Chapter Fifty-Four: A Freezing Fight
"Look up ahead! We're at the Seafoam Islands!"
Serena didn't really need Ash's outstretched finger to see the twin rocky peaks of the islands ahead of the ship, but his enthusiasm was adorable as always, and she smiled in response.
"Have you been here before?" she asked.
Ash shook his head. "No. We took a bit of a different route to get to Cinnabar Island the first time around and I haven't really been back to this part of Kanto since then. I can't wait to explore."
He grinned in anticipation, and Pikachu said, ("As long as we don't miss the ferry I'm fine with anything.")
"We'll be fine," Ash said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
("Yeah, normally I would think so too, but I've been traveling with you for a long time,") Pikachu said.
"Don't worry, Pikachu. I'll make sure we get back to the ship in time," Serena said with a teasing look at Ash.
("I'll put my faith in you, then,") Pikachu replied with a smirk.
Ash sighed. "Thanks a lot for the confidence," he grumbled, but Serena could see the amusement in his eyes.
For the majority of the day, the passengers of the ferry would get to explore the natural beauty of the Seafoam Islands, or at the very least the easternmost of the two large islands. It was technically possible to visit the other islands as well, but announcements on the ferry had repeatedly advised the tourists to remain fairly close to the pier so as not to miss the ship or disturb the many wild Pokémon who lived on the islands.
Serena was curious as to what the islands would be like, but in all honesty she didn't expect anything too shocking. According to her guidebook, the Seafoam Islands were mainly famed for their many caves and plants that couldn't be found elsewhere in Kanto, so while exploring with Ash was bound to be a lot of fun, the day would most likely be a relaxing stroll for the most part.
When the ferry docked on the pier, Serena and Ash were among the first people to disembark, and Ash almost ran to the end of the concrete pier and up the metal stairs, from where a number of sandy paths branched off, each marked by a colored post. A small map nearby gave short explanations of where each path led.
"Let's take this one," Ash said, pointing at the path on the map that seemed to cut straight across the island. According to its description, it led through the woods and then tunneled straight through the small mountain at the island's center, emerging on the other end to rejoin with the path that went around the outskirts of the island instead.
"You want to go through the tunnels? But it's such a nice day," Serena said with a glance at the blue, nearly cloudless sky.
"I know, but this way we'll get to see everything," Ash said. "Besides, it'll be the quietest as well, look."
He gestured around, and Serena could indeed see that virtually all the other passengers who had chosen to come ashore were going down one of the circumferential paths, rather than the one cutting straight across the island. She had to admit that a relaxing walk would probably be a lot less relaxing if she and Ash were constantly surrounded by a lot of other tourists, which would likely also mean they'd see fewer wild Pokémon.
"Yeah, I see your point," she said. "Lead the way, then," she added with a smile.
Ash smiled brightly and grabbed her hand, pulling her along onto the empty path in front of them. "Alright!" he said happily.
("You just want to hold Serena's hand without other people looking at you, don't you? And here I thought you liked the audience you had last night on deck…") Pikachu said idly.
"N-no, of course not!" Ash said, his face reddening.
Serena felt her face heat up as well at the memory of their kiss in the sunset the evening before, but she did notice that Ash didn't let go of her hand in spite of his embarrassment, which he probably would have done before. She gave his hand a small squeeze and he gave her a small smile, which looked almost shy by his standards, and which made Serena feel warm and floaty inside.
Still holding hands, Serena and Ash walked along the snaking, sandy path between the trees. While the trees and plants did look a bit different from what Serena was used to, she had no idea if these were the ones the guidebook had mentioned, or if they were actually still the same species that simply looked a bit different. The forest was full of noises around them, and she spotted quite a few Pokémon scurrying through the undergrowth and the tree branches. None of them seemed particularly interested in the two humans passing through the forest, likely used to seeing them whenever the ferry came by.
It didn't take them very long to reach the entrance to the tunnel, which had a warning sign next to it.
WARNING!
This tunnel passes through an intricate system of natural caverns and has many branching paths. Tourists are advised to remain on the marked path at all times, as it is easy to become lost in the side passages. For your own safety, remain in sight of the illuminated route. Only explore the side passages in the company of professionals. Thank you.
"I wonder what happens if you get lost here," Ash said thoughtfully.
"I really don't think I want to know…" Serena muttered with a shiver.
Ash smiled at her. "Don't worry. We'll just stick to the path and we'll be fine," he said.
Serena returned the smile. She knew that Ash would probably have liked to explore the side paths of the tunnel at least to some extent, and she was glad he'd hold off on it for her sake.
They entered the tunnel, which was somewhat narrow at first but then began to widen a bit, and it wasn't long before side paths began to show up, all of them marked with additional warnings not to enter without a professional guide. Their complete darkness made them look eerie and forbidding, and Serena couldn't help but wonder where the tunnels led. Would they have dead ends, loop back on themselves somehow, or end up outside? The main path, fortunately, was well-lit and marked at regular intervals, so it was easy to remain on track. Occasionally, a wild Zubat flitted by, but beyond that the tunnel was empty and silent.
Just when Serena was beginning to think that maybe she and Ash would have been better off taking the outside path even despite the many other people, however, Mismagius released herself from her ball.
("We've got trouble,") she said. Her voice was tense and she looked extremely uncomfortable.
"What's wrong?" Serena asked with a quick glance at Ash, who shrugged and then looked at Mismagius as well.
("I can feel it again, that same pain and fear and anger I felt in the forest near Celadon City. Only this time it's…I don't know…even angrier. Maybe it's just because I've evolved, but it's bad. Really bad,") Mismagius said.
"Is it coming towards us?" Ash asked, already scanning the tunnel.
Mismagius shook her head. ("No. It's…somewhere down one of the side paths, I think. Lower than where we are.")
Ash looked at Serena with a troubled expression. "If one of those super-Pokémon is nearby we might be in danger. It might attack the ship, or any of the wild Pokémon around the island."
Serena nodded hesitantly. "I know," she said. "What should we do?"
Ash thought only for a moment and then called out Suicune.
"Did you hear?" Ash asked.
Suicune nodded. "I was listening. I think we should investigate. These strange Pokémon seem to be important in some way. The appearance of one here, of all places, does not bode well," he said.
"What do you mean with 'here of all places'?" Ash asked.
"The Seafoam Islands are home to an Articuno. She tends to stay away from humans, but I have met her before," Suicune said.
"Right. Then we've got no time to lose. Can you locate Articuno from here?" Ash asked.
Suicune raised his head, seemingly trying to sense something, rather than trying to hear or smell anything.
"I found a way. Follow me."
Suicune took off into one of the dark side tunnels, and Ash set off after him, quickly followed by Mismagius. Serena was a bit more reluctant, but she knew that whatever was happening, she wouldn't let Ash face it alone, even if he did have Suicune with him now.
Soon, however, the tunnel turned left, and as soon as Serena had rounded the corner everything became pitch-black.
"Delphox, come out," she said. Just ahead of her, she heard Ash call Charizard out as well.
With their path now lit by the flame on Delphox's branch and Charizard's tail, Serena and Ash followed Suicune through the labyrinth of dark and wet tunnels. The path they were following seemed to be sloping down quite steeply, and the descent went on for a worrying long time before it leveled out. Frigid pools of water lined the paths down here, and Serena wondered if they were even on the island anymore, or underneath the sea floor itself. Suicune, however, seemed to know where he was going, so Serena had no choice but to trust him and follow along.
Her heart was hammering in her throat. Last time, the absurdly powerful Houndoom had been a match for her entire team. Even though it had retreated, Serena wasn't sure if she would actually have won in the end, had Houndoom chosen to continue the fight. Even though her team was stronger now…would they be able to do anything, especially if whatever Pokémon this turned out to be was after Articuno?
The tunnel began to rise a bit again, but rather than becoming warmer, the air seemed to become ever chillier — and then, they emerged into a large cave with an open ceiling. The floor and walls of the cave were covered in glittering ice, which refracted the light of the sun in beautiful, rainbow-colored light.
Serena might have stood in silent wonder of the splendor, if it hadn't been for the battle going on in the air. One of the Pokémon had to be Articuno, while the other appeared to be an Aerodactyl, who shrugged off an Ice Beam like it wasn't even there.
Suicune growled and quickly leapt in to join the battle, though his Aurora Beam didn't seem to affect Aerodactyl any more than Articuno's attack had done moments before.
Mismagius shuddered. ("That's it! That Aerodactyl…") She seemed to be struggling with everything she was sensing.
"What do you feel?" Serena asked.
("Pain. So much pain,") Mismagius said grimly. ("It's the same as last time. That Aerodactyl shouldn't even be moving and yet…")
("Ash, look!")
Serena looked up at Pikachu's shout and followed his gaze. Crumpled and wincing against one of the rocks on the floor lay two very familiar people.
"Team Rocket!" Ash yelled. "I should've known you had something to do with this! What's going on?!"
Despite how battered Jessie and James looked, they quickly leapt to their feet when they spotted Ash.
"Prepare for trouble, we're in quite a bit of pain."
"And make it double, your attempts to stop us will be in vain."
"To protect the world from devastation."
"To unite all peoples within our nation."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie."
"And James."
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light."
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."
"Meowth, that's right!"
("That's right!")
"What are you doing here?" Ash asked angrily. He pointed at the two-versus-one battle. "What is that Pokémon?"
"That, twerp, is the product of our boss's brilliant plan," Jessie said, though rather than sounding smug, like Serena had expected, she seemed to be a bit shocked instead.
"And this is the field test," Meowth added in a similar tone.
("And I guess Articuno beat you up before you called Aerodactyl out?") Pikachu asked.
"Aerodactyl did," Meowth said. "As soon as Jessie called him out he attacked us."
"Why would your own Pokémon attack you?" Serena asked.
Before the Rockets could answer, there was a roar of pain and anger when Aerodactyl managed to hit Suicune with a blast of Ancient Power.
"We'll deal with you later," Ash said, before calling all his Pokémon out. "All right, everyone, go and help Suicune and Articuno!"
Serena quickly followed suit. "Come on, you too!"
She glanced at Mismagius, who still hovered next to her. "Do you think you can fight?" she asked.
("I can,") Mismagius said. ("I am not letting my friends down again.")
"Alright! Thunderbolt, Flamethrower, Vine Whip, Dragon Claw, Steel Wing, Aurora Beam!"
"Mystical Fire, Dark Pulse, Shadow Ball, Night Slash, Swift!"
The Pokémon quickly leapt into action, joined by yet another Ice Beam from Articuno, but Aerodactyl quickly used Protect to negate the onslaught of attacks, before returning fire with a massive Hyper Beam, which Ash and Serena's Pokémon barely managed to dodge.
"Talonflame, use Flame Charge and keep Aerodactyl distracted! Meganium, try and hold him with your vines. Charizard, go for Dragon Breath. Krookodile, Stone Edge. Suicune, try another Aurora Beam, and Pikachu, go for Electro Ball," Ash said.
"Help Krookodile with the Stone Edge, Pangoro! Sylveon, you use Fairy Wind. Mismagius, try a Hex. Absol, another Night Slash, and Delphox, Hidden Power!"
"You're wasting your time," James said as the Pokémon once more began to attack. "That Aerodactyl is far stronger than anything you have with you."
"What did Giovanni do to it?" Ash asked, without taking his eyes off the battle.
Talonflame, wings burning brightly, was streaking past Aerodactyl, slamming into him with each pass but not causing even the slightest flinch. Meganium had managed to wrap a vine around Aerodactyl's tail, but he freed himself with contemptuous ease while Meganium scowled up at him. Even the double Stone Edge from Krookodile and Pangoro didn't seem to so much as inconvenience Aerodactyl, who dodged a number of the glowing pillars before shattering another one with a Wing Attack.
"We don't know," Jessie said in reply to Ash's question. "He ordered us to come here and subdue Articuno and he gave us Aerodactyl to do it. He said Aerodactyl was an important experiment."
"Experiment?! Whatever he did to that Pokémon is hurting him!" Serena yelled.
At that moment, Aerodactyl viciously bit into Articuno with a Crunch, causing her to cry out in pain before being slammed down hard onto the cavern floor. Suicune, enraged, immediately counterattacked with a massive Surf, but Aerodactyl took the wall of water like it was nothing.
Ash clenched his jaw. "That should have done a lot more damage," he said through gritted teeth. He glanced at Serena. "Serena, can you check up on Articuno? I'll keep the battle going."
Serena nodded once, then quickly told her Pokémon to listen to Ash before running over to Articuno, who was struggling to get up. Her left wing had bloody bite marks in it where Aerodactyl had grabbed her, and Serena's breath hitched. Even in the fiercest Pokémon battles she'd seen, she'd never seen a Pokémon bleeding before. Articuno eyed her warily, but seemed to realize Serena wasn't going to attack her.
"I'm going to help you," Serena said quietly. She tried to ignore the blood on Articuno's left wing. By the looks of it, Articuno seemed to be using her own icy powers to keep herself from bleeding, but that would probably mean she wouldn't be able to fly all that well.
Serena rummaged in her bag, looking for the medicine. She pulled out the strongest potion she had and sprayed it on Articuno's wing, who winced when the spray made contact.
"I'm sorry," Serena said. "I hope it will help on injuries like these…"
She looked up, where the battle was still going on. Ash seemed to be trying all sorts of strategies involving every one of the Pokémon, but Aerodactyl just ignored every hit he took, even when he wasn't using Protect on himself, all the while countering with far too many incredibly powerful attacks. The only small relief was that Aerodactyl seemed uninterested in accuracy, instead just attacking wildly and occasionally attempting to strike with his wings, teeth, or tail if any of the Pokémon came within range.
Articuno stood up and spread her wings with a defiant cry of anger. She winced at the pain in her wing, but gave Serena a grateful look before taking off somewhat clumsily and rejoining the battle.
Serena nervously clenched her fists. She wanted to call out to her Pokémon, give them commands, but she had no idea what she should say. Ash was an expert at battling and even he didn't seem to be making any headway even commanding two teams of Pokémon at once.
Serena frowned. Last time, she hadn't used power either, had she? No, she'd used her Pokémon's skill, rather than their strength. Houndoom hadn't been anywhere near this powerful or agile, though. Twelve against one, and the battle was a stalemate at best and on the losing side at worst. But surely there was something they could do?
Think, Serena, think…
She looked over at Team Rocket, who seemed unable to decide whether or not to join in with the battle on either side. They were looking at the fight with a mixture of awe and revulsion, and Serena realized that even they hadn't expected this when they came here. Then, another thought struck her.
"Team Rocket!" she yelled. "You brought Aerodactyl here, didn't you? Does that mean you have his Poké Ball?"
Jessie and James exchanged a quick glance and then Jessie hesitantly pulled out an odd-looking Poké Ball. It was black, with four red, fin-like protrusions running from the red button at the front to the hinge at the back. A red R was above the button.
"We tried to recall him after he attacked us," Jessie said, looking at the ball in her hand.
"But he avoided the beam with ease and went after Articuno," James added.
"Can he release himself from there?" Serena asked.
Jessie shook her head. "I don't think so. I doubt he'd stay in there otherwise."
Serena nodded slowly.
"What are you planning?" Jessie asked suspiciously.
"We need to get him back into that ball," Serena said. "So as much as I don't want to do this…we're going to need your help."
"What makes you think we want to help you?" Jessie asked.
"I don't think we've got much of a choice," James said. "If all of these Pokémon can't beat that Aerodactyl, who do you think he'll go after next?"
Jessie made an impatient sound and then said, "Fine. What do we need to do?"
Serena looked at the battle. She could see that her and Ash's Pokémon, as well as Articuno, looked tired and battered. To her great relief, Aerodactyl hadn't succeeded in causing any more bloody injuries, but the fight really did have to end sooner rather than later. To be able to recall Aerodactyl, they'd have to stop his movement for a moment. Normally, Mismagius's Hex would be able to do that, but Aerodactyl seemed to be immune to just about every attack sent his way. They'd have to physically hold him in place, then, and there were only four Pokémon who might stand a chance at doing that, however briefly.
"Okay," Serena said to Team Rocket. "Keep the ball ready. We're going to hold Aerodactyl in place for a moment, and you need to recall him the second you get the chance. I don't think we can hold him still for long, and I doubt it'll work more than once. We only get one shot. Are you ready?"
Jessie hesitated only for a moment. "Ready," she said.
Serena gave her one nod, and then ran forward, finalizing her plan in her head even as she began to give commands.
"Charizard, grab on to Aerodactyl and push him down! Meganium, you use your vines and grab his wings! Sylveon and Pangoro, create a vortex with your Fairy Wind and Dark Pulse, just like you did with Houndoom. Don't worry about the damage, just make it hard for Aerodactyl to move! Everyone else, back off for a moment!"
The Pokémon responded immediately. Charizard, who flew above Aerodactyl, immediately pulled in his wings and dived onto Aerodactyl's back, grabbing him behind the wrist joints. Though it didn't hurt, the sudden jolt did push Aerodactyl down, and Meganium's vines were just able to wrap around his wings as well. Somehow, he was able to keep beating them and stay airborne, but his mobility was severely limited, allowing Sylveon and Pangoro to add their own moves to the mix, creating a swirling and sparkling vortex around the struggling Aerodactyl. Charizard, on his back, looked amazed at the up-close spectacle. Aerodactyl thrashed wildly, but wasn't moving forward. Even so, it was clear he wouldn't be trapped for long.
"Jessie, now!" Serena yelled.
Jessie stepped forward and held out the ball. "Aerodactyl, return!"
The beam hit Aerodactyl, and with a last, furious roar, he was drawn back into his ball, and the Pokémon canceled their attacks, before quickly joining Serena and Ash next to Team Rocket. Up close, Serena could finally see how tired and beaten everyone looked. What would've happened if the battle had continued for even a few more minutes?
"Well, Team Rocket, what do you have to say for yourselves?" Ash demanded.
Jessie uncertainly looked at the special Poké Ball in her hand. "We–"
Before she could say anything else, Aerodactyl's Poké Ball began to glow white and then vanished.
"The boss must have noticed we recalled him," Meowth said fearfully.
"And what is your boss planning next?" Suicune asked, taking a step forward threateningly.
"We don't know," James said hastily. "He doesn't tell us what he's up to, only what he wants us to do."
("So did you succeed or fail?") Pikachu asked.
"I don't know that, either," Meowth said. "I don't have a great feeling about it, though…"
Serena sighed. "You're hurting Pokémon on the orders of a boss who frightens you. Why do you keep doing things like this? Why don't you just do anything else?"
"You wouldn't understand, twerpette," Jessie said.
"No, I don't understand, so explain it," Serena said. "I've seen you both doing the right thing before. I've seen you fight to help Pokémon and protect them from poachers, and you still do things like this. I just don't get it."
Something in her pocket began to vibrate, and Serena pulled out her phone to see that her alarm was going off.
"Ash, we have to go! I set an alarm for an hour before the ferry leaves so we'd know to head back in time, but I have no idea where we are now," she said.
Ash unhappily glared at Team Rocket and said, "I guess we don't have time to send you blasting off today. But you need to stop this, whatever it is you're doing. If your boss has more Pokémon like this, we're all going to be in a lot of trouble, even you."
He turned to his Pokémon. "Any idea how we're going to get back to the ship?" he asked.
("I can fly us out there if you recall everyone else,") Charizard said, pointing at the opening in the ceiling. ("But I can't carry both of you at once; I'm a bit banged-up.")
Articuno, who had been watching the conversation from a boulder nearby, then flew over, landed next to Serena, and bowed low, tucking in her wings and gesturing with her head that Serena should get on her back.
"Are you sure? Your wing…" Serena said hesitantly.
Articuno extended her left wing. Though the blood was still in her feathers, the wounds seemed to be mending a bit, partially because of the medicine and partially because of the cold.
Serena smiled at her. "If you're sure," she said.
She glanced at Team Rocket, who were still awkwardly standing in front of them. Even though she was still angry at them, she also pitied them, somehow. They seemed to be in way over their heads. But nothing she could say now would be likely to convince them to leave their life of crime behind, so she just gave them a sad look and then got on Articuno's back, before recalling her Pokémon. Ash did the same, before climbing onto Charizard's back.
Articuno beat her wings and took off, and Serena looked down at Team Rocket one last time before they cleared the cavern and emerged into the open air above the island. It was only a few moments later when she realized that the cavern they'd been in was located on the other island. So the tunnels they'd raced through had gone underneath the sea floor!
They rose higher into the air, and Ash looked around, trying to spot the pier. "Over there!" he yelled when he saw it. "We can probably land on the deck."
Charizard gave a nod and took off, followed closely by Articuno. Though it had taken a long time to reach the cavern, the way back was a lot faster, and only a few minutes later Serena and Ash touched down on the deck of the fairy, to the excited gasps and shouts from the passengers who were present there, who now suddenly got to see a legendary Pokémon up close, with someone riding it no less.
Serena got off Articuno's back and reached out to gently touch her. "Thank you for carrying me. Take good care of your wing, okay?" she said.
Articuno inclined her head, and then did the same towards Ash, with a musical trill that sounded at once cold and wintery and warm and friendly.
"You're welcome," he said with a smile. "But Suicune was the one who made sure we got to you in time." He released Suicune, and yet again the deck was filled with gasps and shouts of disbelief.
Serena giggled; Ash had clearly done this at least partially on purpose.
"Be safe, my friend," Suicune said. "I shudder to think what would have happened if we had not been nearby. But if this is connected to the disaster — and I can't believe it isn't — then hopefully, my companions and I will be able to put a stop to it."
Articuno gave a soft reply, to which Suicune inclined his head.
"I will be fine. With these humans and their Pokémon partners, I can't lose."
Articuno seemed to smile at that, and then beat her wings and took off again, while Ash recalled Suicune. For a moment, Serena and Ash looked after Articuno, who was flying back to her cave. For Team Rocket's sake, Serena hoped they'd left by now, otherwise Articuno might decide to send them blasting off after all. They'd certainly deserve it, after what they did, though in some way, Serena hoped that the more 'peaceful' parting of the ways today would give them some time to think.
Then, though, her thoughts were disturbed by one of the passengers saying, "Hey, you two were the ones who were kissing on deck last night! Do you just like to be the center of attention, or something?"
"Huh? No! We, um, see…" Ash stammered.
Serena laughed. Despite the battle they'd just waged, somehow the idea that people recognized Ash and her not because of their achievements in regional leagues and Expositions, but because they kissed on the deck of a ferry, gave her hope that maybe, the future would turn out okay.
I just can't seem to update this story at any other time than around 03:15 in the morning, for some reason. Well, whatever. At least I'm updating again. I'm sorry it took so long, but I've been doing so many things that I just wanted to relax for a bit, even though I have a lot of ideas for this fic. Don't worry, though: it's still my highest-priority fic and I will hopefully update it at least twice more before the year is out.
The special Poké Ball Aerodactyl was in is supposed to look a bit like a Beast Ball palette swap, in case my description wasn't clear enough.
Anyway, as always, I'd like to know what you think, and see you in the next one!