Hello Nuggies! Here it is! The awaited sequel to 'A Different Start' is here! As usual with my fics this is a SLASH fic, and there will be more slash in this fic than its predecessor. I hope y'all are ready! This one is gonna be a long one! I hope y'all are as excited to be here as I am!
Main Pairing: AshxPaul (Comashipping)
Rating: M
Disclaimer: I do not own anything pertaining to the Pokémon Franchise. It belongs to its rightful owner(s) and I make no profit writing this. This is just for entertainment purposes only.
Chapter Warning(s): Death and you can blame Ivory on discord for the ending of this chapter ;)
Enjoy!
Ash rushed around the house as he got ready to leave all the while ignoring the slight tinge of pain coming from his backside. After waking up from his first time he begged Paul to go again, and so they did even though he had been in a bit of pain. And after that he begged Paul for one more time, but in the shower that time so at least they were fully clean afterwards. As much as Ash wanted to just relax this morning after such activities, he had gotten a call from Kahuna Hala detailing how he would go to the Reserve to see the Kammo-o Specialist, someone named Ekewaka. First though was making it to the ferry to Poni Island.
Ash made sure he had things in his bag to distract Jangmo-o during the ferry ride, if it was needed, and made sure the small dragon took some medicine to calm him down for the journey, a recommendation from Nurse Joy. Ash didn't want to put the small dragon in a ball quite yet since he wanted to let the dragon get used to being out and about with all the distractions, but keeping his focus on him. He hoped it would help when it comes to giving him commands during battle if Jangmo-o was used to looking for him to make sure all was well. He made sure everyone had eaten before shoving his feet into his walking boots and throwing his bag on his back. He gave Paul a kiss, wishing he could have come with, but Hala had only gotten him permission to go to the Reserve and not Paul. He wasn't even sure the Kahuna knew Paul was on the island with him. At least he would meet Paul in the market district on Ula'Ula since they haven't explored that island yet.
Instead of taking the car and stranding Paul, Ash had Gardevoir teleport him to the school where he could very easily walk to the docks where the ferry would take off from. He waved to Kukui and his students when he spotted them, but didn't stop as he continued his journey to the docks. He may have been a little early, but at least he wasn't late! Ash looked around the small market that the docks were nestled by, but didn't see anything he wanted or needed so he continued on so he could get checked in. The process was quick, not surprising, and soon enough he was being taken to the ferry along with a few others that were heading to Poni Island.
Soon enough they were taking off along the calm waters to the next island. In the distance Ash spotted a large white structure, it was a somewhat familiar site since they had been on the island, and he wondered what it was. The longer he looked at the artificial island the more his Aura seemed to prickle in discomfort. There was something off about the place or at least something off around it. He didn't have time to snoop since he had only such a small amount of time on the islands left before they left for Sinnoh, but he would keep it in mind and talk to Lance or Riley about it. As Ash turned his back to the artificial island he completely missed the floating form of Tapu Koko floating in the air watching the white island as well.
Disembarking from the ferry was simple and checking in even more simple and soon enough he was making his way down one of the routes towards the Reserve. He left Jangmo-o down as they walked and kept an eye on the small white dragon, but to his surprise Jangmo-o didn't wander off too far from him and was always looking back towards him. He didn't even wander off when Pikachu leapt down from Ashs' shoulder to join him on the ground. Ash kept the pace a little slow since they were already making great timing and mentally made a list of things he had to do before they left. He needed to grab Charizard later since this should be his last day in the breeding facility and he wanted to change a few of the members of his team around. He wanted to bring Snom over and start her training in earnest and Kingdra wanted to go back, where it was safer for his young fry, and he was sure Charizard would want to go back too. If Tyrantrum was healed enough he wanted to bring the large dinosaur to Alola too along with Noivern, who Ash was sure would love the open air around the islands and probably wanted to see Jangmo-o.
He also needed to make time to speak with his Dad. He didn't like that he waited so long to do so, but it took some time and speaking with Paul to even muster up the courage to speak with Renato. He figured that the best approach would be to just be upfront with the man and deal with the fall out afterwards. He still hasn't even told his Mom that Renato was still alive and that he had found him. Depending on the outcome of his meeting Ash would tell her or not tell her. His Mom was still grieving and he didn't want to get her hopes up only for them to get crushed if Renato didn't want anything to do with them. Ash didn't want to think about how he would feel if that was the outcome.
He didn't want to break.
Feeling something shock his leg Ash looked down to see Pikachu with one of his small paws resting on the exposed skin of his leg. Little electrical shocks bounced from his cheek sacs only told Ash that Pikachu did shock him. Looking around Ash did see that they were only a few minutes walk away from the Reserve doors and he thanked Pikachu for alerting him. He shouldn't have been so distracted anyway. He gestured for Jangmo-o to come to him and picked the baby dragon up once the leucistic baby ran to him. He made sure Pikachu was settled on his shoulder before standing up and continuing on.
A blast of cool air greeted them as Ash walked through the doors. The interior of the building was much like a doctor's office, bright colors, a reception desk, and a lounge area to wait in. On the walls were various depictions of the Jangmo-o line and a few of the workers that worked closely with the large dragons. The sound of a door opening caught Ash's attention and saw that the door behind the desk opened letting in a younger man.
"Oh! Hello!" the young man said and seemed slightly startled at Ash's appearance, "How can I help you today?"
"Hello, I'm supposed to be meeting with someone named Ekewaka? Kahuna Hala set the meeting up?" Ash asked, curiosity coating his words.
"Mr. Ketchum?" The worker asked as he sat down at the computer and started to type, on his nametag was written Peleke. Ash could only assume it was to check him in.
"Yes. Ash Ketchum," Ash confirmed with a nod and handed over his ID when it was prompted.
"Alright! You are checked in. Here is your ID back Mr. Ketchum," Peleke stated, "Follow me and I'll take you to Ekewaka's office."
Ash pocketed his ID and made to follow Peleke once the man walked out of the side door to stand on this side of the desk. The walk didn't take long at all. Straight down the hall, turn right then left until they stood outside one of the only doors in that hall. The placard on the wall beside the door indicated that they were at an infirmary. This Ekewaka must be a Healer for the reserve. Peleke gently knocked on the door before opening it and ushered Ash in.
The room was large and airy. On one wall was floor to ceiling windows that gave a great view of the reserve outside. There was even a Kommo-o resting in a sunbeam beyond the window and a Hakamo-o peering into the room. There was another Hakamo-o laying on one of the beds inside the room while Nurse Joy took care of an injury the creature had gained. Ash stopped for a moment as two small Jangmo-o ran past him before he continued to follow Peleke.
"Ekewaka? Mr. Ketchum is here," Peleke called out to one of the men near the door that led out to the reserve. The eldest of the men, lean, deeply tanned skin, with a shock of thick white hair on his head, and kind dark eyes turned to look at them for a moment before turning to the other two men and spoke softly for a moment. Only when the two were out of the door did Ekewaka walk towards them.
"Thank you Pele-boy. You can get back to the desk now," Ekewaka spoke as he gave Peleke a gentle pat to his arm and a small smile, "Mr. Ketchum, welcome to the Reserve."
"Thank you for meeting with me," Ash replied in kind as he began to follow the older man when he started to walk towards one of the desks.
"Ah. We didn't have much going on at the moment and when Hala called me speaking about your little one there, let's say curiosity has taken its hold," Ekewaka said gently with a chuckle. He gestured for Ash to sit as he too sat down.
"It has been many years since we have seen a Jangmo-o like yours," Ekewaka continued to say as he booted up his computer, "If you do not mind. I would like to take a once over of your little dragon."
"I don't mind at all," Ash replied, "You've seen Jangmo-o like him before?"
"We have! He was one of our eldest Kommo-o, having been born almost two hundred years ago. One of the workers that had been taking care of him had named him Haukea in honor of his bright scales," Ekewaka said, "He has fathered many, none like him, and sadly he has passed. It has almost been ten years since then."
"So the Jangmo-o line lives long?" Ash asked as the sun tanned hands began to check Jangmo-o over.
"They do," Ekewaka replied, "I believe the longest lived Kommo-o we have on record lived to be 285 years old. She had gotten into a fight with a younger female Kommo-o and she didn't have the strength to overcome her wounds."
"Do all of the Jangmo-o line come here when their trainers pass?" he asked, hesitantly, but it was a much needed to ask question.
"Unless it was otherwise stated, yes, they do," Ekewaka said, his tone a little hushed at the thought, "Alola has rights over every single creature in the Jangmo-o line as the originating Region of their line. Even in other countries."
"Now, your Jangmo-o is doing great! He's a healthy weight, his scales are in great shape for his age, and his teeth have all come in correctly. He's more well behaved than most Jangmo-o his age, but that could change as he gets older," Ekewaka said as he pulled out a device and a headband, "I believe Hala told me that he was deaf?"
"Yes, we discovered it a few days after he hatched and it took calling Samson Oak just to make sure what we were seeing was right," Ash replied as he watched Ekewaka carefully pull the headband over the large head scale until it rested over Jangmo-o's ears. Almost immediately the little dragon tried to paw off the headband, but Ash caught his attention and shook his head to get him to stop. The soft whine Jangmo-o let out was almost enough for Ash to pull the headband off, but only just held himself back.
"This device will tell us just how much of his hearing is gone. It'll play a series of beeps starting in a lower octave until it's at its highest octave a Jangmo-o can hear," the older man replied as he fiddled with the settings, "We've a few fully deaf ones here, and a few hard of hearing ones. Sometimes those we may think are fully deaf can only hear at certain octaves."
Ash nodded in understanding as Ekewaka pressed a button on the device in his hand and watched Jangmo-o for any indication that the little dragon heard anything. With each beep Ash watched Ekewaka type something on the computer and his hope for some kind of reaction from Jangmo-o dwindled. The beeps started to get to their higher octaves when Jangmo-o finally gave a reaction. The small dragon let out a whine and began to paw the headband again, but Ash couldn't let him take it off so Ash reached out and gently held down his front paws. That reaction certainly got Ekewaka typing on the computer and it didn't take much longer after that for the hearing test to be done. Ash cradled the small dragon in his arms once the headband was off and Jangmo-o scrambled for his lap.
"Well that is certainly good news for Jangmo-o," Ekewaka said once he put the device away and offered a piece of jerky to Jangmo-o in apology for the test.
"Good news?" Ash asked, a sliver of hope trickled into him.
"Yes! Your Jangmo-o isn't fully deaf. He does have severe hearing loss however and is only able to hear loud noises. Such as a high-pitched pokémon roar or a very, very loud whistle. He can't hear a normal level of talking like we are doing now," Ekewaka explained.
"So what does this mean? I just have to yell at him all the time? That doesn't sound very nice," Ash replied. He didn't like the thought that he would have to yell at Jangmo-o just for the small dragon to actually hear him.
"If you wanted him to hear what you are saying, then yes you would have to speak louder. However; we may have a solution for him," the older man said as he opened a drawer and pulled out a piece of paper, "In the last few years there has been significant progress in the research for pokémon with disabilities. There have been several breakthroughs and many tests run for these, but I think Jangmo-o would benefit from it."
Ash took the paper when it was offered to him and looked it over. It detailed a bit about being deaf and how it had been popping up more and more in pokémon as the years go by. There were several well known trainers that have pokémon with this disability and the testing they had gone through to develop this.
"A cochlear implant for pokémon?" Ash asked as he set the paper on the desk and looked up at the older man.
"Yes. It is essentially a cochlear implant for pokémon," Ekewaka said, "We have a couple Hakamo-o and Kommo-o here that have gone through the surgery to have it and they have all done well with it. It is only offered if we think it could improve the hearing ability of the pokémon which is why I conducted the hearing test. If Jangmo-o had been fully and completely deaf I wouldn't offer it, but he can still hear if only at a yell."
"If I say yes to this, how long will recovery be?" Ash asked as he glanced down at Jangmo-o, who was content on chewing the sleeve of his shirt.
"A one to two months," Ekewaka replied honestly, "3-4 weeks recovery after surgery. Nothing strenuous for that length of time, and a further few weeks for auditory adjustments so the device can send and receive signals as it should and of course some time for Jangmo-o to learn how to use his scales correctly in communication."
"Can I have time to think about it?" Ash asked softly. His mind was already racing with pros and cons of letting Jangmo-o have the surgery. It would worry him extensively if he had to leave the baby of the pack with others for this and not be there for ever step.
"Of course. Take this," Ekewaka said as he grabbed a card for Ash, "it has the Reserves number on it and my work email for whenever you have your answer."
"Thank you," Ash said as he took the card and made sure it was secure in his pocket.
"Is there anything else you would like to speak about?" Ekewaka asked as he sat back in his seat.
"You kind of just blew all of my questions out of the water with that," Ash said humorously with a slight chuckle and was joined by Ekewaka as the man also chuckled.
"How about a tour of the Reserve before you leave?" Ekewaka offered and Ash took him up on it. Their meeting didn't take as long as Ash thought it would and he had time to kill before he needed to take the ferry to Ula'Ula to meet Paul anyway.
"Lead the way," Ash said as he stood up and followed Ekewaka out of the doors leading outside.
Ash took a deep breath as the ferry pulled away from the pier. The trip to the Reserve had been enlightening and Ash enjoyed watching Jangmo-o play with other baby Jangmo-o around his age. Ekewaka even showed him a couple of the Hakamo-o's with the implant and how well it held up with their battling. The older man had told him that the device was made to be waterproof and able to withstand high voltages so it shouldn't short out. If it did, Jangmo-o would have to come back to get a new implant. Ekewaka also pointed out that it still worked after evolution so there was no need to get a new implant after Jangmo-o evolved.
He ended up leaving the Reserve with a thick stack of papers about the device, the research put into it, and a pamphlet about costs and such. If he were to be honest the offer seemed too good to be true, but he was seriously contemplating it. He would speak to Paul about it since he would most likely have to fly back to the Islands for Jangmo-o to get the procedure done. He gave the stack of paper a look over before removing his bag and stuffing it in. Ash shouldered the bag and looked up to see Pikachu leading Jangmo-o away from a group of teens with a Mightyena. The mouse had just jumped onto the bench beside him and he had just grabbed Jangmo-o when the ferry they were on rocked drastically to the side.
Ash let out a grunt as he was forced back against the railing. He was sure there would be a bruise there later. The teen looked over at Pikachu, to make sure his partner was okay, when he heard exclamations making him look up. Bouncing from one foot to the other in front of him was Tapu Koko. The legendary had a serious look to his eye and the spike in the pokémon's Aura was the only indication he got before he was snatched up in Tapu Koko's arms. Ash let out a noise of surprise as he was hoisted into the air, several hundreds of feet above the water's surface, and taken away from the ferry.
Tapu Koko was going to fast for Ash to speak so he just did his best to breathe. He felt Jangmo-o shaking in his arms and did his best to comfort the baby and he felt relieved when he felt Pikachu's claws digging into his shoulder. His partner wasn't left behind on the ferry. Thankfully it didn't take long for Tapu Koko to take Ash to wherever he was taking him and just moments after being taken from the ferry his feet were on solid ground again. They seemed to be on one of the beaches along the edge of one of the Islands, but Ash wasn't sure which one they were on. On one side there was the ocean, large and vast, and on the other side was dense forest with a trail leading into it. There was a pier with a large boat docked on it, but it seemed like the boat had seen better days. There were pieces broken off the side like something had burst out of it and there were a few smoldering pieces of wood dotting the sand.
"Why did you bring me here?" Ash asked as he turned to Tapu Koko, who was standing still for once. The creature took one look at him, then at the boat, before turning his head towards the trail.
"Is someone hurt?" Ash asked as he too turned towards the trail where he only just then noticed the markings on the trail. Human and pokémon footprints, none that Ash had ever seen before, but before Ash could speak again a loud roar echoed through the air quickly followed by a burst of fire above the trees. Ash quickly knelt to take his bag off so he could put Jangmo-o in it to keep the baby safe before taking off down the trail. He cursed himself for not taking any of the others, but how was he supposed to know something like this would happen. As he ran he took a brief mental note that Tapu Koko stayed behind on the beach, but didn't give it much thought.
The sounds of battle got louder as he ran and it didn't take long to get to where the fighting was. Ash skidded to a stop just inside the treeline just to take in what he was seeing. There were three men, two had been knocked out or killed (Ash couldn't tell if they were breathing from where he stood, but the three men were covered in blood), with their pokémon fighting somewhat familiar creatures. One of the creatures reminded Ash of a Jigglypuff, but larger and with a head tail that had been cut off and fangs. There was a smaller creature that looked like it was made of metal and looked like a Delibird. The last two creatures, the only two of the four fighting, weren't in good shape either. The Salamence looking dragon had a torn wing, a broken tail, a nasty gash along its jaw and it looked as though its side had been caved in. The last creature seemed like the perfect mashup of a Gallade and a Gardevoir, but made of metal like the Delibird look-a-like.
The last man standing staggered a bit before yelling at his Hydreigon to use Draco Meteor and at his Tyranitar, a Mega if Ash were to guess since it looked nothing like a regular Tyranitar, to use Focus Blast. The two monstrous creatures didn't look to be in bad shape as they used their moves. The bright light from the Focus Blast threatened to blind Ash, making him close his eyes, and the earth trembled as meteors began to fall leaving dents on the ground. His eyes flew open as he heard a dragon roar in pain and saw the Salamence looking dragon was pinned down by one of the meteors for a moment before it exploded in blue draconic fire causing it to let out another roar.
The other creature seemed to have been able to get away from the attacks, fully dodging the Focus Blast and using its double sided weapon to slice up meteors when they came too close. Ash heard the man yell at his pokémon again to keep attacking, but Ash had seen enough. It was very obvious what this man was doing and it wasn't for defending himself. It was now obvious as to why Tapu Koko had kidnapped him and brought him here.
This man, and his colleagues, were poachers.
"Pikachu, you're the only partner I have here that can fight. I'm relying on you," Ash whispered softly to his first partner, who merely gave him a nod and sent out angry sparks from his cheek pouches as his dark eyes surveyed the fight.
"Let's go."
Ash followed behind Pikachu as the mouse leaped from his shoulder to intercept a Thunder from the Tyranitar. Pikachu, while it did hurt the mouse, didn't waver under the attack and instead used it to bolster his own Thunder which he threw at the Hydreigon. Ash skidded to a stop in front of the downed dragon creature, but made no move to kneel down and help. Not when he was staring a Tyranitar in the face. He felt his bag move on his back and prayed to Arceus that Jangmo-o didn't pop out of it.
"Who the fuck are you?" the man shouted as his Hydreigon shakily got back in the air from where it landed from getting hit with the Thunder.
"The name's Ash," Ash said trying to sound confident, "Yours?"
"Don't matter," the man gruffed out, "Get outta my way. You're messing with what's mine."
"No."
"No?" the man said, his voice filled with an incredulous tone.
"Yeah," the teen said, "N-O. No."
"I don't have time for this boy," the man said as he wiped a bit of blood off to keep it from dripping into his eye. "Move or feel the wrath of my team."
"Pikachu, Iron Tail," Ash simply said as he mentally prepared himself for the battle. He did briefly hope that the other pokémon, the one still in good fighting condition, would step in and help a bit seeing as he only had Pikachu to fight with. As Ash commanded Pikachu and did his best to keep up with the battle he didn't notice the dragon behind him gathering energy and healing up a bit because of Roost. Or the other creature and its fist glowing brightly as it readied a Draining Punch.
"Quick Attack, get out of there!" Ash yelled to Pikachu as he saw the Hydreigon, it had been faltering a bit as the dragon started to get exhausted, ready an Outrage. Just as Pikachu got ready to turn tail and get out of the way, the metallic creature dashed forward from the tree line. Its fist glowing and pulled back as it landed in front of the dragon. The creature didn't waste a second as it thrust its fist forward and made contact with the belly of the Hydreigon. The dragon roared as the Drain Punch landed and finally fell, knocked out, as its last remaining energy was drained to heal the metallic creature in front of it.
"Pikachu move!" Ash yelled suddenly as he saw Tyranitar bash the ground with its feet and tail making cracks form in a Stomping Tantrum. Ash watched with a bit of relief as Pikachu immediately flung himself into the air and managed to avoid the hardest part of the attack before landing back on the ground. He didn't get the chance to yell another command as a sudden loud blast and a Hyper Beam whizzed past him, only just missing him. Ash still felt the heat of the beam however and stumbled back to keep from getting burned from it.
Looking back Ash saw the dragon he had been standing in front of fall back down to the ground, exhausted beyond belief, but that blast had been enough. With a loud thud the beast of a Tyranitar fell to the ground, its Mega Evolution faded, leaving the man standing there alone with his teammates on the ground around him. Ash saw the man take a step back, then another, before running to one of the downed men to grab one of the pokéballs, but before he could reach the downed man Pikachu was there smacking him over the head with an Iron Tail.
Ash winced as he saw the man crumple to the ground and made his way over to find the pokéballs for the two downed pokémon. Once they were secured and the men tied up Ash turned to the other two creatures, who silently watched him with apprehension in their eyes. Ash sent them a small smile and slowly walked towards them with his hands in clear view and a sense of calm and reassurance in his Aura.
The dragon let out a groan that turned into a cough and to his worry the dragon coughed up a thick glob of blood. Ash walked a bit quicker to the dragon, ignoring the growling as he knelt beside the beast and began to look it over. He was no doctor or Nurse Joy, but he could make his way around some healing. Gently he took his bag off and opened it to see a frightened Jangmo-o staring up at him and sent the baby a small smile as he placed the bag on the floor so he could grab his medicine bag from in it.
He let Jangmo-o out and asked Pikachu to watch him before turning to the larger dragon. He noticed that the bright red eyes of the dragon were focused on Jangmo-o as he started his assessment. From what he could see it didn't look good, but nonetheless he did his best with what he had. He sprayed a potion on the gash and bandaged the wing, but it's the side Ash was worried about. It was caved in and the dragon kept coughing up blood. He was sure its ribs had punctured a lung and with the way it had been fighting the lung was sure to have been mutilated.
Taking a good look at the two beside him and then the other two that had been downed before he had gotten there it suddenly clicked. They were like Slither Wing. They were from Paldea. Ash dug out his phone and hurried to his contacts where he knew he had Sada's number. She had given it to him so he could give her updates on Slither Wing.
"Professor, have you heard of poachers in Area Zero?" Ash asked once the line connected, not even giving the professor a chance to greet him.
"How do you know?" Sada answered sharply, a hint of aggression on her voice as if accusing him of doing the poaching.
"I'm staring at them right now. I only recognize one of them, a Scream Tail I think," Ash replied, "I was on the way to meet my boyfriend when I stumbled on them." He heard Sada sigh on the other side of the phone before getting any confirmation.
"Almost a week and a half ago we had gotten an alert that there had been some suspicious movements in Area Zero. Geta had some of her people looking into it when several of the pokémon had been taken," Sada said and Ash could hear movement on the other side as if she was walking quickly, "A Scream Tail went missing along with an Iron Bundle, a Brute Bonnet, A Great Tusk, an Iron Hands and two of the more rarer pokémon a Roaring Moon and an Iron Valiant."
"I only have four here with me," Ash said quietly, "Two alive and the other two dead. Though, I suppose its Roaring Moon doesn't look too well and I don't have the supplies, knowledge, or clearance to heal and capture it."
Ash looked down when he felt a large scaled head against his hands and saw that the Roaring Moon had rested its head on his lap. The creature looked so tired and its breathing had started to become laboured and wet. Ash cautiously ran his fingers over the rough scales as if to offer a small semblance of comfort. The Iron Valiant, at least that was what Ash thought it was, stood still like a statue while staring at him. He could feel its mistrustful hypervigilant Aura. It felt like it was scared of him, perhaps just for being human, and was stuck between fight or flight. It went silent on the other end of the phone and he was worried the call had been dropped when a slightly familiar voice came through.
"Mr. Ketchum?" Geeta's voice chimed through the phone calling Ash back to the conversation.
"Champion Geeta," Ash replied in kind and winced as he felt a thick hot glob of blood run down his leg as the Roaring Moon coughed again.
"Sada tells me that you found our missing pokémon," she said.
"At least four of them," Ash said and relayed which ones he had found and where he was currently at, assuming that would be the next question.
"It's terrible hearing that news," Geeta said after taking in all Ash had told her, "But I am glad to hear that at least two had survived even if we don't know wh-"
Ash let out a gasp cutting off what Geeta was about to finish saying when Roaring Moon spasmed in his lap. He watched as the large form arched, its one good wing lifting into the air, before it fell back down to the ground. A guttural sound came out of its throat and the heartbeat Ash had been able to feel thundered under his hand until it petered out leaving a still chest. Ash heard Geeta speaking in his ear, but it faded as the phone fell out of his hand and landed with a soft sound on the ground beside him.
"Roaring Moon?" Ash whispered softly as what had happened just crashed down on him. He felt hot tears roll down his cheeks, but he ignored them as he ran his trembling fingers over the rough cheek scales. He hadn't known this creature for long, but it always hurt. Death always hurts. Ash let out a shuddering breath as the last wisps of Aura from the ancient dragon disappeared and it hurt knowing that its last moments were in pain. He hoped that Roaring Moon had some sense of comfort from him.
Ash shook as he grabbed his phone and in a soft voice told Geeta on the other side that Roaring Moon had passed and barely registered that she said that she was sending some people out to gather them. He didn't care how she was going to be able to do that or if he was to stay where he was until she did so, but he wasn't moving. Especially not when all of a sudden there was a bright pink and very sharp weapon being held at his throat.
