Captured

A Healer's Hassle

Yellow~

I was woken up by a loud keening sound.

Startled, I sat up from the base of the tree I was leaning on, looking around the small clearing I had been trying to take a nap in. Chuchu jumped off of my lap and perked her ears up, alert, and let out a small whine.

"What is it, Chuchu?" I whispered. I gently touched her tail and her memories hijacked my vision.

A butterfree, in pain, she said, not in words but through images, disturbing flashes of a suffering pokemon, a little faded and distorted with time. I've heard that before.

"Let's go find it," I said, taking off in a determined run. 

I considered bringing out Dody, but I knew the large dodrio, although a faster way to get around, would be very intimidating to a smaller pokemon like butterfree. And I knew Kitty would be upset to hear one of his kind in such agony; flying was out of the question.

That was fine with me. The Viridian Forest was dark yet hot, sunshine streaming through only where the leaves allowed it. It was difficult to see, but this was my home, and I knew how to get through the stubborn undergrowth. I didn't mind running on my own two feet, here, in my own little world.

The screeching was getting louder. I'd never heard a more grating sound, which was at a pitch that made the hairs on my neck stand up. I put more urgency into my movements, increasing my speed from a run to a sprint. 

With Chuchu in the lead, using her keen ears as guidance, we finally found the source.

I gaped in horror at the sight before me, freezing in my tracks.

The butterfree lay screeching on the ground, unable to move. Its red eyes were wide with terror, and its wings were flat on either side of it, limp and lifeless.

Completely torn from its body.

"What happened?" I cried, finding the ability to move as I ran up to the butterfree. 

It didn't seem to trust me, an unfamiliar human, coming too close. It tried to snap at my hand, but was unable to reach. It was pinned on its back by its own weight, its stubby little legs useless without the balance of wings. Chuchu ran around us in circles, ears pinned back in distress.

The edges of the wings were ragged and torn, violently shredded by something I couldn't even begin to guess. I picked them up reverently and moved them to where they were touching the butterfree's body, knowing they would need to be connected for my healing to work.

I placed my hand on its forehead, as gently as I could despite its extreme agitation, and felt the power of the forest flow through me and into the mutilated pokemon. 

At the same time, I inquired into the butterfree's mind. It was more difficult than usual to communicate to a pokemon in such a state.

What happened?

The pictures that flashed through my brain were broken, laced with fear and panic. All I could see were shadows leaping out from behind the trees, silent and murderous. White-hot pain in the wings alongside paralyzing fear.

And a little clutch of caterpie, hidden under leaves.

I now understood the sense of urgency in her cries, behind the agony. 

Chuchu nudged my hand with her head, asking what she could do to help. I sent her a quick image of the butterfree's babies and a request. Find? 

I couldn't manage much more; I hadn't healed anything this far broken in a very long time.

The thought brought a flicker of a thought that almost broke my concentration, a memory from a long time ago. 

Red.

I jerked my thoughts away, something I had become pretty good at over the years, and focused more deeply on knitting the butterfree's wings back onto her body, scale by scale, molecule by molecule. Sweat beaded on my brow as I concentrated, channeling the mercy of the Viridian forest into the poor wounded pokemon.

By the time I was finished, several minutes later, my knees were shaking from the effort. 

I noticed that Chuchu had returned without my realizing it, holding three small caterpie on her back. I knelt down and helped the butterfree onto its feet, its newly reattached wings still weak and trembling at her sides. 

She ran as fast as she could to her children, wings barely kept above the ground. She nuzzled them with her little blue nose, and they squeaked at her with excitement and relief. I stood behind her, my hand gently propping her up for support.

Thank you, she thought, calmer now that she only had a little lingering pain, and now that her babies were safe. The rush of gratitude she impressed onto my mind was dizzying, and I smiled weakly.

Colorful spots swam in front of my eyes, and I realized more than just the rush of her memories was making me dizzy. All at once, I was aware that my strength was drained more than I'd ever experienced before; suddenly it was difficult to stand. The few steps I had taken were much more tiring than they should have been.

Maybe reattaching limbs is more than I can handle, I thought as I collapsed to my knees.

Chuchu placed a paw on my leg in concern, head tilted. The butterfree and caterpie looked on behind her, squeaking worriedly.

What's wrong? Chuchu asked. 

"I don't think-". The words were wading through sludge. Putting a coherent sentence together was proving to be very difficult.

I tried again. "I've never tried to heal... so much..." 

Sitting was unnecessarily hard. I slumped backwards a little, willing myself to stay up. I was breathing heavily, as if I had been running a race. 

Chuchu's ears suddenly perked up and she ran past me. I didn't turn my head to look, or couldn't.  I barely even registered the sound of voices behind me.

"Yellow? Hey, Yellow! What's going on?"

I laughed a little bit, delirious. I knew that voice. But I couldn't be hearing it now; my brain must have been hallucinating. The words echoed as my vision blurred.

"Are you okay? What happened to you?! Yellow! "

Without warning, I collapsed, my spinal column finally giving up on holding me upright. I never hit the ground; something supported me, intangibly warm, imperceptibly secure.

I hardly noticed this, however, as exhaustion grasped my consciousness and pulled me down into the depths of darkness.