curling up as he screamed uncontrollably.
Tetheron held tighter on the boy, his confusion and anxiety surging. Hurry up, Gathor!
"No, Seliph you have to remain calm." Freya put her hands around Seliph.
Tetheron didn't put up any resistance and let her pull Seliph in for a close hug.
The Blaziken watched Freya caress his head, kiss him, hug him tightly, and nuzzle his cheeks. He scowled at how such a scene he'd see many times before and thought was cute would fill him with such dread. His fists tightened and started shaking as his eyes remained glued on the crying child, crying in his mother's arms no matter how much she tried to calm him down.
He swung his head around towards the house. Where's that bastard with the dark orb! He growled as he forced himself to look back at Freya. He froze with his mouth agape.
Freya's was looking down at Seliph with a look of pure fear. The hands that held the boy were stiff.
He's losing. Tetheron could feel all the heat in his body drain at thinking that. He was just like Freya, watching Seliph dance with death, helpless to save him.
Suddenly, Seliph started fidgeting in her arms, prompting the two to shove that dread aside and focus on the boy. "Get out of my head!" He shouted with all his might.
Tetheron placed a hand on Seliph's back. Please give him the strength last, Arceus, he pleaded. To his dismay, Seliph's movements began to slow, his struggling growing weaker.
"Get…out…of…" Seliph's voice trailed as his head began to bob slightly.
"No…" Freya mumbled under her breath, pulling Seliph into a deep hug. His arms fell from his head and dangled at his sides.
Tetheron took his hand away. Seeing tears flow from Freya's eyes forced him to look away. He groaned angrily as his mind was flooded by the images of the dead Drapion, specifically those eyes. The eyes of one that had danced with death and died. Was Seliph about to meet that same fate? All stiff and frozen in a form of agony.
"Keep fighting!"
His eyes shot open as he looked back at Freya, who was holding Seliph in front of her. Her eyes were filled with a wave of fiery anger that fought the streaming tears. "You hear me‽ Don't you dare give up!" She started shaking the half-fainted boy roughly, but not enough to hurt him. "I won't let you give in. Don't you take your eyes off of me and if you can't manage that I'll make you obey me! Now keep fighting her!"
Inspired by his sister's resolve, Tetheron stood up and shouted at the house, "Gathor! We need that dark orb now!" Right as he finished, he saw Gathor swinging the door open and dashing towards them, clenching something in his fist. He joined by Freya, hope filling his heart. "Gathor's almost here," he exclaimed, but to his dismay, Freya was still scowling angrily down at the dazed boy.
His eyes lowered to the boys and fell upon Seliph's closed eyes. Not just his eyes, but his entire body, that not a second before had been fidgeting, lay in Freya's arms, still.
Tetheron was at a loss for words. His mouth hung open as the cold hit of reality struck at his entire being. Suddenly, he heard Freya say something softly.
"I love you."
What followed was the Charizard giving Seliph a hard slap on his cheek.
All remaining sense of reason stopped for Tetheron. He just stared, with his jaw hung open in complete stupefaction.
Seliph's face was wide open, staring at his mother in full shock from the hard smack.
"Freya! Catch!"
Tetheron looked over at Gathor, tossing a thing over to them. He instinctually reached out towards it, but Freya was faster.
In the blink of an eye, the Charizard twisted the top and, with an angry roar, pressed the two halves together.
The orb made a crackling sound as a dark shockwave shot from its casing, enveloping them all in a dark, enlarging void. It didn't hurt, but the air inside made all the feathers on Tetheron's body stand up. He looked upwards at the zenith of this dark half-sphere and never taking his eyes off as it slowly became filled with holes. A few seconds later it vanished entirely, leaving just the almost post-dusk sky with its dim stars above.
"Seliph," Gathor growled, prompting Tetheron to look back at the boy.
Freya's hands were holding Seliph's head, while Gathor was supporting him up. Seliph was still limp and his eyes still shut.
"Seliph, open your eyes," Freya softly requested.
Tetheron fell to his knees next to Seliph and placed a hand on top of the Frogadier's head.
She repeated her request to her son and gently stroked his cheek. "Open your eyes Seliph. You're safe from it now."
Come on, champ! Tetheron moved closer to the boy and placed his other hand on Seliph's shoulder. He lurched back slightly at the sound of a cough. He pulled his hands away and shifted right next to Freya. He watched Seliph start turning slowly, groaning a little as his eyes began to open. His blue irises shakily looked up at their faces and gradually began to steady themselves.
"M…mom?" he croaked softly, starting to cry. "Mom!" He dove into Freya as she put her arms around him, sobbing.
Freya gently stroke his head as Tetheron and Gathor put their hands on Seliph too.
"You daughter of a bastard," Tetheron shouted with joy and a few sniffles mixed in. "I'd never would have thought of slapping him like that."
Freya didn't answer, just kept nuzzling Seliph's head. "It's alright Seliph. She can't invade your mind anymore," she said with a compassioned look.
Tetheron fell backwards onto his bum and leaned back on his arms. He stared up at the sky, his breathing growing heavy. The dance with death was over with Seliph alive. He rubbed his tearing-up eyes with his arm and just laughed softly.
His happiness was short-lived. Once he took away his arm, he looked back at the tender scene, only to see Gathor getting to his feet, his eyes fixated to the far end of the clearing with a vicious glare.
Following Gathor's gaze, Tetheron looked for any incoming enemy. Thankfully, there wasn't one he could see, but that didn't mean their so-called 'psychic' attacker wasn't out there, ready to close in after having her probing on Seliph's mind cut.
"Freya, we need tah get 'im inside." Gathor put his hands on Seliph and gently tried to pull him from his mother. However, the boy latched onto Freya, sobbing even louder.
Gathor looked up to Freya, with a mix of sympathy but reason in his expediency.
"Seliph." she leaned her head near his, whispering, "I'm sorry, but we need to get you inside. Please,"
Reluctantly, Seliph pulled back, looking at her with a tear-filled stare, and slowly nodded.
"That's my brave boy." She stroked his cheek, bringing some sense of relief into the boy's expression. She suddenly paused.
"Mom?"
"Sis?" Tetheron tilted his head as Freya moved Seliph a little back from her and took a breath.
She looked at him squarely in the eyes and asked, "Seliph, I'm sorry but I have to know. What was she after?"
Seliph pulled his arms into his stomach and shivered. He about jumped when Gathor put his around Seliph's shoulder, but immediately felt safer from the embrace. The boy then looked back at his mother and answered her, while wiping the lingering tears from his eyes. "S-she asked where you had this f-formula." A few sniffles followed.
Freya's eyes narrowed. "Did she find out?"
Seliph rapidly shook his head and uttered, "No, I kept focusing just on j-just the k-key."
Freya sighed heavily, her wings drooping like a heavy burden they had been carrying had been removed.
Gathor's arms gently tightened around Seliph as he pulled the boy into his stomach, smiling down at him. "Yah did good, son. I'm proud of yah."
Seliph looked up at his father, giving a tired, but happy smile.
Helping Seliph to his feet, Gathor instructed, "Go get yah're brothers. We need tah leave. Tetheron."
The Feraligatr looked at Tetheron, who nodded and started helping Seliph to his feet. "Wha-!" Tetheron gasped as he lurched backwards just in time to avoid a swing of Freya's wings. As he landed on his back, he managed to see Freya start launching a Flamethrower in the direction away from the house. Upon instinct, he shielded his eyes with his right arm as a second later the sound of an explosion resounded the area followed by a force of displaced air, strong enough to almost roll him onto his side.
With a raspy pant, Tetheron looked around. Gathor was shielding Seliph with his side, while the ranger was down on his bum, surprised by the blast. Freya was clearing the resulting smoke cloud in front by a few flaps from her wings.
He had barely started to get back on his feet when his sister's loud, harsh voice spat at him, "Get Seliph back inside and kill anything that tries to enter!"
"Got it!" He sprang into a sprint toward Gathor, who nudged Seliph out in the open. Without stopping his jog, Tetheron scooped Seliph up in his arms. He slowed to a stop and turned towards the parents. "Hang tight, sis. Oh and you too, Gathor."
"Ge' 'im in dah house, asshole," Gathor snapped.
Giving a single nod, Tetheron turned around and started sprinting as fast as he could towards the house. About halfway to the house, Tetheron suddenly someone running next to him. He glanced over his shoulder and raised a brow.
It was the ranger, though he seemed a lot calmer than before. In fact, he seemed rather focused as well, especially since it looked like he was putting a bit of effort into keeping up with Tetheron.
"Is it alright if I help out?" He asked, with heavy pants.
"Uh…sure?"
"Sorry, pretty dumb question right now." The Chesnaught rubbed the back of his head and his gaze fell into an awkward stare at the ground. "I'm not really too experienced with heavy fighting stuff; I'll just be in their way. So, I know it's cowardly, but-"
"No sweat." The ranger looked up at Tetheron, who returned a hearty smile. "'Know your limits' they say. I could use a hand."
The ranger nodded, a small bit of confidence showing in his weak, anxious smile.
Upon reaching the door, Tetheron adjusted Seliph in his arms to try and open the door.
"I got it!" The ranger exclaimed as he reached for the knob and twisted it.
Suddenly, Tetheron heard Seliph gasp in his ear. "What is it?" He looked at the boy, who was staring over his shoulder back to the parents. The boy seemed too engrossed in whatever he was watching to answer, but his expression didn't seem out of fear.
Turning slightly, Tetheron looked back down. His eyes widened. At the far end of the grassy clearing, past Freya and Gathor, there was a figure walking out of the forest. The mon was a Heliolisk, with a grin that stretched across his face creepily. Its eyes were narrow with red irises that glowed dimly, probably due to how the sun had already vanished past the horizon.
Tetheron's eyes narrowed. Shit. Well, there's our Swift imposter and of course it's a fucking red eye.
"Uncle?" Seliph looked at him, prompting the Blaziken to meet his gaze. "Who's that?"
"Uh…" Tetheron's eyes lowered to the side slightly. Where do I begin? Before he could even try, a hand clamped on his other shoulder, about scaring the feathers off of Tetheron.
"What are you doing?" The ranger asked, with a bit of a voice crack. "Let's go in."
Tetheron's eyes lowered for a second. His beak clamped shut as his eyes stared downwards with a scowl slowly forming. A few seconds later, he took a deep inhale and held Seliph out to the ranger, who accepted Seliph into his arms but bore a confused look on his face.
"Uh…Mister?"
"Uncle?"
Tetheron smiled and gave the boy a small rub on the head. "I'm going to help your parents. Stay with your brothers and keep them by your side."
Despite the visible fear and concern, he didn't argue. Instead, he gave a weak, sincere nod.
"Wait, you're going out there?" The ranger gasped.
Tetheron turned around. He started doing a standing foot grab with his right leg, saying, "I have a feeling they're gonna need my help." Moving over to the other leg, Tetheron glanced back to the ranger, and turning his tone more serious, said, "Seliph, get the ranger a com orb. We might need some help for this."
"Okay," Seliph replied as the ranger backed through the doorway and started shutting the door. Before it could shut, Seliph leaned on the ranger's broad arm clasping him and quickly shouted, "Be careful."
Heh. The door shut and the bolt clicked. I'll try my best, champ. He sprang a little in his steps and broke out into a jog. Alright, Tetheron, get into your fighting mood. Blood's gonna spill no doubt, so make sure it isn't your sister and your ugly, yet effective brother-in-law. No sooner had he finished than an explosion blasted ahead. With a grunt and an angry face, Tetheron went into a full-on sprint, determined not to stop till he got back.
"Freya!" He shouted, as neared Gathor and Freya.
"Why are you out here‽" She shouted, cutting the nearby smoke cloud with her swinging arm. "I told you to stay with-"
"The ranger's with them and they're calling for help," Tetheron interrupted, as he came to a stop right next to the two and rested his hands on his knees. He took a few seconds to catch his breath then looked up at Freya, who was giving him a disapproving look.
"Back me up here, Gathor." He looked at the Feraligatr, only to see him bear an even more disapproving look than Freya.
With a grunt, he pushed off his knees and eyed them both on an even level. "Look, it's Red Eyes that are here for us. They're not going to be pushovers."
Freya clenched a claw over her face and with an agitated yet composed tone, replied, "Tetheron, the formula is more impor-"
"I know."
She eyed him fiercely, but Tetheron didn't back down from it.
"I'm not going to let them get it. But I'm also not gonna let you two do all the work." He patted his chest feathers and smiled. To his surprise, Freya didn't answer but suddenly turned around.
"Huh?"
Gathor expression changed to troubled. "Yah sense somethin'?"
Freya looked through the disappearing smoke cloud. "I think I'm picking up something in the forest behind our imposter." Her eyes narrowed as she looked deeper at the forest past the smirking Heliolisk. "I can't see anything, but there is something past there. My wary can feel it, but strangely this Heliolisk is making it hard to gauge what we're dealing with."
"Oh?" Tetheron looked past Freya towards the mon in question.
"He's setting off my gift way more than the others. They could be far away or fewer in number than I'm guessing, but…"
Stepping by her side, Gathor peered at the Heliolisk across from them. "He seems strong a'ight. 'Is Focus Blas' canceled out yah Flamethroweh."
Stepping out from behind Freya, Tetheron stretched his hands above his head. "Is that so?" With a post-stretch sigh, Tetheron stopped at Freya's right and stared down their adversary. "Well, guess we'll just have to be more interesting."
Freya's eyes narrowed. "Just don't make us have to pull your weight."
"Yes, Ma'am," Tetheron replied with a childish drawl. He turned his attention to the Heliolisk, who was currently doing what looked like warm-up stretches.
The lizard let out a pleased sigh and took a step towards them.
Freya growled, as embers began to fly out of the sides of her mouth. "Stay back," she commanded, with a vicious, hyper-focused glare.
Strangely, the Heliolisk complied, and instead continued his warm-up by twisting his torso from side to side. "Snappy, snappy. But you're right. I wouldn't mind savoring this, 'moment' a bit more before we start trying to kill each other."
Well, ain't he a gentlemon. Tetheron's eyes narrowed as he cracked his knuckles. Guess, we'll have to trounce this scaled sissy. He put those thoughts on hold upon seeing the Heliolisk do some kind of beckoning gesture towards them with his right arm.
"So, tell me, how close am I to the real thing?"
"Huh?" Tetheron cocked his head with a confused expression. The other two didn't react one bit.
The Red Eye twisted to his left in a rather theatrical way. "Take a guess," He mockingly jested as he waved a hand over his right shoulder, revealing a Birthmark crest identical to theirs
A Norfarion? … wait. He peered closer at the mon's head; his eyes widened at seeing a little, orange, dorsal frill on top. Ah, I get it. With a sneer, Tetheron pointed at the Heliolisk and mockingly informed, "You're kinda close, but the eyes are a dead giveaway."
"Oh? My bad." The Heliolisk closed his eyes and pressed two fingers on them. He then flung his hand away and opened them. "Tada! How about now?" He said with a grin, his eyes now bearing ocean blue irises that didn't have that dim glow like before.
"Tck." Gathor stepped forwards. "Fake as much as yah wan', yah wouldn' fool me."
Laughing, the stranger started stroking his chin, as the blue irises slowly shifted back to the estranged red ones. "Awww, did I at least nail the image? I certainly hope so; I put a lot of effort into this one." He stretched his hands outwards, looking them over with a braggart smile. "One foot and an inch, with a couple of lost scales along the way."
The Blaziken's eyes widened.
"Course this one is a bit short for the species, only three feet. Course, the physique is nothing to sneeze at." His arms fell to his sides as he pressed onto his tiptoes to look at the back of his legs. "Pretty nice, strong legs, tail, and…other things." He chuckled as he raised his hand to his hand. "Even this stupid, orange frill on top."
Tetheron's fists clenched. "Shame you couldn't replicate his humility."
The mon's eyes widened. He then went into a 'pained' sigh as he looked at his fingers and muttered aloud, "That is true. I suppose there are some things I just can't replicate." Suddenly, his eyes filled with a vile glee as they stared directly at Tetheron, in such a manner that surprised him. "Like how upset he would be at seeing that poor boy getting his sweet, innocent mind assaulted by an evil psychic."
"You fu-" Tetheron started but was cut off by Freya's louder voice.
"Where is she?"
Tetheron looked at Freya. Smoke was coming out of her nostrils and her wings were spread out wide.
The sound of rustling caught their attention, as another figure stepped out from the bush.
"Here." Another figure stepped out from the brush. It was a Gardevoir. Her white dress flowed down to the grass, though seemed shorter than fully grown ones. Her hair was a light red and the jewel in her chest was pulsating a small, vibrant, red light.
She joined the Heliolisk's side and grumpily said, "'Evil' huh?"
The Heliolisk shrugged with a snarky, little grin. "What other word could sufficiently describe such an act?" He spoke with such melodrama in his voice that Tetheron wanted to go over there and slap the doofus.
Swaying his hand up to the annoyed Gardevior, the Heliolisk, exclaimed in a woeful tone. "You, a strong, powerful mon." He swung his hand downwards like a crestfallen warrior. "Attacking such a poor child out of nowhere." He raised an arm over his eyes. "Torturing him to tears just to get what you-"
"Can it, you fucker!" Freya snapped, with a tone so vicious that even Tetheron recoiled at her outburst.
Gathor placed a hand on Freya's shoulder, calming her down.
The big Feraligatr then gave the two Red Eyes a cold stare and said, "Yeh, yah'lls talkin' is gettin' old. And dat fake look of yah's is gettin' old too. Plus, I doubt dey'd help yah in a fight agains' me unless yah want me tah bite yah legs off fasteh."
Raising a brow, the Heliolisk twisted one of his legs and look at the back of it. "Hmm, dunno." He swapped over to looking at the back of his other leg as he continued. "I quite like how this one turned out. How old was he again? Twenty something? Plus, this Heliolisk has a pretty good scale coating apart from a few scraps." He brushed his shoulders at Gathor, eyeing the Feraligatr without fear nor respect "And to top it all off, he's got a Norfarion Crest. I think it quite suits me." He gave his right shoulder a little thump, right on the Birthmark brand. "Makes me feel like royalty."
Gathor snarled at this dissing of their heritage, with Freya and Tetheron being disgusted as well.
"I'm with them." All eyes fell on the Gardevoir, who was looking at the side of the forest.
"Oh? And pray tell, why would you ever want to agree with our ene-"
"Stop. Talking." She stared at the smiling Heliolisk with a face that hinted at wanting to stick it to him. "They're right. I'm getting tired of your sick attachment to this look. Either cut the act or keep your weird fascination for Heliolisk bodies to yourself. We've got work to do."
"Awww," the Heliolisk pulled his arms into a tight fold and raised his eyes while shutting his eyes. "What's with everyone being so mean to me?" The small grin on his face was a dead giveaway to how he really felt.
Sighing heavily, the Gradevoir shook her head. "Just stop it already and change out of that stupid form. You're not very useful limiting your reach like that." The Gardevoir looked towards the trio and slowly raised her hand with a following grumble. "So let's just get this over with."
Finally, God. Tetheron raised his fists as the other two readied themselves as well. Huh? He looked back at the Heliolisk, who had a hand covering his face.
His chuckling filled the air with an unsettling, cold feeling that even the Gardevoir looked uneased by.
"Oh Rosa," he said, as he moved the hand from his face and placed it as a fist over his heart. "I can think of one very good reason why I shouldn't change." His dark smile, which felt like staring into a smiling abyss, met Freya's fiery yet composed glare. "A truly impactful event must leave exactly that. An impact. And this form is leaving quite an interesting impact." He closed his eyes as if sensing something, as he wrapped his arms around his body as if he was cold. "I can almost taste it. Your contempt that I'd dare take the form of such a friend."
Tetheron's beak shut firmer as his body felt chilly.
"But." He opened his eyes. "Imagine how this 'Swift' of yours would feel that a mon impersonating him was what lead to your little group being discovered, even killed perhaps?"
The Blaziken's eyes widened as the chilly feeling shifted to boiling. His steadfast body fought against a mind that screamed at him to charge this vile thing.
The mon slowly extended his thumb from his fist and angled it upwards, the tip of it stopping right underneath his chin line. "I confess, I wouldn't know outside of, well." His smile grew as he slowly drug his fist across his body, his thumb grazing his throat area with the rigidness of metal upon rock. "Speculation."
"That's enough!" Tetheron shouted. He surged fire into his claws but halted upon seeing two Air Slash's be sent towards the duo.
Rosa stepped forwards and extended her arm. Small bits of dark spheres appeared and colluded to form a Shadow Ball, its surface a chaotic cloud of purple with small crackles of purple lightning shoot around its exterior. She thrust her arm forwards and sent it flying, right into the two incoming Air Slash's. A fierce explosion of cyan and purple light followed, with the resulting shockwave only grazing the parties like a soft wind.
"Heh, not bad," The Heliolisk complimented with a little clap. "For a second there I expected your move to get beaten."
Rosa glared at him. "You underestimate me."
He merely shrugged and said with a shake of the head, "It was just a lapse in judgment, my dear."
"Well keep your 'lapses' to yourself, then." Rosa looked back at the group.
Freya took a step forwards and said to the Gardevoir, "Back down."
Rosa scoffed at this with a little grin forming. "Or what?"
"Don't test me." Fire cackled in Freya's mouth with small embers flying from the sides and disappearing into the air. "I'll make you pay for harming my son."
Rosa brushed her air and with a lazy tone, replied, "Then you probably shouldn't have coerced him into resisting me. It would have been easier on the brat."
Oh shit. Tetheron instantly looked at Freya.
Her eyes were narrowing and focused firmly on the Gardevoir. "You bitch," she muttered under her breath.
Huh? Tetheron tilted his head. He then spotted Gathor's hand was on Freya's shoulder, tightly squeezing it as he looked at her face with an angry, but controlled stare. Freya was still fixated on the Gardevoir though her heavy huffs implied she was receptive to Gathor's request. Heh, Guess that's why she married him.
"Gathor, Tetheron."
"Uh…yeah?"
The Charizard turned around, looking at the two of them respectively. "My wary is picking up on more mons now. Not too far behind them."
"Damn," Tetheron shook his head as he looked back at the two while making sure to listen intently.
"I don't know how many, but that doesn't matter. We just need to keep them focused on us out here till help arrives."
Gathor snarled but answered with a nod. "Dough, dey migh' try foh dah house."
Tetheron shoved a fist to his chin. Wait… his eyes lit up and just as instant as the idea in his head he sprinted towards the house.
"What? Tetheron! What are yo-"
"Trust me, sis!" Tetheron shouted as he dashed as fast as he could to the house. Once he reached the door, he swung it open and immediately ducked to avoid getting hammered into the doorframe by the ranger's punch. "Woah, woah! It's me!"
The ranger's eyes shot open with surprise. "Oh, sorry, I thought-"
"Look, I don't have much time. Where's Seliph?"
The ranger pointed to the hallway on the right side of the front room. "In a room with the others, I'm guessing."
Tetheron immediately called out, "Seliph! Come here!"
The boy opened the door and after telling his siblings to stay, slammed it and ran up to them. "Is everything alri-?"
"Seliph," he rushed over to the boy's side and clasped his shoulders excitedly, confusing the kid. "Your key, where is it?"
Seliph's eyes shot open. "Huh? But mom sai-"
"Trust me."
Seliph's eyes lowered at first, but then looked up to his uncle with an understanding nod. He rushed out of the room and within a few seconds returned with the key in hand.
"Thanks, bud," Tetheron said as he snatched it from Seliph so fast it startled the Frogadier.
"Huh? Wait, what are you going to do wit-"
Tetheron held its handle to the ranger and said, "I've got little time so I'll need you to hurry."
The ranger stared at the key being held out to him. "Uh…O-okay," he said with an understanding, though little shaken tone. He cupped his hands beneath Tetheron's palm. "What do you need me to do?"
Tetheron let go of the key and as it fell into the ranger's as he said, "Make a fake one of these."
"Huh?" The ranger's eyes widened.
Ignoring this, Tetheron looked at Seliph, "Go get your brothers, we'll need them."
"Yes sir!" Seliph bolted out as the ranger pressed onto Tetheron.
"Wait, I don't know how to make a key."
Tetheron placed his hands on the ranger's shoulders and stared into his eyes. "It's not that hard. Just get Ciecro to heat it up, use your strong arms to bend it while shielding your hands, and then have Jaron and Seliph cool it down."
The ranger stuttered for a bit, until Tetheron shouted, "Snap out of it! You wanted to help us so stop standing there and help!"
Snapping back as if being threatened, the ranger's gaze slowly fell into a depressed look. "Sorry, I-"
Tetheron grumbled as he placed a hand to his head. He's just a village ranger. Sighing a heavy sigh, Tetheron walked to the door but stopped at the doorway. He glanced back at the ranger, who was looking at him like a nervous wreck. "Please," was all he said as he dashed from the door.
As he ran, Tetheron shook his head. Arceus, please help them hurry.
