Sojaveña Wilds Dusty Highway

[Butterfree]

Dave's entire body throbbed with numb agony on every beat of his heart, except for the bit that he couldn't feel at all. He already knew even if he managed to clamber to his feet he'd be able to hobble a couple of feet at best before collapsing again.

He did manage to see the beast dashing off after somebody else, though. The Deerling, Andre. A fucking Grass-type. It'd make short work of him too.

Blood-stained forms lay scattered in the faded grass. Silent.

Carefully, carefully, Dave reached for the pouch on his belt, agony blazing up at the strain. Open it with a shaking muzzle. Scarf down a Lum Berry, an Oran Berry, as discreetly as possible. Then just fucking play dead. Play dead and wait and the fucking cloud had better come through with fucking something or so help him God--

 

[Jackie Cat]

Sorry, I am so sorry... Please, just one more moment... Please...!

Fire began to bloom in the back of the creature's mouth. Andre could see it foam up at its lips, brimming with diseased aura.

The attack would kill him.

I have it!​

The charmeleon’s crazed expression wavered, and the fire winnowed to nothing. Its grip on Andre slipped, enough that he could tug his leg free. Then, finally, a cloud of rock and dust bludgeoned it in the side, and it screeched, shrill, into the rising desert winds. It hopped back from Andre, staggered. Pain flashed in its eyes as it stared in the direction the Rock Tomb had come – right at Jade. The demented frenzy gave way to a feral grimace, claws digging into its own scalp, drawing perversely dark blood.

Bolts of black energy razed the ground again, glazing the dirt with more menacing obsidian-haze glass. Amid the chaos, the witching beast bolted from the highway to the dy grass and dived into the earth. Plumes of darkness emanated from its tunnel for several seconds, then faded, leaving little trace.

The rampage had ended, as suddenly as it had begun.

 

[Tetra]

Andre's cries sounded far off. Had he run? Tried to lead the thing away or-? A blast of something; then a skittering shadow bolting into the night.

Silence.

Only the sound of crackling flames and the sound of his own breathing, stilted and heavy and yet... he was breathing. It hurt. Bad enough to make his thoughts swim, but if he was in pain that meant he wasn't dead. Did he... did he wish that he had died? Maybe he deserved it for saying this plan; if he'd just be a liability. The voice said they'd end up home, right? Was it over?

Voice.... Are you there? What... what happened?

Wearily, he forced his eyes open. He was lying on the ground, the brush still on fire and filling the air with smoke. Where were the others? "Ridley?" he wheezed. Could anyone hear him anyway? "Jade?" Dave? Wes? He started to try and get up and immediately regretted it, letting his head flop back on the ground.

Craning his neck, he could just make out a shadowy mass that might have been Ridley (please let him be okay, he was a ghost, right? He should be okay). One that he thought was Dave, lying still. No Andre, or Jade. Another shape, barely visible blur fur. His stomach lurched. Wes. That was a lot of red.

His words swam to the surface of Koa's murky thoughts.

“Kid…Koa.” He coughed, the smoke stinging his throat and lungs and making his head spin. “Get up. Go. Run.”

Did Wes think he was some kind of coward? That he would just leave everyone? "Wes..." he hissed. No response. He gulped. The motion hurt, but he tried to ignore it, and ignore the way his chest throbbed with each breath.

They had to move soon, to avoid the fire but a few more seconds wouldn't hurt...

 

[Jackie Cat]

I am here.

Oh, no. Oh, Wes – Koa – all of you. I am sorry. I am so sorry...

You are all alive. But hurt – badly hurt. Please hang on, help will arrive soon. I am so sorry, everyone.

Oh, how did this happen...? I promised I would always be with you in battle! But I was wrong! I could not wake to the battle, my connection disrupted by that shadow's presence...

I am here now, and the shadow is fleeing. Help is coming. Everything will be okay. You will be okay.

I am here.

The bonfire of the wagon continued to crackle into the night, even as the dry grass petered out.

Further off, the sharper-eared offworlders may have heard the sound of someone desperately sprinting towards them.

 

[Chibi Pika]

Jade lay there in a crumpled heap, arm still outstretched, sand clinging to her paw. Her vision swam, thoughts struggling as if through mud, but she could’ve sworn that she’d finally, finally landed a hit on the thing.

Not that it mattered. Any second now the beast would turn away from Andre and tear her to pieces and there wasn’t a thing she could do to stop it.

And yet… the moment didn’t come. The voice was speaking in her head now, as if everything were over somehow…

Her body wouldn’t respond, it was shivering too hard, still numbly processing the ungodly lightning that’d struck right next to her. Shallow breaths gradually slowed. Death hadn’t arrived.

 

[canisaries]

Fire began to bloom in the back of the creature's mouth. Andre could see it foam up at its lips, brimming with diseased aura.

The attack would kill him.

Emerging through the terror like a bubble through water was one stray thought.

Maybe I deserve this.

The charmeleon’s crazed expression wavered, and the fire winnowed to nothing. Its grip on Andre slipped, enough that he could tug his leg free. Then, finally, a cloud of rock and dust bludgeoned it in the side, and it screeched, shrill, into the rising desert winds. It hopped back from Andre, staggered. Pain flashed in its eyes as it stared in the direction the Rock Tomb had come – right at Jade. The demented frenzy gave way to a feral grimace, claws digging into its own scalp, drawing perversely dark blood.

Bolts of black energy razed the ground again, glazing the dirt with more menacing obsidian-haze glass. Amid the chaos, the witching beast bolted from the highway to the dy grass and dived into the earth. Plumes of darkness emanated from its tunnel for several seconds, then faded, leaving little trace.

Dig. It's another attack. Get up and run before the ground bursts open beneath you.

With a heavy grunt, Andre tried getting up. His leg screamed pain, and he couldn't put any weight on it. Somehow, he managed to get up with three of his limbs, and he began hobbling away, knowing well how it was too slow to matter.

Huh?

The Voice was talking. Talking as if it was... over. But it couldn't be, right? That charmeleon had the upper hand. Why wouldn't it stay, finish them off?

He looked back at the burrow in the ground. It had run away from them. Maybe... maybe it was hurt more badly than Andre thought. Enough to make it consider them not worth the effort.

Help is coming? In the middle of the desert? A Ranger? Or Las Picaras, out further from Blaguarro than the plan entailed? He supposed it didn't matter as long as they were friendly.

Adrenaline wearing off, Andre's legs turned to jelly. He collapsed. It was probably for the best. He shouldn't overexert himself right now, anyway. He should just wait for help to come.

He closed his eyes. The crackling of the burning wagon almost sounded calming.

 

[HelloYellow17]

I am here.

The words floated through the hazy darkness of Wes’s consciousness as he drifted. Distantly, he heard the crackling of flames and more words being spoken, but most of them were too far away to fully register.

Help is coming. Everything will be okay. You will be okay.

I am here.

Who was talking…? Rui…? He struggled against the blackness, fighting to resurface even as the pain returned in dull, throbbing waves…

His eyes fluttered open. Blurred, flickering lights and dancing shadows were all he could make out. And the smoke…

He coughed, and the sensation sent ripples of knife-like stabs throughout his entire body. His vision faltered, black spots dancing before his eyes, and all Wes could manage in response was a weak, ragged groan.

He closed his eyes and let himself drift again.

 

[Tetra]

I am here.

The sound of the Voice might as well have been Arceus himself speaking, Koa felt so relieved to hear it.

All alive. Koa exhaled shakily. He tried to focus on that, and not the pain in his chest or what Wes or Ridley or Jade looked like. Or on how easily they'd been defeated, and how close they had come...

... Shadow? The voice had called it 'the shadow'. He wanted to ask more, figure out what that Thing was. He could still those eyes in his mind. But he didn't want to think about any of that right now. He was too tired.

Wes groaned, and a spark of relief flickered in Koa. They would be okay. He managed to wrangle his foggy thoughts to direct them to the Voice. 'Thank you.'

At least they'd bounce back quickly, right? His chest still ached and burned, but it would heal, probably... In the distance, he could make out the sound of someone approaching. It's over. He wanted to go home.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Her vision swam, thoughts struggling as if through mud, but she could’ve sworn that she’d finally, finally landed a hit on the thing.

Jade's Assist called Rock Tomb! Her attack dealt ?̸̤̐̽?̴̼̮̭̬͍͙́̒̄̒̓̌?̴̫̰̮͈̊̍̏̚ to Shadow Charmeleon! It's super-effective!

Help is coming?

Yes. There is an allied soul rapidly approaching your location. More are following.

Please hang on a little longer, Andre...

Rui…?

I have never been called Rui before.

It is a nice name. I like the way you say it.

...But I am sure you must be thinking of someone else. I am sorry they are not here.

It is only me, Wes.

... Shadow?

A darkened soul. Closed off to other souls. Universally hostile, especially to souls that still have their own light.

It was... painful for me to make contact.

'Thank you.'

I am so relieved that you survived, Koa. Please hang on until help arrives.

I am still here...

The rapid footsteps and heavy breathing grew louder, closer.

"Angels!? Are you—?" —panting, gasping— "Are you okay??"

Sonora skidded to a halt next to the first injured offworlder she found, and knelt down with a winded grunt.

"I came as— fuck... —as fast as I could. The crew are comin' too. Who's hurt most bad? I got... I got berries. I got berries. And escape orbs."

She looked around the flame-lit patch of highway, then coughed into her elbow with a pained wheeze.

"Y'all better be alive," she muttered, with what sounded like forced bravado.

 

[Namohysip]

As Sonora sorted through her bag, she noticed that at some point during her trek, her supplies had gotten noticeably heavier. It was hard to tell why at first, until she did a mental recall of what she'd brought. She had several extra healing berries...

 

[Tetra]

Koa would have laughed if it didn't hurt so bad. He never would have expected to be so happy to see an outlaw. Former outlaw.

"I came as— fuck... —as fast as I could. The crew are comin' too. Who's hurt most bad?

Koa could still hear Wes's pained cry in his mind as the Thing tore into the Rockruff. "Help him," he mumbled, nodding to Wes's limp form.

"And Ridley. The mimikyu."

 

[Butterfree]

Where Dave lay motionless, he heard some kind of unholy bone-chilling screech that made every Poochyena instinct scream at him to just bolt, glimpses of eerie black lightning in his peripheral vision. Fuck. What the fuck.

He stayed still, paralyzed, heart hammering. The noise had stopped.

I am here.

Oh, no. Oh, Wes – Koa – all of you. I am sorry. I am so sorry...

You are all alive. But hurt – badly hurt. Please hang on, help will arrive soon. I am so sorry, everyone.

So everyone was alive. Well, 'everyone'. He wasn't sure that extended to the fucking Rattata.

He took a deep breath, willing his muscles to relax, and heaved himself to his feet. The berries had warded off the worst of it, but his legs were still shaking like a motherfucker, his shoulder and side numb, fur matted and singed. He wobbled as he tried to walk and then lost his balance and fell into the grass.

"Everyone... Everyone okay?" asked. He tried to push himself up again but couldn't get his feet under him. "Still got berries over here. Fuck."

And then there was Sonora. Running up like she'd run a fucking marathon, calling them angels.

"I'm fine," he muttered.

 

[HelloYellow17]

It is only me, Wes.

Pain didn’t allow Wes to stay submerged in unconsciousness for very long. He surfaced again, every breath like fire under his skin, and he found himself clinging to the voice. He couldn’t be sure who it was…perhaps it was…the voice? Or…someone else…? His thoughts were too muddled, eyes too weak to open.

Whoever they were, he was simply glad that he wasn’t alone. Thank…you.

"I came as— fuck... —as fast as I could. The crew are comin' too. Who's hurt most bad? I got... I got berries. I got berries. And escape orbs."

Another voice, much louder and more jarring that the first Wes finally opened his eyes with a grimace and saw a vaguely familiar green silhouette…the bandit girl?

He coughed again, nearly passing out from the flare of agony along his side. “Help…help the kid,” he murmured. “Th’ Lectrike.”

Then he heard a raspy voice close by, one belonging to the Electrike in question, and Wes felt a rush of relief. Oh, gods. Thank the stars. He was alive. Maybe not okay, but alive.

He allowed himself to relax with a pained sigh. Help was here, and judging from the voices, most of his companions were still breathing (hopefully all of them, but he couldn’t be too sure.)

“Scorchin’ hell,” he croaked, too relieved to sound annoyed. “Knew this was a bad idea.”

 

[Butterfree]

(Wes was calling the Electrike a kid. That fucking checked out, didn't it. Why in God's name had he been brought along? Terrible fucking idea, all of this.)

 

[Jackie Cat]

Thank…you.

I just wish I could have done more, and acted sooner. I am sorry, Wes.

"I'm fine," (lie)

Sonora scoffed. "Yeah, and you look it, too."

"Help him. And Ridley. The mimikyu."

“Help…help the kid. Th’ Lectrike.”

"Saints, you guys both look like shit," said the Floragato, with a sympathetic, wincing hiss. "I gotta see if the, uh, 'Mimikyu'? Is even alive. Looks like a Ghost. Who fuckin' knows with those critters."

She had several extra healing berries...

She peered at the berry pouches at her belt, swollen with extra sitrus she certainly didn't pack, and couldn't have afforded in the first place.

"Looks like I've got enough fer everyone, somehow. Lucky none of this stuff fell out..."

Sonora carefully (but hurriedly) handed a sitrus berry to each of the dogs (why were dogs half of this party, anyway?), before kneeling next to Ridley and tentatively reaching for, but not quite touching, his fabric. You never knew, with Ghosts.

"If you're alive, bud, I aim to keep it that way," she muttered, reaching for another berry.

 

[Tetra]

Koa heaved himself half upright and wolfed down the berry in a few bites. A shaky sigh escaped him as the sharp pain in his chest subsided to a throbbing ache. Had he broken his ribs? The berries weren't instant but he could feel scraps of his strength returning. At least he could breathe a little easier now, and think straighter. "Thanks," he mumbled wearily.

Dave, who looked charred, Jade... Wes... Sonora was standing over Ridley which just left... "The Deerling. There was a deerling, Andre." He vaguely recalled Andre... fleeing? Anger flickered through him, but he was too weary to think about that for now. Instead he settled for lying still and letting the berry work.

 

[Hap]

...they'd survived.

The relief was overwhelming.

"If you're alive, bud, I aim to keep it that way," she muttered, reaching for another berry.

"I think being dead would hurt less," Ridley mumbled, and tried not to burst out into hysterical laughter at his own shitty joke. He felt giddy with the sheer exhilaration of his own survival, but moving his body like that still hurt.

He obediently ate the berry Sonora handed to him. The pain, incredibly, began to ebb away. Still present, but Ridley now felt like a person again, instead of an agonised sack of nerve endings. He could feel his strength returning, and with that came the discovery that his limbs were shaky and weak from the aftershocks of adrenaline.

"What was that thing?" he muttered. Ridley wasn't sure whether he was more horrified or delighted by the question.

 

[Jackie Cat]

"I'll find the Deerling," said Sonora, shielding her mouth from the lingering smog. "I think I see him."

"What was that thing?

It was a shadow pokémon. When a pokémon has its heart closed to others, it becomes... like that.

When I looked at it, I felt... sick.

I feared that touching it would somehow make me like it, too.

More footsteps heralded the arrival of the rest of Las Picaras. First Vago, then Sera, Rillo... the pepper family brought up the rear.

Vago looked around, studying the sight of the attack. Their gaze seemed to linger on the dark mass that had been Rattata.

"Not great," muttered the Grafaiai, succinctly.

 

[Chibi Pika]

The aftermath of it all passed by in a dull haze. First footsteps hurrying toward them, then a flurry of concerned questions before healing items were passed out. It felt like the whole thing had lasted seconds and also hours at the same time. And it occurred to Jade, only now that the panic had begun to die down, that there had been plan to have the bandits following the wagon, but... in the heat of the moment, it'd been impossible to think about anything other run, distract, disrupt, get away. She wouldn't have even expected them to have been following close enough to make in time to help. Maybe it was better that they hadn't. At least this way they could help get everyone back to town.

Jade accepted the berries with a low murmur that hopefully sounded like "thanks" as relief flooded her system with each bite. She had no idea had bad the burns were. They already felt impossibly better. Not like what'd happened to her as a human, the kind of thing that just plain wouldn't have healed at all if it hadn't been for unexplained chosen weirdness.

So it'd heal, and that was that. If there wasn't any lasting damage, then it wasn't wasn't worth thinking too hard about.

That's what she tried to tell herself, anyway.

 

[Butterfree]

It was a shadow pokémon. When a pokémon has its heart closed to others, it becomes... like that.

When I looked at it, I felt... sick.

I feared that touching it would somehow make me like it, too.

So in other words... It was the thing from the fucking TV show. Only he was pretty sure the show hadn't made it infectious.

Well, he thought pointedly in the general direction of the voice, the thing bit me if you hadn't noticed, so if it's actually some kind of werewolf thing that's pretty fucking relevant. Is this 'fear' just some vague conjecture that flew into your head or something that actually happens?

Then again, there was also someone else here who might know a thing or two about what was going on here. "Hey, Wes," he said. "Does this sound like what was going on in your world, by any chance?"

Las Picaras were looking at the dark lump that was Rattata. Not great? Were they implying Rattata wasn't dead? He squinted cautiously in that direction.