Hasent and the Fire of Tecnicone | A Pokemon Fanfiction (Old Version)

Chapter 16: Be a Hero

The clouds in the heavens opened up and doused the city with an unwanted downpour.

Clemont shivered and wiped his hair out of his eyes. He craned his neck to gaze up at the looming sight of the Tower of Mastery and unconsciously gripped Luxray's mane tighter. Ash and the others must have already found a way inside, he reasoned. Which was only logical, since they had quite a large head-start on him. Now we have to get in as well. He scanned the building for a source of entry. Knowing Ash; he, Serena, and Elizabeth had just used one of Ash's flying-type Pokemon to slip in through a window. Clemont wasn't so lucky. All he had were three earth-bound Pokemon, two of which were exhausted and the third who was currently keeping him from falling on his face. He knew he was in serious trouble, but he knew that the others could be in danger and might need his help.

"Well," Clemont thought aloud to Luxray. "This is it. How are going to get in might be a bit tricky, but at least we're here."

"Lux!" the Pokemon agreed, searching the clearing with its X-ray vision. "Lux. Luxray!"

"See anything?" the blond trainer questioned, patting its mane in a calming manner, though who he was calming, he wasn't sure.

"Lux? Lux--ray." It shook its head furiously and trudged forward. The door was locked tightly. That wasn't what Clemont was worried about. He was more worried about what was waiting for them inside, but it did pose a question that stumped him. If the door was locked, how did the others get in? There were no visible windows open in the tower. Which meant...

"Are you sure?" he questioned. "There's no one behind the door?"

"Lux!" And just to prove its point, it lunged forward with Clemont yelping as he desperately clung to his neck, and used Thunderfang. The door splintered and a thick fog rolled out. Clemont threw an arm over his mouth and nose, just in case it was a Smokescreen or Smog. Both could be harmful to a human being if too much was inhaled. He coughed at the foul smell. It wasn't a Pokemon move but it did have a familiar smell, one that triggered an avalanche of memories.

"Clemont!"

A voice was screaming. Screaming for him. The world melted around him and he was thrown violently into darkness. Smoke. I can smell smoke! What's happening? Is something on fire? Where am I? Bonnie? BONNIE!

He turned a complete circle, feeling like the room was closing in on him.

"No! No! Get away from him! Get away!"

There was a snarl, a howl, and everything was engulfed in flames.

"RAY! LUX--RAY!"

The memory faded and he blinked a couple of times, trying to hone into his present surroundings. "Yeah," he said, pushing the images out of his mind. "Yeah, I'm all right now. Let's go." Gritting his teeth, he swung off of Luxray's back and, standing unbalanced on one leg, began hobbling toward the entrance. Most of the smoke had faded by now, leaving only the faint smell clinging to the air. The inside of the building was dark and still. It frightened him to see it so deserted. It reminded him too much of the Scary House. Be brave, he told himself. You've got to be brave.

"This way," he spoke into the blackness. Luxray followed his lead as they moved toward the stairs where Korrina loved to make her roller-blade entrance. The only logical place for Takito to hide was in plain sight and the battlefield was the largest room in the entire tower. "Maybe we can sneak into the battlefield from behind. We don't want to let Takito know we're here."

"Lux." The Pokemon nodded in agreement.

Lightning flashed outside the window as they passed, casting shadows across the floor which in turn made Clemont's heart race. The direness of the situation was finally beginning to settle in. He hadn't realized until now how important it was to him to save everyone. He knew he couldn't fail. Not now.