Falling Worlds by Z0RUAS (Ethereal-Ether)

Prologue
"Arceus, how can you do this to me?!" screamed the dark bird Pokemon. He
was trapped by a current of electricity that hurt every time he moved. As the
bird opened his hooked beak, shock after shock racked through his body but
he didn't care. His life was at risk now, and all he had done wrong was exist!
The great legendary gently floated to the ground, its gold spiked
crosswheel still crackling with electricity. They had been fighting for weeks
now, if you could call it that. When the dark Pokemon first met Arceus he
was impressed, until it was clear that the god wanted to eliminate him for a
reason that was strangely unknown. He had changed into every form he had
to escape--an Areodactyl that was but a skeleton, a Kabutops in the same
state, a mysterious black ghost, and finally, his bird form. As he made to
transform into his avian form, however, Arceus proceeded to snatch up a
nearby Zap Plate and throw an electrified Judgement. The searing attack
almost instantly winded and restrained the dark Pokemon under an electrical
field.
"Missingno." The holy legendary's growl cut through the silence. "Do you
not know yourself? Look at what you have done, unknowingly." Argues
gestured towards the way they had come. Small squares of the grass were
displaced at random intervals, and in place of the squares was nothing but
dark voids. "Displacing pieces of matter, shifting the very elements
themselves! You are a creation of INSANITY!"
1

"Your insanity, perh-ARGH!!" sneered Missingno, before grimacing as the

electricity coursed through him again.
"You are correct. Just an accident, that's what you are! Never meant to be
created. A scourge, a monster! We are all aware of what you're capable of,
and I intend to end your curse!" Arceus's golden crosswheel and hooves
glowed brightly as he began to charge a final deadly attack.
"Arceus...please..." Missingno's voice dropped to a pleading whisper. "The
Charizard the can scorch forests. The Larvitar that can consume whole
mountains. They destroy too! How am I any different?!"
Argues' glow was now eye-scorching bright, at its full power. "This world is
meant to be imperfect. Things can be destroyed, but they will serve another
purpose once dispatched. You, however..." Arceus lowered his head on
regret, but not from having to kill Missingno. From shame that he had
created such a monster. "What kind of king brings beasts to devour his
subjects with no good purpose? Beasts that can casually flick a claw and
send time and space into glitched nonsense? A good king should destroy
those BEASTS FOR GOOD!!" And so, Arceus charged towards the trapped
Pokemon, and turned his body so that the deadly golden crosswheel surged
towards Missingno's feathered throat.
I can't die!! I DESERVE to live!! With a sudden jolt of adrenalin, Missingno
instinctively ripped his right wing free and flung it up in the chrosswheel's
path. Time deemed to slow down as the scorching blade singed feathers,
melted muscle, and tore bone from its joint.
An unearthly shriek howled through the air, carrying pain, shock, disbelief,
and horror. Black blood twisted from the dark bird's charred wound as he
squeezed his eyes shut, willing it all to be unreal, to wake up in his cozy nest
with every glossy violet feather in place. It was no use.
He wrenched the rest of his body free, well aware of the blinding pain
shooting through his body, and dashed back into the forest as fast as his
legs could carry his remaining body. Go anywhere, except back to the grand
being that he once worshipped and loved like every other.
The legendary god didn't give chase. Instead, he carefully picked up the
severed wing with Psychic, studying the tiered thing. Little black pixels were
flying off of it, and Arceus was careful to avoid the projectiles.
What could he do with it? He couldn't leave it detached; its violent energy
would soon bring the end of Earth faster than he intended. Not detached,
unless...
2

Finally Arceus focused on the limb, forcing it elsewhere. Bits and pieces of
the vile object rising to the sky, then heading to a new destination to
reassemble. And with the wing, Arceus whispered a chant, a prophecy for its
future.
Take the wing of devil's son,
Bring the pieces, one by one,
farther, and farther from from its host,
somewhere he'll least expect it most,
Take this wing, far, far away,
to another time, another day,
to a creature still in his mother's womb,
lest he be found, this world is doomed,
Take that wing, and fix it on
the right foreleg of a Vaporeon's son.
He'll grow with it, he'll die with it too,
and with the rise of that month's moon...
The world will be saved.
The evil will die.
But\, if found...
The terrible monster, with wings of corruption, shall bring the end of
the end of us.
His deed done, Arceus vanished in a beam of light to elsewhere, in search of
other greater evils.
*

I remain crouched among the trees, despite my injury.

MY wing. My flesh and bone, that he had no business to do with and never
should.
Between a few leaves, I see Arceus with my wing. And--what's that? I
swear I can hear him saying something...
3

...
I couldn't help but shiver at those cryptic words. I'm a villain now? And I'm
going to die pretty damn soon? And I don't deserve to live?
No. I look down at my scorched feathers, and at the aching, bleeding
stump. I will get my wing back. And when I do, I'll destroy Arceus for good.
If I'm destined to be a destroyer, then SO BE IT.
But first, I need to take care of what's left of my wing.
I carefully pluck a violet feather from my left wing and tap it onto the base
of my right side, trying my hardest to ignore the protesting snap of pain. The
feather begins to pixilate, and then multiplies, forming a substitute wing.
Soon, it was as if nothing had happened in the last 10 minutes. The foreverprotesting pain proved it wrong. But at least my blood loss would be halted
for the time being. It would drag on my survival for a while longer. Enough
for me to find this Vaporeon, and her son.
I give an experimental flap of my replacement wing, then determinedly
take off into the sky, in search of the nearest coastline.
*

The waves crashed into the rocky face of a cliff. Over and over, they
clashed, while a small family of Pokemon huddled inside.
The mother Vaporeon gazed out at the stormy sea, gray eyes narrowed,
sharp nose twitching. Behind her was a cluster of newly hatched Eevee, their
mewling voices echoing off the walls of the cave.
"Mommy, I'm scared!"
"What is that loud noise?! I'll fight it!"
"I'm so hungry, I could eat a--"
The Vaporeon mother swung around. Her fishy tail lashed the stony floor.
"Shut UP. There's nothing we can do about your needs now. Look out there.
See the thunder and lightning? See the fucking CASCADE of water? Go out
there yourselves and--"
"It's too LOUD!!"
"YOU'RE too loud!"
"I'm so hungry, I'm gonna dieee!!!"
4

The water eeveelution hissed in frustration as she turned back to stare at

the churning waves. Those three little voices continued bickering-Wait. Three voices. She was sure there were four eggs in the nest a few
days prior. Maybe the fourth was dead, a runt that never deserved to live.
The widowed Pokemon padded farther back into the den to investigate.
Beyond the three whining kits lay a sopping wet bundle of tawny fur, sharp
rabbitlike ears poking up at one end. Strange. Eevee ears were supposed to
be round and furry, not so flat-furred.
Upon closer inspection, the newborn wasn't even wet. In fact, his fur lay
flat, and the only movement came from his chest rising and falling with
every breath, and an occasional twitch of the ears.
The young Eevee suddenly raised his tiny head and turned to look at his
mother with wide and bright eyes. She noted that he had gotten her steelgray ones, and not the blasted Umbreon's red orbs--although the youth's
were of molten steel, alive, while hers were cold and flat.
She couldn't help but let a smile tease its way onto her cerulean features
as the little Pokemon shook out his fur, and, strangely, limped up. Hmm.
Perhaps he was lame, or was a runt, o-The Vaporeon mother couldn't finish her thoughts, as she was shocked to
see the cause of the Eevee's limp. On the right side of his body, where a thin
foreleg should've been was instead a large and awkward wing. The wing was
dark purple with black flight feathers, and dragged along the floor as the
Eevee slowly hobbled over to his mother and looked up again with those
molten-steel eyes.
"Mother? What's wrong?

Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The old shack in the forest

Some things go better untold.
"You can't get me!" Laura laughed as she pranced ahead of me, close
enough to taunt but ever out of reach.
Behind her, I stumbled after my oldest sister with a pathetic and obvious
5

limp, her speckled tail waving teasingly in my face. "That's not fair! You have
four working legs! Do you even know how hard it is to run with a wing?" I
retaliate as I stumble after my sister through the coastline woods.
Our stern mother Vaporeon pads along after us, followed by Brutus and
Edmond. Brutus was busy snarling at every Butterfree and Wurmple that
crossed our path, while Edmond was moaning about his "empty" stomach.
"Laura. Glen. Stop CHASING each other." Mother snarled. "Edmond, we
just had breakfast, you pathetic glutton."
Mother always finds ways to put down anybody. I don't understand why,
although my best guess is that our missing father had to do with her sour
attitude. Once when I was younger, I made the mistake of asking why I had
a strange wing instead of a right foreleg.
Without even looking at me, she curtly said "You're an Arceus damned
creature, a one-of-a-kind birth defect. If you think that makes you special,
you're dead wrong." The words stung like Beedrills, but I forced myself to
stay silent and just nodded sullenly.
Brutus skips up next to me, a smug grin on his wolf-like snout. A hungry
canine beaming at a skinny rabbit. "I always thought that it was strange for
you to be so unsymmetrical, but going to a shrink to cure that? That's
hilarious." he chortled. Stupid typical smartass.
"Will you shut up? This has nothing to do with a mental counselor! You've
been laughing at me stumbling around for my whole life, so wouldn't it be
nice to see me actually walk for once?"
I realized my mistake of snapping at my older, not to mention physically
stronger brother, too late. With a furious snarl, Brutus lunges for me, and we
both tumble to the ground with him on top.
"Brutus! What have I told you about tacking siblings?!' Mother shrieks.
Ignoring her, Brutus leans close to my face, canine fangs flashing. "Don't.
Tell. Me. To shut up."
I pathetically flailed under his weight, my useless wing slapping at him
harmlessly.
A jet of water flings Brutus right off of my chest, and he skids along the
ground before staring bewilderedly at Mother.
"You IDIOT! How many times have I told you to stop attacking your own
6

siblings?" Mother roared at him, gray eyes flashing like honed iron.
Brutus slowly gets up, avoiding her eyes. "Sorry."
"Get up. We're wasting time."
*

He wasn't a mental counselor. It became obvious as soon as I stepped into

his office.
Dr. Lightnic was a middle-aged Raichu with ragged ears and bright green
eyes behind round spectacles. The office walls were covered with diagrams
of different bird Pokemon anatomy, from feathers down to bone. I spotted
Wingulls, Starlies, and what looked....almost like...a flying eeveelution?
Great, I thought. I'm going to be inspected by an Ornithologist.
The electric Pokemon himself is sitting behind his mess, paper-covered
desk, reading from a newspaper.
"Hmm, that's strange. The flight patterns of local Swellow suggest that a
great power struggle was coming from the northeast a few weeks ago, either
between two lesser legendaries or a major one and a regular but strong
Pokemon. I pity the latter, really..." At that moment, he noticed our
presence. "Ah, Mrs. Aquamire! You arranged an appointment with me today,
correct?" he said, emerald eyes sparkling with interest. I noted how he
stared right at Mother with his viridian eyes, almost asking a whole different
question.
Mother nodded curtly. It might have been just my imagination, but she
seemed extremely uncomfortable and refused to meet the Raichus gaze.
"Glen has a few...deformations. See for yourself." She nudged me forward,
and I swallowed my fear and limped over.
To his credit, Dr. Lightnic did nothing more than let out a fascinated
"Intriguing!". He padded over and began to slowly inspect my wing, feeling
the feathers in his paws and mumbling to himself. "I have never seen any
wing like this before. The closest it comes to is a Honchkrow's, but even then
the shape is not quite the same, nor is the color." He abruptly looks up.
"No offense, ma'am, but do you mind if I have a moment with your son?
Confidential questions, and I believe I can improve his walking ability."
"Certainly." Mother led my three siblings out the door, and closed it behind
them.

Dr. Lightnic waited for the door to close, then slowly rubbed his temples
and turned to me. "Have you seriously walked like this for your whole life so
far? It's a wonder that only now she's decided to do something about it."
"I'm only 4 months old," I say apologetically. "Besides," I drop my voice to
a whisper, "my family doesn't care at all. They only brought me here because they were
tired of watching me limp around the cave."
Dr. Lightnic clicked his tongue in disapproval and ran a paw through his
fur. "What a pity...what a pityI would have never expected Reyna to be like
this, afterafter
I looked at him with barely contained fascination. Youyou knew
Mother? You know why sheslike that?
Dr. Lightnic looked startled for a moment, the first time I had actually seen
him fazed by anything. No, I never said thatI was rambling. Thats all. His
eyes seemed dreamy for a moment behind his glasses, but they fixed onto
me hurriedly. "Well, all we can do now is try to find a way for you to walk
naturally, right? I must say, Glen, this is truly a unique case. I've never seen
a Pokemon with a single wing that's just...completely replaced its original
limb, down to the socket...and yet the other socket is completely untouched.
It's as if Arceus himself ripped out the limb and popped a random wing in its
place."
I shudder at the mental images his statement gives, and his next words
don't help so much either.
"Look, a seam between the feather and fur! The parting spaces suggest
that the wing possibly could have replaced the foreleg through-yes, it is
possible-ripping. From the spaces between the sinews, you can tell that the
wing was this size when you were born, and remains that size even up to
now, and possibly for the rest of your life. I don't know if it's just me, but
the break between the feathers and fur forms pixeley, square-ish shapes
that--"
"STOP!!" I yelp.
Dr. Lighting looks up at me in surprise, in the middle of feeling the
"pixeley" patches.
"Uh, I mean, can we move onto ways to walk properly now...?" I said
nervously, trying to backpedal to a less awkward position. "That's it. Heh,
heh..."

The Raichu raises an eyebrow, but then he shrugs, and smiles. "You're
sure eager. Well, you won't have to wait for long. I have a tendency to
ramble quite a bit--it's just my nature, really. Anyway, I think I've figured it
out. Come along, it's impossible to walk too far in this mess of my office."
He opened a back door, and I carefully picked my way through all the wing
diagrams and bird-watching books. It wasn't easy, as I still had no idea how
to walk properly.
In the yard, I stood at one end while Dr. Lightnic stands perpendicular to
me on my right side.
"Alright. Some information to know for starters is about the distribution of
weight on your body. A regular Eevee would have four corners of its body
supported by four legs, while a bird Pokemon relies only on its two legs to
support itself, with its wings tucked to its sides. A quadrupedal Pokemon like
you would run by leaping forward with its forelegs, and lifting their back legs
and bringing them to the forelegs, then repeating the cycle. However,
without a supporting weight under your right shoulder and instead an extra
weight, you will start to fall that way, and to avoid that, you have to limp.
With only one wing, you can't really hope to get off the ground."
"I believe I have figured out a solution. Your single wing can be used to
create a support under the area without a leg. So, here is how you can
improve your running: When you leap forward with your left foreleg, flap
your wing downwards to create a launch force that will more or less make up
for the missing leg thrust. Bring your wing back up to charge for the next
push as you bring your hind legs to your forelegs, and repeat the cycle like
that. Let's try doing that now."
I only heard the last four sentences; the rest was just a mess of science
that only a certain Raichu would know. Would this really solve my dilemma?
I tentatively contracted my muscles, my wing raised and ready to bring
down, then sprang forth. I flapped it down as hard as I could while my
forepaw was in the air, and to my surprise and joy it worked. I threw it back
up as my hind legs moved forward as well, and repeated Dr. Lightnic's
instructions. Perfect. Barely a single slip in what must have been a normal
Eevee's walking style. I never felt so happy in my life--not like there was
much competition for this type of joy in my four short months of life--but
really, who cared?
"Glen, you're not flapping your wing correctly-!"
Okay, so maybe I still had to make some tweaks, changes, and
corrections. But this was IMPROVEMENT.
9

"GLEN!! Not so VIGOROUSLY! Doing that over a prolonged period of time

will cause your tendons to wear out more quickly than usual, and
considering the chances of your wing really being attached to your socket it
could even detach, creating extreme levels of pain and blood loss--"
Now, if only I could understand Dr. Lightnics strange, nerdy way of
talking...

Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Little white lies
Lie to me once, youll have to get smart. Lie to me twice, Ill stab your
lungs.
Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and limping turned
into flapping around, surprisingly to the displeasure of my family. Every time
I visited Dr. Lightnic, he would adjust my running style more and more, little
by little, until I could sprint like any Eevee in my family.
Oh, my family. They were quite annoyed from the motion and gusting
winds created from my wingbeats, and needless to say they weren't much
happier when accidents occurred. It could range from the gusts knocking
over Edmond's card buildings to ticking Laura as I pranced by, but the worst
time was when I hit Brutus square in his already sore nose. The overly aggro
Eevee had gotten into trouble with some Combee by accident on the way
back through the forest, and his nose was the most targeted. It didn't help
that he turned out to be allergic, either. The next morning, I sprinted out of
our seaside cave to practice on open ground. In my excitement, the quill of
my longest feather prodded Brutus's nose hard enough to hurt without any
stings. He leapt up with a roar, and for the first time I found out how fast I
could really go with a wing for a foreleg.
It was barely fast enough to pull me out of Brutus's biting fangs and stall
until Mother hit her furious son with an Ice Beam to stop his rampage. Of
course, that didn't quite save me from a bad beating for my carelessness.
Mother and Brutus are my only problems now. Laura is the only good
sister that should exist, Edmond has fattened himself up from eating so
often until he is nothing more than a round ball of complaining fur, and my
wing is the silver drop of uniqueness that is mine.
Too unique, perhaps.
10

The only sign of my fame that I know of are a few Pokemon whispering in
the forest as I make my way to Dr. Lightnic's building. A mutant, they say.
He's in grave danger. They target freaks of nature like him. They'll come for
him next, I'm sure of it.
Like every time, I dismiss the whispering and soldier forward. Maybe today
he'll teach me something new. My family won't be coming with me today,
and I can't say I mind the calming silence, save the leaves crunching under
my three paws.
As usual, Dr. Lightnic's building sits under a vast and shady tree.
But something is off today.
Maybe it was the sharp scent of a Raichu's terror. Maybe the harsh,
guttural voices echoing from inside should've made me stay back. Maybe if
Lightnic's sacrifice wasn't in vain because I sensibly ran back home, this
planet would still thrive. But I didn't. The worst thing about an Eevee is its
stupid, stupid curiosity, and I was curious, not smart.
I walked in through the door.
The first thing that I noticed was wrong was that the papers in his office,
every single delicate hand-drawn diagram, were trampled and torn.
The second thing that I noticed were the strange humans, all three of
them dressed in filthy dark-gray garbs with a white emblem of what looked
like a chain wrapped around a sharp claw on the back, marching throughout
the room in frustration.
The third thing was the fact that Dr. Lightnic, his spectacles askew, was
pinned by the throat to the wall by a fourth man wearing black electric-proof
gloves, who was yelling obscenities at him and choking the poor Raichu.
"Don't you dare lie to us, you filthy electric rat! Where he?!"
The poor Raichu struggled against his grip, fighting for breath. "I-I don't
know what-please, let me--"
The man cut him off by openly hitting Lightnic's face, eliciting a sharp
whimper and a spray of blood from his snout. I cringe silently, hating myself
for not lifting a paw to help. "You FOOL! We have heard of your little
appointments with the one-winged Eevee. It is our duty to collect the
mutants and freaks of the world, bring them all to one place where they are
viewed and admired. Tell me NOW, unless you want your nasty little head
11

torn from your rodent body!"

I can't wait any longer. Stupid. I can't.
"Leave him alone!"
Upon hearing my cry, every head turns towards me. The men's eyes
glimmer in surprise, then greed as my violet wing flares out in an aggressive
manner. Dr. Lightnic's eyes widen, and he mouths "run!" before gathering all
his remaining strength and jabbing the man's arm with a weak Iron Tail. The
man hisses in pain, but only tightens his grip and unsheathes a small
dagger. I don't stay to see what happens next. I just run, like I should've in
the first place, as a familiar Raichu's dying wail rings through the forest.
Back to the cave, NOW. And Arceus forbid if they find my family too.
In my panic, my wing stiffens and absolutely refuses to beat in a proper
rhythm. I'm soon stumbling over roots, branches, and even leaves. The
landscape is changing around me as I dash forward. I don't know where I'm
going. I don't know what I'll do. I don't know who were those people, or why
were they after me? And Dr. Lightnic--he-I can't take it anymore. I dive behind a tree, stuff my face into my tail,
and let out a mournful howl of despair. The shriek rings dull in my narrow
ears, although I can sense that it drove off every bird Pokemon in a 2-mile
radius.
Bird Pokemon.
I'm so mad now. It's their fault I'm crippled with this stupid random wing.
It's their fault Dr. Lightnic is badly wounded now, or worse.
I don't care if they find me. If I hold in my pain any longer, I might as well
just end my suffering here.
In the distance, I hear the monsters' voices.
"He went this way! Get a move on, you buffoons."
Their boots crunch on the dead leaves, drawing closer to my hiding spot.
Two voices are speaking to me, and I silently beg them to stay silent. But
they just keep on talking.
One voice, kind and intelligent, like the Raichu that was the father I never
had.
Lightnic would want you to run. Get away. Your very life is at stake here.
12

Be smart. Run.
Another voice, harsh and always scolding. Always speaking angrily at me,
coldly cursing every mistake.
Lightnic is dead. Didn't you know? It's no use, you pathetic mutant. You're
the weakling runt that nobody loves. Why can't you be more like Brutus, or
Laura? Nobody wants you.
Except for the humans after me right now.
As I stand there in the shock of realization and hurt, an "I found him!!"
shrieks in my ears. I whip around to find one of the disgusting monsters
right next to me, bearing a malicious grin and showing his foul yellow teeth.
The same one that killed the doctor.
They killed him. They really did kill him.
That is the only thing that I can hear as a gloved hand wraps around my
throat and a shock sends me into oblivion.
They killed him, they killed him in the end. So when can I meet him
again?
*

A dream. Such a strange one, for that matter.

In a large and endless field of violet leaves and indigo grass under an
orange and red sky, I saw Dr. Lightnic.
His chest was bloody, with the obvious marks of a stab wound. He was
grimacing, a paw trying to stop the waterfall of blood. I tried to move, but
there was suddenly an unearthly crack!. My right side let out a complaining
jolt. I fell, and looked over to see bone sticking out at the base of my wing.
Blood was dripping down at an alarming rate.
"Dr. Lightnic!" I choked out, the levels of pain beginning to blind me. "I'm
sorry. I'm so sorry!!"
Black dots scuttled across my vision.
"It's okay," he whispered. "It's alright. Just don't let them take your
wing...whatever you do, don't let anything take your wing...your wing...your
13

wing...wing...winggg."
And then the dots cover everything as I scream.

Chapter 3
Chapter 3: It makes no difference
You dont know it, but its just another prison.
I wake up in the darkness with tears in my eyes. I do nothing but just lie
there on my side in the choking darkness. My neck still feels like it's being
squeezed by that foul human. What happened? Where am I? Ugh, it still
feels like his ugly claw is still squeezing it...
Well, it definitely still isn't, that's for sure. But something else is locked
around my throat. I am suddenly aware of a pulsing viridian light from right
under my chin.
I struggle to get a glimpse of the choking item. It seems to be a metal
band studded with glowing green jewels...?
Accidentally losing my balance, I suddenly fall to the side, right on top of
my wing. At least the stupid thing isn't hurting anymore.
As I rub my aching head with my left paw, I'm suddenly aware
of....something. A smell? Yes, a smell. A spicy mix of hot peppers, cheese,
meat, and lettuce.
A taco?
I look up, startled. Are those...more green lights? And blue, link-like ones,
gently swinging in the air on their own.
A pair of green dots look larger than the other ones. About four smaller
green dots glitter beneath it in a horizontal line. A creepy green smile in the
darkness. Things aren't going to get much better from here...
I almost lose my wits when I hear a loud "Hi!!"
As I stumble over my wing and trip again, the lights flash on. A rush of
senses hits me like a Rampardos.
There are more Pokemon in the room, growling in filthy cages or pacing
back and forth in frustration. Some have miserable, clouded eyes, and
14

patchy fur. Others are furious and high-spirited, bright eyes darting around
in search of something new. As my eyes adjust to the sudden lights, I begin
to realize that they are not ordinary. They are mutated, or strangely colored,
or just plain unique.
Like me.
For a moment, everything is silent. Then suddenly, everything erupts into
complete chaos.
"A new kid!" somebody shrieks joyfully.
"Really? Oh, if only he could be someone kind instead of rude and grouchy
like Darkpatch..." sighs a feminine voice.
"Meh, I don't care. World domination needs time to plan out, you know!" a
voice in a dark corner barks out.
"We haven't had a new kid in ages...!"
"S-somebody new...?" whispers a calm and timid voice, barely audible
above the clamor.
I curl up defensively as they edge closer, bloodshot eyes scouring my body
and dirty claws reaching out to touch.
"Guys, STOP! Can't you see that you're all scaring him?!" That last voice
again, but not so timid this time.
The chatter dies down slowly, and I blink at the creatures in front of me.
I see a small creature with black fur, a white underbelly, and a yellow
flower on the side of its head. Next to it stands a silvery white Eevee with a
necklace and blue symbols on her collar fur. A blue dragon-like Pokemon
with red eyes, deep violet scars on his wings, a necklace with a purpletipped white feather, and a silver-teal bracelet on his left wrist floats to the
right of them. Probably the timid-voiced guy. And the taco smell seemed to
be coming from a strange quadrupedal, colorful Pokemon. I had never seen
anything like it before. Its front half was a Zorua with laughing green eyes
and a green left paw, while its rear end was a Fennekin's.
I began to notice other things as well. All of them had some sort of
restraint on them. The small black-furred creature, the Eevee, and the
Fennekin/Zorua had a steel band around their necks. Green light bulbs
glowed on the collars. And the blue dragon--he had chains on his wrists that
pulsed with some sort of blue light.

15

"...Why is he so quiet?" inquired the black-and white creature.

I jolt out of my thoughts and blurt out "Where the heck are we?!"
"Can I explain this time?" the blue dragon offered. He slowly floated
towards me, the blue chains clinking quietly against the ground. I shrank
back as he approached, but he held out a claw in a peaceful manner. "Don't
worry, little guy. We won't hurt you."
"Who are you? Where are we?" I fought the tears that threatened to fall.
"Calm down, I'm getting to that." His gentle red eyes never ceased to look
away from me. "May I introduce us all? I am Icarus Skyre, a Latios. This--"
the dragon pointed to the black-furred Pokemon, and silver Eevee. "--is
Illusion the Shaymin, and Keto the Eevee." Illusion grinned, while Keto
averted her eyes southwards. "And Mr. Taco over there is What, a Zorua and
Fennkin hybrid. Not exactly mentally stable, that guy."
"...What?"
"Exactly."
"You called??" What said cheerfully.
"Anyway, the Zoroark hiding in the shadow is Darkpatch. He's in an
electrified cage, so don't expect to see him that often. And I believe that is
all of us." Icarus concluded.
"...I'm...Glen, and um......So where are we again?"
The Latios's ears drooped slightly. "They catch every single one of us.
Anything unique, anything different. That's their job. We are kept in here,
the back of a truck. And every three weeks, we are presented to an
audience." He noticeably shivered. "People love to be entertained. Anything
new will please them. And when they find something new, they'll jeer, spit,
hurt, and explore it."
Icarus then looked over at my right side, and reached out to feel my wing.
I almost jerk back, but he gently touches my wing and runs his claws over
the feathers. "...You...you drew them to you like a magnet. This...I have
never seen anybody like this before."
And the tears spill.

16

"They KILLED him!" I shrieked in fury, tearing my wing away from Icarus's
grip and sobbing. "They killed an innocent Raichu--my mentor--my BEST
FRIEND, those MONSTERS!"
Illusion visibly flinches a bit, but says nothing. Nobody says anything as I
cry.
And speak of the Heatran, the back of the truck opens.
"Which one of you little devils opened the lights? I told you not to do that
until nighttime, it wastes our power!" One of the humans stomps inside.
Keto and Illusion press against the walls in silent fear, Darkpatch ceases his
growls, What darts under a box, and Icarus and I freeze.
It's him. The same yellow teeth, black jacket, and a fresh wound on his
arm that is clumsily wrapped in linens. He did it. He deserves to DIE.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here? A little Eevee whose poor daddy
Raichu died tragically. I'm on the verge of tears right now." he taunted
gloatingly.
That was more than enough to snap a volatile trigger inside me.
"You ASSHOLE! I'll KILL YOU!!" I howl, and gather the energy to hurl a
vicious Shadow Ball into his ugly chortling face. I'll disintegrate that horrible
man. I'll destroy him.
Or at least, I'll try to.
I could have never been more upset when the shadowed sphere failed to
form, or never felt more defeated and useless as the human laughed again
at my useless efforts. "What's the matter? Forgot your moves already?" he
jeered.
He then kicked me, and I flew through the air and hit the opposite wall
with a cry of pain. Icarus cringed helplessly.
It felt like my bones had been ground to dust and burnt. My wing flapped
desperately on its own as I struggled to get up and miserably failed.
As the terrible man advanced towards me, another man entered the room.
He wore spindly spectacles, and carried a stack of paper. I flinched.
He looks like...Dr. Lightnic.
"Carl, please...Theyre being displayed in two days. Dont beat them up
too much, or else theyll be too weak to perform.
17

The murdererCarlturned to glare at the man. Youre always too soft

on them, Joseph. They need to be disciplined. Especially this little whelp. He
made to kick me again.
That was when Icarus intervened.
The Latios lunged towards Carl, but instead of slashing him to bits he
jumped in front of him. As the human flung his foot forward, Icarus drew his
arms up in front of him, and summoned a weak Protect. The shimmery
defensive wall was far from functional, but served its purpose before
vanishing. As Carl grabbed his foot while snarling in pain, Icarus drooped in
utter exhaustion. His silver bracelet stopped glowing for a moment, and then
the blue chains unleashed a powerful shock upon him. He collapsed onto the
hard floor with a small cry of pain as the electricity rolled over his beaten
wings and body.
I didn't notice it then, but at the moment Illusion's eyes were filled with
silent tears that dripped to the ground. Staring at my bleeding form on the
ground. Joseph stood there as if frozen. A small whimper came from
underneath Whats box. I just stared as Carls eyes narrowed.
Youll pay for that, legendary!
I struggled to get up, to help, to do anything. My bruised body
complained and refused to cooperate. I could only watch as Icarus was
pummeled with more kicks and punches. The poor Pokemon gasped in pain
with every hit and blow.
A few minutes later, Carl stopped to catch his breath and smirk at
Icaruss pained form. Joseph seemed to regain his senses and made a move
towards the door, but then the vile, abusive son of a Houndoom held up a
hand while flashing his disgusting teeth. Stay where you are. I aint done
yet.
With one hand, Carl pins down Icaruss neck, completely unaffected by
the static that still swirled around the Latioss body. With the other hand, he
reaches for the silver bracelet.
No! Icarus gasped, trying to pull away and failing miserably. No, you
cant! Ill die without
The human was unable to understand his pleas, but I was. Still, I didnt
quite get it. What was so special about the glowing bracelet? Diddid it have
18

anything to do with his life force? And what of the strange purple scars on
his wings?

Carlos deftly unclipped the piece of jewelry and pocketed it. You wont be
getting this back until opening night. I dont care if it keeps you alive or
helps you move around or that sort of shit. He smirked victoriously. Come
on, newbie. Were supposed to be getting ready for the show.

Josephs eyes were the size of Bronzor, but he slowly turned around and
left with the horrible scumbag. The door slammed shut, and the locks click
made one thing clear to me.
Hey, at least it's not much different from home.

19