Brock walked in the lead of his friends. He had one thing on his mind, and that was to get the girls back. He hadn't done a very good of protecting them, as he had promised to himself he would do, and this thought kept him marching steadily on. However, the nature of a Primeape, now embedded within him, wanted nothing more than to yell and rant and blame everyone else for the misfortune. It took all of the solemn older boy's strength to keep from obeying this instinct.
Ash was right behind Brock. His Pikachu walked at his heels. He, too, felt responsible for the girls being kidnapped. It had happened so fast; a Pidgeot swooped into their camp, then a Fearow, then more and more of them. That was when the four humans in the clearing had realized there were men, dressed in dark robes, riding these Pokemon. Before any of them could react, the men had grabbed Jessi and Misty and flew off. Ash sighed and held back a flood of tears. He knew that Brock had been right, Misty could take care of herself, and Jessi was with her, so they would be okay... Misty would be back... Ash was sure of it... and, he thought, brightening a bit, that meant something, now that he was part Alakazam.
Renita walked slowly, watching her feet. The Ditto girl wasn't exactly feeling responsible for the incident; that was the fault of the people who had taken the girls. But she was worried about the two. They had only had their powers for a little more than a day. Would they be able to take care of themselves? And Ash and Brock's descriptions of men in dark robes had reminded her of something Death had told her... about how some of his assistants weren't as obedient as he would have liked. But they didn't roam the mortal forest in the daytime... did they?
James walked at the end of the procession. Meowth, out of sympathy, was beside him, but he didn't talk. The Pokemon hadn't spoken to him since he first saw him as a Persian. James didn't care if the cat spoke or not; he most likely wouldn't have answered. He couldn't think of anything but Jessi. What would a group of men living in the middle of the forest want with two pretty young girls? It wasn't hard to find the answer, and it wasn't a comforting thought.
The silence was getting to be too much for Meowth. When the absence of noise gives you a headache, you know you should do something. The cat Pokemon spoke up. "Are ya sure dis is where dey went?"
"Yeah," Ash answered, distractedly. "I watched them go..." Brock glanced at him, worried. Ash wasn't usually this quiet. It could just be the way his new personality was, or maybe... Brock always knew Ash liked Misty more than he would let on. Perhaps much more than he'd let on.
"You guys..." Renita began uneasily. "I've been thinking... this might be another test of your ability to work together. Death is really smart, believe it or not, and he knows that you guys- you boys- don't all get along too well, and he might be forcing you to work together to get you used to it."
"'Might be'?" James asked her, quietly.
"He told me he has assistants who don't listen to a word he says. They look exactly like your descriptions of the people who took Jessi and Misty." The Ditto girl said all of this in one breath, afraid of their reactions.
She needn't have worried. The boys only looked away, troubled, and continued walking. Silence came wafting through the trees and settled around them. The air was heavy, and felt colder than the rest of the forest. The fur on Meowth's back stood on end. What were they walking into...?
A Pidgeot's coo echoed ahead of the group. The low screechy call of a Fearow reached their ears as well. No human sound was audible; not even to Meowth's heightened hearing. This was it. They were almost there.
Misty saw blurred black images moving around n her line of vision. Odd... she didn't remember anything after... after... what was that again... wait. That was a Pidgeot. She suddenly recalled the men in black robes... they had taken she and Jessi! Misty felt a flood of memories return. But she still couldn't see... and she was beginning to get inexplicably tired. Why was... she... so tired... And she slipped back into sleep.
A man in a black robe stood over Misty, who was tied up back-to-back with Jessi. He patted his Bellsprout on the head. The grass Pokemon made an approving noise and continued sprinkling its sleep powder on the girls.
The six companions, both Pokemon and human, or more specifically, mixtures of both, peered through the thick foliage. They could see the men in their robes, petting their Pokemon and milling around, but not speaking at all. Jessi and Misty were also visible, tied up and asleep. They would need a plan if they were going to get them back.
"Renita, if these guys are Death's rebellious assistants, how are we going to beat them?" Ash wanted to know. "Aren't they immortal or something like that?"
"I'm Death's assistant and I'm not immortal," the girl pointed out. "But I don't know if that works for them or not. We should try to get Jessi and Misty and get out of there, if possible."
"Sounds good to me," Brock agreed.
"It isn't that simple, it can't be," Ash said, frustrated. "We need a plan."
"If you're so smart, then think of one," James muttered, folding his arms. Ash glared at him angrily.
"Look, I'm leading this little expedition, and I didn't have to invite you along. If you aren't going to go along with what I say, then just get out of here."
James narrowed his eyes. His pupils had reduced to slits, in a catlike fashion, his ears were pressed back, and his tail fur was bristling. Meowth recognized this as the feline message to beware.
"Look, you twerp, I'm only here because Jessi was taken too. Don't think for a second that I want to be here, especially not with you, you little wannabe-Pokemon master." He shook a threatening paw at him as he spoke.
"Shut up!!" Ash almost screamed. He was mad enough at the people- or whatever- that had taken his Misty. And now James wanted to start a fight. Well, he would give it to him... he certainly would.
Brock tapped Ash on the shoulder, nervously. He had been insulted by James' remark, in a distant way, and he understood why Ash was so mad, but they couldn't afford to waste time fighting. "Ash... if you're gonna fight, wait 'til after we get Misty."
The younger boy turned to his friend. Brock gasped involuntarily and took a step back, almost losing his balance. Ash's eyes were glowing deep purple. Now Brock saw the aura of psychic power that was building around him.
"Ash, stop!!" Renita begged. She knew what he was going to do.
Pikachu stared at his trainer. The small Pokemon didn't know what to think. Ash was getting scary! How was he using the mind-power? That was only for the Pokemon to use. And why was he so mad? Pikachu quietly asked Meowth this.
"I dunno..." the cat Pokemon answered. He eyed Ash, who by now was completely engulfed in the purple energy. All of the humans and Pokemon had backed away from him, even James, who didn't like the looks of this at all- Ash's haunting purple eyes were locked with his own green ones... and they seemed to be boring into his soul. And they were.
Seconds ticked by like hours. Ash didn't speak a word, only stared at his enemy, building power. The others around him waited, frightened, to see what he would do. He didn't move; maybe he was calming down?
A black figure stepped out of the bushes. By some ironic twist of fate, he happened to be right between the feuding boys. Ash released his pent-up psychic energy in a startled reaction. The robed man screamed; an unearthly sound, and in the next moment he was gone, crumbled to nothing but a small pile of ashes, which was promptly blown away by a gust of wind.
James stared, wide-eyed, at this remarkable scene. That might have been him. He suddenly felt weak, and very nearly fell, but Renita was beside him, and she helped him to stand.
"Ash..." Brock began. "Don't... do that again." His face had gone pale, and he stared at Ash as if he were about to do the same thing to him.
Ash looked as shocked at his outburst as the rest of them. He looked at the few remaining ashes of the black-robed man, then at James, who wasn't looking very well.
"Can I look now?" Meowth squeaked, paws over his eyes. Pikachu shook its head and poked Meowth, who jumped and then glared at the small mouse Pokemon.
"That wasn't smart, Ash," Renita said, looking around. Sure enough, more black-robed men were pouring quietly out of every direction, soon surrounding the group. One of them stepped toward Brock, but he threw a punch into the figure's stomach. To his horror, not only was there a hole knocked through the being, but the thing kept moving, no face visible beneath it hood.
"These things aren't human," Brock informed his friends, backing away from the figure he had hit. Around him, Ash, James and Renita were discovering the same thing on their own. The only thing that affected them was Ash's psychic power. But more and more of the silent figures were coming out and attacking them, and Ash was drained from his earlier attack.
One of the creatures went at Renita. She instinctively morphed, into a Charmeleon; a Charizard wouldn't fit in the clearing with all of the fighting already going on. A quick breath of fire sent the attacker running, but the Ditto girl was confident that he wouldn't put the fire out in time.
"Ash, just use a little energy on each of them!" Renita told the boy, slightly angry at him. This battle would have been much easier if Ash hadn't let his anger get the better of him. What did he think he was going to accomplish by killing James, anyway? Only the end of the world could come of it. They couldn't afford any less power than they had already.
James was having trouble getting the creatures to stay down when he hit them. They weren't especially effected by his normal attacks, though they weren't nearly fast enough to avoid his blows. He noticed that most of the creatures were going at Ash, only to be incinerated by a psychic blast. One figure swung at him with one robed arm; he simply grabbed the creature by its offending limb and tossed it back a few feet, into a tree.
Brock saw a chance to get away from the fight and help Jessi and Misty. With Renita covering for him as a Charmeleon, he slipped between two bushes and into the clearing where their two female companions were being held.
One black-robed figure stood guard before Jessi and Misty, tied up and apparently asleep. This figure, however, had one distinguishing characteristic. It carried in one gnarled hand a long-handled scythe, whose blade glinted almost evilly. The weapon caught Brock's eye, and he swallowed hard. He looked back quickly, but his friends' battle was hidden by the bushes between them. He would have to take care of this guy himself.
The figure seemed to float over to him, faster than Brock would have thought possible had he not seen it himself, and raised the scythe over its head. As he brought it down, Brock jumped out of the way, landing on his hands and knees. He felt the vibration of the blade slamming into the ground. He shuddered; that might have been him...
He scrambled away, fear tangling his limbs so that he couldn't stand up. The scythe came down with a rush of air, sinking into the ground inches in front of his face. Brock reflexively grabbed the sturdy wooden handle of the weapon and pulled it out of the figure's invisible hands. The creature turned to escape, but Brock ran after it, swiping the scythe in a sideways arc and slicing it in half. With a piercing scream, the demon was vanquished, and the two halves of the robe floated to the ground, empty.
Brock stood for a moment, breathing hard and clutching the scythe. Behind him there was a sound. He whirled around, brandishing his new weapon fearsomely.
All that stood behind him was a frightened little Bellsprout. The boy's Pokemon-loving side took over.
"Hello, little guy," he said softly, going slowly over to the Pokemon and tossing the scythe off to one side. The grass-type creature shrank down, waiting for the right moment to spread his Poisonpowder on this intruder, who had killed his master...
A tongue of fire burst from a few feet away, charring the Bellsprout. It promptly fainted, lying motionless on the ground. Brock looked up at Renita, shocked.
"What did you do that for?" he demanded.
"Number one, I don't generally enjoy watching people die from Bellsprout poisoning," the girl retorted, blowing out a puff of smoke. "Number two, I don't like Bellsprouts."
Brock looked at the fainted Pokemon for a moment, wondering if it really had been about to poison him, and why in the world it would want to do that.
"You did kill its master," Renita reminded him, as if she had read his mind. She had sauntered over to Jessi and Misty, who were still asleep. Thinking for a moment, she morphed into a Machoke and lifted them both gently. She turned to see Brock staring at her quizzically.
"Don't you dare laugh," she growled. "I hate this form," she sighed, mostly to herself.
Brock successfully surpressed his laughter. "Soo... did the others beat all the creatures?"
Renita's temporarily Machoke-face darkened for a moment. "Ash is in bad shape." She frowned. "I think he used too much power." Brock looked at the ground, worried. Two of their friends were now safe, but what about Ash?
The two slipped through the bushes, back into the clearing where Ash was collapsed on the ground, face deathly pale. James was a few feet away from the boy, legs folded, paws resting in his lap, and eyes closed. He was tired, and he looked it. He must have heard his companions returning, but he didn't bother to look up. Meowth was on one side of the clearing, still recovering from seeing those black-robed figures. Pikachu sat beside his master loyally.
Brock went directly to Ash, checking his pulse. Slow, but there. The older boy sighed, frustrated. If it wasn't one thing it was another. He didn't even completely know what was going on, and he had to worry about all of his friends. Pikachu looked sympathetically up at him.
"I'm sorry," Brock heard James mutter, still not looking up. His hair fell in front of his face, so that Brock couldn't tell what sort of expression he was wearing.
"It's not your fault," Brock said reluctantly.
James growled slightly. "Yes, really, it is. If I hadn't made him mad like that, he wouldn't've gotten so drained, and he wouldn't be like this now."
"Guess who I found..." Renita said softly, changing the subject. She had morphed back to human and was kneeling beside Jessi, who was slowly waking up. In a flash, James was beside his friend, watching her face intently.
Jessi opened her eyes. She found herself staring up into James' anxious face. Immediately her face went as red as her hair. She sat up quickly, smiling in a sheepish manner.
"I must have... fallen asleep," she offered. She earned a quick, embarrassed hug from her friend. Over his shoulder, Jessi saw Renita smirking slightly. Jessi raised an eyebrow, but didn't speak; she didn't want to do anything that might spoil one of James' sporadic good moods. Meowth waved at her from behind James' back, grinning hugely and giving her a thumbs-up sign.
Misty sat up. She felt groggy and still wanted to be asleep. Suddenly, Ash's still form caught her eye. She went over to him, ignoring the rest of the people around her. Her friend was stretched out, one arm draped over his stomach. The yellow-and-brown patterns on his arm were accented by his black t-shirt. He looked pale, unhealthily so. The yellow horns that stuck from beneath his messy black hair were a mockery of some kind of devilish creature; he couldn't have ever looked so angelic before, Misty thought, because she would definitely have remembered.
He stirred a little. Misty stroked his hair with a paw, then drew back quickly, realizing that everyone in the clearing was looking at her, including Pikachu, sitting next to her. She inwardly reprimanded herself for making her feelings so obvious.
"Misty...?" Ash's voice made her forget her embarrassment. "Are you okay?" The Raichu girl smiled sadly. How could he be so noble? Here he was, too weak to sit up, and he was asking how she felt. Pikachu excitedly jumped onto his trainer's chest and curled up happily.
"I'm just fine, Ash," she told him, her voice cracking. He smiled weakly up at her.
"Do you... hear something?" James asked, ears pricked. Jessi looked up beyond the treetops.
"I do," she said fearfully. "It sounds like... Pidgeots."
"... Fearows," James supplied at the same time. They looked at each other and back at their unwilling companions. Meowth ducked under a large leaf, trembling.
"They left when we were attacked," Brock realized. Now the air being stirred by dozens of pairs of wings blew his hair around and swirled the dust around his feet. The bird Pokemon were visible in the sky, getting closer and closer.
Misty felt an electric current surge through her body. As powerful as these Pokemon may have been, she could handle them with her electricity, she was sure. The sound of the bird Pokemon's wings seemed to urge her on. She snuck a glance at Ash; he had closed his eyes, keeping them open having become too much for him. This, too, added to her reserve of power; she was the only one who could save them all, Ash especially.
She extended her arms toward the oncoming flock of dangerous Pokemon. Yellow tongues of electricity, like smaller versions of lightning bolts, emerged from the electrical sacs on her cheeks and twisted around her arms, finally ending up in something like a pool of electricity in her hands, flowing from her fingers out into the air.
The closest Pokemon, a Fearow, was taken down right away. Next to fall was the largest Pidgeot in the flock. As more electricity poured from Misty's hands, more birds fell. But more were still coming, and Misty was already getting tired. No sooner had the frightening thought of what might happen if she couldn't take all of them out before they reached the group crossed her mind, but two other, weaker bursts of electricity joined hers. She saw that Renita had morphed a Raichu and, along with Pikachu, was helping as best she could. Misty grinned slightly; the best she could do while using so much energy.
After about five more minutes of continuous blasts of sparking bolts of electricity, the last of the flying creatures was shot down out of the sky. Misty stopped producing electricity and sank to her knees, exhausted. Renita morphed back to human, panting, but none the worse for the wear. Pikachu simply curled up where it was and fell asleep.
"We're safe," Misty breathed, just one second before she blacked out.
It was the next morning. Ash and Misty had both been unconscious all night. Their powers were drained; they wouldn't be able to move in comfort for a few days. The odd group was now sitting around the smothered campfire. There hadn't been much conversation since the bird Pokemon attack.
"Hey, guys," Jessi began sullenly, addressing Ash, Misty, and Brock. "You know..." She trailed off, resting her chin in one hand.
"What?" Brock prompted her. The rest of her friends looked at her expectantly.
"I just wanted to say, we... we really have to improve on our teamwork, don't we?" They all nodded together.
"We did okay, yesterday," Brock said.
"Thanks ta you two twerps," Meowth said good-naturedly to Ash and Misty. They glared at him, also in too good of spirits to be mad.
"My point is..." Jessi hesitated again, blushing slightly. "I think we should all try to forget we were ever enemies."
"What?!" James demanded, standing up. The fur on his tail stood on end.
"I think," Renita interrupted, glaring at James, "that is a great idea, Jessi, and I'm glad you said something, because otherwise I would have. You guys need to learn to work together. You have no choice. But it would definitely be easier if you have a desire to get along. Is this a deal?" She looked around expectantly.
Brock nodded, agreeing right away. Ash and Misty looked at each other for a moment, then nodded as well. Meowth scratched his head with a paw.
"I guess I can do dat," he finally said. Pikachu 'pika'ed its agreement. The only one left was James. He looked from face to face, finally stopping at Jessi. He sighed heavily, ears pressed back, and sat down slowly.
"I have no choice, huh?"
"No. You have a choice," Jessi told him softly. Their eyes met, and locked. James could almost see what Jessi was thinking. She wanted him to side with her, as he had always done before. Before, she had made the decisions and he'd had no choice but to go along with it. If James didn't want to accept this new pact, then Jessi would have to go along with his decision. James shivered a little at this realization; he had never had any kind of power over his best friend, and the feeling made him uncomfortable.
"Well," he said after a moment of silence had passed. "If you want to do it, I guess... I will, too." He didn't see Renita beaming proudly; he only saw Jessi still gazing at him... but she looked away as soon as she realized what she was doing. Renita was glad James had made the right decision, both for the sake of winning the Final Battle, and for Jessi's sake.
The Ditto girl was happy for her new friends. It seemed that Ash and Misty were closer for their experience. And Jessi and James... it seemed they were working things out, as well. Meowth and Pikachu were as good of friends as old rivals could get. And they had all promised to try to get along. If they could keep their promise, they would be okay. At least, she hoped so.
