Beyond the Adventure - A Pokémon Story

Chapter 16: Cataclysm pt2

                I open my eyes and feel something soft and billowy beneath me.  I look and see myself laying on a cloud.  How is this possible? I think.  Am I… dead?  Just then, I see Darius and Jess looking down at me.

                “You okay?” Darius asks.  He extends his hand and I take it.  He pulls me to my feet.  When my feet touch solid ground, I look back at what I was laying on.  I see a blue bird-like Pokémon wrapped in fluffy white plumage, giving it the appearance of being wrapped in a cloud.  It cries out cheerfully.  I stroke its head.

                “Thanks,” I say.  “You saved me.”  I look back at Darius.  “I saw you both fall as well.  How did you two survive?”

                Jess smirks.  “It’s going to take more than that to take out Articuno,” she says boastfully.  “She swooped down and snatched us both out of the air.”

                Darius nods.  “Unfortunately, Talonflame is down for the count,” he says.  “We’ll need to hit the Pokémon Center.  That thing is insanely strong.”

                I look around frantically, but I do not see Skarmory.  I panic.  “Where is he??” I ask.  Darius pulls out a camouflage ball, and I recognize it as Skarmory’s.  I hastily take it.  “Is he okay?”

                Darius nods.  “He’s been roughed up, but he should be fine,” Darius says.  He rubs his neck.  “That was REALLY stupid.  Next time, let’s not ride our Pokémon while we fight.”

                “Agreed,” I say.

                A woman approaches us, dressed in a winged hat and a blue and white jumpsuit.  She takes a bow.  “I am Winona, leader of the Fortree Gym,” she says.  “Thank you for coming to my aid.”

                “Thank you for saving me,” I say.  “Who knows how badly I’d have been injured had your Pokémon not caught me.”

                “So what do you know about that bizarre creature?” Winona asks.

                “What makes you think we would know anything about that?” Darius asks.

                “You joined the fight without hesitation,” she says.  “I would say you three were hunting for it.”

                I nod.  “You’re quite perceptive,” I remark.  “Yes, we are hunting it.  It is the result of an unfortunate experiment conducted at the Space Center.  It… it murdered a lot of people.”

                “I see,” Winona says.  She starts stroking her Pokémon’s fluffy plumage.  “Well, I am grateful you showed up when you did.  Had you not, I might have suffered the same fate.  Despite my gym leader status, I was no match for that creature.”

                “What was it doing here?” I ask.  “Is anyone hurt?”

                “Thankfully, no,” she says, “but it did smash through one of the homes.  I don’t know why, though.”

                I look at my friends.  “Let’s check it out.”

                Winona jumps onto her blue Pokémon.  “Let’s go, Altaria,” she says, pointing upward.  Altaria floats up into the air to the top of the tree and lands on the bridge.

                I scratch my head.  “Ugh… I guess we’re climbing,” I say, grabbing a rung on the ladder.

                “Says you!” Jess laughs, releasing her Articuno.  She jumps on.