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Chapter 40 - The Power Of One's Will

Optional track to LWR - Listen While Reading https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM7_ah5M2hY

As the cries of the Houndoom faded away below her, Gardevoir faced up towards the moon, unable to see it yet sensing its glow around her as she drift in silence, a now emotionless expression on her face as she took a deep breath, seemingly satisfied with her revenge yet still lifeless deep inside... However... Far... Far below... Servine was watching Ninetails silently tend to Chris, finally sitting next to him while facing Servines direction. "It is done... He will not die... But he will suffer..." the aura told her. "You may come to his side now. Be cautious however... His wounds are still severe... My only intent was healing what was necessary. The rest will be left for him to endure... It will be his challenge to overcome..." its voice echoed. Standing with a nervous expression, Servine slowly made her way up to Chris, reaching his side and holding his hand as she looked down at his glowing body. Looking carefully, she could see him breathing once more, causing her eyes to widen as her tears welled up. Reaching over him, she hovered her hand over his face, feeling his warm breath flowing from within him. As a look of amazement and joy spread across her face, the two suddenly heard the cries of the Houndoom plummeting above them as it got closer and closer to the ground, Servine and the Ninetails aura looking up for a moment before the aura faced Chris. "Hmm...? You think you have the right to request such a thing from me?" it asked, looking at Chris as if he were conscious. "I have already gone through the trouble of saving your soul from parting this world... I have taken responsibility for your accident... Therefore my conscious is clear human... I owe you nothing..." it told him, silently gazing at his face before letting out a sigh and shaking its head. "You irritate me... You couldn't have just been the simple puppet you were meant to be... Could you...?" it told him, Servine looking at the two bewildered as, from her perspective, the aura was having a conversation with an unconscious body.

"...You are an insolent one. Using my own curse to your advantage..." the aura echoed, suddenly looking up once more as the Houndoom came closer and closer to the ground. "...Very well, I will do this... Human... But once and only once..." it told him. As the Houndoom fell, Ninetails suddenly sent a burst of light in its direction, trailing along the ground before it exploded upwards, catching the Pokemon just before it landed and slowly lowered it to the ground safely. Looking around terrified and hyperventilating, the Houndoom wet itself before suddenly passing out, foaming at the mouth as the Ninetails aura shook its head with a "coward..." remark before walking back up to Chris. High above, Gardevoir sensed the sudden burst of power below her the moment Ninetails saved Houndoom, looking down with a surprised expression before gritting her teeth and quickly soaring back down towards the ground like a bullet, a blast of energy behind her erupting loud enough for Servine and the Ninetails aura to pick up, the both of them facing the sky as they saw Gardevoir heading towards them.

"Power... I sense power... And... Chris...? I sense... Chris?!" she gasped, her eyes shooting open wide before gritting her teeth seemingly hard enough to shatter them, an enraged and bloodthirsty look returning to her face. "Chris... I sense Chris!!! Danger is near Chris!!! I will kill... I will kill any danger!!! Chris is mine!!!" she screamed, the Ninetails aura picking up her words and shaking its head. "How troublesome... A moment where my own curse is backfiring right in my face... The fool is so lost, whether he is alive or not she will attack who she views as a threat senselessly..." the aura muttered, Servine beginning to freak out as she saw a powerful aura swarm around Gardevoir, stained in the same bloody color as before as it began spiraling faster and faster until Gardevoir looked like she had a gigantic drill around her heading right for them. Running around and flailing her arms rapidly, Servine faced the Ninetails and pointed up, suddenly dropping on her knees as if pleading while pointing at Chris's body as well. "...In this state her instinct to protect has been warped. I wouldn't put it past that fool to cause all the more harm to him in the process of fulfilling her desires to keep danger away from him... She can't even realize the greatest threat to him is herself in that state..." the Ninetails sighed. "...Bothersome pests, the lot of you. I gather he and the two of you for a reason, and just as he has done, you cause me trouble as well..." it scowled.

"Very well... Perhaps this human cannot be forced to his knees before me... But this fool above certainly can!!" the Ninetails shout as Gardevoir finally reached them. In an explosion of light, Ninetails created a barrier around them that halt Gardevoir in her tracks just a split second before she made contact, her drill made of raw power surrounding her maliciously trying to pierce its way through Ninetails defense. Terrified of how far Gardevoir had fallen, Servine quickly ran up to Chris and hid next to him, nudging his body and whimpering near his ear, trying to get him to wake up. "Chris... Chris...!!! Give me Chris!!! Give me my master!!!" she screamed, putting all the more force into her effort to break through the barrier. "You idiot!! Don't you realize in this state YOU are the only threat to him?! If this barrier fails his death will be by your hands!! Calm yourself!!" the Ninetails aura shout back, suddenly releasing a powerful Hyper Beam that caught Gardevoir off guard, causing her to dodge it and cancel out her forceful drill like attack on the barrier.

Now standing in front of them, looking like that of a limp puppet, Gardevoir began seemingly questioning her rationality for a moment as she faced the ground, mumbling like that of a computer on the edge of a total meltdown before shaking her head and letting out another scream, beginning a relentless attack on the barrier from every angle. "This fool... She is trying my patience!! I am not your caretaker!!" the Ninetails aura shout, slightly sweating as it focused on maintaining the barriers strength. "This is only an astral form... I don't have the same power here as my physical body does... Channeling my power is a task in itself..." it groaned. "Getting myself involved like this... Your stupidity is contagious!!" the Ninetails aura shout, looking back at Chris for a moment before releasing another counterattack against Gardevoir, sending bullets created from the shield in all directions and sending Gardevoir back momentarily as a result. Suddenly, from behind, Gardevoir heard the Houndoom she had dropped begin to whimper as it regained consciousness, causing her to show a look of shock before seething with rage once more. "Survived... You... Survived?!!" she shout, the Ninetails aura looking in its direction with a "crap..." expression as the Houndoom quickly tried to get away with a terrified look while Gardevoir faced its direction.

Clenching her fists, Gardevoir made a sudden dash in Houndooms direction, once again creating something akin to the blast from a bomb behind her. As the weakened Pokemon faced back, it let out terrified yelps, cowering with its body on the ground and paws over its head. Just as Gardevoir came within feet of attacking however, something suddenly made her stop in her tracks, letting out a quick gasp as her eyes widened. "She... Ceased her attack...?" the Ninetails aura muttered before looking back at Chris. "No... I see what you're doing..." she thought, facing Gardevoirs direction. "Attacking... Wrong...? Don't kill...? But..." Gardevoir muttered, trembling in place as she took several steps back from the Houndoom. "But... He killed... Tried to kill... Must protect..." she said, suddenly clutching her head. "Danger must... Keep away... Must protect!!" she shout, shaking her head as if she was fighting her own consciousness, stumbling about before hitting her side against a tree. "Danger... Danger must... I... I'm danger...?" she groaned, continuing to stumble about as Servine and Ninetails aura watched. "Gardevoir has a strong link with Chris... Stronger than anyone... If he can reach her just enough then perhaps I won't have to waste more of my power..." Ninetails aura echoed, Servine tilting her head confused as she looked at Chris who was still laying unconscious.

"Its a mental link... I can understand why it confuses you... Right now that human is trying to fight Gardevoir subconsciously for some level of control... My guess is its an attempt to reach out to her rational side... Whatever part of it may be left... If anyone can bring her out of this without further violence... It would be him... Surprising really considering his current state... Even like this he has the capability to reach out to others..." the Ninetails aura told Servine, looking at him for a moment before facing Gardevoir once again who had fallen to her knees, now trembling all over and shaking her head repeatedly. "Houndoom... Tortured me... Tortured... You... Why... Why stop?! Evil... Evil should be killed!!" she said, clutching her head tighter and tighter. "Stop... Trying to protect it!! Out... Get... OUT!!!" she demanded, arching back as she let out another scream, her aura once again bursting out of her body as she stood and started walking towards Houndoom once more. This time, she was seemingly struggling to take each step as she continued to tremble, forming something akin to a harpoon in her hand using her energy. Holding it up in the air as the Houndoom looked up at her and tried to run off, it quickly fell once more due to the damage Gardevoir put it through internally, coughing up blood from straining itself as she face down, her expression hidden by the shadow of her bangs and the moonlight above with only her glowing eyes showing.

"Chris... Master... Master says killing is wrong... Killing you... Wrong... But you killed him... Tried to... So if its to protect... Killing is alright... Right...? You deserve it... Right...?" she growled, suddenly clutching her head with her free hand with a groan. "Why... Why do you... Why protect... When it... Let... Me..." she muttered before suddenly snapping and facing Ninetails aura once more. "Let... Me... Let me... Let me kill!!!!" she screamed, rocketing towards the barrier and starting her violent onslaught once more, yet another drill of power spiraling rapidly around her as she clawed at the barrier as well, screaming insanely. Gritting her teeth, Nintetails aura winced with a growl, nearly ready to retaliate once again before looking closely at Gardevoir, noticing tears streaming from her eyes. "...She's becoming even more unstable. Her internal conflict is going to completely overwhelm her at this rate... It won't be long before her control is gone and her power starts acting on its own and rips her apart from the inside out..." it muttered, suddenly glancing back at Chris with a jolt as Servine let out a scream. Chris had opened his eyes and was trying to turn his head, coughing violently as he made eye contact with Gardevoir.

"You... Actually came to...? I'm impressed but you shouldn't move... Even turning your head is risky... You have wounds throughout your neck from that fall... Throughout your whole body actually..." Ninetails aura told him before slightly stumbling as Gardevoir continued shredding away at the barrier. "I can''t keep this up forever... Channeling so much of my energy into this astral body for such an extended period is causing me more and more fatigue... At this rate you two are going to be on your own..." it told them, Chris coughing even worse as he struggled to raise up, letting out a gargled shout as blood shot from his mouth, causing Servine to freak out and try coaxing him into laying still. "Fool!! I told you moving your neck was bad enough!!" the Ninetails aura shout, Gardevoir suddenly screaming once again from the other side of the barrier as she sensed his pain. "Her link with you isn't helping matters either... Stay still you idiot!!" it shout, gritting its teeth as Chris continued raising up. "C... Ca..n... Fe... el... Legs..." he hacked, weakly putting a trembling hand on his leg. "Th... anks..." he groaned, suddenly trying to force himself onto his legs as his body cracked and popped from head to toe, seemingly half of his bones still broken. "I said stop!!! Your organs were healed but not your skeleton!!! They could pierce you from the inside out at any second!!!" the Ninetails aura screamed, struggling to stop Gardevoir and unable to stop Chris physically at the same time.

"I'm f... ine... Jus...t... Get... To Gar... devoir..." he groaned, suddenly clutching his stomach and hacking more blood all over the ground, Servine sobbing uncontrollably as she continued trying to coax him to stop. Wobbling from head to toe, it was as if Chris didn't have a single bone in his legs supporting him, seemingly standing using muscle and pure willpower alone as his mangled body forced itself to move. "St... op..." he groaned, dragging his feet along, slowly inching his way closer to Ninetails aura. "Gard... evoir... St... op..." he gasped, weakly reaching out a hand before more of his blood suddenly spewed from his mouth, nearly drowning him as he gagged and coughed violently, Servine letting out another scream in response as she begged him loudly to stop. Ignoring her, he continued dragging his way along until he was next to the Ninetails aura, looking up at Gardevoir as she sobbed while screaming, her unrelenting attack seemingly growing more and more powerful as several cuts began appearing all over her, the power slowly doing exactly as Ninetails aura predicted.

"The bar...rier... Drop it... K... Keep it... Around Serv...ine..." he said, clutching his stomach while gasping for air. "Are you insane human?! You have a lifetime remaining of debt to pay me!! I will not allow you to avoid your fate!! She will massacre you!! I cannot save someone torn to pieces!!" the Ninetails aura responded, gritting its teeth as he groaned, shutting his eyes tightly as more blood came from deep within, causing him to go into yet another coughing fit as his legs began to shake more and more. "Just... Do it... H... Hurry..." he groaned, gritting his teeth as he tried to control his breath. Looking up at him, the Ninetails aura shook its head before looking back at Gardevoir, slowly stepping near Servine. "Fool..." it grumbled, suddenly taking down the barrier and flashing one up around Servine and itself instead. Now free to enter the confined space, Gardevoir was ready to unleash her barbaric power, for a moment ready to blindly attack before recognizing Chris's presence and halting herself just an inch from his face. Weakly putting his arms up at his sides to block her with his own body, Chris let out another cough, wincing in pain before looking at her once more. "That's... Eno...ugh..." he told her, causing Gardevoir to go wide eyed and tremble in sudden terror as if a ghost was in front of her. She had merely sensed him until now... But to actually feel the one she thought dead standing in front of her...

"Ch... Chris...? Chris??!!!" she shout, quickly reaching out and holding his face between her hands, feeling his head and face all over. "Pl...ease... Stop... Okay...? No more... No killing... No hurting..." he told her, suddenly hacking blood all over her hands as his legs nearly buckled from beneath him, Gardevoir jerking herself back as she felt the pain running through him. The way she evolved caused her excruciating pain... But even in comparison to that... What she felt running through him... It was unreal... He shouldn't be able to move... Let alone stand... Looking at Chris, she suddenly gave him a "...what are you...?" type of expression, his endurance shocking her even in her present chaotic state of mind.

"Hurt... You're hurt... This pain... You should be... Dead... Your body... I sense... Wounds... So many... Wounds..." she responded, holding her hands out as a sudden look of fear spread across her face. "Blood... Bl... Blood... You're..." she muttered as tears began streaming from her eyes once again, her body shaking from head to toe. "Y...es... I'm hurt... B... Bad... So... No more... Please... Stop hurting..." he told her, suddenly collapsing onto his knees as he started hacking once again, more blood coming from his mouth than before. "Not good... If he pushes his body any further his organs will rupture again..." the Ninetails aura muttered, Servine looking up at her in terror before banging her fists on the shield, screaming at Chris while Gardevoir stood before him, facing down as if everything within her mind had shut down in the moment. "...Why...?" she asked as Chris grit his teeth, trying to control the blood and his breathing at the same time. "C... Couldn't let you... Murder... That... Isn't you... Couldn't let that... Linger over y... Your head..." he responded weakly, looking up as her expression began showing misery and frustration combined.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to stand one more time, putting his arms back out yet again. "G... Gardevoir... I told you... When we met that you... Would never be or... ordered around..." he coughed, some of his blood winding up on her face, causing her to jolt back in response as she rubbed it off with her hand. Turning pale from sensing more of his blood on her, she trembled all the more as she began reaching out for him. "B... But this... Trying to kill... I can't allow it... Even if its for me... Y... You've go... Got to get through me... If you want to kill anyone..." he coughed, suddenly grabbing onto her using what strength he had, causing Gardevoir to gasp loudly. "Ga... Gardevoir... If its what I have to do... Th... Then I order you... To stop..." he groaned, clinging to her as another coughing fit overwhelmed him, his blood now streaming from his mouth and down the front of her body, surrounding the horn on her chest. With his arms wrapped around her, Gardevoir was seemingly trapped, frozen like stone as her mind swirled rapidly, and in response, her power unleashed itself once more like that of an almighty hurricane, twisting and spiraling high into the sky around them as if Chris had pulled a cork right out of some type of reservoir within Gardevoir...

"I know... You hate that Houndoom... For what it did to you... To us... But you've got to be.. Better than that... Don't stoop to its level..." he told Gardevoir as her hands twitched rapidly, randomly clenching tightly into fists as she shook her head and tried to jerk herself free. "You... Scream about protecting me... But how... How can you protect me... If you're willing to fight against me... Especially in this condition...? If you were my guardian... Wouldn't my well being be more important... Than revenge?" he asked, causing Gardevoirs eyes to shoot open wide as her resistance suddenly stopped. "If you want... To be my guardian... Then prove it... Prove you aren't a monster... Prove you're better... Than that Houndoom..." he groaned, suddenly slipping off her body and landing on the ground in front of her. "No more... Fighting..." he told her, reaching up and grabbing Gardevoir by the ankle as he passed out, slowly closing his eyes as his grip on her loosened until his hand slipped onto the ground as well.

Facing him, Gardevoir slowly reached down, touching Chris on the face as the power swirling around them slowly began to fade. "I... Will stop... Find you... Help..." she said, the power suddenly bursting apart around them and fading away, exposing them to Servine and the Ninetails view. Seeing him on the ground in front of Gardevoir, Servine started hyperventilating rapidly, her eyes wide as can be as she fanned herself, seemingly saying "oh god oh god oh god!!!" over and over before suddenly getting woozy and falling backwards. "...He is alright. Merely unconscious again... Surprisingly..." the Ninetails aura told her, suddenly removing the barrier around them and walking up to the two, causing Gardevoir to jolt and face it with a growl, gritting her teeth while pulling Chris close to her. "...So you have returned to the rational world after all. At least... I suppose... It would be wise of you to show me your gratitude... I have done for him what you abysmally failed to do..." the Ninetails aura echoed, causing Gadevoir to show an expression of disappointment in herself. "...He was focused on you two the entire time he was unconscious you know, even with his critical state. Although his eyes were shut, he knew all that was going on..." the aura told her, walking closer to Chris.

"...His focus on the two of you wasn't because of my curse either. This was admittedly the one time I made an attempt to steer him away from his actions... But that heart of his... I needn't tell you how troublesome it can be... This human has a genuine love for the two of you... And as a result, the value in his own life fades to nothing when it concerns keeping the two of you safe..." it told Gardevoir, sitting down before them. "...And its for that very reason that you have failed not only because of me doing your job, but the very human you claim to dedicate yourself to surpassed you as well... His desire to keep you safe is indeed strong... But his value in the lives of others, no matter how they have wronged him... This moral is something you need to learn yourself... There is a lot of darkness inside you... A lot of frustration and detest... You need to learn to control it... Otherwise... You might wind up killing Chris himself one day in the crossfire by losing control of your power as you did tonight..." it told her, suddenly beginning to fade away as Gardevoir began weeping, gritting her teeth in frustration while clutching Chris tightly against her.

"This is strike two on your part... He already put himself in harms way to stop you the last time you lost your grip on sanity... One can protect those they love in many ways... Your method shown thus far is but one of them... Learn from your experiences and better yourself... And although I hate saying it... Learn from that human as well... Otherwise you will spend your life trying to be the guardian of a person who spends his life protecting you more often than not..." it warned as its aura began to fade more and more.

"...And he will spend his life protecting others from YOU as well." it echoed, finally fading away completely...