♠Chapter 5: The Deadwood, Part 2
As the trio ventured deeper into the forest, they noticed that just above the skies where you could peek out through the canopy of the forest, you could see the setting sun. Night was about to fall, as the forest area in itself became more full of shadows and a mysterious darkness.
A misty fog had somehow manifested itself into the forest, clouding Saith's vision of his two teammates, and as he breathed in the mysterious fog he felt chilled to the bone, on the verge of shuttering as he ran. Slowly but steadily, his pace had decreased from the start, while Jake and Serena pushed on as if they had ran many miles before.
"How long do we have to go? It won't help much if we run into them while we're out of energy!" Saith tried muttering with the little breath he had left, but Jake and Serena still ran without a reply, as if his words had fallen on deaf ears. Saith tried to give himself one last burst of energy to catch up with them to get their attention, his legs ached in pain, and his cheeks flushed a rosy red as he yelled with every fiber of his being "Guys!" but in his burst he felt something pull at his left leg, causing him to tumble down onto the ground.
"Jake! Serena!" He yelled as he watched them run away and disappear into the mist. He looked around cautiously, expecting to find the perpetrator who pulled at his leg; there was nothing but the mist. Which still caused him to shake uncontrollably, and his skin to be as frigid as ice on a cold winter's night. Fear crept up on him, but he refused to sit still and become a victim for whatever was waiting in the mist, whether it be the Gale Knights or a mischevious pokemon. He tried standing, but his ankle was sprained and it hurt to simply move. He had no choice in the matter though, he had to continue on. Not just for his sake, but for the mythical creature that resided in his possession.
Mysterious eyes peered at him through the forest, which sent additional chills and shivers down his spine, but he slowly trudged on. "I just have to meet them at that abandoned house, if I can find it on my own.." Saith whispered to no one in particular, but himself; a attempt to calm his nerves, and somehow dispell the unshakable fear rooted in him, and the frost that froze those roots still. They had spent their time trying to head toward the setting sun, but now all that lay before them was a forest of darkness.
The trees themselves gave off the aroma of rotting wood, it reeked of death and it made Saith want to turn up his nose at the scent, but the aroma permeated throughout the forest; like the mist, it was inescapable. And beyond the mist hidden by the trees, a screaming wail and cry could be heard, snickers and laughter coming closer as Saith walked on constantly looking behind his shoulder.
"I've had enough! Show yourself!" Saith yelled at whatever was in the mist. A snicker emerged from the bush as the black and red fox jumped out of it, revealing himself to be the Zorua Saith had caught earlier that day. Saith's scared disposition, had turned into an embarassed smile as he looked at the fox, laughing and snickering at him.
"I guess I was losing it for a second there, sorry, Zorua." Saith whispered with a happy and relieved tone in his voice, to which the Zorua immediately came over to Saith's leg and nuzzled it. One thing was still on Saith's mind, how had the mist appeared? And that mysterious wailing and crying, where did it come from? And more importantly, who or what caused it? "You should get in your pokeball, before I lose track of you again," Saith murmured as he took out Zorua's pokeball, as a pokemon cloaked in white, ice bursting out of its head resembling horns, and crystal blue eyes that stared intently at its prey had faded into sight, as the cold air grewer colder and the mysterious pokemon neared Saith from his south, floating silently toward him.
As Saith attempted to put Zorua back into his pokeball the red beam of light from the ball took its aim, but Zorua immediately dodged it and leaped up into the air landing on Saith's blonde hair, as Saith stumbled back from the leap and Zorua launched a Shadowy ball at the mysterious pokemon at Saith's back. The targeted pokemon immediately fell onto the ground, the attack having taken advantage of its weakness. Zorua leaped off of its trainer and fell on the ground with a perfect landing, to take a closer look at the assailant, while Saith had fallen on the ground once again in light of Zorua's leaps.
"Zorua, What were you thinking!?" Saith mumbled as he looked to the Zorua and the hurt pokemon that lay before it. "Oh, so you were...protecting me?" Saith murmured quietly, and Zorua turned his head and snickered at his trainer.
"Hey! You completely left me in the dark, okay. I could've helped you battle. I am your trainer!" Saith argued, but hidden eyes peered at the two through the forest, and Zorua looked around at the area again, those eyes were observing the two carefully. Saith was a target, but he was thought an easy target, a wandering defenseless person who would get lost in the woods, and never return. Zorua had known this forest and its inhabitants, and carefully hidden himself and his might, but in protecting his trainer he drew more attention than he wanted, and all of those concealed eyes, were watching them.
Zorua's tail shook in fright and it started to shiver nervously, while he struggled to keep his smirk. "Zorua.." Saith looked at Zorua and tried walking toward him, as he looked at the forest areas and suddenly the hidden eyes were clear to him. He could feel the presence of those mysterious pokemon hiding in the shadows. "Zorua.. we can't be afraid," Saith murmured. Zorua tried straightening up, but its legs and tail began to shake uncontrollably, and it broke into a run to flee from the pokemon, as some of the wandering eyes had revealed themselves to be ghost pokemon, coming out of hiding and surrounding Saith in a circle while others had split up to chase Zorua through the haunted forest.
"Zorua!" Saith yelled as he ignored the ghost pokemon and started chasing Zorua through the forest as the ghosts followed behind him. With every step, he could feel his sprained ankle hurting; eventually, he wouldn't be able to run and he would fall once more, but he ran regardless as those thoughts ran through his head. The chances of him escaping the ghosts, getting to Zorua before the ghosts get to him, finding his friends he had lost in the forest.. The odds were against him, but the odds were also behind him.
He followed the trail of footsteps, and as he ventured through the forests, he drew the attention of more ghosts. The aroma of the rotting wood got stronger as he went deeper into the forest, into the heart of the Deadwood.
♥
Saith had finally reached a clearing, and among that clearing were ten ghosts surrounding Zorua in a circle, but his paws looked bruised, and it seemed the pokemon had no choice but to face the ones chasing him. "You're not alone, Zorua!" Saith yelled, but he hadn't the power to stand, so he fell to his knees and looked on at his pokemon among the horde. The ghost pokemon following Saith had all arrived, and blocked off the exits. Ten in front of Zorua, and ten behind Saith. Zorua's tail started shaking, neither of them were capable of running and escaping, they had no choice but to stand and fight.
Saith sighed, as the pokeball inside his pocket began to shake uncontrollably. "A pokemon that always brings victory.." Saith recited from the pokedex entry, he had forgotten about Victini, the trump card that was waiting to be played. He quickly took out the pokeball and threw it into the air as Victini was unleashed, and appeared in the sky with a mystical flash from the pokeball; floating in the air and looking down at the situation from below.
The ghost pokemon all looked at Victini starstruck as Victini landed onto the ground. Victini closed his eyes as his body was enveloped by a mysterious blue aura that communicated with the other pokemon. It had calmed them and they were no longer readying themselves to attack Saith and Zorua. Victini opened his eyes and flew over to Saith.
"I don't understand Victini... what did you do?" Saith asked confused and dizzy from the whole situation. The aura surrounded Victini once again, but now Victini was communicating to Saith.
"Hello! You hear me, right?" A mysterious voice echoed in Saith's mind as Victini talked.
"I-I do!" Saith stuttered, hopelessly trying to understand the situation.
"These ghost pokemon were trying to scare you away, not harm you. This is their home, and they thought you were with the people trying to clear away the forest, and take their home away from them!" Victini's voice echoed through Saith's mind.
"Really?" Saith pondered in thought. "I guess the rotting wood and everything would appeal to a ghost pokemon," Saith let out an embarassed laugh.
"That's not it!" Victini said. "This place is special, because ghost pokemon reunite with trainers who have passed away here.. home is not a place, but people." The voice had gotten softer in Saith's head, as Saith himself looked around at the ghost pokemon with a new perspective than the fear and fright and the rumors that they lurk in the night.
"I get it now," Saith said as he tried standing up again, but his sprained ankle made him fall down and gasp in pain. Victini noticed his hurt trainer and flew over to his ankle and touched it, as energy was transmitted from Victini to Saith which healed the sprain. Saith stared in wonder at Victini, and how he had solved the situation singlehandedly.
"You really are my Trump Card," Saith said with a smile.
"Sometimes, you can win a battle without fighting." Victini reasoned as he stopped for a moment to communicate with the ghosts, and after a minute of talking, Victini took into the air with his wings and started flying all around Saith with urgency. "Saith, you have to get to your friends!" Victini's voice echoed again.
"Right! We're supposed to meet up at that abandoned house!" Saith recalled as he remembered why they went into the Deadwood Forest in the first place.
"It's more than that! The ghosts were watching all three of you! And when you fell behind, some of them split up to scare you, while others split up to follow those two!" Victini's telepathic voice grew louder.
Saith's eyes widened. "They're only going to scare them, right?" Saith asked softly, his heart beating with worry.
"That's their intention, but you never know what happens at night.." Victini's voice softly whispered in Saith's head accompanied by fear and worry. Saith and Zorua stood up, ready to go after their friends.
"We have no choice, then!" Saith called out with a stern voice. "We have to find our friends, before night finds them."
To be continued..
