Pokemon Max: Final Showdown

Ch. 67 A Curse and a Gift Finale

Ch. 67 A Curse and a Gift Part 7

As Jacob used his Aura Tracker to find them, we reached the heights of the mountain. As we nearly reached the top, Jacob halted me. "We're here."

I looked out around us. "Wow..." I said as I stared at the vast expanse of white, windy nothingness, "This is really underwhelming."

"First time up on a mountain?"

"Oh yeah. Thought it'd be prettier."

"It certainly isn't one of the best."

I nodded. "So what now? Where is it, exactly?"

He frowned. "Hmm..." Then, after a few seconds, he thrust a hand into the snow, releasing a burst of energy into the ground. The surface crumbled on impact, and below us was a metal tunnel leading into the belly of the mountain.

"Oh yeah. We're definitely here."

We dropped down and began making our way through the cold, steely path. Soon, though, it began to become noticeably warmer. After a while, we ditched our heavy gear and continued on in the clothes we had been wearing at the bottom. After a while, Jacob looked back at me.

"Your hair's going back to normal."

"Cool." I looked into reflective metal surface to see it myself.

"Except that." He pointed to a certain part off to the side of my head, which was still as white as ever.

"Weird." I shrugged.

Soon after we continued, we reached a corner, behind which was a door with two guards. Jacob began speaking through aura. "How good are you at misdirection?"

He blasted an Aura Sphere past the corner. I focused, managing to grab and significantly slow the attack. Jacob leaped out, and, using a Bone Rush, deflected it towards the door. I could feel the burst of the impact through the ground.

We went to the door, and Jacob lifted a guard to the scanner. After a brief flashing light, the door began to open. He dropped the guard and we snuck in.

-Meanwhile-

Andrea dropped to the ground just outside of their cell.

"Whew...I need...a minute."

Taylor lifted her up to rest on her shoulders. "No can do. No time, we have to get out of here. The two struggled down the hallway. Soon, they reached an opening. Taylor pressed up against a wall. Looking in, they could see a vast lava filled cave. There were people walking around, doing strange studies on various parts of the volcano. Devices were set up in various locations, but the area was fairly quiet apart from the general rumble of the volcano.

"That is not good." Andrea grunted.

"Yeah...I think I got an idea. Stay back here."

"I...I think I see something-"

Andrea was suddenly thrown back. Taylor spun around only to receive a punch in the face. She stabilized, blinking as her vision cleared. It was an ordinary looking guy in a hoodie that he wore to cover most of his body. He threw another punch, which Taylor ducked under before kicking him in the gut. He stumbled back before charging forward, slamming her into a wall. She dropped limply to the ground.

He then turned around, ducking to avoid an attack from Andrea. He slammed a fist into her gut, disabling her instantaneously. He walked over to Taylor, picking her up by the neck, and thrusting her into the wall.

"What?" Taylor grunted from the impact. "What do you want me to say if you won't talk to me?"

He threw her into the ceiling, before grabbing her again and throwing her onto the ground.