Pokémon PrismGold

Chapter Thirty-Eight: "Crystal Cave"

Sean turned to look at Nate and Mark, his heart racing faster than it had ever done in his life. Running toward Nate who was the closest to him, he tried to think quickly. He wasn't strong enough to carry one of them. Least of all both. The Shaman helped people run past her, then yelled out to the men around her. "Warriors! Defend the cave!" The men nodded, removing pokeballs from under their robes and tossing them up. The pokeballs burst open to unleash a group of pokemon that were covered in colorful war paint. A Poliwrath punched his large fists together, flexing the hypnotizing circle over his broad toad like chest. Beside it, a Blastoise landed heavily on the ground with a roar, the cannons on its large turtle shell clicking as it got ready to fire. Landing between them, a Golduck landed more gracefully, the small red jewel on its blue forehead glinting in the firelight. They raced over to the cave entrance, taking defensive positions to help Raichu and Zoey. The warriors then raced after them with spears.

Sean didn't think that they'd stand a chance against guns and armor... but he was wrong. As armored soldiers wandered in, the pokemon surprised the armored soldiers enough that the warriors were able to get in quick death blows in the open sections of their armor. Just as Sean tried to move Nate, the shaman directed a group to retrieve Nate and Mark. A man rushed over to Sean, shooing him away to heft Nate over his shoulder. Nate screamed in agony as his bruised ribs pressed over the man's shoulder. Zoey heard him scream and looked back with a snarl, until she saw what was happening. Another man scooped up Mark and the Shaman yelled out to them all. "Retreat to the back! Hurry now!" The Shaman didn't retreat with them, she ran to a shelf and gasped in horror. Sean had lingered long enough to collect their things, noticing after one last look that she was searching the ground and exclaiming in fright. "The jewels! Where are they?!" The Shaman found one and scooped it up off the floor. Sean looked and saw the other rolling across the shaking ground toward the fire. Seizing the moment, he ran out to snatch it up before it rolled into the fire. Holding it close to his chest, he told her seriously. "Got it! GO!"

The Shaman staggered to her feet, running quickly toward the back. Sean followed her, watching the pokemon and warriors slowly retreat back from the entrance. The Shaman guided Sean farther into the cave, surprising him with how big the place was. He hadn't realized that the dark of the cave wasn't the end of it. The Shaman raced by what appeared to be tunneled rooms that had been built into food and herb storage areas. Down a slight slope that led into a larger cave, Sean marveled at the glittering crystals of soft colors that decorated the place. The cave was cooler compared to the one above and had a massive fossilized tree in the center with a clean trickling stream running through it. Sean stumbled to a stop to take it all in and was even more surprised to see that curled around the base of the tree was the Crystal Onix. The Crystal Onix raised its head as the Tribesmen rushed in with their families to huddle up. As unsettled by them as the Crystal Onix was, it still appeared calm enough to just observe them.

Turning around toward the slope, he saw the warriors backing in with the pokemon and working to disguise the new entrance to be a false wall. Nate's pained wailing drew the Shaman over to help him, which in turn encouraged Sean to join her. While she looked over Nate, she told the people around her in a slightly shaky voice. "Leave him here. Don't move him anymore. Is anyone else hurt?" Sean watched a man lay Mark down close to Nate, answering her seriously. "A few cuts and bruises, but nothing serious." Another man nearby touched the Shaman's shoulder, asking really worried. "What do we do now? What's happened?" The Shaman put a firmer hand on him, telling the others more confidently. "Right now, we all need to remain calm. Keep all sound below a whisper. I'll send scouts out to check the tunnels... We'll go to the mountains. Contact the other tribes. Until we know what's happening... We just have to keep ourselves together." The man nodded, drawing strength from her, before going around the cave to whisper the news to the others.