Chapter 3: Aura

(With this chapter there will be a big change to how humans can survive Ecstaticoma. It reveals why Rui in Fruits, Spices and Gardevoir died of Cancer. I wish everyone that read fruits and spices could have read this chapter to understand why. I miss all my old readers, they always helped me through my days with their kindness. I hope they are all doing well like Villified, RuviaFanboy and so many others.)

{Rui's Point of View}

-Lost Woods-

I remember running... it was the only time I ever tried to escape. It was shortly after the first time she... well... I decided to run. I kept note of everything I needed to remember. Guard patrols, where I can sneak out, controlling my thoughts to not think of escaping. I thought I could do it... it should be easy I thought. My arm flared up every time I planned it out in my mind. The fey fire dancing along my skinning, threatening me to think deeper on it... to lose myself in the imagination of success only to be consumed by the purple flames. I knew it was a bad idea... but I also thought dying to an attack is better than being her personal sex servant she can use whenever she wants, can beat whenever she wants, and do whatever she wants. That's before I realized I didn't want to die for nothing. I just wanted freedom. I just wanted freedom, is that so much to fucking ask for!? Instead, I ran through the forest blind as a Zubat while taking care to not think too hard on what I'm doing to prevent the flames from going out of control.

I knew it was risky... in fact I knew in my heart I was never going to make it. In a horrible way, I was hoping they'd pursue and kill me by accident. Something that I couldn't do myself because I am too afraid. I knew of a river that's flow headed towards the port town several miles from here. If I reached it, I could jump in and let the current take me straight there. As I neared, I could smell the water in the air... That's when I heard a loud sound and a searing pain shot through me originating from my leg. I fell to the ground, grabbing my leg and screamed in agony, a bullet hole piercing clean through. Both the exit and entry wounds bleeding profusely. I screamed so loud I couldn't hear their approach until a hybrid stood over me, her light green hair flowing in the wind with the moonlight reflecting off it eerily. She said to me, "Why do boys always try to run?" She knelt down, her face inches from my ear, "I bet you're like all the other runners. You think the world is unfair to you but it's not. You deserve this... Rui." I shivered when she said my name, "I trained with your brother from time to time. He said he was sad you were going to try and have human children." My eyes widened at that, "W-What do you mean?" She pulled up her sleeve and laid her hand on my leg to heal it, "Your dad lied to you. Your brother knew about the arrangement for six years." I bit my lip, quivering with tears before saying, "You're lying." She laughed, "I'm not. As Cray's brother you were always watched. As your father's son, you were always a target. Did your dad ever tell you one of his great grandfathers is a Gardevoir? Their son was a hybrid like Cray but had no real gifts and so they mated with humans to... help with the birth chances. To affect the genes of the family... your genes." She grabbed my hair and pulled my ear close, "You are a science experiment going on to the eighth generation. If you think I'm lying, did you know that pure humans cannot mate with a Gardevoir or any female Pokémon without dying? Ecstaticoma is the name of it, where your body cannot naturally digest the chemical Dexamine injected into you by a female Pokémon mating partner during sex. If you were pure, they'd be taking you to the medical wing hours ago as the effects ruin your body until they transfuse Cray's blood into you. For a time, Pokémon blood was used until it was revealed through testing it would lead to cancer and other life-ending conditions after twenty or more years." I whimpered, "So I'm... one of you?" She pulled back, letting out a cruel laugh, "You stupid boy." She kicked me in the stomach, "You are a slave! A slave to Margrev's daughter, a slave to the Gardevians, a slave to Pokémon!" I held my stomach, coughing, "Ack! ... Hmph... if I'm a slave, then you are too, you just don't know it yet." She looked down at me, superiority clouding her gaze, "I am free. True I work for my kind, but I can come and go as I please. My children will be free and their children also." A Gardevian stepped in, "It's time for us to return him. I'm sure Silvia will be wanting more than just a piece and you know the limits to what you can do to this slave." The hybrid glanced at her, nodding, "True. I was hoping to help move him along in his status. The little prick still has defiance in his eyes. He still thinks he can be free. What a joke." I glared at the ground, forcing myself to stand, "The only joke I see is you. You were just born lucky. If you were imperfect, you'd have been tossed aside!" The hybrid flinched, "Hm..." She looked at the Gardevian, "Let's just go. Hit him with hypnosis." I said, "Wait..." She looked at me, "I just want to know one thing... the others in my... or... the humans in the estate. Are... all of them Gardevian descendants in some way?" She stayed silent for a moment before saying, "They all have lineage somewhere, that's why they are there. To be the future slaves without fear of overkill. Pokémon breed very quickly, if we kill you too quickly there'll be less to sell or bargain with. Not everyone wants children at their youngest, so your low pregnancy chances help... alleviate the overwhelming lust younger Pokémon adults have." She nodded towards me and within seconds I passed out.

-Home-

The next morning, I woke up to someone knocking on my door. I knew it was her, so I got dressed and answered the door. Aura looked a bit annoyed, "You know I've been knocking for like twenty minutes, right?" I shrugged, "Yeah? So?" She said, "You could have been nice and yelled you were coming. I thought you were still sleeping or something." I rolled my eyes, "Oh, sorry princess. Here. Let me get right on that." I started closing the door, but she stopped me, "Funny. Are you going to invite me in?" I opened the door and moved from the doorway, "Come on in." She walked in and looked around, "You didn't put a blanket for me on the coach?" I shrugged, "I didn't even know you'd be staying for longer than a day." She smiled at me, "I never told you I would be. I wanted to see how you'd respond." She walked over to me and hugged me, "It's good to see you." I hugged her back, "You too." She pulled back and gently cupped my cheeks. She kissed me gently. I pulled away, "I can't." She looked away sadly, "I know... Look... I love you Rui. I know you can't feel love, but I just want you to know I do. I loved you even back then. If life wasn't unfair, I would have been your mate. I'd have made your life happy. I'd have-" I cut her off, "There's no use dwelling on that. What happened, happened. We can't change it... but I liked you back then too." She looked into my eyes, "Liked but not loved... that's good though. I'd have made it love one day. I'd have been with you your whole life and had a family we'd love together." I shrugged, "Maybe but we'll never know."

She looked sad but forced herself to smile, "I'm glad you are doing so well for yourself. I'm going to be singing in a week but needed a place to crash. Can I sleep here with you. I'd appreciate sharing the bed, I swear on Arceus no tricks, no games, nothing inappropriate." I thought about it and said, "Know what? Sure. I bet it'd piss Silvia off too. Hahahaha." Aura laughed, "You are evil! Hahahaha!" I went and opened my fridge, "Want some coffee?" Aura thought to herself for a second before saying, "I do but we could go to a Gardevian Cafe. I'm not one for cheap coffee." I snickered, "Ah, I get it. You're a real high-class bitch now." Aura smiled at that, "Damn right. Come on."

-Cafe-

We took a cab to a nearby Gardevian Cafe. It was the first time I've been to once since I last saw my brother... I wonder how he is doing. Several of the Gardevoirs look at me with a look of annoyance and confusion. They must be wondering why they can't read my thoughts or emotions. Aura smiled at them, causing the bystanders to stop focusing on me and more on their own business. After ordering our coffee, we sat in a corner far from the other customers, just watching them until Aura spoke, "They don't like me very much as you can tell." I felt confusion, "What do you mean? They were staring at me." Aura looked a little sad, "They were staring at you because of me." She held my hand, "They stared at you because I love you..." I pulled my hand away, "I can't feel love anymore Aura." She looked at her coffee, a mix of loss and jealousy reflected in the liquid, "I could change that..." I shook my head, "You can't. I had to sacrifice it to be free." She clenched a fist, "You didn't gain freedom. You became one of us." I scoffed at that, "Yeah, I became a real member of the fucking family." Aura frowned, regret came off of her like waves, "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to offend you." I sighed, "It's okay..."

We sat there silently for a bit before she spoke again, "Rui..." She grasped my hand gently, "I may not be able to give you back your emotions but..." She looked deep into my eyes. Her eyes reflected such strong love and affection I felt... something. It grew as she whispered, "You look lonely... I can fix that." I felt something tug at my heart and it was too much. I pulled away in panic and panted heavily, "What... was that?" I asked myself. I looked back at Aura to see she was in shock before a happy smile crept on her face and joyful tears started developing. She wiped her eyes and focused on her coffee with a deep blush. I could tell she was so happy, and I didn't want to ruin the moment... I didn't want to tell her I felt nothing... I felt something... and it wasn't fear.

After being silent for some more time I asked, "What's it like being a singer?" Aura stopped smiling, "It's a lot of work. I only have a week's worth of vacation a year." I raised a brow, "You're wasting your vacation on me?" She shook her head, "No, I'm spending my vacation with you." I felt guilt grip my heart this time, "You shouldn't..." I thought back to last night, "I'm a bad person..." Aura looked concerned, "Why do you say that? Did something happen or did my friend go too far?" I shook my head, "She's not a problem... well anymore. She asked about my knowledge on Gardevian love dominance. It ended with my knife to her throat." Aura looked intrigued, "Really? Impressive." Another Gardevoir in the cafe rudely said, "Ah, yes. Very impressive. Can you two fucking lovebirds go elsewhere? We're trying to enjoy our drinks!" Aura bit back a retort before saying, "Sorry we're troubling you." She grunted, "It's no wonder you love him. You're soft." Aura's eyes flashed but before she did anything I got up and walked over to the Gardevoir. She looked at me confused, "The fuck do you want?" Without hesitation I punched her square in the jaw, sending her sprawling onto the ground off her seat. Her friends immediately got up about to attack me until Aura grabbed all of them with psychic. They lifted into the air choking, scratching at their throats. The one I punched got up, seeing her friend thrashing about until their arms drooped and eyes rolled back, "Wait! Please! I'm sorry! Oh my god... you're AURA." She got on her knees, "PLEASE! I'm so sorry!" Aura glanced at me, sneaking a smile towards me before releasing them all. Each of them hit the ground with a thud, choking as they gasped for air. The rude Gardevoir quickly went to help each of them as I asked Aura, "I'm surprised they took so long to know it was you. Thought you were a famous singer." Aura rolled her eyes, "Oh kiss my ass. It's not always easy to tell who's who." I said, "I can. Even if you looked exactly like everyone else, I would know which is you." Aura tilted her head in wonder, "How?" I said, "Your eyes." She silently gasped, blushing slightly before looking away with a smile, "Let's... get back to our drinks. After we finish I... have to-" "BREAKING NEWS!" A television in the cafe is turned up to maximum volume as it drew in all the attention, "Last night, terrorists were able to successfully infiltrate and rig one of the large company buildings in the city to blow sky high!" I felt a chill run up my spine but remained calm. I looked at the television, seeing the building collapse. "Rescue attempts and body retrieval has been slow and unsuccessful for most of the morning with bodies from the highest floors destroyed beyond recognition. Some pieces were attempted to be retrieved with the hope of sifting through memories to find the culprit, but none were intact enough to retrieve information from. More as this situation develops." Aura whispered, "Wow... I don't think this has ever happened before. I wonder if it was a group like Venge." I wanted to know if she knew anything about the group I'm a part of, but I knew that'd be a death sentence. I just whispered, "Yeah... That's insane. You think it was a Pokémon?" Aura thought about it, "I doubt it... but it is possible. I'll have to keep an eye on this case." I shrugged, "Yeah." Aura watched at the news showed more shots of the destroyed building and the pictures of Pokémon missing or found dead. She asked, "If humans somehow did this... be honest with me Rui. Why would they do it?"

I thought back to why me and members of Venge did things. One member died during a raid. I was trying to keep him alive, but he told me to go. I didn't want to abandon him, I honestly wanted to be a hero for as much as possible. He told me his time is up. I didn't want that to be the case until he told me. "Dying for the right cause is the most human thing we can do." I could still see his lifeless stare, could hear the Pokémon attacking other members nearby. I only pulled out of the memory when Aura held my hand, "Rui?" I blinked in surprise, "Huh? What?" She let go and said, "You just ended up staring into space. I know you've been... through a lot. So, I'm worried about your mind since I can't exactly look into it. Are you... okay?" I looked away, "I'm fine..." She wanted to press but didn't. Instead, she switched to another topic, "Can I ask you something?" I nodded, "When I was learning to be a singer, I heard you... tried to kill yourself with your flames. What caused that?" We both sat back down before I spoke, "I wanted to die... initially I believed I was lied to for the last time. It's been so long and even now I feel so angry." Aura stayed quiet but led us back to our seats to listen. "It was my fault. In my heart I truly believe that... It's no secret what Margrev wanted from me. It's also no secret what Gardevians love to do to their servants, slaves, or whatever you want to call us. Anyone that believes we are mates is an idiot. It's just another word for slave in that house and you know that. I... I've only had one good sexual experience in my life. One that I willingly participated in before the deal was made. I was depressed for weeks. I felt sick when I ate, I could barely keep water down... the taste... the taste of her plagued me. It was disgusting. Silvia noticed and stopped being mean to try and 'remedy the situation' but that was the worst thing she could do. I hate her, how the hell could she believe her presence and 'kindness' was going to get me out of depression? Eventually things changed when a human girl visited me. She looked... beautiful... the girl of my dreams... and that's when I should have fucking known. I should have fucking known... but I didn't. She'd visit once a day for a week, talking to me, telling me my father sent her there to help me feel better. When she buttered me up enough, she said she wanted to continue my family's heritage. She made me feel like I was a person, that she loved me... in a week... using things I always dreamed of. She brought me into the lost forest once to explore. I asked how and said Margrev gave her permission. I believed it at the time since female servants were rarely mistreated. When we got back to my small room she told me that... I was happy. I actually believed a human partner wanted to carry my child because they liked me. I guess I was surrounded by so much sex and suffering that I believed these feelings could grow in a week. I'm so stupid... but I kissed her. I laid her down... I had sex with her... I enjoyed it... I loved it... I loved her... then after I did it... she revealed herself to be Silvia. She used her powers to warp my perception of reality. I felt a huge range of negative emotions. I felt even worse than the time she stole my purity. She tried telling me it's okay and that she'd do this if it'd make me more comfortable with her. I just got mad and broke things, screamed, cried... Eventually it was too much and I focused on escape hoping I'd burn to death. I was humiliated. She made me love a fake and have sex with her happily and lovingly like she wanted. I hate her. I hate her so much I wish I could slit her throat and... ugh..." I teared up, biting my lower lip angrily before saying, "I just felt so used and stupid. I was so desperate I believed in something so obviously a lie it makes me sick." Aura looked shocked, "She actually did that?" I nodded, "Yeah... she did."

Aura punched the table, "That fucking bitch!" The entire Cafe looked at us but quickly went back to what they were doing when she glared at them. "Once she and I got into an argument and she said you two already had loving sex. She was trying to rub it in my face the stupid little bitch." I scoffed, "Nice to know she really loved throwing around her little victories to others." Aura shook her head, "No, only to me because I love you." I looked at my hands, "I don't know why. Once she had me, I was ruined. I'm not worth anything anymore." Aura grabbed my hand, "That's not true! You're special to me! You always have been. Hell, I still haven't even had sex ye-" Aura cut herself off and blushed hard. Everyone in the cafe, except me, started laughing hysterically. It stopped when Aura smacked the table, got up and Hyper Voiced half the Cafe out onto the streets, "Laugh at that you bunch of cunts." She muttered. I snickered, "Way to bring the house down Aura. Your concerts must be fun." Aura laughed a bit, "Not exactly like this, but they are fun." She grabbed my hand, "Let's head back to your place." She kissed me, "I think I'd rather spend the rest of the day with you than out being pestered." I rolled my eyes, "I can't-" She whispered, "No one is going to know. It's not like they watch you, you're just some human remember?" I was going to say no until my phone went off. I looked at it to see a text from Silvia. I didn't bother reading the text, "Sure. Let's go." Aura smiled excitedly, "If I'm the perfect guest, will I get a prize?" she winked at me. I shrugged, "Maybe."

The rest of the day went well. If I'm honest, it went really well.

(That's the end of this chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it and YAY! Fanfiction finally fixed the views issue and I can see views now on the story! As always, please leave a favorite, follow and review to support the story!)