The Resistance
#12 of Fire and Shadow:part 1
awoke suddenly, gasping for breath. It had been so vivid, my dream. Did it really happen? Or am I just going crazy? Your mental condition is normal, but your combat needs a lot of work. I heard a disappointed voice in the back of my mind say. My training hadn't gone over well, to say the least. Even with all my abilities, skill, and constant repetition of "it isn't real", my humanity won me over, and wouldn't allow me to kill any pokemon. Humans are different; humans, depending on their morals, can be evil and corrupt. I can kill humans like that with little questioning. But pokemon... they are bound to their trainers by Pokeballs, forced to obey their whims. It isn't their fault they fight me, they are simply afraid of what would happen if they didn't. You are so pathetic, Umbra whispered, it pains me to hear you go on and on about this in your head. I scowled. What is your deal? You seemed so noble when you were awakened. Why are you so heatless? I heard cruel laughter echoing throughout my mind. I was thanking you for awakening me! I, unlike the creatures you refuse to kill when the need arises, am not bound by a ball. I can do whatever the hell I want, and what I want is to keep you alive. That won't be easy if you don't cooperate with me when you are training. I sighed heavily, then looked to a clock tower near the center of town. I tightened my fist when I saw the time: 11:45. Time to meet the troops, I thought excitedly. You're going to need the extra help, with or without training. You must get to know these people, their strengths and weaknesses, so we may create a proper strategy. Umbra planned in my head. I sighed, and quickly descended the ladder to the street below.
I waited in the alley ten minutes later, and was surprised to see a hooded figure emerge from the shadows. "You are Steven?" an electronic voice asked. Isquinted, struggling to see the person's face, but the hood shadowed it to well. "Yes. I was told to meet Leon here." The figure simply turned and walked deeper in the alley, beckoning me to follow. He led me to a sewer grate at a dead end, and moved it to the side. He motioned for me to climb down, and as I did, he quick looked around, obviously worried we were being followed. Then, when I reached the bottom of the ladder, he jumped down, landing silently beside me. He reached out and pushed a button on the wall behind me, and I heard a metallic scrape as the grate slid back into place. Then, he continued onward, leading me through a maze of sewer pipes.
After what seemed like silent ages, the pipe led us to a large room with various tables scattered around. On these tables were various mechanisms that looked like they were from another planet or time. I heard heavy footsteps on the far end of the room, and saw Leon entering from a wide doorway, clapping his hands. "Ah, you made it! I'm sorry we didn't have many people, but there aren't many who want to risk taking on Team Blaze." He turned to the hooded figure beside me and asked, "Wesley, do you know where Gwen is?" He sounded very concerned. The hooded figure shook his head. "No sir, but you know she always runs late." Leon nodded. "Ah, yes. I keep telling her to stick to the schedule, but she always gets sidetracked with some project of hers." Wesley nodded as he removed the cloak he was wearing, sat at one of the tables and started to work on a shortbow-shaped device. "That guy, he's so polite. I keep telling him he doesn't have to call me sir, but he does." Leon chuckled. I looked at the strange person sitting at the table. "I don't want to sound rude, but is he a robot or something?" I could see now he was wearing a mask, which explained the voice filter. It looked like just a flat black mask, with a red skull painted over it and lenses in the eyes. He also looked like he was wearing a suit of armor that gave him a cyborg look. Leon looked at me quizzically, and then laughed. "Oh, no, he's as human as you and me. He just has a great knack for building things. See that suit he's wearing? He built it himself to make him stronger and less vulnerable. Other than explaining his gadgets, he doesn't talk much." Leon suddenly seemed mournful. "I think he lost someone close to him, like the rest of us, and couldn't handle it, so he shut down." I nodded. I understood what it was like to lose hope.
Suddenly there was a clattering, followed by some incoherent, angry yelling. A door on the right end of the room burst open, and a woman stumbled in, carrying several rolled up pieces of paper. "Sorry I'm late, boys, but I got a little caught up looking at these blueprints. I think I may have found a way to get onto the carrier!" she dropped the papers onto the table, and her eyes widened when she saw me. It was the woman from the festival that had given me the amulet! "Steven! You're alive!" she rushed over to me and quickly hugged me. Then she backed away, embarrassed. "Sorry about that, it's just you're the only person besides Leon that I've seen from the village after the attack. Seeing you is especially a surprise after that attack you took." She was looking at me curiously. "Oh, I see, you have a healing factor, so you were able to survive the blow." "Ok, you're freaking me out. How do you know so much about me?" I exclaimed. It was really freaky when somebody knew so much about me. She laughed and explained: "I'm a psychic, remember? I've been getting stronger, thanks to my bond with Morgana." She tossed out a pokeball, and after a blinding flash a Gardevoir was standing next to her. It looked at me with curiosity, and a voice filled my mind, He doesn't look that great. I jumped back a few feet. "What the hell was that?" I shouted.
Gwen smiled. "Gardevoir is a psychic type, so she has telepathic abilities." Yeah, stupid. The voice said teasingly. I smiled, feeling stupid. Leon walked up to her quickly. "What is this I heard about a way onto the carrier?" he asked excitedly. Gwen's eyes lit up. "Oh, right! Take a look at this!" she unrolled one of the papers onto the table, revealing it was a set of blueprints. "Morgana was able to get these out of a Team Blaze vault with her telekinesis. It's the schematis for the carrier!" I stared at them intently, and shrugged. "I'm not the kind of guy who understands blueprints. What are we looking for here?" Gwen pointed at a spot in the back of the carrier. "This is where the anchor is kept. If we can get to it, we can climb the chain and get right into the carrier, extremely close to the surveillance room!" I nodded and clenched a fist. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" I said angrily. Just then, I heard an electronic laugh behind me. I turned and saw Wesley walking over to me. "You really think it's that easy, getting on there? You need a plan, and supplies, neither of which we have. However, I know exactly what you need to get on that boat." He pointed to a small box on the table. "Stealth box." He said proudly. "Makes you completely invisible. They are going to have radar on that carrier, so you need to be hidden." He handed it to me. "Press the button."
I looked down and saw a red button staring me in the face. I pressed it hesitantly, and in that instant my hand and the box disappeared. I widened my eyes. "Impressive." I said quietly. Wesley nodded and went on: "It isn't perfect, though; it only works for fifteen minutes, and if you move too much it weakens. You need to stand perfectly still in order to be completely unseeable." I moved my arm, and it slowly flickered into view. "This alone won't help you, though. I've heard about these powers of yours. Why don't you give us a demonstration?" he sat down again, and looked at me expectantly. I shrugged and conjured my signature helix sword. I flipped it into the air and swung it down as I caught it, unleashing a wave of energy that slammed into the wall on the far end of the room. I looked back at him. "Satisfied?" I asked. He nodded. "I'm sold." He turned to Leon. "Shall we head out tomorrow, sir?" Leon chuckled. "For the last time, you don't have to call me sir! And yes, tomorrow will be perfect. Everybody get some rest. We've got a big day ahead of us." He beckoned me. "I'll show you to our spare room."
I lay in my bed, thinking about the next day. I could hardly believe that after what seemed like an eternity, I was finally going to see Vix. Suddenly, a shape loomed over me, and I rolled over quickly. It was Morgana, Gwen's Gardevoir, and she did not look very happy. You think too loud, it's keeping me awake! I smiled sheepishly. "Sorry," I whispered, "It's just tomorrow's a big day." She sat down next to me. It is for us all. Tell me, how did you meet Vix? She asked. I raised an eyebrow. "Can't you just read my mind and see for yourself?" I asked. She looked down. I could, but it's better when you are told by the person. Makes it seem more like a story. I nodded and told her the story, starting from when I had heard noises in the forest, all the way up to when we left the abandoned house.
I looked at her when I was finished. Her face was hidden in the shadows, but I heard her voice in my head, that's a beautiful story, Steven. She said mournfully. I looked down and smiled. "That's why I want to save her: so our story can continue. I don't want to lose her." I looked at her and noticed she was crying softly. "What's the matter?" I asked, concerned. She shook her head lightly, and I heard her voice in my head, sounding as if she were sobbing even in her mind, I was once in a similar situation, before I met Gwen. There was a boy I loved very much. We fought together, as if we were on level ground rather than master and pet. We almost kissed a few times, but we weren't ready at the time. One day, he got really sick, and died. I still haven't forgiven myself for trying harder to save him. She put her head in her hands and her crying was more audible. I put my arm around her and patted her shoulder. "Hey, I'm sorry. I know what it's like to lose someone close, and not just with Vix. I lost my parents a long time ago, and have been on my own since." She looked up at me, her eyes wide. "You just gotta learn to move on. You keep the memories as long as you live, and no matter how hard they hurt, you keep moving, letting those experiences make you a better and stronger person. I guess you're right. Without what I've been through, I wouldn't have met Gwen, a wonderful person who has been my best friend. I smiled. "Sometimes all we need is a friendly hand to pull us out of the darkness." She smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes. Then, she leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek. Thank you, Steven. She whispered in my mind. I stared dumbfounded as she stood up and slowly walked out of the room. You hound, Umbra teased in the back of my mind. You shut up. I retorted. Easy, buddy. Now, why don't you come on over and train? He suggested. I stiffened. No. I'm done training if all you're going to do is get me to kill. I closed my eyes. It doesn't matter if you can't kill or not, you still need to train. I promise I won't make you kill anything, but you need the experience. I nodded. Alright. Let's get started.