Chapter 11: Crucial Companions

“Where did you go child, huh! Can’t wait to beat you within an inch of your life!”

Ceailean hid from his adversary, having evaded his pursuer for now. From behind a mossy rock, he could hear the steps Jragon was making wandering around.

“Come on now! I just want a friendly chat! Water Pulse!” Dragalge formed a ball of water and launched into a tree, creating a large explosion of steam that caused all nearby wild Pokémon to flee. Ceailean was calculating what move he could make, but nothing came to mind. What could he do? They came alone, and no one seemed to be showing up anytime soon. Having no Pokémon of his own certainly didn’t help either. Unfortunately, he knew his only chance was to commission the help of the stolen Pokémon back in the abandoned town. Knowing this, he got ready to move when another attack hit the rock he was hiding behind and startled him. The rock melted before him as toxic fumes poured out of the dissolving matter. “Found you!”

Ceailean booked it, Jragon and Dragalge close behind. He ran as he evaded attacks left and right, the environment left destroyed behind them. Jragon got too aggressive and shot down a set of large trees in an attempt to stop Ceailean in his tracks. He was quick to react, sliding under them to instead get away. He continued to run and eventually found himself in the abandoned town again. Hearing Jragon shouting through the forest, he decided to make himself scarce by going inside a building.

Dust filled the air and light was hardly able to enter the interior through the rotting cracks. Sneaking around caused the floor to creak as he made his way to the front to view the truck. He peeked through the boarded up windows and saw that the truck's door was open and Boug sat inside, doing what seemed like playing games on a phone. He waited in hopes that he would eventually get bored and move on, but to no avail. A distant explosion large enough to cause dust to fall from the ceiling reminded Ceailean that he can’t wait forever, assuming Marie’s battle wasn’t going well. He decided to search the building for something he could use. Hastily opening drawers and cabinets netted him a couple of similarly sized wrenches and most surprisingly, a pokéball.

He found it in the back corner of a drawer and it looked as if it had been there forever. In hopes that something would happen, he pressed the button of the pokéball. When it opened, nothing came out. “Of course.” he muttered to himself, bagging everything gathered. Everything else he found were useless towels and empty bottles. Looking outside to the truck again, he hyped himself up and opened the front door. It was imperative that he release the Pokémon order to even stand a lick of a chance against the thugs. Taking light steps ensured that the dirt below him wouldn’t crunch as he approached. Boug was absorbed into his mobile game, playing it at full volume which made infiltration easier. Having reached the back of the truck successfully, he tried to climb into the back, only to be interrupted by an incoming water pulse. It hit hard, causing Ceailean to fall to the ground and the truck's airbags to go off.

Jragon appeared and said, “I got you now! Ain't no getting away this time!”

Boug sighed frustratingly as he exited the truck and shouted, “Alright then, is that how it is.”

“No not you, ya dingus! This little piece of trash!”

Boug walked around and saw Ceailean, confused on why he was there. Ceailean leapt to his feet and backed away from the two. They botched closed in slowly as Boug said, “Well well well, aren't you an unfortunate one.”

“This child had been sneaking up on us, almost as if he intended to ruin our plans.”

“Jragon, that’s unrealistic. How in sam hell do you honestly think he could in any way, shape, or form, stop us by himself.”

“UGH! I was gonna get to that, but then you had to go and ruin it! How am I gonna instill fear into the child's heart if you just address the issue to him all meagerly?”

“It doesn’t matter! Just get the job done!”

“It may not matter to you, but I’m gonna make sure people take us seriously! Everyone should look to as a threat and-”

“He’s already getting away.” pointed out Boug. Ceailean had already halfway down the road. Boug gave Jragon an annoyed look and said, “Yanmega, give a signal beam down range!” Yanmega, who had been resting atop the truck, sprung to life and shot a pink beam towards Ceailean.

“Dragalge, water gun!” Dragalge shot water from its mouth and did the same.

Both attacks missed and kicked dust up high. Multiple attacks soon followed and eventually, one hit close enough to send Ceailean smashing through the wooden rails of a nearby building. His vision became blurry because of the pain, but still seeing two silhouettes approach made him scared.

“Face it, you were never going to get away from us.” said Boug.

“Know your place child! Let this be a lesson for you in the next life.” said Jragon.

Two blurred lights shined in front of Ceailean as Yanmega and Dragalge charged their attacks. He tried to move, but his shoulder was hurting bad and didn't have enough time to. It was then a distant voice yelled, “Heavy slam!” Boug and Jragon looked to their side to see Yanmega get slammed by a steel beam straight into Dragalge. Gurdurr stood before them, staring them down seriously.

“What is going on here!” said a voice, slowly and angrily. Ceailean’s sight finally focused and down the street stood Crisis, arms crossed and standing imposingly alongside Gurdurr.

“Another one? Just how many people have you lead here Boug!” argued Jragon.

“Do you wanna have a go at it, it isn’t as easy as it seems!” he yelled back.

They started a long quarrel of arguing and insults that it made it seem they had forgotten about the situation they were in. Ceailean finally was able to pull himself up and attempted to sneak off. Crisis however, was growing more angry and impatient. With every insult Boug and Jragon threw at each other, the more the anger built up inside him, until he finally snapped.

“ENOUGH!” shouted Crisis at the top of his lungs. This was able to gain the attention of the two criminals and Ceailean while he was in the middle of the road, stopping dead in his tracks. “I can’t believe it! To think, the universe had wasted its energy to create the likes of you! Even on the same side, you find ways to create conflict!”

“Waste of energy? I’m gonna waste you if you keep flapping your mouth like that!” threatened Jragon in a somewhat brutish way.

“No, I think you had enough! I’m going to be the one to put this guy in the ground!” asserted Boug.

“Like hell! I called it first, so I'm goin first!”

Crisis sighed and began to monologue, “Such a shame that beings naturally create conflict. What I see before me is what I strive to eliminate and destroy. We as organic entities are not able to progress at our highest efficiency due to the mere presence of conflict. It is my job to see that it is suppressed to the best of my ability!”

“I’m not even gettin a thing he’s sayin. You able to understand what he said?” asked Jragon.

Boug sighed, “It just means-”

“It means you contribute nothing towards society as a whole!” shouted Crisis. He threw out an extra pokéball and a Galarian Farfetch’d came out poised for battle. “My name is Crisis! And it is my duty as the third admin of Team Harmonious to halt your actions here!”

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Yanmega and Dragalge both picked themselves up and moved to their respective trainers. “Team Harmonious? Never heard of such a thing. Regardless, you’re gonna regret ever showing your face here!” threatened Jragon.

“Then let us make this battle decisive.” said Crisis. He pulled out a second pokéball and threw it, revealing a Decidueye.

It was at this moment that Ceailean decided to move again, but he tripped over a rock and alerted the criminals of his presence. “Oh yeah, almost forgot to finish you off. Dragalge use-”

“Use spirit shackle!” interrupted Crisis. Decidueye nocked a feather arrow and shot it into Dragalge’s shadow, keeping it immobile. “Your battle is with me!”

Jragon grunted, “Alright then, suite yourself. Seems you want to get taken out first.”

Crisis remained focused on the criminals and said, “You there!” Ceailean looked around to Crisis and pointed to himself. “Yes you, tell me. Just how many are we dealing with here?”

Ceailean stuttered, “F-Four, I think.”

“Okay.” said Crisis. “Decidueye, I have a job for you. Tell Armageddon that we have a conflict here.” He holds out a red magenta card, “Level 4.” Decidueye walked over, plucked the card from Crisis’s hand, and flew up to the sky, off towards the distance.

“What was that all about, huh?” asked Boug.

“Your time is nigh. Soon my contributors will rain down upon you, making your escape impossible.”

“Look, enough with the tough vocabulary so I don’t have to explain it to the confused man here later.”

It took a second, but Jragon realized what Boug was saying. “Hey! After this you’re so going down!”

Both criminals prepared for battle, but Crisis yelled, “Hey you! Best you hang by the docks. My people will be here soon to liberate you.” Ceailean nodded and ran off.

“You’re jumping the gun if you think you can take both us at once.” taunted Boug.

“By no means do I believe myself to be incapable. I’ll show you just how much of a threat I can be.” said Crisis. He readied himself, assuming a battle stance as their conflict reached its breaking point.

Ceailean ran down the dirt road of the town, looking back occasionally to see if anyone had followed. The roads began to divert and change, creating a complex maze in the once bustling town. “Docks? I haven’t seen any docks around here.” he mumbled to himself. Just then, a large explosion blows out of the forest, stopping him in his tracks. The shock wave blew the dust off the buildings, mixing it all in with the cinders and ice crystals that it blew along with it. “Marie, I can’t leave her.” Before Ceailean could take a step however, a loud metallic clang. It would’ve seemed that it was just a piece of debris knocked over by the blast, if it hadn't been followed up by metallic screeching, as if it were being dragged against the ground a little bit at a time.

Ceailean looked back to the forest and said, “I’m sorry, just hold on a little longer. I’ll see you soon.” Approaching cautiously, he made his way to the source of the noise. He peeked around the side of a building and realized that he was at a port. Waves splashed along the glistening, rocky walls and ocean air flooded all over the area. Alongside the waves rode one lonely tugboat set aside next to the shoddy wooden pier. The noise was notably coming from the boat. The path to the boat was completely exposed however, he would have to move fast. Quickly, he walked over to the boat, careful to take the lightest steps possible. Another explosion rocked the town, this time coming from where Crisis was. Ceailean ignored it this time as he walked on to a wooden plank connecting the boat to the pier, but regardless of his light steps, it creaked loudly from his weight. The metallic noise then became silent, indicating to Ceailean that something was on this boat. Fully making it across, all he sees is miscellaneous cages scattered around the deck. Many were vacant and open, thrown about as if they were victims of a rampage. Ceailean made his way to the front of the boat, but on his way up the steps, he heard snoring.

Carefully reaching the top, he reared his head around the entrance of the bridge and saw a man asleep in a reclining chair. Cans of beer were everywhere and the walls were stained with substances that Ceailean didn’t even want to start guessing on. The man himself was quite young. Black spiky hair along with formal clothes emphasized his dirty businessman vibe alongside a constant state of irritation. A tattoo went down his neck, making it unable to be seen fully. Another metallic scrape is heard followed by a wave of shushing. Ceailean made his way past the bridge to investigate.

He found himself at the bow of the ship where more cages were stored. One stood out however, with scrape marks leading up to it making it obvious that something was inside. Slowly, Ceailean looked inside the cage and saw a scared looking Pokémon. Its orange and white colors looked dull inside the colorless cage.

“Scor? Scor, SCORBUNNY!” it shouted in a panic, violently shaking the cage it was trapped in. All the cages nearby also started rattling violently. Ceailean tried desperately to get them all to calm down by waving his hands and shushing.

Just then, a very loud bang came from the bridge and a very intimidating voice shouted, “SHUT UP, DAMN IT!” This made Ceailean flinch heavily and all the Pokémon instantly became silent. A sound of a pipe clanging on the floor is heard, quickly followed by snoring.

“Snivy?” asked the curious Pokémon. Its head was revealed by the light and looked at Ceailean, wondering who he was. He took a closer look at the cages and realized that they were all filled with starters from several different regions. Shocked at the sheer amount, he quickly counted fifteen across stacked alongside five rows. Even without accounting the width of the cages, there had to be an absurd amount of Pokémon here.

Ceailean composed himself and quietly told all the Pokémon, “I'm going to get all of you out of here okay, alright?” This brightened up all the expressions of the Pokémon and they all stuck to their doors in anticipation. He fished the two wrenches out of his duffle and said, “Watch closely, learned this neat trick on the internet.” He put them together inside the lock and squeezed tightly. After a few attempts, the lock snapped open and he opened the cage. Scorbunny however, was still hesitant. “Come on now, I won’t hurt you.” he said to it, offering his hand. Slowly but surely, it inched its way out. Its beady eyes squinted at the sunlight. Observing its surroundings, it ignored Ceailean and ran straight for the cage that held Snivy. They talked to each other, making sure that the other was okay. Then Scorbunny pointed at Snivy’s cage, beckoning Ceailean to hurry. “Okay, guess you’re next.” Scorbunny held the cage and looked happily at Snivy while Ceailean got the wrenches into position. One Pokémon was unhappy about this. A Piplup in the cage next door started begging unreasonably loudly to be let out first. It was shushed harshly from all nearby cages but it continued to beg and beg, gaining the attention of the man.

“I SAID SHUT UP!” he said, smacking the side of the bridge with a pipe. This only caused Piplup to beg harder, making the noise level so high that Ceailean could barely concentrate. Scorbunny watched closely as the wrenches slowly pried the lock apart. However, the man inside the bridge got fed up and made his way over. His footsteps sounded as loud as iron balls hitting the floor.

“Oh no!” said Ceailean. He backed away from the cage with the wrenches, much to the dismay of Scorbunny. It urged Ceailean to keep going, but the man already had them in his sights.

“The hell!” he said, charging at them almost immediately with a pipe in his hand. Ceailean thought quickly and threw one of the wrenches at him, hitting him square in the head. This made him stagger back and cover his face. Ceailean did a fist bump but realized that the other wrench had fallen off the boat.

“No!” He turned to Scorbunny and said, “Come on, we gotta go!” Scorbunny refused vehemently by shaking its head no, holding Snivy’’s locked cage in devastation. Snivy then pushed it away with its vines, telling it to go quickly. Scorbunny still refused, tearing up as it said so. Snivy gave it a warm smile and told it one last time to go. Scorbunny shed one last tear and reluctantly ran off straight under the legs of the man.

“What the? You get back here!” he yelled, raising his pipe to strike.

“No! That’s enough!” shouted Ceailean, tackling off the steps. Scorbunny stopped when they hit the ground. The man shoved Ceailean off himself and stood to strike him. Ceailean fell to the floor as a pipe went right over his head. There, he whacked the foot of the man with the other wrench. The man grunted in pain and was quick to kick Ceailean across the face, making him stumble onto the wooden plank. Ceailean covered his face as the man went to strike him with pipe again. But then, his head blew up in an explosion of cinders.

“Scorbun!” it yelled.

The man waved away the embers and shouted, “You pest!” He once again charged at the Pokémon. Ceailean stopped him by shoving the man, making him fall and hit his head on guard rails. “Hurry! Let’s go!” he shouted to Scorbunny. It nodded and ran across the plank with him. Before the man could recover, Ceailean kicked the plank into the water.

“Bastard kid! You think that will stop me!” The man got up with relative ease and began to run, planning to jump. Before that could happen, Scorbunny jumped up and swung its foot so fast that it ignited into flames. It kicked the side of the boat with all of its might, causing it to violently list and making the man lose his balance, falling to the ground.

“Woah, that was cool!” said Ceailean excitedly. Scorbunny smirked and rubbed its nose. “We’re not out of this yet, let’s go!” It nodded in agreement and they both ran away into the streets of the abandoned town. “Scorbunny, listen. I’m sorry I couldn’t save your friend there, but there are more friends that can help all of them. We just need to save her in the forest, are you in?” Scorbunny gave a determined nod and ran faster, causing his footprints to leave burn marks. “Don’t worry Marie, we’re coming!” Ceailean thought to himself.

They ran into where the forest met the town, both willing to risk everything to save everyone.