Searching Without Shame (A Pokémon Fanfiction)

Chapter 6

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

~Psalms 23:4

*~*~*

Sky Blue's breath came in short painful gasps as he ran through the black twisted trees. He kept using what was left of his aura to sense for life forms besides himself. Of course the only true life form in this never ending nightmare was Blood Red.

Once he felt somewhat safe, Sky skidded to a stop and collapsed on the muddy ground, trying to regain his breath. He had never felt so restless in his life. He had been in this nightmare for countless nights. Ever since he gave up control to Blood Red, he had been locked inside his own head, living in the shadows like his counterpart.

Not only was did he lose control of his body, but he lost all his "strength", resulting in his appearance being reserved. Sky was now the equivalent of his nine to ten year old self, both appearance and voice.

Blood Red, however, seemed to absorb his strength. Blood Red never showed his true appearance, but he wasn't human. He was a monster; a scavenger, something inhuman. While Sky was a tired little boy, Blood was a strong and ruthless creature.

Sky jumped as the wind blew through the trees around him, causing the branches the creak eerily. He shivered and retreated into the notting tree roots behind him. He curled up among the decaying roots, hoping that Blood Red wouldn't come for him. He just wanted to finally retrieve the unattainable rest he longed for, even for a few minutes.

I brought this upon myself, though, Sky thought bitterly and angrily while pressing his hands against his eyes. I was scared and I made a deal with the devil instead...how could I have been so stupid?

However he already knew the answer; greed. Plain and simple. He needed- no, he wanted power. He wanted to finally stand up and fight for himself and others, to show people what he was really capable of. He wanted people to know that they couldn't push him without being bit.

But now he had nothing. He wasn't even controlling his own body. It was in the hands of a darker aspect of himself that wouldn't hesitate to kill someone. So where was he now? He couldn't see or hear of the things in reality, only Blood Red could interact with people there. He could only imagine what was happening, and none of it was good. He could be wandering the wild, restrained, or worse; killing.

Don't think like that now! The now young boy thought to himself harshly. Just go to sleep or whatever, we can worry about that when we take down Blood Red! It'll be no good facing him like this!

Sky's worries didn't fully silence, however. He didn't know if he actually fell asleep, or his dreads turned into nightmares. He knew nightmares or not, his fears were lurking in the corners of his consciousness. Corpses of familiar faces littered the ground he walked, blood smeared on his hands, dark black, blue, and red aura dancing around him. Power and frightening satisfaction ran through his veins as a bloodcurdling howl erupted from nowhere.

"NO!"

The boy jerked to reality with a yell and bolted up right. He gave a startled gasp as he realized he wasn't alone. For one heart stopping moment, Sky thought the creature was Blood Red, but he realized it didn't have the same frightening appearance. A huge Pyroar towered over him, it's fiery mane blowing in the breeze. The Pyroar was almost blinding to look at. Sky Blue had not seen anything so colorful in forever.

"Calm yourself, my child," the Pyroar told Sky reassuringly in a low voice while placing its large paw on his shoulder. "There is no need to be afraid. I will not hurt you."